Ford Introduces Smallest Engine Ever

June 6th, 2011 by Glenn Meyers

Ford's EcoBoost 1.0 liter and three-cylinder engine. Photo: automania.be

Once American car manufacturers took pride in releasing bigger and bigger engines each season. Now it’s time for a turnabout: Ford is in the midst of a global launch for the 1.0-liter and three-cylinder EcoBoost.

This is not only a positive step forward in global climate news, it will represent a huge leap forward in improved gas mileage and a lowered dollar output every week at the gas pump.

“No one has ever built a three-cylinder engine quite like this”, claimed Ford’s vice president of powertrain engineering Joe Bakaj. “It’s one of the most technically advanced and efficient engines we’ve ever designed. The new engine introduces many new technologies that could be part of the DNA of future Ford engines.

The EcoBoost series is reputed to deliver 20-30 percent better fuel economy. Many people see this engine as a more affordable alternative to hybrids and diesel engines.

The EcoBoost 1.0-liter engine was designed at Ford’s Dunton Technical Centre in the U.K. where engineers focused on improving thermal efficiency and reducing friction, particularly during warm-up when engines emit higher pollutant levels.

The new three-cylinder engine will feature an offset crankshaft for improved fuel economy, plus a split cooling system that allows the cylinder block to warm up before the cylinder head. Additionally, the exhaust manifold is cast into the cylinder head to lower exhaust gas temperatures and save weight.

Though no specific figures have been released, Ford claims the new engine will deliver performance equivalent or better than most normally aspirated 1.6-liter petrol engines.

According to AutoBlog, Ford will announce more information about the 1.0-liter engine at this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, including exactly what vehicles will be powered by this mill. “Since Ford is benchmarking its 1.6-liter engine here — the powerplant used in the Fiesta — we’d expect that this EcoBoost three almost certainly slot into Ford’s smallest offering here in the States.”

Pricing has not yet been announced but it is reasonable to expect many test drives will soon be scheduled by the curious. If successful in consumer appeal, the roadway may soon be filled with EcoBoost engines and other one-liter competitors.

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Tags: 1.0 liter, AutoBlog, Dunton Technical Centre, EcoBoost, Fiesta, Ford, Frankfurt auto show, improved mileage, Reduced gas mileage, three-cylinder engine

About the Author

Glenn Meyers is a writer, producer, and director. Meyers was editor and site director of Green Building Elements, a contributing writer for CleanTechnica, and is founder of Green Streets MediaTrain, a communications connection and eLearning hub. As an independent producer, he's been involved in the development, production and distribution of television and distance learning programs for both the education industry and corporate sector. He also is an avid gardener and loves sustainable innovation.

rahul

It is already used in Ford EcoSport car launched in India recently.
Sky Doctor

Agreed, it isn’t anywhere near the smallest engine ever. And wow, its almost as powerful as a super wimpy engine! Does that make it ultra wimpy? They should call it the Ford Neutered.
Dennis McCarthy

great, but smallest engine ever?
FM, I had a three cylinder suzuki that displaced 550 cc, just over half the size of this. And I had a Honda 70cc that was less than a 10th the size of this.

Look for a 2cycle smoker that displaces about 25cc at the end of a weed eater in any home improvement store. That would be 0.025 liters for the math impaired.

What about them little Cox glowplug engines in model cars, planes and boats – they’re just little tiny diesel engines.

It’s not even the smallest engine in a production motorcar, I had a fiat convertible with .85 liter engine back in the 70s
http://www.facebook.com/people/Ghangstalked-Poisonradiationtorturee/1421820577 Ghangstalked Poisonradiationto

Why does the Ford E series use engines that were obsolete 20 years ago?

Why does Ford not bring the full size Transit van to the USA?
Dougnearn

Honda used the offset crankshaft on their 2000-2006 Insight for 70 MPG
http://dottribes.com/iev Corina|EV

Wow! Up to 30% better fuel economy! That’s amazing.
Anonymous

Sounds like a great PHEV power plant. If it’s got enough power to push a reasonable sized car with ~50 miles of batteries on board.

The Volt has a 1.4 liter engine, smaller than the 1.6 liters that this engine supposedly equals. And I’m guessing that the Ford engine weighs less per horsepower than the Volt. Given better mpg that would also mean the need to carry less gas for the same range.

Volt drivers report using about 9 gallons of fuel per 1,000 miles driven. Increase efficiency and decrease engine/fuel weight and we might be able to get close to 5 gallons per one thousand miles.

Put half the drivers into EVs and half into PHEVs and we would use less than 10% of the gas that we now use. Save us a billion dollars a day importing oil and give our CO2 levels a serious whack.

Could be a winner.