Story: RALPH MORTON

The next Ford Mondeo will be fitted with the crackerjack EcoBoost engine that has already made the Focus so much fun – and so tax efficient.

We already rate the 1.0 litre turbocharged EcoBoost engine. It’s our current Company car of the Year in the Ford Focus.

We’re not alone in our admiration. The engine was voted 2012 International Engine of the Year.

• EcoBoost will offer best-in-class fuel economy and CO2 emissions

While it might be small in size – the block can sit on an A4 piece of paper – the engine is full of character and smooth power. With three cylinders and 125PS, the engine in the Mondeo will produce CO2 emissions of less than 130g/km.

This means a company car driver choosing the Ford Mondeo EcoBoost can expect a company car tax banding of just 17% in 2013/14, and with all the benefits of lighter weight and the lower cost of petrol at the pumps.

Ford’s 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine will become the smallest-ever engine to be specified in such a large family car, and gives a whole new meaning to the idea of ‘downsizing’.

“Today’s smartest technology offers customers more from less,” commented Barb Samardzich, vice president, Product Development, Ford of Europe.

“This is as true of engines as it is of computers and smartphones, and by equipping the all-new Mondeo in Europe with our acclaimed 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine we are delivering cutting-edge technology that delivers a very real and tangible customer benefit.”

The new Ford Mondeo will be officially unveiled at the Paris Motor Show later this month. It goes on sale to businesses and company car drivers in early 2013.

Further details on specification and prices and any business car finance deals are likely to be available later. But it’s likely to feature new Ford technology – such as SYNC voice activation – that has already appeared in the new Ford B-MAX.

Also read these. Click on the links

• Where now for Ford in Britain?
• Ford’s new B-Max – the small little big car
• Best company cars for 2012