Ford Motor Co. intends to prove that good things come in small packages — really small packages. The company has taken engine downsizing to a new level with its new three-cylinder EcoBoost engine, which has been introduced in Europe and is set to hit the U.S. market next year.
The EcoBoost offers more power than many conventional four-cylinder engines, with fuel economy numbers a hybrid could envy. Early fans are calling it a modern "little engine that could," and Ford is betting that American customers are ready to embrace a three-cylinder engine.
An Unsuccessful Predecessor
Seventeen years ago, Americans could buy a car that got a whopping 45 miles to the gallon on the highway. No, it was not the Toyota Prius, the hybrid car that arrived on the market five years later. The car was actually General Motors' Geo Metro, which also had a three-cylinder engine.
The Geo Metro was not a success, with about three times the horsepower of a riding lawnmower. But the car did have one bragging point: astonishing fuel economy.