With the rise of sustainable engine technology, it seemed almost like a last Hoorah when Ford launched their EcoBoost engine range. This technologically advanced engine represents the peak of internal combustion technology. EcoBoost has won six international awards for the best engine under 1.0l capacity and is renowned for its performance, fuel efficiency, and technology.
The EcoBoost series of engines are sensitive to the gas grade they use. All EcoBoost engines are gas-powered turbocharged with direct fuel injection. To produce the highest power rating, the gas to be used should be the highest premium level available
Read More: Why You Shouldn’t Mix Fuel From Different Gas Stations
EcoBoost engines are a range of turbocharged, direct-injection gasoline engines produced by Ford, first launched in 2013. They have gone on to win numerous international awards and compete with larger capacity engines while delivering improved fuel economy and lower emissions.
How Do You Choose The Best Fuel For An EcoBoost Engine?
The similarity between all Ford EcoBoost engines is that they all have direct-injection fuel systems intended to match the power of motors with a higher displacement and more cylinders.
The EcoBoost engines are equipped with a turbocharger to produce more efficient combustion.
The measured fuel injection and the air forced in by the turbocharger create an optimum “explosion” and more energy in the combustion chamber than its naturally aspirated, non-turbo counterpart.
Ford recommends using the highest octane rating available, but you should not use less than the 90-octane gas in Ford EcoBoost engines.
Premium gas is not required to protect the engine. The engine will automatically cope by having the ECU adjust the timing and the fuel/air mixture produced by the direct injection system. Therefore, from an engine longevity and reliability perspective, there is no difference to your EcoBoost engine as to what it runs on.
However, they are smaller than their equivalent competition and are very efficient engines with incredibly tight tolerances that run at higher temperatures.
It makes them susceptible to knocking. As soon as the knock sensor signals the ECU about a
pre-ignition condition (knock), the ECU instructs the computer-controlled fuel injection system to lean the petrol/air mix and retards the timing, reducing the performance.
To extract the highest performance figures from an EcoBoost engine means, you must use the highest-octane gas available, or the ECU will degrade the power to protect the engine.
Tests have shown that if a lower octane gas is used, there is a measurable reduction in acceleration and top speed.
How Does Premium Fuel Affect An EcoBoost?
Despite what many people think, a higher-octane fuel does not improve the fuel’s ability to combust, but rather the fuel’s ability to handle higher temperatures and only combust when the spark plug ignites.
Internal combustion engines work by igniting a mixture of air and fuel precisely when the spark plug fires. In the case of EcoBoost engines, the direct fuel injection system mixes the air and fuel and compresses it to ensure the maximum energy potential is produced.
The higher the octane (premium), the better the gas resists heat and spontaneous combustion.
Compression naturally creates very high temperatures that the fuel must handle without misfiring. If the air-fuel mixture combusts spontaneously due to the heat in the cylinder, as opposed to the spark plug, a condition is known as “knocking” occurs. It is called knocking due to the sound it makes.
It means that the higher a fuel’s octane is, the less chance of engine knocking.
If you hear that there is knocking in your engine, it could be because the wrong octane fuel is being used, or there could be an issue with the engine timing system.
Ford EcoBoost engines need a higher-octane fuel to produce the maximum power output; turbocharged engines create higher compression levels and higher heat.
Higher heat has the potential for lower octane fuels to ignite and cause the engine to knock prematurely.
The EcoBoost engine management system uses a knock sensor to detect the premature ignition of the fuel. When it detects knocking, it sends a signal to the ECU that adjusts the air-fuel mixture and retards the engine timing to stop the knocking.
Is Knocking Caused By The Wrong Fuel Bad For An EcoBoost?
Knocking could damage the surface of the piston, the cylinder walls, or the crankshaft bearings, all of which are expensive to repair.
The Ford EcoBoost engine has a knock sensor that signals the ECU that a knock is about to happen. The ECU retards the timing and adjusts the computer-controlled injection systems to a fuel-air mixture that will not pre-ignite.
The technology is very advanced and effective; however, when the ECU adjusts the fuel-air mixture and the timing, it comes at the cost of performance.
Does Altitude Affect The Fuel For An EcoBoost Engine?
For fuel to ignite, it needs the triad of spark, gas, and oxygen in very defined ratios. At higher altitudes, the air is not as dense as at lower altitudes, so it stands to reason that there is a lower chance of the gas pre- igniting due to the overall heat of the engine.
Remember that the lower the octane of the gas makes it less resistant to premature ignition. You can use a lower octane fuel at higher altitudes because the oxygen contribution to a premature ignition is reduced.
Although the higher altitudes do not affect gas octane levels, the oxygen levels at higher altitudes are less dense, the car’s engine needs less gas to operate.
The EcoBoost ECU will not receive any signals from the knock sensor, so it won’t “lean” the gas/air mixture or retard the engine’s timing. As a result, the performance of the Ford EcoBoost engines will not be affected by using a lower octane fuel at higher altitudes.
Conclusion
The choice between running your Ford EcoBoost engine on premium or a lower octane gas boils down to your priorities. Lower octane gas costs less, whereas higher octane gas results in increased performance of the EcoBoost engine.
Higher Octane fuel also produces fewer emissions, but at the end of the day, neither gas will damage your EcoBoost engine, and you should choose the grade of gas that works for you.
References
https://www.carthrottle.com/post/engineering-explained-high-vs-low-octane-petrol/
https://www.bellperformance.com/blog/bid/101182/What-Does-Octane-Do-In-Gasoline-Octane-Ratings
https://www.autotrader.com/car-tech/ford-ecoboost-what-is-it-and-do-you-need-it-210645