PLUG-IN PARTICIPATES IN ‘PRESIDENTIAL’ PARADE

Ford Plug-In Participates in ‘Presidential’ Parade

A Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid took part in an all-plug-in parade in Santa Monica, Calif., Saturday, as part of the nation’s presidential inaugural festivities. The parade, which was organized by non-profit group Plug In America (PIA), aimed to energize public interest in the fuel-efficient vehicles and encourage President-Elect Barack Obama, congressional leaders and automakers to put more plug-ins on American roads.

Ford Motor Company’s plug-in vehicle research partner Southern California Edison (SCE) drove the parade vehicle. Ford and SCE, which has the nation’s largest and most advanced electric vehicle (EV) fleet, are exploring ways to make plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) more accessible and affordable to consumers, reduce petroleum-related emissions and explore standards needed for PHEVs to connect to the nation’s electricity grid.

Electrifying Development

The Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid, a demonstration vehicle, uses high voltage, lithium-ion batteries, which could cut trips to the gas station by two thirds. The vehicle uses common household current (120 volts) for charging. Full charge of the battery takes six to eight hours.

When driven for the first 30 miles following a full charge, the Ford Escape PHEV can achieve up to 120 mpg when driven on surface streets. The vehicle is not range limited by the amount of charge available in the high-voltage lithium-ion battery, because once the charge in the battery has been depleted, the vehicle continues to operate as a fuel efficient, standard Ford Escape Hybrid – the most fuel efficient sport utility vehicle on the market. The transition is automatic and unnoticeable to the driver.

Plug-In Parade

At Plug In America’s “Inaugural Parade West: Plug In, America!”, the group’s co-founder Paul Scott congratulated Obama, who has called for one million plug-in cars by 2015, and encouraged the new president to accelerate his plug-in plan and to increase the number of vehicles to 10 million by 2016.

Joining the Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid in the clean-car parade were more than 50 other all-electric vehicles, including demonstration models by Toyota, Tesla, Mitsubishi and several other vehicle makers.

FORD’S FUEL-EFFICIENT DUAL-CLUTCH POWERSHIFT TRANSMISSION

Ford will introduce an advanced dual-clutch PowerShift six-speed transmission in North America in 2010 for the small-car segment.

Delivering the fuel efficiency of a manual gearbox with the convenience and ease of a premium automatic transmission, PowerShift can help reduce fuel consumption by up to 9 percent depending on the application, compared to traditional automatic four-speed transmissions.

Ford has committed that almost 100 percent of its transmissions will be advanced six-speed gearboxes by 2013. The dual-clutch technology uses two manual transmissions working in parallel, each with its own independent clutch unit.

Ford’s North American PowerShift is a dry clutch, which transmits power and torque through manual transmission clutch facings, while most automatic transmissions utilize wet clutch plates submerged in oil. As a result, the dry-clutch PowerShift transmission does not require an oil pump or torque converter, providing superior mechanical efficiency and durability. Because there is no need for the weighty pumps, hydraulic fluids, cooling lines and external coolers, the dry-clutch PowerShift transmission can weigh nearly 30 pounds less than, for example, the four-speed automatic transmission featured on today’s Ford Focus.

In terms of customer appeal, PowerShift is differentiated even further in its shift quality, launch feel and overall drive dynamic, which are all facilitated by a mix of Ford-exclusive electro-mechanical systems, software features, calibrations and controls, including:

• Neutral coast down – The clutches will disengage when the brakes are applied, improving coasting downshifts and clutch robustness as well as reducing parasitic losses for increased fuel economy.
• Precise clutch control in the form of a clutch slip to provide torsional damping of the engine vibration – This function improves noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) at low engine speeds and enables lower lugging limits for improved fuel economy.
• Low-speed driving or creep mode with integrated brake pressure – This function simulates the low-speed control drivers are accustomed to from an automatic transmission. The amount of rolling torque in Drive and Reverse is precisely controlled, gradually building as brake pressure is released.
• Hill mode or launch assist – Prevents a vehicle from rolling back on a grade by maintaining brake pressure until the engine delivers enough torque to move the vehicle up the hill, providing improved driver confidence, comfort, safety and clutch robustness.

