Barra 190, The smartest engine Australia has ever produced.

[Gadgetman]

SMART TECHNOLOGY SPEARHEADS FORD ENGINE LINE-UP
We've taken the most technologically advanced six-cylinder engine we had ever produced
and made it even better. It's now a smarter design in every key area – technology,
performance, refinement, fuel economy and emissions.
– Trevor Worthington, Product and Development Vice President, Ford Australia
Ford Australia has introduced a series of upgrades to the engine line-up that will power
the BF Falcon and SY Territory range.
“The new Falcon and Territory will boast an engine line-up offering
the latest technology, providing customers with substantial
improvements in fuel economy, increased performance and greatly
improved levels of refinement,” said Ford Australia Product and
Development Vice President Trevor Worthington.
“The addition of dual independent variable camshaft timing and dual
knock sensors keeps the engine powering the new vehicles at the
forefront of automotive technology.
“Customers will notice the gains from the minute they turn the key
with greater refinement, extra performance each time they press the
accelerator, and most importantly, see improvements in fuel economy
for all petrol versions each time they fill up their vehicle.”
Worthington said the engine improvements were driven by feedback
from customers looking for an improvement in fuel economy but,
importantly, not at any cost to the levels of power and refinement
they were used to.

“With the introduction of this new engine programme, Ford Australia is providing customers
with the best of both worlds – more useable performance, cleaner emissions and increased
fuel economy for all petrol engines.
"This strategy has also helped us meet all the requirements of the stringent Euro III emissions
legislation which come into force on January 1, 2006.
“Working in combination with our new ZF six-speed automatic, revised Ion four-speed
automatic and the Tremec T56 six-speed manual transmission, the BF Falcon and SY
Territory are truly world-class cars,” Worthington said.
Barra 190
The new Barra 190 spearheads the engine range, building on the strengths of the DOHC inline
six first seen in the BA Falcon released in 2002.
The Barra 190 adds to that critically acclaimed engine with a superb combination of power,
torque, refinement and fuel economy.
“The changes implemented in the program mean the Barra 190 is the best in-line six cylinder
engine Ford Australia has produced and one that ranks with the best I6 engines in the world,”
Engine Design Supervisor Colin Reddington said.
“With the Barra 190, customers will have access to the inherent smoothness only an in-line
six can provide with an abundance of torque, the refinement of a state of the art double
overhead camshaft design and greatly improved levels of fuel economy.
“The Barra 190 really has everything in terms of technology and features: double overhead
cams, 24 valves, increased compression ratio for a more fuel efficient burn, dual independent
variable camshaft timing. It's got all the features you’d want in a top of the line engine,” he
said. Reddington said the engine team was excited by the possibilities brought about by the
inclusion of the latest generation dual independent variable camshaft timing.
“We had twin VCT phasers in the BA Falcon, which was an excellent platform for this
program. In the Barra 190 each phaser can rotate each camshaft independently to maximize
power, torque and fuel economy.”
Dual independent VCT delivers a significant low speed torque enhancement and sustains it
throughout the engine speed range.
“In addition to the improved performance across a broad rev range, there is a noticeable
decrease in fuel consumption, especially at part throttle.
“At cruise on the highway, where throttle openings are reduced, the system is able to retard
the timing by as much as 50 degrees.
“The VCT phasers also retard the camshaft angle at part throttle loads and advance the angle
for higher loads, or under wide open throttle applications.
“This optimises the cam timing for the range of engine conditions enabling maximum low
speed torque and best high rpm power.
“This cuts fuel consumption as well as providing internal exhaust gas recirculation that helps
lower tailpipe emissions,” he said.
At idle, the intake camshaft is retarded by 18 degrees for improved combustion stability
providing smoother running.
“Traditionally, four-valve engines demonstrate a strong top end but can suffer from a weak
bottom end. Thanks to the dual independent VCT system and a well proven variable intake
system the new engine provides purposeful torque from very low revs.”
He said the transition through the advance/retard range was seamless, unlike some less
advanced systems where there is a noticeable switch point. The amount of adjustment is determined by comparing the position of the camshaft with a
pre-mapped calibration.
Each camshaft on the I6 engine is fitted with a camshaft phaser that allows up to 60-degrees
of variation, depending on engine load and speed.
"From the pin-lock position we are able to advance 10 degrees and retard up to 50 degrees.
The variation is achieved via oil-pressure acting against the phaser," Reddington said.
An oil control valve directing oil pressure to each cam phaser is located to provide an
immediate and reliable response. Both control valves are activated simultaneously by
impulses received from the Powertrain Control Module.
Mounting the oil control valve within the cylinder head assembly removes the need for
separate oil ways and offers greater durability and reliability, as well as packaging
efficiencies and weight savings.
To ensure perfect seating of the camshafts, four oil control galley plates are bolted to the top
of the cylinder head before the galleys for the camshafts are bored. The front two house the
oil control valves.
Each of the four galley plates is unique so they cannot be mismatched during in-field service.
The galley plates locate on dowels sunk into the head for perfect positioning every time.
“What it means for the customer is instant power when you need it, combined with a
noticeable improvement in fuel economy.”


