Ford has launched its all-new 1-litre EcoBoost petrol engine onto the Irish market, debuting in the Ford Focus. This new three-cylinder engine will also be available later this year in the new Ford B-MAX, C-MAX and Fiesta. It’s a remarkable feat of engineering to design and build an engine that will fit on an A4 piece of paper (cylinder block) and yet offer sufficient power and efficiency to propel a Ford Focus at a similar performance level to one equipped with a much-larger capacity engine. This new EcoBoost engine is available with two power outputs in the Focus, a 100hp and 125hp edition. Prices commence from €21,485 for the five-door 100hp model which offers an impressive 4.8l/100km (58.9 mpg) combined fuel consumption. It’s environmentally friendly too, with emissions of 109g/km of CO2 which places it in tax band A. The 125hp Focus is priced from €24,235 for the five-door variant. Despite the increase in power this model still offers decent fuel economy, with a combined average fuel consumption of 5.0l/100km (56.5 mpg) and 114g/km of CO2, also placed in tax band A. It utilises a six-speed manual gearbox, whilst the 100hp model is fitted with a five-speed manual transmission. Both engines are fitted with a low-inertia turbo and Ford’s Ti-VCT (Twin Independent Variable Camshaft Timing) to help develop their power. On the road, the three-cylinder engine provides ample power for both city driving and motorway stints. I had a short test-drive in the 125hp variant, and to be honest if I didn’t already know what size engine was fitted, I would have easily believed it was powered by a 1.4 or 1.6-litre engine. The majority of motorists are opting for diesel-powered cars these days, however for those petrol purists, Ford has the answer in this new Ford Focus equipped with a compact, powerful and efficient 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine.
