http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/ Autoblog Comments for VIDEO: Ford Powertrain Director talks EcoBoost http://www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2008 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 8:09PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 8:12PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 9:40PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Apr 2nd 2008 1:57AMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
Sounds like a company that really "gets it".]]>Apr 1st 2008 1:37AMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
I was saying they seem to "get it" now. I wasn't talking about what mistakes they have made in the past or what they currently have available. In the near future they are making a smart move to a powertrain strategy that will help improve their MPG average noticeably while not sacrificing performance or significantly raising costs . It may be a small step, but it is a very realistic and practical one that could none-the-less have a positive impact for them.

If they properly pair the powertrain strategy with better styling and improved interiors while keeping some of the good reliability they have had with recent cars like the fusion, they might finally begin to dig out of the hole they dug themselves.]]>Apr 1st 2008 5:14AMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
... and hatch backs, and sedans , and wagons , and suvs - as an option on damn near every product line out of Germany and most of Japan for the last few decades or so :).

Seriously?

If you're into FI grab a GTi, or a C30, or a Jetta, or a GLI, or a Passat, or the upcoming Tiguan, or the WRX, or the EVO, or the CX-7, or the MS3, or damn near all of Merc's lineup, or the 335i, or the forthcoming X6, or the 135i, or... I'd love to see just how those [mainly] "low volume sports cars" compare to the vast raft of FI models currently sold in the US ranging from hatchbacks to SUVs. I guess ‘mainly’ accounts for far less then the majority now?
]]>Mar 31st 2008 8:13PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
Turbocharged engines may seem more efficient but nearly all of them use a lot of fuel in performance applications.

If you drive a turbocharged car like a Grand National, STi, or 3000GT as it's meant to be driven they average in the teens for overall fuel consumption, which is not better than most modern V8s out there. Modern V8s will also sip fuel if you drive with a light foot just as a turbocharged engine will.

Turbocharged engines aren't going to magically make performance vehicle money-saving, fuel-sipping green machines. If you really want an economy car, buy an economy car.
]]>Mar 31st 2008 8:26PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
It's just more of the "green" marketing crap everyone seems to be buying into. Heck, alot of consumer products that have been on the market for years unchanged are now marketed as "green" and people are buying them now. ]]>Mar 31st 2008 8:35PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
Another is lower frictional and thermal losses, especially compared the cylinder deactivation.]]>Mar 31st 2008 9:03PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Ecoboost on the other hand is a name that seems intended to support the new Ford philosophy of downsizing the majority of their engines for economy and green reasons and adding DI & TT in order to maintain an acceptable level of performance and improved greenest.
It also uses DI & TT, but the emphasis is not on the performance, or on the technology, it is on the use of the available technology to improve economy.
Ford doesn't claim to have invented anything new. It claims to be taking a new business strategy of applying this technology to everyday cars. Ford must do this while maintaining a high level of quality across many cars, so a careful pace would certainly seem appropriate.
And, if they happen to build a few Mustang V8 TTDIs and call them EcoBoost, I could live with that.


]]>Apr 1st 2008 1:29PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 8:35PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
My Saab can nearly beat my Fit's highway mileage if I stay off the throttle, despite 50% more HP and double the torque. It's not half-bad in the city, either, if I stay off the boost. Intelligently programmed and correctly geared, a turbo is a good choice, though getting the most of it will depend a lot on a driver's right foot.

I tend to use my Saab's turbo gauge as a fuel economy meter: dip into the yellow, and I'm burning dollars. If Ford's smart, they'll add an instantaneous consumption meter to any EcoBoost-powered cars]]>Mar 31st 2008 8:36PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
Is a turbo 4 lighter than a V8 yeah? But it's far from a slam dunk.

How about a 9,000rpm redline 2.0L instead? Now you're talking.]]>Apr 1st 2008 1:39AMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
Even worse, high specific hp (per L) engines are the WORST for fuel economy. They're so highly optimized for high rpm performance, that the aggressive fueling, cam profiles really hurt their all around economy. Just compare the regular Civic versus the Si. European small displacement V8s (think Ferraris) are some of the world champions in mileage (in a bad way...)]]>Apr 1st 2008 4:14AMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/
It's good for Ford
It's good for Economy
It's good for Performance
It's good for Consumers

I don't care who's fanboy you are. It's good!]]>Mar 31st 2008 8:37PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 10:48PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Apr 1st 2008 1:14PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 8:58PMhttp://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/31/video-ford-powertrain-director-talks-ecoboost/Mar 31st 2008 9:07PM