Ford is celebrating a big milestone with its two EcoBoost V-6 powerplants found in the F-150 – more than a million EcoBoost engines have now been sold. The EcoBoost family began selling in the 2011 F-150 and has since added a second engine, the 2.7-liter V-6 Of course, it all started with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6.

“We are proving with advanced technologies like EcoBoost and high-strength, military-grade, aluminum-alloy construction, Ford continues to outperform the competition by virtually every metric,” says Doug Scott, Ford truck group marketing manager. “EcoBoost is delivering the value, capability and performance F-150 customers insist upon, while helping improve their No. 1 demand – better fuel economy.”

Marketing gibberish aside, this marks a big step for Ford. Full-size truck buyers generally appreciate big V-8s with pushrods and thundering exhausts. The EcoBoost is basically the antithesis to this, so convincing Mr. Joe America he doesn’t need a V-8 is a big deal. Ford even acknowledges the EcoBoost’s slow start. It took dealers 1,000 days to sell the first 400,000 EcoBoost-equipped trucks. Sales have skyrocketed since then, with dealers reaching the one million mark in another 1,000 days.

Now the 3.5-liter EcoBoost’s horsepower and torque specs made it easy for Ford to convince buyers to dump the V-8. The mighty V-6 kicks out 365 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque. Heck, even the little 2.7-liter EcoBoost, which debuted with the all-new 2015 F-150, makes big power – 325 horses and 375 pound-feet of torque. That nearly matches some competitors’ V-8s. Just look at the Chevy Silverado’s 5.3-liter V-8. It only makes 30 horsepower and eight pound-feet more than the EcoBoost.

The story isn’t over though. Ford is prepping the second-generation 3.5-liter EcoBoost for its 2017 debut. The engine is said to have more horsepower and torque than the old 6.2-liter V-8. That means it’ll make at least 412 horsepower. Ford has confirmed it will produce more than 450 pound-feet of torque. That’s impressive!

The new EcoBoost will come mated to an all-new 10-speed automatic transmission co-developed between Ford and General Motors. The combo will be optional in the 2017 F-150 and standard in the 2017 F-150 Raptor.

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Why It Matters

The F-150 is the top selling full-size pickup in the American market and has been for several decades. It’s also Ford’s best-selling vehicle worldwide. Translation: Ford has a lot riding on the success of the F-150 and is deeply invested in making the pickup sell well. Moving to the EcoBoost V-6 was a huge gamble and required a huge campaign to educated customers on the engine. Well, it appears the work as paid off.

For those unfamiliar, the EcoBoost is designed as a small-displacement V-6 with twin-turbocharging designed to generate big power when needed and sip fuel when not under heavy load. Ford says the one million EcoBoost engines in the F-150 will save customers more than 110 million gallons of fuel over the next year, translating to a collective savings of $255 million.

Regardless, the EcoBoost engine family has caught on with Ford buyers and that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.

Note: 2.7-liter EcoBoost shown in main image.

2015 Ford F-150

Read our full review on the 2015 Ford F-150 here.