With gas prices on the rise again, an increasing number of Ford F-150 buyers looking to save some (let’s not get carried away here…) cash at the pump without compromising on power are turning to the company’s new EcoBoost turbocharged V6 engine. According to Ford, demand for the EcoBoost engine in the F-150 has increased each month since production began in January. In March, one in every four (25%) models sold in the States was equipped with the force-fed V6, increasing to around 35 percent in April.
In the F-150, the 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost engine delivers 365 horsepower and 420 lb-ft of torque providing a towing capability of 11,300 lbs combined an EPA rating of 16 mpg in the city and 22 mpg on the highway. Ford says the turbocharged V6 increases fuel economy up to 20 percent and cuts carbon dioxide emissions up to 15 percent over a comparable naturally aspirated V8 engine.
Ford plans to introduce more turbocharged engines across its lineup within the next two years aiming to produce up to 1.5 million EcoBoost engines globally in a variety of vehicles.
In the second half of 2011, the company will present the first application of its four-cylinder EcoBoost engine in North America, the 237-horsepower 2.0-liter unit in the Explorer SUV and Edge CUV. The same powerplant will also be offered in the revised Taurus sedan, in which it will return a highway fuel efficiency of at least 31 mpg, while it will make its way into the 2013 Focus ST as well.
