Hybrids, clean-burning diesels and battery-powered electric vehicles are getting the lion’s share of publicity these days, but the good old gasoline- burning internal combustion engine isn’t dead yet.
Proof of that is the worldwide demand for Ford products with EcoBoost engines. And to help meet that demand, the fifth member of the EcoBoost family has been announced by the Blue Oval.
A 1.5L EcoBoost engine is about to begin production at Ford’s plant in Craiova, Romania. By the end of the year five more locations will be assembling the new engine worldwide. Ford says that will give the company the ability to build 1.6 million EcoBoost engines annually.
The new 1.5L EcoBoost will be introduced in the all-new Ford Mondeo on April 21 at Auto Shanghai 2013 and will be available later this year in the European Mondeo and the 2014 North American Ford Fusion.
The 1.5L engine will get EcoBoost turbocharging, direct fuel injection and variable valve timing resulting in a 20% boost in fuel economy and a 15% reduction in emissions according to Ford.
Some of the innovative features introduced on the 1.0L EcoBoost, such as an integrated exhaust manifold, will be found on the new aluminum-block, twin-cam 1.5L engine. It also will be the first engine from Ford to incorporate a computer-controlled clutch on the belt-drive water pump to further improve efficiency by reducing warm-up time. Peak output is expected to be similar to Ford’s 1.6L EcoBoost, which makes 178-horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque.
“Ford EcoBoost technology has changed the way people look at gas engines and has enjoyed huge success with customers,” said Joe Bakaj, Ford vice president, powertrain engineering. “The new 1.5L unit further extends our EcoBoost promise of economical driving in terms of both fuel efficiency and – in some markets – tax savings.”
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