Cleveland, Ohio is home to many things and one of them is gaining popularity at an alarming rate. Located in the city’s heart is Ford Motor Company’s No. 1 engine plant which pieces together both the naturally aspirated 3.7 liter V6 and wanted EcoBoosted 3.5 liter. Due mainly to the increase in demand for the twin-turbocharged six cylinder, Ford will be adding an extra “third” shift in production. “Our engine plant in Cleveland is the first and only facility in North America to produce EcoBoost engines, and we are tripling production capacity to meet customers’ growing needs for fuel-efficient engines,” said Mark Fields, president of Ford of The Americas.
Even though the third shift will be responsible for the 3.7 liter V6 used in the F-150 and Mustang, the primary focus will be set on the EcoBoost. This 3.5 liter, twin-turbocharged and direct injected V6 has been around since 2009 and is currently found in numerous Ford products. The Cleveland powerplant motivates the F-150, Flex, Tauras SHO as well as the Lincoln MKS and MKT. Since its introduction three years ago, the EcoBoost has found 180,000 buyers with 121,000 of those taking place in 2011 when the F-150 began using the block. Ford plans of seeing an even greater success in 2012 as in the first quarter alone, 39,000 models with the engine were sold. For that, 250 employee who once worked at the now-quiet Cleveland No. 2 plant will find themselves busy at the V6’s No. 1 home.
Source: Ford