Quotes

“PowerShift represents a true competitive advantage for Ford and is one of the many technologies that will help our global small car platforms set a new world standard for efficiency and drive quality. This advanced six-speed is an improvement over today’s automatic transmissions in terms of fuel economy, while providing customers an even more fun-to-drive experience.”
- Barb Samardzich, Vice President, Global Powertrain Engineering

“A dry clutch is a real sweet spot for lighter vehicle applications. PowerShift is more efficient, it saves weight, is more durable, more efficient and the unit is sealed for life, requiring no regular maintenance.”
- Piero Aversa, Manager, Ford Automatic Transmission Engineering

GOV. GRANHOLM RIDES BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLE

Governor Granholm Takes a Ride in Ford Battery Electric Vehicle

When Michigan’s Gov. Jennifer Granholm arrived at Cobo Conference and Exhibition Center in Detroit for a tour of the 2009 North American International Auto Show it was in a battery electric Ford Focus demonstration vehicle driven by Nancy Gioia, director, Sustainable Mobility Technologies and Hybrid Vehicle Programs.

“At first, she was surprised that it wasn’t merely a concept car, but actually a road-ready demonstrator of battery electric vehicle technology,” Gioia says. “I think she was wowed by how it’s quiet, smooth and fun to drive – that it’s a no compromise driving experience.”

Gioia told the governor about Ford Motor Company’s aggressive plan to bring a family of electric vehicles to the North American market by 2012. Ford will introduce four new vehicles in four years including a new battery electric commercial van in 2010, a new battery electric small car in 2011 to be developed jointly with Magna International, a next-generation hybrid vehicle, and a plug-in hybrid by 2012.

Granholm was reportedly impressed that Ford’s battery-powered small car planned for 2011 has a targeted range of up to 100 miles on a single charge, without using a single drop of gasoline.

Gioia and Granholm also discussed what Ford’s plan could mean for Michigan in terms of technology development, engineering and potentially manufacturing both on the vehicle level and component level.

“She’s very excited that Ford is leading the way in the electrification of vehicles,” Gioia says. “She also kidded me that I drive too fast, but I wanted to be sure she knew how peppy this electric vehicle is.”

ECOBOOST’S EXTREME DURABILITY TESTING

EcoBoost’s twin turbos glowed orange-hot while enduring – and passing – extremely rigorous durability testing.

Because turbochargers operate at high speed – up to 170,000 rpm – and under intense temperatures of up to 950 degrees Celsius (1,740 degrees Fahrenheit), Ford’s advanced engine engineers specified the use of two Honeywell GT15 water-cooled turbos to combat this problem.

To validate their water-cooled design choice, the EcoBoost V-6 engine was put through intense testing, well beyond normal test protocols. In an engine dynamometer ‘torture chamber’, Ford engineers ran EcoBoost at maximum boost flat out for a 10-minute period. This meant the turbos went beyond red-hot, to the more extreme orange-hot.

Then the engine and all cooling were abruptly shut down and the turbo was left to “bake” after this high-speed operation. Test engineers repeated this cycle 1,500 times without an oil change. The turbos were cut open for detailed technical inspections and passed the severe tests with flying colors.

Then onto durability testing. Back in the dynamometer lab, the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 went back up to full revs – and maximum turbo boost – for a real endurance test. This time the duration was a bit longer – 362 hours at full throttle. That’s the equivalent of running the 24 Hours of Daytona for more than 15 days straight.

EcoBoost makes its production debut in the 2010 Ford Flex, 2010 Lincoln MKT and MKS, and uses the same grade of 5W20 engine oil specified by Ford for gasoline engines. Oil changes are scheduled at the same 7,500-mile intervals, too.

Quotes

“We put the EcoBoost V-6 through the same extensive durability signoff testing as any Ford gasoline engines, and we went beyond it to validate the EcoBoost water-cooled turbocharger design and air-to-air intercooling strategy. The idea is to run the engine through a very difficult testing regimen at its maximum-rated operating performance. That’s when things get hot.”
- Michael Shelby, EcoBoost Engine Development Leader

“During normal turbo operation, the turbo receives most of its bearing cooling through oil. After shut down, the problems with turbos in the past were you would get coking in the center bearing. Oil would collect in the bearings, the heat soaks in and the oil would start to coke on the side and foul the bearing. Water cooling – used in the EcoBoost engine – eliminates that worry.”
- Keith Plagens, Turbo System Engineer

ECOBOOST TWIN TURBOS PACK POWER

Twin turbochargers enable EcoBoost™ to punch above its size in terms of power and responsiveness.

