Ford EcoBoost engine powers prototype to the podium at Sebring

The Ford EcoBoost engine has powered Pruett, Memo Rojas and Marino Franchitti – pilots of the Felix Sabates Riley prototype – to victory at one of the most demanding tracks, Sebring International Raceway.

The Roush Yates-prepped twin-turbo 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6, which was used by three prototypes (the 01 and 02 of Ganassi, and the 60 of Michael Shank Racing), gave the team the overall win at the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring. 

“You read about stuff like this.  The last time Ford won overall was in 1969, and what really makes it so sweet is that this is a win made possible by a production-based Ford EcoBoost engine. It literally comes out of our production vehicle. It just makes it so, so sweet because it validates what we do at Ford, that the technology we have in our cars is good enough to power an all-out win here at the Sebring 12 Hour,” said Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing.

Ford Racing, Ford Motor Company and Roush Yates engineers were out to prove that a production engine can compete in the harshest track and toughest race there is and they did.   More than seventy-percent of the Ford EcoBoost 3.5L V6 they used on the prototypes is production based.

“It is an amazing feeling.  I think the last 10 laps of that race were the most stressful 10 laps of a race I’ve ever had to live through. There’s a ton of hard work and a lot of people that went into making this victory happen. All the guys at Ford Motor Company, everyone at Ford Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing and Roush Yates – it’s just a huge sense of pride to be in victory lane in Sebring,” said Dave Simon, Ford Racing Engine Engineering Manager.