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These cars will use a combination of the latest diesel powered engines, together with other features designed to reduce CO2 emissions. The first to be launched by the end of 2007 will be the Ford Focus ECOnetic, which promises to deliver best-in-class CO2 emissions for conventional powertrain technology at just 115g/km.

John Fleming, Ford of Europe President and CEO, said:
"Although all of our current European models are already highly competitive in terms of CO2, we do know that more and more car buyers seek the lowest possible emissions as a key 'why-buy?', and that they have an increasing range of such vehicles to choose from in the market.

"By launching specific models, with dedicated Ford ECOnetic badging, which achieve ultra-low CO2 results, we will give a clear alternative to those customers who prioritise low emissions performance in their purchasing decision.

"We chose the Ford ECOnetic name because it links ecologically friendly technology to our kinetic design 'energy in motion' philosophy for both driving quality and emotional styling," Fleming added. "Above all, it assures our customers that these models will not sacrifice any of the driving dynamic qualities they have come to expect from Ford, even though ultra-low emissions have been prioritised."

Ford Focus ECOnetic
Further details of the Ford ECOnetic range will be revealed in September at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show, but the first vehicle to benefit will be the company's most popular model – the Ford Focus.

The Ford Focus ECOnetic will be available early in 2008, and Ford hopes it will demonstrate that very favourable fuel consumption levels and significantly reduced CO2 emissions can both be achieved using conventional drive technology, coupled with a clever combination of individual, fuel-saving measures.

The new Ford Focus ECOnetic, powered by a 109PS, 1.6-litre Duratorq TDCi engine with standard Diesel Particulate Filter, delivers an average fuel consumption of just 4.3 l/100km, which corresponds to an average CO2 emission of only 115g/km.

Gunnar Herrmann, Ford's Vehicle Line Director for medium cars, said:
"The challenge for the engineering team was to deliver the maximum reduction in CO2 using available and affordable techologies. The result of this detailed work is both a class-leading result for a vehicle with state-of-the-art conventional power train technology, and some useful learnings that we can also apply to all diesel models in the Focus range over time."

The starting point for achieving these results was to reduce drive resistances and improve aerodynamics. By lowering the vehicle, adding an aerodynamics kit and using 195/65R15 tyres a very good coefficient of drag (cd) of 0.31 is achieved.

A further measure to reduce driving resistance also being used for the first time in the Ford Focus ECOnetic is the introduction of new low-viscosity transmission oil developed by Ford's fuel partner BP. Under testing, the efficiency benefits were found to be so significant that this new BP transmission oil is to be introduced across other Ford products.

Customer Choice
In adding the new Ford ECOnetic diesel derivatives to its extensive product line-up, the company says it "will offer customers clear and affordable choices for environmentally friendly cars."

Ford already utilises Flexifuel technology, which uses re-generative energy sources produced from renewable biomass. The Ford Focus and the Ford C-MAX are already available as Flexifuel models which can be fuelled with bio-ethanol E85 (a blend of 85% bio-ethanol and 15% petrol), or on petrol, or on any mixture of both fuels in one tank, as an alternative to conventional petrol technology only.

The combined use of bio-ethanol as a fuel and Ford's Flexifuel technology can reduce total life cycle CO2 emissions by between 30% and 80%, without compromising performance or driving quality. From early 2008, Flexifuel versions of the new Mondeo, the Ford Galaxy and the Ford S-MAX will also be on sale, giving Ford one of the broadest ranges of Flexifuel vehicles available in Europe.

In some European markets, Ford also offers selected models converted to run on LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas) and CNG (Compressed Natural Gas). These models are available in countries like Germany and Austria, where the infrastructure is available to support customers who choose this option.

Fleming added:
"Whichever model our customers choose – Ford ECOnetic, Flexifuel, LPG or CNG – they can be assured of affordable, practical, low-CO2 technologies that will also retain our trademark qualities of excellent driving dynamics and dependability throughout the lifetime of the vehicle.

"There is no single catch-all solution on the horizon to make mobility more sustainable, but Ford is committed to continue working on a portfolio of environmentally advanced vehicles and technologies to maintain momentum. The Ford ECOnetic range takes us another step along this journey, and will make our portfolio even broader."