Small engines are more likely to be described as economical than powerful but with Fords newest EcoBoost engine it looks like you can have the best of both worlds. The 3-cylinder 1-litre petrol engine is Fords smallest engine yet but Ford has promised that as well as great fuel economy youll get a performance not far from that of a 4-cylinder.
Joe Bakaj, vice president of Global Powertrain Engineering said: Drivers are going to like the new 1.0-litre EcoBoost because it delivers great low-speed responsiveness, power, torque and smoothness.
The Citroean C1 and Peugeot 107 already have a 3 cylinder engines in their line up but Ford have said that there is no other 3 pot engine like theirs. New, more advanced technology, including an offset crankshaft that reduces internal friction and split cooling system, have helped make the 1 litre the most economical engine ever produced by the US automaker. Bakaj said that the advancements will heavily influence future engines: The new engine introduces many new technologies that could be part of the DNA of future Ford engines."
The new engine technology will be particularly welcome in the US where strict fuel economy standards will be coming into force by 2016. By the 2016 model year all cars and trucks have to achieve a minimum of 35.5 miles per gallon by law.
Mpg and CO2 figures for the new 1 litre Ecoboost engine are yet to be released, but should be revealed later this year at the Frankfurt Motorshow. Ill definitely be heading to my local
Ford dealer in Berkshire, as itll be interesting to see just how powerful the little one really is, it has to be more powerful than the Fiat 500 0.9 litre Twinair engine. The two cylinder engine emits just 95g/km and promises 68.8 miles per gallon on the combined cycle, but produces just 85bhp.
The B-MAX will be the first Ford car to benefit from their smallest engine; the mini-mpv goes on sale in the UK in 2012. Its expected the 3 pot engine will be rolled out across Fords small car range over the next few years.