The “boost” of Ford’s new EcoBoost engine technology comes from two small devices the size of an orange. Twin turbochargers harness exhaust gas to pump V-8 power out of the smaller-displacement EcoBoost™ V-6 engine. This technology – in conjunction with direct fuel injection – allows EcoBoost to punch above its size in terms of power and responsiveness.

The EcoBoost V-6 is the first application of smaller twin turbos in a Ford, rather than one larger one. This is to fight turbo lag, the tendency for previous generation turbocharged engines to have hesitation at low engine revs while the turbocharger spooled up to its operating speed.

Sophisticated electronic controls balance boost and torque levels to give the driver the feeling of continuous torque delivery, without turbo “whines” and “whooshes” that characterized some previous-generation turbo engines. As a result, the driver never notices the turbocharger operation.

The EcoBoost turbo system runs at very high temperature, up to 950 degrees Celsius (1,740 degrees Fahrenheit). An air-to-air intercooler is used to cool the compressed intake air before it enters the combustion chamber, and water cooling protects the internal turbo bearings in the high-temperature operating environment.

The EcoBoost has responded robustly in both engine dynamometer test labs and in real world environments ranging from high-temperature conditions to cold conditions down to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Drivability, cold starts, high-altitude running and trailer towing were validated, and the Ford EcoBoost V-6 performed effortlessly in the place a V-8 engine would once have been.

Quotes

“A turbo is basically a large air pump. Increasing the mass of air in the engine increases its power output, and that’s why it’s called ‘boost.’ ”
- Craig Stephens, EcoBoost Powertrain Control System Manager

“EcoBoost gives the driver a very linear torque response. You get peak torque across a very wide engine speed range – usable performance that’s available to you when you pull away from a stoplight or pass someone on a secondary road. You don’t need to wind the engine out to get performance out of it. It’s there all the time.”
- Corey Weaver, EcoBoost Project Leader

ECOBOOST’S COOL TECHNOLOGIES

Direct fuel injection is one of the key enabling technologies behind Ford’s EcoBoost™.

Paired with turbocharging, direct injection gives the new 3.5-liter EcoBoost engine in the Lincoln MKS the power and torque of a 4.6-liter V-8 with the fuel economy of a V-6. The direct injection technology helps Ford’s EcoBoost deliver advancements of up to 20 percent better fuel economy.

As well, EcoBoost is more Earth-friendly, as it helps reduce CO2 emissions. Direct injection uses high-pressure fuel injectors to spray a fine mist of fuel directly into each cylinder. This precisely controlled fuel delivery improves the engine’s transient response and enables improved emissions, particularly at cold start. The EcoBoost engine cuts CO2 emissions by 15 percent.

Unlike port-fuel-injection (PFI) engines that spray fuel in the intake system, the direct injection system puts the fuel exactly where it needs to be for combustion, making it easier to ignite and burn completely, allowing for improved fuel efficiency. Much like a fine-mist atomizer bottle one might use to keep cool in the summer, the mist generated by the direct injection uses its cool to chill engine intake air, which, in addition to improving fuel economy, also reduces the potential for engine knock.

Quotes

“Direct injection is a significant player in Ford’s strategy to replace larger engines with smaller EcoBoost engines, improving fuel economy by up to 20 percent without sacrificing performance. We’re going to be deploying direct injection to bring a wave of EcoBoost engines into Ford Motor Company products. It starts with the Lincoln MKS and by 2013 more than 90 percent of our North American lineup will offer EcoBoost technology.”
- Brett Hinds, EcoBoost Design Manager

“Cool air is good for an engine because it minimizes the engine knocking phenomenon. Anything you can use to cool the air is good. Injecting the fuel into the cylinder, you cool it on the spot, where you’re going to burn it. Fuel vaporization during the intake stroke cools the air, improving the volumetric efficiency, the breathing of the engine and the knocking tendency.”
- Corey Weaver, EcoBoost Project Leader

LINCOLN C CONCEPT ACHIEVES 40-PLUS MPG

Lincoln C’s four-cylinder EcoBoost engine and dual-clutch PowerShift transmission enable fuel efficiency and performance.

Featuring a 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine and Ford’s all-new dry, dual-clutch PowerShift six-speed transmission, Lincoln C achieves a projected 43 mpg on the highway, while offering up an estimated 180 horsepower and 180 ft.-lbs. of torque. And, it bests the Ford Focus, which currently delivers unsurpassed highway fuel economy in its segment when equipped with a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated engine, by nearly 25 percent fuel-economy improvement.

