DEARBORN, MI – Ford said it added a new 1.0L EcoBoost three-cylinder engine, the smallest engine Ford has ever built, and an all-new eight-speed automatic transmission to its powertrain lineup.

In addition, Ford’s next generation of hybrid vehicles, including a new plug-in hybrid the automaker said will launch next year, will have a Ford-engineered transmission that will be built in Michigan. The new three-cylinder engine will be available globally in the company’s small cars, but the automaker said it will also play an important role in North American vehicles.

Ford said its engineers at its Dunton Technical Centre in the U.K. began designing the new EcoBoost 1.0L engine before the current rise in fuel prices. Ford said the group's goal was to design a technically advanced efficient three-cylinder engine that delivers the same performance as a four-cylinder, but with better fuel economy and lower emissions. They focused on improving thermal efficiency and reducing friction of the engine’s internal moving parts, especially during warm-up, to accomplish this goal.

The new 1.0L EcoBoost engine features the following technologies:

• An offset crankshaft that helps improve fuel economy

• A Ford-designed split cooling system that allows the cylinder block to warm up before the cylinder head. Faster cylinder block warm-ups save fuel, especially in cold weather.

• An exhaust manifold cast into the cylinder head. The one-piece assembly lowers the temperature of the exhaust gases. This enables the engine to run in a wider rpm band with the optimum fuel-to-air ratio. The new design also saves weight and allows the engine to operate more smoothly.

• EcoBoost technologies, such as turbocharging, direct injection, and twin independent variable camshaft timing (Ti-VCT).