At the 2016 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), Ford has unveiled a new lightweight concept of its 1.0 litre EcoBoost mill, Autocar UK reports. Furthermore, the Blue Oval states that it is currently looking into cylinder deactivation for the punchy lightweight 1.0 litre three-cylinder engine.
A total of five components have been replaced to allow it to achieve a reduced weight percentage of 15.5%, as compared to the standard 1.0 litre EcoBoost engine. In detail, the new block weighs 14 kg, which is 40% less with the use of new materials and structure and assembly methods.
As for the cylinder head, it’s partially made out of carbon-fibre, while the connecting rods are formed from forged aluminium. Carbon-fibre is also used for the front cover and oil pan, which also contributes to lower noise, vehicle and harshness (NVH) levels, aside from the reduced weight.
Cylinder deactivation that will shut down the middle cylinder, allowing the 1.0 litre EcoBoost mill to run on just two cylinders, is still being explored. Director of powertrain research and advanced engineering Andreas Schamel noted that shutting down one cylinder in a three-cylinder mill would improve efficiency, but still retain the fun-to-drive characteristics.
The standard 1.0 litre EcoBoost engine can be found locally in the Ford Fiesta. Mated to a PowerShift six-speed dual-clutch transmission, the award-winning engine produces 125 PS at 6,000 rpm and 170 Nm at 1,400 to 4,500 rpm. In other markets, the unit can be found in the Ford Focus, EcoSport and the Mondeo.
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Good engine, problematic gearbox spoils the nice experience of the car.
That pretty much sums up the Fiesta sold here…
You own one? Mine no problem with gearbox
That is because your Fiesta 1.0 uses a different clutch assembly than the 1.5 Fiesta and Focus. It’s much more durable and uses an entirely different spring and shock absorbing setup. I am an owner too, cheers!
One of the reason in the new facelift Ford Focus, the dual dry clutch is removed and the gearbox is replaced.
I am one of the driver who is currently driving this engine. More than 1 1/2 year and after 30,000 km clocked, I am still amazed of how torquey and how much pace this little engine has.
About the gearbox, I’ve learned to understand it and live with it. To me, its logic is absolutely crap. It hunts for the highest gear like there’s no tomorrow and it’s TCU is over protective, the jerkiness is still there. But thankfully, although using the same 6DCT250 gear sets, the 1.0 Fiesta uses a different clutch plate that is much much more durable than the one found in 1.5 Fiesta and pre-facelift Focus. I can attest to that after making comparison on both of the clutch plates, a courtesy of a mechanic whom I befriend with. The Fiesta 1.0 version uses an entirely different clutch plate assembly.
Thus far, my solution to the 6DCT250 is drive it entirely in manual mode (coming from a manual background, I have no qualms do all the shifting myself, albeit that unnatural feeling that there’s no clutch paddle for my left foot to play with), I found that drive it entirely in manual mode actually made it to behave much natural like an old-school manual gear box, especially eliminating those juddering and jerkiness in slow traffic. Heck, I’ve even learn how to do a “pseudo heel toe” on this transmission. Anyone who drive the 6DCT250 with manual override mode will sometimes experience a power “hiccups” when you downshift. There’s a 1-3 seconds power hiccups no matter how hard you floor the paddle! This is a potential hazard and it also robs away lots of fun for any B road blasting session, it’s a shame because both Fiesta and Focus chassis are made to call B road home.
After some frustrating bewilderment, I discovered that such power hiccups are caused by the TCU unable to manipulate the engine rev to keep up with the downshift, hence, the stupid,. over protective TCU will wait until the rev drop before it deem you can safely execute the downshift without damaging the engine. This is more apparent if you are going uphill.
For example, if your’re in 3rd gear at 4,500 rpm, a sudden downshift to 2nd gear is not permissible because the TCU will deem it harmful to the engine. You will most certainly experience a power hiccups of 1-2 seconds. (to wait until the RPM drop to a “safe” level, before the TCU let you execute your downshift. But if you’re on a track or B road blasting, this is “potong steam” lah wei!).
The solution is to floor the paddle while simultaneously pushing that rocker switch on the gear lever. This will rev up the engine and match the downshift without creating a shift shock, thus creating a heel-toeing effect just like a manual car. By doing so, you’ll trick the TCU that the engine rev has been increased and hence the TCU will let you execute the downshift you desire, especially you’re entering a corner.
Nevertheless, be warn that this “pseudo heel-toe” of tricking the 6DCT250 to comply to your aggressive downshift does requires split second precision. Get the timing wrong, you might end up under the tree or longkang, so practice and timing is essential.
All these actions must be done in split second, so again timing is very important! Your must only rev up the engine during the very brief moment when the clutch is disengaged with the transmission, hence, there’s no increase of momentum even if you floor the paddle (just split second after you press the “-” sign on the rocker switch). After that, release the gas paddle briefly, about 0.5 seconds (at this moment, the clutch will be connected back with the transmission) and floor it for the second time. Now, you have snatch your desired downshifted gear, with an RPM which the TCU deem high enough to let you execute your downshifting and you’re ready to exit the corner with the speed and momentum simply impossible by driving in the computer controlled “D” mode.
If you’re an enthusiast who owned the 1.0 Fiesta and miss the three paddles because Sime Darby refuse to ship one, this is a compromised solution that you could try.
As for the little 1.0 engine, I really have no complains. It is truly the marvel of great engineering by Ford, just that the stupid transmission spoil the party, but you can actually override and trick it to listen to you, as I found out. For me, the Fiesta Ecoboost is definitely the closest thing to a hot hatch under 100k Ringgit can buy apart from the much beloved Swift Sport. If you are not willing to fork out 150k for an ST, the 1.0 is still an interesting option. Just that you’ve got to work extra hard to milk the most out of the engine with that stupid dual clutch transmission. I want three paddles in the Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost! Damn you Sime Darby can you hear me!?
Tallk talk talk…chicken talk
ppl who buy the focus or fiesta should just save to get the ST models.