The EcoBoost engine leverages a combination of direct fuel injection technology and turbocharging to deliver significantly improved fuel economy and torque versus a larger displacement engine, while reducing emissions up to 15 percent.

The Lincoln C concept also features Ford’s dual-clutch PowerShift six-speed transmission, which compared to traditional automatic four-speed transmissions, can help reduce fuel consumption by up to 9 percent depending on the application. PowerShift, for example, contributes to an estimated 8 percent uptick in Lincoln C’s fuel efficiency when compared to the current Focus. The lean curb weight of the Lincoln C enables a dry-clutch derivative of Ford’s PowerShift transmission for added efficiency and durability.

The PowerShift offers an improved driving experience. Some of the features include:

• Neutral coast down – The clutches will disengage when the brakes are applied, improving coasting downshifts and clutch robustness as well as reducing parasitic losses for increased fuel economy.
• Precise clutch control in the form of a clutch slip to provide torsional damping of the engine vibration – This function improves noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) at low engine speeds and enables lower lugging limits for improved fuel economy.
• Low-speed driving or creep mode with integrated brake pressure – This function simulates the low-speed control drivers are accustomed to from an automatic transmission. The amount of rolling torque in Drive and Reverse is precisely controlled, gradually building as brake pressure is released.
• Hill mode or launch assist – Prevents a vehicle from rolling back on a grade by maintaining brake pressure until the engine delivers enough torque to move the vehicle up the hill, providing improved driver confidence, comfort, safety and clutch robustness.

Quotes

“Lincoln C demonstrates that a higher degree of engine downsizing as the key to fuel economy improvement, paired with the right technologies, can deliver optimum horsepower, torque and drive-away capability. Plus, when combined with the PowerShift six-speed transmission, the impossible equation becomes perfectly possible: lower fuel consumption, increased power and smoother, more fun-to-drive performance.”
- Andreas Schamel, Chief Engine Engineer with Ford’s Powertrain Research Laboratory

“We know that a central injection system is a prerequisite for future global fuel economy upgrades such as stratified lean operation, homogeneous charge compression ignition or HCCI, and premium injection system technology if the market demands. It’s a value solution that gives us the ability to answer market trends quickly and provide broad market coverage, a key component of the EcoBoost strategy to deliver an affordable, fuel-efficient engine technology at high volumes.”
- Martin Wirth, Ford Direct Injection Gasoline Systems and Combustion technical Specialist

ECOBOOST AT A GLANCE

Ford’s new EcoBoost delivers the performance of a V-8 and the fuel economy of an aspirated V-6.

Under Ford’s global initiative to provide powertrains that deliver fuel efficiency while meeting the power and performance needs customers demand, the first wave of new EcoBoost™ engines make their debut in the Lincoln MKS, MKT and Ford Flex later this year. Here are some key highlights on Ford’s new EcoBoost technology:

Power and fuel economy – The twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter Duratec V-6 EcoBoost engine produces 355 horsepower at 5,700 rpm and 350 ft.-lb. of torque at 3,500 rpm. A 10-15 percent fuel-economy benefit is expected versus normally aspirated 4.6-liter V-8 engines in the same competitive class.

Engine – The proven Duratec 3.5-liter V-6 comprises the base engine architecture. To handle the increased torque that EcoBoost delivers, some upgrades were made to some of the components, such as the cylinder block, crankshaft, connecting rods pistons and exhaust valves to ensure the EcoBoost V-6 engine is as robust as possible.

Turbochargers – Two Honeywell GT15 turbochargers with water-cooled bearings and operate in parallel, spinning at approximately 170,000 rpm up to 12 PSI. They are rated for a 150,000-mile, 10-year life.

Direct fuel injection – A cam-driven high-pressure fuel pump feeds the fuel injectors at pressures ranging from 200 to 2,175 PSI (pounds per square inch) depending on customer driving. A typical port fuel injection system operates at pressures of around 60 PSI. Six sprayers in each injector target fuel into the cylinder, resulting in a cleaner and more-efficient fuel burn and better cold-start emissions.

Quotes

“The Duratec 3.5 family is a good example of Ford’s forward planning in terms of powertrain technologies. The engine architecture itself was well protected for high-boost applications, so it didn’t require an extensive durability program. It was in good shape to start with.”
- Brett Hinds, EcoBoost Design Manager