Cosworth

Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing (motorsport), mainstream automotive and defence industries. Cosworth is based in Northampton, England, with North American facilities in Torrance, Indianapolis and Mooresville and an Indian facility in Pune.

Cosworth has had a long and distinguished career in Formula One, beginning in 1963. Two Formula One teams were supplied with Cosworth engines in 2006: the Williams team using Cosworth V8 engines, transmissions, and associated electronics; and the Scuderia Toro Rosso team using rev-limited Cosworth V10s based on 2005 spec engines. The end of the 2006 F1 season marked the end of Cosworth's remarkable 43 year association with the series, as no team opted to use Cosworth for 2007. Cosworth returned to Formula One in 2010 as an engine supplier to Williams and three new teams (Hispania Racing F1 Team, Lotus Racing and Virgin Racing), with first units shipped in January.^[1] Cosworth's 176 wins make it one of the most successful engine manufacturers to race in F1, second only to Ferrari in victories.^[2]

Cosworth was initially an independent company, later becoming part of United Engineering Industries (UEI) and subsequently Vickers, but also had a long association with Ford Motor Company and was a subsidiary of Ford between 1998 and 2004.^[2] In 2004, Cosworth and Pi Research were sold by Ford to the current Cosworth Group owned by Gerald Forsythe and Kevin Kalkhoven.^[2]

Since 2006, Cosworth has committed itself to engineering consultancy and component manufacture for an increasingly diverse customer base, including original equipment manufacturer (OEM) automotive, aerospace, defence and aftermarket sectors. The company is AS9100 and ISO9001 accredited, therefore enabling it to operate in the most demanding and safety critical environments. Current publicised projects range from an 80 cc (4.9 cu in) diesel engine for unmanned aerial vehicles, through to an engineering partnership on one of the world's most powerful normally aspirated road car engines. Participation in world class competition continues, with hardware and consultancy support being applied to 2009 entrants in World Touring Car Championship, Formula One, and a variety of GT and sportscar series.

A foundation of the company's aftermarket product line is its Ford Duratec inline-4. Cosworth has broadened this range to supply complete high performance Subaru EJ25 engines and components for Subaru Imprezas, as well as components for Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and Nissan vehicles with the VQ35 engine. The company is also a specialist piston supplier, designing and manufacturing forged pistons for road and race vehicles from vintage and classic eras through to leading edge designs for Superbike, World Touring Car, and Formula One.

Corporate history

The company was founded as a British racing internal combustion engine maker in 1958 by Mike Costin and Keith Duckworth (1933-2005^[3]) (COStin and duckWORTH). Cosworth, despite being an independent company, was supported by Ford Motor Company for many years, and most of the Cosworth engines were named as Ford engines.

The company went through a number of ownership changes. After Keith Duckworth decided he didn't want to be involved with the day-to-day business of running a growing company, he sold out to United Engineering Industries (UEI) in 1980, retaining his life presidency and day-to-day technical involvement with Cosworth, and becoming a UEI board director; UEI was a group of small to medium-sized technology companies which was taken over by Carlton Communications in 1988 - Carlton was primarily interested in some of the audio-visual companies in the UEI portfolio and Cosworth was a poor fit with these; a new buyer for the company in the engineering/automotive sector was sought and the traditional engineering company Vickers plc bought Cosworth in 1990.^[4] In 1998, Vickers sold Cosworth and Pi Research to Ford.^[2] In September, 2004 Ford announced that it was selling Cosworth and Pi Research, along with Cosworth Racing Ltd and its Jaguar Formula One team. On 15 November 2004, the sale of Cosworth was completed, to Champ Car World Series owners Gerald Forsythe and Kevin Kalkhoven, the current Cosworth Group.^[2]

The road car engine aspect of the business was split from the racing division following the sale of the engineering division of Cosworth to VW/Audi in September 1998 and re-named Cosworth Technology, before being acquired by MAHLE in 2005. Cosworth Technology was then renamed as MAHLE Powertrain on 1 July 2005.^[5]

