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Archive for the 'Flex' Category

Dec

Ford claims biggest five-year fuel economy improvement among major automakers

Categories: Edge, Electric, Enviromental, Escape, Explorer, Flex, Future Vehicles, Hybrids, Quality, ecoboost, fuel efficiency and production line
Tags: ford, ecoboost, FUEL ECONOMY, hybrid, Environmental Protection Agency, Electric

According to the latest report from the Environmental Protection Agency, Ford has scored the biggest improvement in combined fuel economy of any major carmaker over the last five years. Between 2005 and 2009, Ford improved its fleet average by nearly 20 percent – almost twice as much as any other company. While Ford certainly made a lot of incremental improvements in the efficiency of its vehicles over that period, that wasn’t the only factor.

That same time period saw a huge shift in the model mix at Ford. Sales of SUVs like the Explorer and Expedition collapsed as consumers moved to crossovers like the Edge and Flex (oh, and we suppose a car or two). The Explorer has gone from more than 400,000 annual sales earlier this decade to just over 68,000 last year.

Ford has made actual improvements, as well, however, including the introduction of the Escape Hybrid and the roll out of six-speed transmissions. The next five years should see even bigger gains as Ford deploys millions of EcoBoost engines, battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.

Nov

Ford’s EcoBoost engines are selling faster than the automaker expected

By Ron Olson Leave a Comment

Categories: Flex, Lincoln Mercury, MKS, Quality, Taurus, ecoboost, fuel efficiency and technology
Tags: ecoboost, ford, Lincoln, Mercury, sales, SHO, Taurus

By Robert Schoenberger, The Plain Dealer
November 13, 2009, 5:16PM

Sales of Ford Motor Co. vehicles equipped with Brook Park-built EcoBoost engines are running about 65 percent better than the company’s projections, Ford said Friday.

Moreover, the vehicles on which the engine is available are attracting younger buyers from the automaker’s competitors.

“EcoBoost technology is helping bring in a new customer to Ford dealer showrooms,” said Ford marketing manager Amy Marentic.

Launched in July in Ford’s Lincoln MKS Luxury car, the turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 packs the horsepower of a V-8 but the fuel economy of a V-6. Ford had expected 25 percent of MKS buyers to opt for the higher-tech engine. Instead, about 30 percent of buyers are choosing it.

Ford offers the engine on the MKS, the Lincoln MKT crossover, the Ford Flex crossover and the Taurus SHO, a hotrod version of the Taurus sedan. The SHO has provided the most impressive sales numbers.

At the vehicle’s launch, Ford marketers said they expected the $40,000 SHO to make up 10 percent of Taurus sales. In the three months that it’s been available, though, the SHO has made up closer to 20 percent of Taurus sales.

Of the four vehicles with the engine, the Taurus is the best-selling by a wide margin.

Eric Walker, general manager of Marshall Ford Lincoln Superstore in Mayfield Heights, said the $10,000 price difference between the SHO and the mainstream Taurus limits its appeal.

“I’m selling the regular models a lot quicker than I am the SHO,” Walker said. Lower-priced Taurus models sell within a week, he said, but it can take twice that to sell a SHO. Even at that rate, the SHO is doing better than expected.

Continue reading ‘Ford’s EcoBoost engines are selling faster than the automaker expected’

May

Ford starts EcoBoost production in Cleveland

By Ron Olson Leave a Comment

Categories: Enviromental, Flex, Future Vehicles, Hybrids, Lincoln Mercury, MKS, Quality, Taurus, ecoboost, fuel efficiency, mkt and production line

On the same day that President Obama announced tough new CAFE standards for new cars in the coming half-decade, Ford began production of its new, more efficient EcoBoost engine in Ohio. As Green Car Advisor says, Ford couldn’t have picked a better day. The new 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 engine will first make its way into the Ford Flex, Ford Taurus SHO, Lincoln MKS sedan and Lincoln MKT crossover vehicles. The turbocharged engines deliver a fuel economy boost of around 20 percent without an expensive hybrid powertrain. Ford says that 90 percent of its models will be available with EcoBoost engines by 2013.

Production started yesterday at the Cleveland Engine Plant No. 1, located in Brook Park, Ohio. This plant first opened in 1951 and currently employs 250 people. Ford announced that the plant, which had been closed since 2007, would be reopened to build the EcoBoost engines back in February. Read more about the EcoBoost technology here and here and after the jump.

