jpd80 Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 (edited) LINK “We costed it out and we reckoned the hardware would be something like 600 Euros or dollars on-cost over the price of this current (1.0) engine, so probably a tenth of the cost of a full hybrid driveline. And if a Prius is at 89 grams currently, then we reckon we can get within five or 10 grams of a Prius at a tenth of the cost. So that to us was quite a good cost-benefit balance.” A larger turbocharger provides the added power for the 1.0, while the electrical supercharger fills the torque hole at the bottom of the rev range created by turbo lag. A belt integrated starter generator regenerates enough electricity to mean the supercharger adds no charging load to the engine. The electric supercharger has the unique appeal of being able to spin faster than the crankshaft, unlike a mechanical supercharger. This sounds like an advanced version of something VW was doing a few years back with a supercharger-turbocharger set up on a DISI engine but this one seems to have more electric elements with the supercharger and a GM-style E-assist package....this could be very interesting... “We could see a realistic road map down to low 90 grams for a 150-160hp car when think the current 150PS (1.6-litre Ecoboost turbo-petrol) Focus is 139 grams, so this may be a 40-plus (gram) step in that range,” said Fraser. “Both Ricardo and my team were sufficiently enthused with it that we are carrying on in a little bit of a skunkworks type of environment to just refine the car. “It’s almost a classic evening and weekend project with Ricardo to just try and refine it into a fully viable demonstrator vehicle. It just didn’t have that level of polish where you would want to show it to a vice president and say ‘how about this as the next step’. They have quite a high expectation even for one-off demo cars.” Edited July 13, 2012 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harley Lover Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 (edited) Please don't soil this concept with the E-assist moniker. The only purpose of the ISG is power for the electric s/c - it doesn't actually give any motive power to the car. The 1 liter Ecoboost is a dynamite engine, it seems there are many ways to utilize its goodness! Edited July 13, 2012 by Harley Lover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share Posted July 14, 2012 (edited) This is going to take a huge change in perception regarding the size of engines, something that probably falls to the 1.0 EB Focus but sure, the 1.6 EB is already starting to do that with Escape and new Fusion. It's critical that buyers go through those steps first before being exposed to even more potential down sizing of the ICE..... It's great to know that more cool stuff is planned and that small efficient engines and smart use if existing electrics can make a vehicle just as efficient as a Hybrid at a fraction of the cost, it just shows that approaching a problem from different angles can sometimes reveal strategies that give efficient vehicles that still have some fun factor. Edited July 14, 2012 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKII Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 Thanks for this article jpd80!! The Focus 1.0L 125hp EB I had for out for a few hours test drive shocked the heck out of me. The wee engine is a gem. In Estonia the extra cost of the Focus 1.0L over the Focus 1.6 Ti-VCT is only USD$400.00, and USD$3,000 less then the 1.6L TDCi 115hp. For consumers looking to buy in this hp range the 1.0L EB is a great alternative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share Posted July 14, 2012 (edited) Thanks for this article jpd80!! The Focus 1.0L 125hp EB I had for out for a few hours test drive shocked the heck out of me. The wee engine is a gem. In Estonia the extra cost of the Focus 1.0L over the Focus 1.6 Ti-VCT is only USD$400.00, and USD$3,000 less then the 1.6L TDCi 115hp. For consumers looking to buy in this hp range the 1.0L EB is a great alternative. Looks like Ford is on a winner with this little engine, a boost in fuel economy and plenty of torque like a small diesel without the emission drawbacks. It will be interesting if the "skunkworks" can perfect the electric supercharger and larger turbo for the 1.0L so that Ford can broaden its usage further. It's feeling more like Ford is about to start leading by using affordable technology..... Edited July 14, 2012 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah Harbinger Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 This is going to take a huge change in perception regarding the size of engines, something that probably falls to the 1.0 EB Focus but sure, the 1.6 EB is already starting to do that with Escape and new Fusion. It's critical that buyers go through those steps first before being exposed to even more potential down sizing of the ICE..... O would be interested in seeing what percentage of car buyers can cite the displacement of their engine. I would guess 25%, and that 50% could say how many cylinders it has, though 15% would say "V4". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Versa-Tech Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 (edited) I doubt anyone remembers, but I posted info on this system about a year ago. The next step is to implement an integrated armature into the impeller, which will allow the supercharger to run solely off of wasted exhaust energy stored in a relatively small capacitor array. At that point, the compressor side of the turbo can be eliminated entirely, relegating all boost duties to the remote supercharger. As a result, the alternator can be downsized substantially until eventually, as development permits, the alternator will be eliminated entirely. Edited July 14, 2012 by Versa-Tech Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share Posted July 14, 2012 O would be interested in seeing what percentage of car buyers can cite the displacement of their engine. I would guess 25%, and that 50% could say how many cylinders it has, though 15% would say "V4". Our opinions and preconditions are evolving with the vehicles we buy. Quality, comfort, utility, good fuel economy and acceptable performance are now uppermost in new car buyers mind, As long as the vehicle checks those boxes, potential buyers are less concerned about engine capacity. If you don't tell people, "Hey that new Focus only has a 1.0 Ecoboost engine" they wouldn't really care as long as the car felt good and drove with enough punch to please the potential buyer.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AGR Posted July 15, 2012 Share Posted July 15, 2012 Good article, this shows why the parallel hybrid technology is becoming passé. The future of "hybrid" technology is(I'll probably get flamed on this Ford site) the Voltec plug-in series hybrid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted July 15, 2012 Author Share Posted July 15, 2012 (edited) I have the feeling that the the OP is only the tip of the iceberg and that a lot more efficiency can be had by changing the rules and making vehicles lighter and needing less power....that may also be key to improving hybrid battery range.. Edited July 15, 2012 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2b2 Posted July 15, 2012 Share Posted July 15, 2012 (edited) Good article, this shows why the parallel hybrid technology is becoming passé... I'm not sure about that just yet... ...The future of "hybrid" technology is (I'll probably get flamed on this Ford site) the Voltec plug-in series hybrid. not by me I am very curious re: IF-&-How an EB-plugin, where the ICE drives the wheels directly "under circumstances", would work... & lately been wondering about those electric supercharger(s) either in addition to or even replacing the turbo(s)...& for more heresy: thinking of that^ in a Mustang-co-platformed Lincoln sportsedan & coupe(/cabrio) - as one of a full Lux range of drivetrains - including a 5.0EB in addition to Nano 2.7, maybe a 3.7("regular")Hybrid and one-or-two euro-diesels Edited July 15, 2012 by 2b2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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