Archive for the 'MKS' Category

14
Nov
09

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
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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’

22
May
09

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’
18
May
09

Ford add EcoBoost engine to its flagship Lincoln

By Ron Olson Leave a Comment
Categories: Enviromental, Future Vehicles, Green, Lincoln Mercury, MKS, ecoboost and fuel efficiency

With the addition of the all-new EcoBoost engine, the new 2010 Lincoln MKS feature a powertrain that produces a combination of V-8 power and V-6 fuel economy.

The new Lincoln MKS is the first Ford Motor Company vehicle to introduce a premium twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 engine for the 2010 model year. By 2013, more than 90 percent of Ford’s North American nameplates will be available with EcoBoost technology.

“We are committed to delivering fuel economy leadership in every new vehicle,” said Derrick Kuzak, Ford’s group vice president of Global Product Development. “We do this with affordable technology that can be applied to the widest number of vehicles. EcoBoost is an important component of that goal.

“The beauty of EcoBoost is that it enables us to downsize for fuel efficiency, yet boost for power. We’re able to decrease the size of the available engine – such as installing a V-6 versus a V-8 – yet boost the power using turbocharging to deliver similar power and torque of that larger engine.”

The 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 of the all-wheel-drive 2010 Lincoln MKS produces 355 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and 350 ft.-lb. of torque from 1,500 to 5,250 rpm and can be run on regular fuel. The Lincoln MKS with EcoBoost will deliver at least 17 mpg city and at least 24 mpg highway.

Standard on Lincoln MKS with EcoBoost are 19-inch premium painted aluminium wheels, steering-wheel paddle shifters, six-speed SelectShift AutomaticTM transmission, all-wheel drive, Intelligent Access with Push Button Start, ambient lighting, adaptive HID headlamps with Auto Highbeam, rain-sensing wipers and rear-window power sunshade.

The EcoBoost program is part of Ford’s ongoing and wide-ranging initiative to deliver innovative fuel-efficient powertrain systems with horsepower and torque performance found in larger-displacement engines.

“Our EcoBoost engines offer more power and better fuel economy,” said Brett Hinds, EcoBoost design manager. “It’s all part of Ford’s strategy to bring adaptable powertrain technology to all kinds of vehicles and all kinds of lifestyles. This technology is affordable and applicable to all gasoline engines.”

source: www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk

29
Apr
09

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.

Ford Executive Finds EcoBoost Difficult to Market“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.

02
Mar
09

Ford reopening Cleveland Engine Plant No. 1 to produce EcoBoost V6

By Ron Olson Leave a Comment
Categories: Future Vehicles, Lincoln Mercury, MKS, MKZ, Public Affairs, production line and technology

by John Neff on Feb 27th 2009 at 7:00AM

It’s not often we get to report on an auto plant reopening, but this morning we bring you news that Ford is reopening its Cleveland Engine Plant No. 1 to produce the 3.5L EcoBoost V6 for the Lincoln MKS and MKT, Ford Flex and 2010 Taurus SHO. The plant has been idle since 2007, but Ford has invested $55 million in the 58-year-old facility to create a flexible manufacturing system for powertrains. No new jobs will be created by reopening the plant, as Ford will staff it with 250 workers from other facilities on the site, but the job security that comes with being the first in the world to build the automaker’s most advanced engine is surely welcome. The plant’s new flexible manufacturing capabilities also mean that it might produce other members of the EcoBoost family in the future. The Cleveland Engine Plant No. 1 has a storied history of building famous Ford engines, including the 351 and 5.0-liter V8s. We’ll have to wait for history to judge the 3.5L EcoBoost V6, but in the short term it will likely be more popular than LeBron James to many Clevelanders.

Gallery: Cleveland Engine Plant No. 1 EcoBoost production

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