Ford’s ultra-fuel efficient and spirited 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine, designed and engineered in the UK, has been named 2013 International Engine of the Year, marking the second straight year Ford’s acclaimed three-cylinder engine has captured the award.

The 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine – which combines direct fuel injection, turbocharging and variable valve timing to lower fuel consumption without sacrificing power – received the highest score in the history of the awards. The engine also won the “Best Engine Under 1.0-litre” category at the annual awards presented by Engine Technology International magazine.

Ford has confirmed plans to double production of the engine at its Cologne (Germany) engine plant to more than 1,000 engines a day from mid-August to meet demand.

“With a technology as mature as the internal combustion engine, it’s very rare to achieve a true breakthrough, but that is exactly what the team accomplished with this engine,” explained Joe Bakaj, Ford vice president, Global Powertrain. “You have to drive it to believe a small three-cylinder engine can deliver such performance and fuel economy.”

A panel of 87 automotive journalists from 35 countries around the world judged the awards on driveability, performance, economy, refinement and the successful application of advanced engine technology. Ford is one of three car makers to record back-to-back victories in the 15-year history of the awards.

The Ford 1.0-litre EcoBoost has also won the Royal Automobile Club Dewar Trophy for ‘outstanding British technical achievement in the automotive industry’. Most recently, Andrew Fraser, Ford’s gasoline calibration manager, was awarded the Jim Clark Memorial Award for his work on the engine by the Association of Scottish Motoring Writers on June 1.

“Who''d have believed it? A 1.0-litre engine that has it all, powerful, fuel efficient, clean and lightweight,” said Peter Lyon, UK juror and freelance journalist. “This is a masterpiece.”

The 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine design and development was led out of Ford’s research and development centres in Dunton and Dagenham, UK.

Dean Slavnich, co-chairman of the 15th International Engine of the Year awards and editor of Engine Technology International Magazine, said: “Baby EcoBoost – Ford’s first-ever three-cylinder design – is still the engine to beat across the board. It’s economical in real-world conditions while the compact turbo helps ensure that the entire package can power larger vehicles like the Grand C-MAX with ease.”

The 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine is currently offered in Ford small and medium cars. It boasts up to 125PS while returning 65.7 mpg combined (in Fiesta). The engine is also available in the Ford B-MAX, Focus, C-MAX and Grand C-MAX.  Small enough to fit in the overhead luggage compartment of an aeroplane, the engine delivers best-in-class petrol fuel economy in Ford Fiesta, Focus, C-MAX and Grand C-MAX.

In the near future it will power larger cars including the new Ford Mondeo. It also will be offered in Transit Connect and Transit Courier commercial vehicles and Tourneo Connect and Tourneo Courier people movers. 

The engine is being rolled out throughout the world. It is now available for customers buying the new EcoSport in India and China and later this year will be offered with Fiesta in North America.

Ford of Europe plans to triple annual production of vehicles equipped with fuel-efficient EcoBoost petrol engines to approximately 480,000 by 2015, from 141,000 in 2011. 

The company projects that more than 300,000 of those vehicles will be equipped with the 1.0-litre EcoBoost. In the first quarter of 2013 in Europe, the 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine accounted for 42 per cent of orders in B-MAX, 30 per cent in Focus and 24 per cent in Fiesta across Ford’s 19 traditional European markets. 

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