Continue reading ‘Ford starts EcoBoost production in Cleveland’

Apr

Ford Executive Finds EcoBoost Difficult to Market

By Ron Olson Leave a Comment

Categories: Flex, Future Vehicles, MKS, Mercury, Quality, Taurus, ecoboost, fuel efficiency and technology

While Ford prepares to make its EcoBoost technology available on most of its cars and trucks, the automaker’s marketing department may find it difficult to convince V-8 aficionados that its V-6 EcoBoost engines are comparable.

Ford marketing manager Mike Crowley says he’s less worried about marketing EcoBoost now than he was in 2006, but he still has his reservations about converting customers who want V-8s.

“Once fuel prices spiked over $4 a gallon last year, people opened their eyes and started looking at alternatives to the traditional paradigm of ‘If I want power, I have to go for a V-8,’” Crowley says.

But Mustang buyers are looking for a V-8, he concedes. “That’s a traditional powertrain for them. I don’t think that group is ready today for an EcoBoost powertrain. They may in the future, but today I think it is all about V-8 horsepower.”

Ford’s EcoBoost technology employs direct injection, dual turbo-chargers and a smaller engine to achieve high output with conservative fuel economy. Ford says its EcoBoost V-6s will achieve the same power as a 4.6-liter V-8, while retaining the fuel economy of a V-6.

In the 2010 Lincoln MKS, the 3.5-liter EcoBoost-equipped V-6 achieves 355 horsepower, compared with 273 horsepower made by the standard 3.7-liter V-6 available for the flagship sedan. The EcoBoost V-6 will also show up as an option for the Ford Flex and Ford Taurus SHO. So far, Ford hasn’t announced the price of the option for any of those vehicles.

Ford has said that 90 percent of its vehicles will have an EcoBoost option by 2014, and expects to sell 750,000 EcoBoost-equipped vehicles by that time. Four-cylinder engines will get the EcoBoost technology soon, and although Ford hasn’t announced which vehicles will see that application first, there is some speculation that the Ford Focus or Ford Fiesta is slated to receive the engine.

Crowley says he will focus on the technology’s advanced features in marketing. “It will be a challenge,” he says.

“Although the technology has been around for a while, we are really introducing a new brand into the marketplace with EcoBoost. Our message to the marketplace will be that EcoBoost is a smart solution to deliver the fuel economy that you demand and the performance that you need.”

EcoBoost will be available in the 2010 Lincoln MKS, 2010 Ford Flex and 2010 Ford Taurus SHO by the end of the year.

Feb

EcoBoost’s best friend: Ford unveils new 6F-55 six-speed automatic

By Ron Olson Leave a Comment

Categories: 6F-55, Flex, Future Vehicles, Lincoln Mercury, MKS, Quality, Taurus, ecoboost, mkt and production line

by John Neff on Feb 18th 2009 at 12:29PM

When Ford debuted its 6F transmission back in late 2005, we were told it could handle up to 300 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque. That transmission debuted with the automaker’s 3.5L V6 and both are now widely used together in a number of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury products. Times have changed, however, and Ford has introduced a new version of its 3.5L V6 with twin turbochargers and direct injection. Called the 3.5L EcoBoost, this engine makes more power than the original 6F transmission, now called the 6F-50, can handle. Enter the 6F-55, a new version of the 6F-50 with beefed up internals to handle the 3.5L EcoBoost’s 355-365 hp and 350 lb-ft of torque. One example is the new ring gear on the 6F-55 (shown at right), which is 41.5mm thick compared to 31.5 mm on the 6F-50.

The 6F-55 will be used initially in versions of the Ford Flex, Lincoln MKS and MKT that feature the 3.5L EcoBoost V6. It will also be the only transmission available for the new 2010 Ford Taurus SHO that features the most powerful version of Ford’s EcoBoost V6 (sorry SHO fans, no standard transmission will be offered). Each application will also feature SelectShift for manual operating the tranny with either the console-mounted shifter or paddle shifters on the steering wheel. We’ll have to wait for our first turn behind the wheel of an EcoBoost-equipped Ford product to judge just how well the new 6F-55 handles all that extra power, but based on the rather significant list of internal changes detailed in the press release after the jump, the new tranny appears more than capable of handling our heavy left foot.

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading ‘EcoBoost’s best friend: Ford unveils new 6F-55 six-speed automatic’