Ford Could Boost Displacement Of Ecoboost 3-Cylinder
The 3-cylinder Ecoboost engine developed by Ford won’t necessarily stay at its current displacement of 1.0L. According to the Blue Oval, there’s a fair bit of power – and displacement – left on the table.
In world markets where vehicles are taxed on displacement, the 999cc engine is a boon to buyers who can buy something like a Mondeo-sized vehicle while avoiding the steep levies of a relatively larger powertrain. But Andrew Fraser, Ford’s head of gasoline engine development, told AutoExpress that as the regulations vary by country, so can the engine’s displacement.
“We have a maximum capacity per cylinder of 500cc, so a 1.5-litre engine is certainly possible. In growing markets there are incentives for certain sizes of engines, so in Brazil they want a 1.0-litre engine, in India it’s 1.2 and in China it’s 1.5 – the EcoBoost engine could be all of those.”
Fraser cited 200 horsepower as a possible figure for the larger displacement motors. The 1.0L engine in maximum tune can put out as much as 220 horsepower when pushed to its limits.
More by Derek Kreindler
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"We have a maximum capacity per cylinder of 500cc" I remember reading a while ago someone at BMW going on about the 5.0 V10, 4.0 V8, and a half a liter per cylinder. Ford copied them!! Surprising no one
Why not a SMALLER motor? Say, 600cc? Take the best qualities of Smart, IQ and Mini- then build a "better Ford"?
[quote]More and more studies of driver behavior are telling the OEMs that, as American roads get more crowded and speed violation fines more draconian, drivers are more concerned with quick off-the-line acceleration rather than with sustained speeds much more than 80mph. [/quote] A very small heavily boosted turbo will feel flat or weak below 1500rpm. There really is no replacement for displacement. [quote]being the case, turbo- or super-charged motors are the way to go. In the stoplight wars and gridlocked commute, such engines can be more satisfying to drive. Ancillary benefits include economy that is – if not better – then certainly no worse than the bigger engines they replace, and generally speaking less weight, which, in time, could give rise to better handling & ride characteristics. [/quote] Only if compared to DOHC small sixes. If we are talking about driving feel you can't beat the high torque/low center of gravity/low weight of an OHV V-8. I have found these have the best driving characteristics and are some of the cheapest to make.. Too bad they aren't so great on gas. The turbo and OHC equitment add weight and raise the COG of the sophisticated engines. And when you replace displacement with boost you get some awful turbo lag. Don't get me wrong the BMW I-6 twin turbo is an awesome engine. But a 1.0L heavily boosted Ford thing is just for regs. You wouldn't design an engine like this without market manipulation.
Doesnt all this forced induction hardware require higher octane ga$oline ?