Engines

Association with Ford

Cosworth has had a long relationship with Ford Motor Company, which began when Cosworth started manufacturing racing engines in 1959. These were modified versions of the 1,000 cubic centimetres (61.0 cu in) Ford Kent engine for Formula Junior. Cosworth began its associating with Lotus Cars by boring the Kent out to 1,340 cubic centimetres (81.8 cu in) for the Lotus 7. 1,500 cubic centimetres (91.5 cu in) and 1,600 cubic centimetres (97.6 cu in) units were developed in 1963 for use in Formula B and sports car racing, as well as for powering the Lotus Cortina. The final evolution of the Cosworth-Kent, in 1965, was the MAE, when new rules were introduced in Formula 3 allowing 1,000 cubic centimetres (61.0 cu in) engines. The domination of this engine was absolute as long as these regulations lasted. As Cosworth had some difficulty facing the demand, the MAE was mainly sold as a kit.

A year before the introduction of the MAE the SCA was introduced, a 1000 cc engine based on a Ford Cortina 116E block that raced in Formula 2, and featured the first totally Cosworth-designed head.

The FVA series

The Cortina engine was also the basis for the FVA, an F2 engine introduced in 1966, and developed under the same contract as the DFV, for the new 1.6 litre engine rules. This engine featured 16 valves operated by twin overhead camshafts driven by a train of 9 gears. The metering unit for the Lucas mechanical fuel injection was rotated by gear and belt from the inlet cam, while the exhaust cam drove an alternator on the rear of the head. It produced at least 225 brake horsepower (168 kW) at 9000 rpm. This engine dominated the category until 1971, and was also used in sports car racing in 1.8 litre form as the FVC. The FVA was notable for being part of the same Ford contract that gave rise to the DFV; the cylinder head on the FVA pioneered many of Duckworth's ideas that would be used on the V8 engine.

A larger engine was designed for endurance racing in the mid 1970s, the FVC that displaced 1,976 cubic centimetres (120.6 cu in). The FVC produced only 275 brake horsepower (205 kW), down from the 325 hp (242 kW) that other twin-cam four cylinders such as the Hart 420S produced but was more reliable. Two unusual features were gear-driven camshafts, plus a gear-driven alternator in the cylinder head. One was campaigned in the USA's CanAm series in 1978 in the Osprey SR-1, built and driven by Dan Hartill.

The DFV (Double Four Valve)

In 1966, Colin Chapman (Lotus Cars founder and principal of Team Lotus) persuaded Ford to bankroll Keith Duckworth's design for a new lightweight 3,000 cubic centimetres (183.1 cu in) Formula One engine.^[2] Cosworth received the order along with the £100,000 that Ford felt it adequate to spend on such an objective. The contract stipulated that a four-cylinder Ford-based F2 engine would be developed as proof of concept (see the FVA above) and that a pure Cosworth V8 would be built based on this. The DFV design used a similar cylinder head to the one Duckworth had prototyped on the four-cylinder FVA units on a custom Cosworth cylinder block and crankcase, forming a single 90° V8 engine, thus creating a legend in its own right, the DFV - literally meaning "Double Four Valve". This engine, and its derivatives were used for a quarter of a century, and it was the most successful in the history of Formula One / Grand Prix motor racing. Winning 167 races in a career lasting over 20 years, it was the product that put Cosworth Engineering on the map. Although originally designed for Formula One, the engine has been modified to be used in a range of categories.

The DFV won on its first outing, at the 1967 Dutch Grand Prix in the hands of Jim Clark, fitted to a Lotus 49, and from 1968 was available for purchase to any F1 team that wished it. During the 1970s, it was common for almost the entire field (with the notable exception of Ferrari) to use one of these engines - this at a time when independent wealthy individuals could buy exactly the same engine off the shelf that was also being used by McLaren et al. Most teams just built a tub around a Cosworth DFV and a Hewland gearbox. It won a record 155 World Championship races, the last being Detroit in 1983, powering a Tyrrell driven by Michele Alboreto.

