Ford's direct ethanol injected Bobcat engine not based on new 5.0L V8

ot based on new 5.0L V8

Last year, we heard about a very interesting sounding experimental engine that Ford was working on dubbed the "Bobcat." The engine in question is a 5.0-liter V8 that featured turbocharging and two independent fuel injection systems.

systems. The primary system utilizes traditional port injection to deliver gasoline to the cylinders. The secondary system injects E85 directly into the combustion chambers.

Now that Ford has officially revealed the new 5.0-liter V8 for the 2011 Mustang GT, we began wondering whether the new engine was the basis for the Bobcat. We had a chance to chat with Mike Harrison, the chief engineer on the 5.0-liter and the 6.2-liter truck V8, who told us that the 5.0-liter Bobcat was actually derived from the old 5.4-liter V8 currently used in the F150 and the Shelby GT500.

For Bobcat use, the longer-stroke 5.4 was used in combination with a smaller bore giving thicker cylinder walls needed to withstand the high internal pressures of the boosted 750 pound-foot engine. According to Harrison, the Bobcat was part of a Department of Energy-funded research project and there are no current plans for a production engine based on the technology. Harrison tells us that the extra cost of the dual injection systems and more robust block and heads negates much of the savings from not needing a diesel after-treatment system.