Dearborn, Michigan – Ford is boosting power and efficiency with the 2017 F-150 pickup with an updated 3.5L EcoBoost engine and a new 10-speed automatic transmission.
The second-generation 3.5L engine will provide 30 lb-ft more peak torque compared with the first-generation EcoBoost, up to 450 lb-ft.
The Ford-built transmission – the first volume-production 10-speed automatic transmission available to consumers from any automaker – will deliver improved acceleration and performance compared with previous six-speed automatic transmissions.
Raj Nair, Ford executive vice president, product development, and chief technical officer, says, “The powertrain is the heart of every F-150, and together our all-new 3.5L EcoBoost and 10-speed transmission will give our customers better power, efficiency and confidence.”
More than 20 patents are approved or pending for the innovative powertrain combination.
The engine features new dual-direct and port fuel-injection system. Two injectors per cylinder – one mounted in the intake port where air enters the cylinder and one positioned inside the cylinder – work together to improve power output, efficiency, and emissions.
Redesigned turbochargers deliver more boost thanks to a lighter turbine wheel. The new turbos work seamlessly with Ford-first electrically activated wastegates, enhancing operating efficiency. Light-weighting the turbine wheel – by making it out of high-temperature super alloy Mar-M-247 developed by Martin Metals Co. for rocket engines, now part of Lockheed Martin – improves responsiveness.
Another lightweighting feature is hollow camshafts in the roller-finger follower valvetrain that help save up to 4 lb. The valvetrain also features more durable intake and exhaust valves, and hydraulic valve-lash adjusters that optimize engine durability.
The engine provides Auto Start-Stop as a standard feature.
The 10-speed transmission delivers improved acceleration and performance compared with previous six-speed automatic transmissions, thanks to optimized wide-span gear spacing, coupled with drag-reduction actions. Three overdrive gears and a wider ratio span enable lower-numerical rear-axle ratios to help improve fuel efficiency at highway speeds, while maintaining towing.
Weight savings play a key role in improved shifting performance. The 10-speed transmission uses advanced materials and alloys to save weight, and it is the first Ford gearbox that does not use cast-iron components.
An integrated torque converter/turbine clutch also helps shave more than 2 lb, while also reducing the packaging footprint.
Ford announced earlier this year that it will invest $145 million to upgrade its Cleveland Engine Plant – creating or retaining 150 jobs to support production of the all-new second-generation 3.5L EcoBoost engine for the 2017 Ford F-150 lineup. An additional $1.4 billion is being invested at Ford’s Livonia Transmission Plant to create or retain 500 hourly jobs to build the 10-speed transmission.
The 2017 Ford F-150 goes on sale this fall.
Source: Ford Motor Co.