Ford is introducing a new one-litre ‘EcoBoost’ three-cylinder petrol engine, developed in Europe, and the smallest, by cylinder count, the automaker has built.
Ford also said confirmed its next generation hybrid vehicles, including the C-Max MPV/minivan in 2013, will have a transmission designed, engineered and built in-house.
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Derrick Kuzak, who heads global product development, said the three cylinder, in-line, engine had been developed for worldwide application – including the US.
The I3 has already been confirmed for the B-Max, a B-segment MPV which goes on sale in Europe during 2012, and is also destined for other small cars.
Ford claims the “super-efficient” three-pot delivers the same performance as a four-cylinder but with much better fuel economy and lower emissions.
Engineers at its Dunton, UK small capacity engine development centre, focused on improving thermal efficiency and reducing friction of the engine’s internal moving parts, especially during warm-up.
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By GlobalDataOther features are an offset crankshaft that reduces friction, split cooling system that allows the cylinder block to warm up before the cylinder head, exhaust manifold cast into the cylinder head to lower exhaust gas temperature, and EcoBoost technologies, such as turbocharging, direct-injection and twin independent variable camshaft timing.
Smart currently offers a three-cylinder engine. Other models have included Suzuki’s Swift and its various US Geo and Chevrolet mutants, the Daihatsu Charade and Subaru Justy.
The new transmission for hybrid vehicles will be manufactured at the Van Dyke plant in Detroit and at full volume by first quarter 2012. The new transmission replaces a unit currently made in Japan and currently used in Ford and Lincoln hybrids sold in North America.
The new hybrid transmission is an electronic CVT claimed to improve performance over the current unit with a greater top speed on electric only power and a longer range.
