Ford's New Big Gun in Small Car Engines

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Ford's New Big Gun in Small Car Engines

By Bill Visnic March 25, 2011

Ford invited media this week for a deep dive on the new Duratec 2-liter gasoline direct injection (GDI) 4-cylinder engine that is the standard powerplant for the just-coming-to-showrooms 2011 Focus. Ford is clearing out the prior-generation Focus – despite its 11-year-old platform, for moved more than 172,000 Focus' last year – to make room for the all-new 2012 version and the Duratec 2-liter GDI is a key feature for the Focus, but this small engine will be a big player in a fuel-efficiency initiative started a half-decade ago.

The company claims it owns the leading model for fuel economy in 12 segments (we didn't have the time – or the attention span – to obtain a rundown of all 12). Ford also says it now sells four models that are rated at 40 mpg or better. "It's inevitable that long-term, fuel prices can only go in one direction: up," said Bob Fascetti, Ford's director of large gasoline and diesel engine engineering. And yes, Fascetti said in aligning what seems like a mismatch between his title and the Duratec, a 2-liter engine soon will be considered "large" in the global scheme of things.

More Than A New Injection Strategy
The Duratec 2-liter GDI is Ford's first direct-injected (DI) engine not carrying the Ecoboost designation that indicates the coupling of turbocharging with DI. Scott Makowski, manager of North America I-4 engine programs, said the Duratec GDI – a derivation of the port fuel-injected 2-liter 4-cylinder in the outgoing Focus – isn't just about that 2,000-psi direct-injection setup that markedly improves efficiency while delivering a 20-horsepower boost (to 160 total horsepower) and 146 pound-feet of torque.

Both camshafts feature variable timing control, GDI enables an economy-optimizing 12:1 compression ratio on regular-grade (87-octane) unleaded and there are oil jets to cool the undersides of pistons, curbing the potential for "knock." The latest Duratec is an oversquare engine, with a bore of 87.5 mm and stroke of 83.1 mm. Don't fret about deposits on the back of the intake valves that have plagued some other manufacturers' direct-injected gasoline engines, said Stephen Russ, the Duratec GDI's technical leader for combustion.

Although he called intake-valve deposits "a fact of life" for GDI engines because the lack of raw gasoline sucked in over the intake valves of a conventional port-injected engine to "wash" the valves, Ford's figured out the proper injection-timing calibration to help eliminate the problem. But he also said the technology of injection components – particularly the high-pressure solenoid injectors – has quickly matured, meaning excess valve deposits should be a thing of the past.

Russ said Ford's using the latest-technology high-pressure fuel pump – it's a single-piston unit driven by its own lobe on the exhaust camshaft – and new, 6-hole injectors that play a big role in avoiding intake-valve deposits. The system runs pressures 50 times that of conventional port fuel injection.

The 2012 Focus is EPA-rated at 28 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway with Ford's new dual-clutch 6-speed Powershift automatic and the SFE economy-optimized version ekes out a 28/40 score. Go with the standard 5-speed manual transmission and you have to wear the shame of a 28/36 rating.

The Duratec 2-liter GDI is built at Ford's Dearborn Engine Plant in Michigan, the Focus nearby at the newly renovated  Michigan Assembly Plant that boasts one of the largest solar-power arrays in Michigan. The high-tech Powershift 6-speed automated manual transmission comes from Germany. Despite once being a compact-car staple, manual transmissions will be only about 5 percent of the new Focus' production mix, said Makowski. "That's what the customer asks for."

Coming later this year is the Duratec 2-liter GDI adorned with a turbocharger and thus earning the Ecoboost designation to match the twin-turbo Ecoboost V6s already introduced. The 2-liter Ecoboost will make a reputed 247 horsepower for the Edge and Explorer crossovers.

Bill Visnic:  Edmunds' AutoObserver.com Senior Editor Bill Visnic joined Edmunds.com in 2007 and has for two decades covered and analyzed automotive technology and business.