Exceptional performance, superb low-down torque, rapid engine response and great fuel economy are some of the key features customers will find in the dynamic Ford Ranger line-up.
The heart of Ford’s rugged one-ton pickup truck has been revitalized with the introduction of a new turbo-diesel common-rail direct-injection (TDCi) engine, the 3.0TDCi.
KEY FEATURES
- New additions to engine line-up
- Increased power and torque
- Rapid engine response
- Strong performance from idle
- Instant turbocharger response
- Smooth acceleration
- Improved fuel efficiency
- Fewer harmful emissions
- Reduced noise and vibration levels
New-look engine line-up
The line-up now comprises of the following engine derivatives:
- 2.2i – 68kW @ 4500 r/min and 160Nm @ 2 000r/min
- 2.5D – 64kW @4 200r/min and 174Nm @ 2 000r/min
- 2.5 TD – 80 kW @ 3 00r/min and 257Nm @2 000r/min
- 3.0TDCi – 115kW @ 3 200r/min and 380 Nm @ 1 800r/min
- 4.0V6 – 154kW @ 5 250r/min and 323Nm @ 3 000r/min
Responding to customer demands, Ford has achieved a winning combination of delivering substantially better performance while using markedly less fuel and producing fewer harmful emissions.
Significant characteristics of the TDCi engine include:
The key to the performance increase is the high torque characteristics of the16-valve DOHC engine. The new 3.0-litre power plant develops a substantial 380Nm at just 1800rpm.
Reflecting the high-torque nature of Ford’s cutting-edge technology, the new unit is adorned with the Duratorq badge. Duratorq is a trademark of Ford Motor Company and is synonymous with modern high-performance diesel technology.
The new engine delivers the performance, reliability and economy expected in the pickup market where customers typically haul heavy loads, tow fully laden trailers and traverse rugged terrain.
Greater power and performance are achieved by the fuel being injected directly into the combustion chamber multiple times per cycle under extremely high pressure (1600 bar) from a common-rail pump. The technology ensures the best possible mixture of fuel and air in the cylinders, resulting in efficient combustion for high torque and excellent fuel economy while also reducing engine noise and vibration.
Combined with a variable geometry turbocharger that reduces turbo lag, the system increases power and torque across the driving range, ideal for powerful acceleration, carting heavy loads and negotiating treacherous off-road conditions.
Manual transmission
Given the massive torque of the new TDCi engine, Ford’s new five-speed manual transmission now comes with a dual-mass flywheel, triple-cone synchronizers and other enhancements to improve vehicle refinement.
Designed with the customer in mind, it has a more car-like feel with a shorter level and reduced throw between gears.
The dual-mass flywheel has separated primary and secondary flywheels and a damper spring located inside the flywheel. This structure stabilizes rotation of the transmission primary shaft, reducing noise created by fluctuating engine speeds.
A triple, rather than double-cone, synchronizer increases the friction surface area, reducing the force and meshing time for operating the manual transmission.
THE ENGINE INDEPTH
The key technologies that drive this engine are:
High-pressure common-rail fuel injection – up to 1600 bar for the optimum injection pressures during all engine speeds and loads with improved power, torque, fuel efficiency, emissions, noise and vibration.
Direct Injection – injects fuel directly in the combustion chamber to provide more efficient combustion, more power and torque, better fuel efficiency and cleaner emissions.
Double overhead camshafts with four valves per cylinder – high-lift valves significantly increase air intake, improve intake/exhaust efficiency and boost power and torque output.
Variable geometry turbocharger (VGT) – The design virtually eliminates turbo lag and broadens the torque curve for rapid engine response.
Closed-loop exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) with cooler – reduces emissions.
High-output microprocessor – provides sophisticated control of engine variables under all driving and climatic conditions. The engine program control module (PCM) now has a self-diagnostic function.
- Intake manifold with swirl control valve – delivers improved fuel economy.
- Dual counter-rotating balance shafts – for reduced engine vibrations.
Advantages of common-rail direct fuel injection
Ford’s common-rail direct-injection system allows substantial advances in performance, economy, emissions and comfort. It features very rapid glow-plug heating time and, compared with older systems, produces less engine noise and fewer emissions.
Being a cleaner-burning and more efficient engine, fuel consumption is reduced significantly compared with similar-sized engines with indirect injection.
Ford’s common-rail system enables:
- More precise control of injection pressure and spray volume for optimized combustion, independent of engine speed and load
- Reduced waste, exhaust gas and engine heat resulting in lower emissions, better fuel economy and improved powertrain performance
- Reduced engine noise and vibration and smoother acceleration
The common-rail system mainly consists of a fuel-compression pump, an injector, and an electronic control unit. The system utilizes an extremely high pressure pump that can store a reservoir of fuel at up to 1600 bar in a common rail.
The pressurized fuel is temporarily collected in this common rail and then injected into each cylinder using solenoid valves in the injector nozzles.
Piezo electric injectors enable fine electronic control over the timing and the amount of fuel injected into each combustion chamber. Each injector has an array of orifices for controlled multi-stage injection, adjusting and metering the amount of diesel fuel multiple times per stroke.
The system provides a finely atomized spray that is injected under high pressure directly into the combustion chamber. This produces the optimum injection timing and fuel quantity, even where there are variations in fuel quality or cold starting. Another benefit of high-pressure direct injection is improved idle quality.
Air is inducted into the equation through an advanced four-valve cylinder head, with swirl control valves to provide the optimum in-cylinder air motion for complete mixing with the fuel. Each cylinder in the Duratorq TDCi uses a double helical port to generate aggressive swirl and tumbling of the air-fuel mixture. The result is very efficient combustion for excellent power and fuel economy, with low emissions.
Variable geometry turbocharger
The new Ford Ranger uses a variable geometry turbocharger (VGT) that virtually eliminates turbo lag and broadens the torque curve for rapid engine response and superior performance. The unique variable nozzle design adjusts the speed and volume of exhaust gas flow, ensuring it consistently strikes the turbine blades at the optimal speed and direction.
The result is rapid engine response, high torque performance combined with consistently efficient boost pressure that delivers the power needed for spirited performance across the entire rev range.
This mechanism maintains boost pressure, even at low speeds when relatively small amounts of exhaust gas are produced, by reducing the size of the opening for each nozzle to secure adequate velocity of the gases striking the blades.
While conventional systems secure just one side of the nozzle, the Ford TDCi VGT design secures both sides, for improved durability and less friction.
Clearance control pins mounted in three locations are used to secure the shroud plates that sandwich the nozzle. This provides the right amount of side clearance required by the nozzles, maintaining a high level of flow efficiency while also improving durability and reliability.
Adopting this new low-friction nozzle link mechanism, the compact turbine housing design and turbine with low inertial moment improves VGT control response.
These technologies come together to realize driving ease at low speeds, positive response and spirited acceleration, as well as greater engine power and torque.