2012 Ford Expedition El Xl Sport Utility 4-door 5.4l on 2040-cars

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Ford 1.0L takes third-straight International Engine of the Year award

Ford's 1.0-liter EcoBoost is proving to be The Little Engine That Could, and it continues to acquit itself well, finding favor as one of the best powerplants in the world. To confirm it yet again, the tiny mill just won the International Engine of the Year award for the third year in a row, likewise also nabbing the title in the Sub 1.0-liter category.
Packing 123 horsepower and 148 pound-feet of torque with overboost (125 lb-ft normally), the tiny engine combines impressive power in a size small enough to be a carry-on item for a commercial flight. US buyers only got a taste of the award winner in the 2014 Fiesta, while the 1.0 EcoBoost has been available throughout the Ford lineup in Europe for a few years now. American sales have reportedly been strong, however, and next up in the US, the mill will find its way into the 2015 Focus.
The panel of 82 jury members from 34 countries also named the Mercedes-AMG 2.0-liter turbo found in the A45, CLA45 and GLA45 AMG models with 355 hp and 332 lb-ft as the best New Engine for 2014. The electric powertrain from Tesla won Green Engine prize, and the 4.5-liter V8 from the Ferrari 458 Italia took home the honor of top Performance Engine yet again. You can check out all the winners below, and scroll down further to read Ford's celebratory announcement of its award.

Ford ditching Microsoft in favor of BlackBerry QNX for next-gen Sync?

Ask the average consumer - at least, those who follow the goings-on in the automotive industry - which carmaker they'd most closely associate Microsoft, and the answer you'd most likely get would be Ford. The Blue Oval automaker, after all, was at the forefront of bringing Microsoft technology into cars with its pioneering Sync system, and, though reality didn't turn out as such, Ford's CEO was recently touted as a potential future head of the Redmond-based software giant. But that relationship, according to the latest reports, could be coming to an end.
Alan Mullaly kiboshed the idea of leaving Dearborn for Redmond, but more importantly Ford is tipped to be ditching Microsoft in developing its next-generation Sync system. In its place, Ford is expected to partner with BlackBerry's QNX division.
Now, before you go balking "BlackBerry?! But they're finished!" consider that QNX is (or at least was) an independent entity that Research In Motion (as BlackBerry's Ontario-based parent company was then known) just happened to have bought back in 2010. QNX provides control systems to everything from nuclear power plants and UAVs to automakers like Audi, BMW and Porsche.

2015 Ford Mustang fuel economy ratings leaked

Thinking about buying a new Mustang, but want to know what kind of fuel economy it'll get? Well we have our first indication as the pony-car enthusiasts over at Mustang6G.com have gotten a hold of the Monroney window stickers for a few of the new 2015 Mustang models.
Although the V8 model is not among them, we can now see how the EPA has rated those models with a half dozen pistons or less. The Mustang EcoBoost with the turbo four and a manual transmission has been rated at 22 miles per gallon in the city and 31 on the highway. The V6 manual gets 17 city and 28 highway, while the V6 automatic squeezes out a bit more in the city at 19 mpg but carries the same 28 highway rating.
By way of comparison, the latest Chevy Camaro with the V6 and a stick shift gets the same 17/28 EPA rating as a similarly equipped new 'Stang, and the V6 automatic Camaro gets 18/27 (slightly behind the Ford, but if you opt for the Camaro 2LS with its V6, automatic and 2.92 rear axle ratio, you'll be looking at 19 and 30).