► New Ford EcoBlue diesel engine
► 2.0-litre 4cyl first, 1.5 to follow
► Low-friction ‘clean-sheet’ design
Ford’s EcoBoost petrol engine family has scooped awards and column inches; now can the Blue Oval apply the same success formula to a diesel? Well, we’ll find out soon enough – this is the new EcoBlue diesel engine, which was officially revealed today.
The new 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel will be available in a range of outputs from 99bhp to 237bhp, and will make its debut in the Ford Transit van before being rolled out across certain Ford car models.
Ford’s new EcoBlue diesel engine – what’s the story?
Described by Ford as a ‘clean-sheet’ design, the new engine features a long list of friction-reducing features to help boost efficiency, including:
- Offset crankshaft by 10mm for reduced piston side-load and therefore reduced rubbing against cylinder walls
- Smaller-diameter crankshaft bearings
- Belt-in-oil design for camshaft and oil pump drive belts
- Intake system with ‘mirror-image’ porting – clockwise airflow for cylinders one and two, anti-clockwise for three and four
- Low-inertia turbocharger made from materials designed to run at high temperatures
- High-pressure fuel injection system said to be quieter and more responsive
The engine’s endowed with plenty of low-end torque, says Ford, with 20% more pulling power at 1,250rpm compared with the outgoing 2.2-litre TDCi commercial vehicle diesel engine. It’s also half as noisy at idle than the same 2.2 lump.
‘The basic structure of an engine can act as a soundboard for the movements happening inside it, just like a bell,’ says Ford NVH specialist Dominic Evans. ‘So we try to develop a bell that does not ring very well.’
Which cars will the new Ford EcoBlue diesel engine go into?
Firstly, it’ll go into a couple of vans – variants of the Transit and Transit Custom – with a choice of 103bhp, 128bhp and 168bhp power outputs.
More powerful versions, and a smaller 1.5-litre variant, will later be fitted into Ford passenger cars – although Ford is yet to officially announce which cars and when.
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