Ford tests cylinder deactivation on 1.0L EcoBoost, reports 6% gain in fuel efficiency in prototype system

ford 1.0 ecoboost

In collaboration with engineering partners Schaeffler Group, Ford has been evaluating cylinder deactivation on its three-cylinder 1.0 litre EcoBoost engine in a bid to make the award-winning mill even more fuel efficient.

On-road tests using a working prototype have showed fuel efficiency improvements of up to 6% after engineers conducted an experimental investigation into cylinder deactivation. The evaluation has also seen the development of a new dual mass flywheel, which has enabled cylinder deactivation to take place at a wider range of engine loads and speeds.

For the trials, engineers equipped a Ford Focus 1.0L EcoBoost with cylinder deactivation hardware that they could monitor deactivation of one cylinder. They also explored rolling cylinder deactivation to run the engine in half-engine mode.

ford 1.0 ecoboost 02

They also fitted the prototype with a newly-developed system that combined a dual mass flywheel, a pendulum absorber and a tuned clutch disc, which the automaker says is particularly effective at lower revs. As well as enabling a wider operating range of cylinder deactivation, the system helped counteract any effect that the cylinder deactivation had on levels of noise, vibration and harshness.

Fuel efficiency improvements were recorded in homologated conditions and during test drives of the prototype vehicle, done over a typical commuter distance of 55 km on a combination of motorway, city roads and rural roads in and around Cologne, Germany.

Cylinder deactivation is among a number of fuel efficiency solutions Ford is investigating for its three-time Engine of the Year winner at its European Research and Innovation Centre in Aachen. In Malaysia, the engine is currently available on the Ford Fiesta 1.0L EcoBoost.

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • Obviously (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 1:35 pm

    Hmmm…this tiny mill is getting more complicated.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
    • Telan minyak on May 08, 2015 at 2:26 pm

      Campro still the world’s best engine.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 9
      • Ah Beng (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 2:50 pm

        Hehe..u can talk whatever u want because of your “kiasu”ness..just wait and c 2-3 years coming this tech will b available in Proton TGDI engine..Hahaha..

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
      • Campro on May 08, 2015 at 2:57 pm

        Yah, world’s best engine in ‘eating’ oil

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 1
        • e-cgi on May 08, 2015 at 4:46 pm

          Not really, more powerful than 2.0l VTEC

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 2
          • Vtech on May 10, 2015 at 12:44 am

            are u kidding me??use campro compare vtech ???? campro just nothing ,just a the 1st twin cam 16 valve engine in proton history

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • cylinder deactivation is definitely a welcome addition especially for those who spent most of their time in traffic jams

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 1
    • Obviously (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 2:53 pm

      It’s either that or engine start-stop. And who wants their aircond compressor to stop during a traffic jam?!

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
      • start-stop if not implemented properly can be very annoying & on some cars it won’t work if it thinks the car is using too much power.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • AVH (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 2:50 pm

    Not sure weather complexity is the way to go for something that is, in all intends and purposes, a very complex mil. The small, and I mean something with 1.0l small, usually do not live out to their expected Fuel Consumption figures in real world driving. Also reliability becomes an issue if, like my family, holds on to a vehicle for more than 10 years.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
    • Obviously (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 5:43 pm

      My concerns exactly. It’s already a pretty highly stressed engine and now they’re adding even more things that could go wrong. I hope they carry out a thorough durability test on this thing.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • Bobby (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 3:10 pm

    To put it into perspective, this diminutive engine produces the same power per liter as the 8.0-liter 16-cylinder Bugatti Veyron. But it costs a fraction of that Veyron stupid car!!

    So if your 5 litre TNH or BMW has less than 125 HP per litre, your car is definitely underpower and its time to change. Do not attempt to race against it from stand still.

    Engine of the year, 3 times over. Great stuff!!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 9
    • 4G63T DSM on May 08, 2015 at 3:55 pm

      Another keyboard warrior looking up spec sheets.

      Who cares about specific outputs. I figured that by now the guys have learnt that although your car may have super high specific outputs, you’d still get spanked by Turbo and Big displacement engines. Its torque that matter.

      The point is, even if you make 125hp/L, you still only HAVE 125hp. A 328 which only makes 120hp/L will still run rings around the Fiesta…let alone a Veyron.

      Lets see how you manage to put a super high specific output superbike engine in a car and see how you fair…….

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
      • Obviously (Member) on May 08, 2015 at 5:41 pm

        Well said, but I think that Bobby guy might have been sarcastic. For his own good, I hope he was.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 1
  • kapchai on May 08, 2015 at 7:02 pm

    WOW! cylinder deactivation on a 3-cylinder engine? Means only 2-cylinders running. I really wonder how’s feel like running on 2-cylinders.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Jeffrey Ng on May 09, 2015 at 8:59 pm

      Possibly,

      1. Deactivating the centre cylinder leaves 2 cylinders running, 1 & 3 = very well balanced engine.

      2. Going extreme by deactivating 2 cylinders, 1 & 3 = only the centre cylinder 2 running + slight overboost to maintain rotational inertia. Perfectly balanced engine.

      Either way, it’s an amazing engine!

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • art248 on May 09, 2015 at 7:38 pm

    2 cylinders. Lol, like the Alfa Romeo twin air engine. XD

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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