Ford Explorer, Edge get small, turbocharged engines

Ford is marching closer to bringing turbocharged engines to its entire lineup, even to smaller engines.

Next up are the Ford Edge and Explorer, two crossover models that are the first vehicles in North America to be offered with Ford's new 2-liter EcoBoost turbocharged engine. They're arriving in showrooms now.

The Explorer is a full-size crossover SUV, so it's about the last vehicle in which one would expect to find a four-cylinder engine. But it might well happen:

Ford is on its way to offering turbocharged engines in 90% of its lineup around the world by 2013.

Behind the move: better gas mileage. The two-row Edge with EcoBoost delivers an EPA-rated 21 miles per gallon in the city and 30 mpg on the highway. It depends not only on the smaller engine for those numbers, but for other tactics, such as other engine modifications and shutters that open and close behind the grille, depending on speed and conditions for better gas mileage.

"An EcoBoost powertrain puts Edge and Explorer fuel efficiency over the top," said Mark Fields, Ford president of the Americas.

Turbochargers add cost to vehicles, but are far less expensive than hybrids. Plus, automakers have eliminated the dreaded "turbo lag" that dogged turbocharged engines from decades ago.