Compression ratio increase / Dual knock sensors
Adding a second knock sensor to all I6 engines enabled engineers to deliver fuel economy
benefits by taking advantage of an increased compression ratio.
The upgraded I6 engine features an increased compression ratio for improved power and
better fuel economy. “The new pistons feature a revised crown profile, which delivers a compression ratio increase
from 9.7:1 to 10.3:1 on the base I6 petrol engine.
"The pistons are also stiffer and feature a new pin bore which improves refinement, while
retaining the high durability levels Ford engines are renowned for," said Reddington.
“Dual knock sensors provided the foundation for a strategy change which enables the
Powertrain Control Module (PCM) to optimise the ignition timing for each individual
cylinder.
“This has resulted in improved engine performance via more accurate spark control,
improvements in fuel economy and improved levels of powertrain refinement.”
Reddington explained four modes of spark control were employed in the engine programme.
Individual / averaged spark correction is a performance mode which uses 50 per cent of the
individual cylinder correction and 50 per cent of engine average spark correction. This gives
a more consistent performance for a fast revving engine under heavy loads.
“Individual fast only spark correction reacts to detonation noise and retards the spark for the
next firing event on the same cylinder. This mode provides optimum fuel efficiency because
spark is only retarded when detonation is ‘heard’ by the system.
“Individual slow / fast spark correction is applied in addition to the fast only mode. Slow
correction remembers the spark advance used on previous events and is slowly removed if
knock is not detected for a few seconds, adding to the refinement levels of the engine.
“The fourth mode is no spark correction, used at low engine loads where detonation is not
possible. As a result, no spark correction is applied and the engine runs at the optimum
spark timing.” While the engine is calibrated to deliver benefits for all types of petrol users, Reddington said
the addition of a second knock sensor meant customers could obtain further performance and
economy benefits from using premium unleaded fuel (95 RON).

Ignition system
All Ford I6 engines in the programme – Barra 190, Barra 245T and
Barra E-Gas – include an ignition system featuring adaptive and
variable dwell enabling more efficient ignition control across the
speed / load range.
“Adaptive dwell takes account of the battery voltage and temperature
of the coil windings in the ignition system, ensuring a reliable,
repeatable charge.
“The variable dwell delivers maximum coil energy when required
voltage is high – under heavy acceleration for example – and
minimum coil energy when the engine is cruising, or at idle.”
Reddington said the I6 engines also featured the latest in spark plug technology.
“Spark plugs in all I6 engines now have a 0.5mm finewire centre electrode – the smallest
available –and platinum pad ground electrodes.
“They have been optimised for idle stability and help prevent misfire at high time in service
in every one of the I6 engine line-up.”
Camshafts
Reddington said every I6 engine in the programme had benefited from revised camshafts.
“The profiles have been specifically selected to work with the dual independent VCT strategy
and provide optimum performance for customers.

Camshafts
Reddington said every I6 engine in the programme had benefited from revised camshafts.
“The profiles have been specifically selected to work with the dual independent VCT strategy
and provide optimum performance for customers. “We worked closely with powertrain engineers in Ford US, who helped with advanced CAE
techniques to define the optimum cam durations. From this we devised specific profiles for
compatibility with our valvetrain.
“Those CAE models also helped us further refine the engine strategy.”
Reddington said exhaust duration on the Barra 190 was 256 degrees (246 at BA) and inlet
duration also 256 degrees (251 at BA).
“These new camshaft profiles will benefit the customer in terms of cleaner, smoother power
delivery and increased fuel economy.”

Refinement / economy

Reddington explained two key factors driving the engine upgrades were to improve
refinement and fuel economy.
“We have incorporated a number of measures which specifically target those key areas.”
The Barra 190 will use a new lower viscosity engine oil, changing from a 10W30 GF2 to a
new 5W30 GF3 for less friction and improved fuel economy, particularly at lower engine
operating temperatures.
The I6 air intake system has been significantly revised resulting in lower overall noise levels,
as well as a purer engine tone during acceleration.
Power steering pumps have been revised by optimising fluid flow discharge timing, further
improving the refinement levels of the I6 engines.
“We have also incorporated a new ‘smart’ alternator on all I6 engines, which ramps voltage
changes smoothly, making a smoother idle easier to control.