Ford's smallest engine finds home under hood of Indian EcoSport
Ford's newest CUV for the Indian market displaces a mere 1.0 liter.
- North American Car, Truck and SUV of the Year (NACTOY) Awards Juror
Last year, when Ford announced its smallest EcoBoost engine yet, we fully expected the new mill to find its way under the hood of a Ford Fiesta. Turns out that we were only partially correct.
Today, Ford announced that it would be unveiling the all-new Ford EcoSport at the New Delhi Auto Expo. This small crossover--which looks like a ruggedized, upright version of the Fiesta hatchback--will be powered by the smallest of the EcoBoost family, the turbocharged and direct-injected, 1.0-liter, three-cylinder engine.
Ford claims that with an output of about 118 converted horsepower (120 PS), this mighty mite of an engine will offer the performance of a naturally aspirated 1.6-liter engine, but more efficiently and with fewer emissions--less than 140g/km, according to Ford's estimates.
In addition to just being small, the 1.0-liter EcoBoost and its five-speed manual transmission achieve the claimed blend of efficiency and power with the aid of the aforementioned turbocharging and direct-injection technologies. The quick spooling turbo is said to eliminate lag, allowing the engine to develop its maximum 125 pound-feet of torque (170 Nm) as low in the powerband as 1,300rpm. A cast-iron engine block and a "split cooling" system allow the small engine to warm up quicker, while an exhaust manifold cast into the cylinder head help manage exhaust gas temperatures. Variable camshaft technologies, friction reducing coatings, and intelligent auxiliary components (such as the variable oil pump and air-conditioning compressor) help round out this engines bag of eco tricks.
According to Joe Bakaj, Ford's vice president of global power-train engineering, "The 1.0-litre EcoBoost delivers great low-speed responsiveness, power, torque, and smoothness. To produce an engine with such impressive performance and fuel economy clearly reflects our commitment to be class-leading in fuel economy around the world."
Ford claims that this all-new engine will ultimately make appearances under the hood of Ford models for the Chinese, European, and--most interestingly--North American markets. Should I be keeping hope alive for an EcoBoost Fiesta sometime in the near future, or will Ford do something more dramatic like put this mill at the heart of an eco-trim Focus? Only time will tell.