Ford Clean 3.5-Liter V-6 Engine

Amid the flurry of attention surrounding Ford’s hybrid vehicles, it’s easy to forget about the bread-and-butter gasoline engines that power the vast majority of this automaker’s lineup. Take Ford’s new 3.5-liter V-6 engine, for instance, a super-clean powerplant that offers improvements in both fuel economy and emissions. Ford claims this new V-6 will power one in five of the company’s North American products by the end of the decade. Such big production numbers mean that, when it comes to collective fuel and emissions reductions, this new engine is no less significant than those high-achieving hybrids.

Key to the engine’s broad applicability is its size. The 3.5-liter V-6 occupies roughly the same space as Ford’s 3.0-liter Duratec 30 V-6, enabling it to fit in a variety of current and future products. However, with 250 horsepower and 240 lbs-ft. of torque, the new 3.5-liter is notably more powerful than the Duratec 30. Importantly, especially for those more environmentally-minded than power hungry, the new 3.5-liter is capable of PZEV (Partial Zero Emission Vehicle) emissions standards right out of the box. And, when combined with Ford’s new six-speed automatic transaxle that was designed with this engine in mind, fuel economy is improved by up to 7 percent compared to a four-speed automatic.

How are these improvements achieved? Ford has incorporated advanced throttle-control software that allows the engine to run at peak efficiency, a lightweight dual-overhead cam valvetrain with intake variable cam timing (iVCT), and aluminum cylinder heads designed for high airflow. To ensure the engine remains competitive in the future, it was designed to integrate easily with upcoming technologies such as hybrid-electric systems, gasoline direct injection, and direct injection turbocharging.

“The 3.5-liter V-6 is capable of achieving PZEV certification by delivering low cold-start emissions and enabling rapid catalyst light-off, which is a significant accomplishment for a larger displacement V-6 engine,” says Tom McCarthy, engine systems manager for Ford’s 3.5-liter V-6 engine program.

So far, PZEV certification has been achieved with four-cylinder engines that have been more straightforward to engineer for reaching near-zero emission levels. Ford accomplished this goal with its new V-6 in part by using low heat-loss exhaust manifolds and close-coupled catalysts. The latter employs a strategy that places a catalytic converter closer to an engine, enabling it to reach operating temperature quickly during cold starts when a typical vehicle’s highest emissions levels occur. According to Ford, optimized fuel injector targeting minimizes cold-start emissions before the catalysts reach operating temperature.

The new 3.5-liter V-6 has made its debut in the Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX crossover vehicles as a SULEV certified engine. It will begin showing up in additional Ford Motor Company product lines soon including the Ford Taurus and Taurus X, as well as the Mercury Sable and other models. Taking the next step toward PZEV certification – which requires adding a zero evaporative emission fuel system and extending the emissions system warranty to 15 years or 150,000 miles – requires additional investment that will likely be applied first to V-6 equipped models in California and the Northeast “green” states.