Ford is expanding its fuel-efficient EcoBoost? portfolio with the addition of a 1.0-liter, three-cylinder engine and an all-new eight-speed automatic transmission.
Engineers at Ford?s Dunton Technical Centre in the U.K. began designing the new EcoBoost 1.0-liter engine long before the current spike in fuel prices pushed the cost of a gallon of gas over $4. Their goal: To design a technically advanced, super-efficient three-cylinder engine that delivers the same performance as a four-cylinder, but with much higher fuel economy and lower emissions
To do that, engineers at Dunton, Ford?s global center of excellence for small-capacity engines, focused on improving thermal efficiency and reducing friction of the engine?s internal moving parts, especially during warm-up. That?s when an engine emits higher levels of CO2 and other pollutants. The new engine introduces many new technologies that could someday be part of the DNA of future Ford engines, said Joe Bakaj, Ford vice president of Global Powertrain Engineering.
The new three-cylinder engine will be available globally in the company?s small cars. It will also play an important role in North America.
?Ford customers have embraced EcoBoost technology because of its ability to deliver power and performance with uncompromised fuel economy,? said Derrick Kuzak, group vice president of Global Product Development. ?We?re committed to expanding its reach to more customers so they can enjoy its unique blend of power, performance and fuel economy.??Consumers are telling us they want to buy affordable vehicles that get many more miles per gallon,? said Kuzak. ?Our new 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine will give consumers looking for hybrid-like fuel economy a new, more affordable choice.?
Final calibrations of the new EcoBoost 1.0-liter are under way. Kuzak said the new engine will deliver horsepower and torque outputs equivalent to or better than most normally aspirated 1.6-
?No one?s ever built a three-cylinder engine quite like this. Not only is it one of the most technically advanced and efficient engines we?ve ever designed, but it will introduce a number of new technologies to the Ford engine lineup,? said Bakaj.
For comparison, the newest member of Ford?s global EcoBoost engine family has about the same displacement as a cruiser motorcycle. Ford has never built a regular production car engine with fewer than four cylinders.
?Drivers are going to like the new 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine for many of the same reasons the EcoBoost F-150 is such a big hit,? said Bakaj. ?It will deliver great low-speed responsiveness, power, torque and smoothness.?
First seen in the Ford Start concept car that debuted at Beijing in 2010, the engine more recently made its European debut in the Ford B-MAX at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. More technical and application details for the new 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine will be released in September at the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany.
