Ford has won an unprecedented third straight International Engine of the Year award with its 1.0-litre EcoBoost three-cylinder engine, beating off competition from BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Ferrari to do so.
"To deliver the complete package of eye-popping fuel economy, surprising performance, quietness and refinement we knew this little 1.0-litre engine would have to be a game changer," said Bob Fascetti, vice president, Ford Powertrain Engineering. "Through our One Ford approach to development, EcoBoost continues to set the benchmark for power combined with fuel efficiency from a small petrol engine."
"This year's competition was the fiercest yet, but the 1.0-litre EcoBoost continues to stand out for all the right reasons - great refinement, surprising flexibility and excellent efficiency," said Dean Slavnich, co-chairman of the 16th International Engine of the Year awards and editor of Engine Technology International magazine. "The 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine is one of the finest examples of powertrain engineering."
Anything else?
There are multiple categories in the EOTY award, and while the Ford engine also picked up the best sub-1.0-litre engine (hardly surprisingly) there were other winners on the night. Tesla took the best Green Engine gong, with the Model S's all-electric powertrain beating the BMW i3. Mercedes won the Best New Engine award with the 2.0-litre turbo unit that you'll find in the A 45, CLA 45 and GLA 45 AMG models. Finally, in both the above 4.0-litre award and the Best Performance Engine category, Ferrari triumphed, with the 4.5-litre V8 from the 458 Speciale overturning its sibling F12berlinetta's 7.3 V12 win from last year.