Although the DFV (bore: 3.373 inches (85.67 mm), stroke: 2.555 inches (64.90 mm), displacement: 2,992.98 cubic centimetres (182.6 cu in)) with 410 brake horsepower (306 kW; 416 PS) at 9,000 rpm did not produce as much power as some of its rival 12-cylinder engines, it was lighter, resulting in a better power to weight ratio. In addition to being lighter, it was also made a structural part of the car itself, by placing load bearing arms to stress the block. These design aspects appealed tremendously to the genius of Colin Chapman who used them to the fullest extent.

The DFY, introduced in 1982 was a further evolution of the DFV for Formula One, with a shorter stroke and a DFL bore (bore: 3.543 inches (89.99 mm), stroke: 2.316 inches (58.83 mm), displacement 2,993.38 cubic centimetres (182.7 cu in)) with 520 brake horsepower (388 kW; 527 PS) at 11,000 rpm, thereby producing more power, but still unable to fight against the turbocharged cars of the day. It was the advent of turbocharged engines in Formula One which sounded the death knell for the venerable DFV, and in 1986 Cosworth returned to the lower formulae preparing the DFV for the newly created Formula 3000, with the installation of a compulsory 9,000 rpm rev limiter, which scaled power back from 500 to 420 brake horsepower (313 kW; 426 PS); the DFV remained in this class until 1992. The final F3000 engines gave 500 brake horsepower (373 kW; 507 PS), almost equalling the 1983 DFV which gave 510 brake horsepower (380 kW; 517 PS) at 11,200 rpm.

In Formula One, a new DFV-based design was introduced for the new 3,500 cubic centimetres (213.6 cu in) normally aspirated rules in 1987. The DFZ was produced as an interim model, but in 1988 Cosworth created the DFV's final evolution, the DFR, which soldiered on in F1 with smaller teams until 1991, scoring its last points - including a pair of second places by Jean Alesi - with Tyrrell in 1990.

The DFV has recently been given a new lease of life thanks to the interest in Classic F1 racing, which was given a World Championship status by the FIA in 2004.

DFV variants

The DFV spawned a number of derivations. In 1968; Cosworth created the DFV's first derivation, a 2,500 cubic centimetres (152.6 cu in) version for the Tasman Series, the DFW. DFV to DFW conversion simply involved substitution of a short-stroke crank and longer connecting rods aka conrods.

One of the most successful and longest-lived projects of Cosworth has been its CART / Champ Car engine program. In 1975; Cosworth developed the DFX, by destroking the engine to 2,650 cubic centimetres (161.7 cu in) and adding a turbocharger, the DFX became the standard engine to run in IndyCar racing, ending the reign of the Offenhauser, and maintaining that position until the late 1980s. Ford backed Cosworth with creating a new interim design for IndyCar racing in the late 1980s, the DFS, which merged DFR technology into the ageing DFX design, but it was eventually rendered obsolete by advancing technology.

While designed as an F1 engine, the DFV was also used as in endurance racing, although its flat-plane design led to destructive vibrations putting stress on devices surrounding the engine, especially the exhaust system. The first sports car to use a DFV, the Ford P68, failed to finish a single race because of repeated mechanical and electrical failures. Despite this handicap the DFV won the 24 hours of Le Mans twice in its original 3.0 litre form for Mirage and Rondeau (although the Mirage win in 1975 was with a significantly de-tuned unit). A special endurance version, the DFL, was then developed in two versions: one with 3,298 cubic centimetres (201.3 cu in) and the other with 3,955 cubic centimetres (241.3 cu in). Whilst the former version soon became known for its reliability, the latter version was a step too far and is largely remembered as a failure.

The GA V6

A variant of the Ford Essex engine was developed for the Ford Capris raced in Group 2 in the early 1970s. This had a capacity of 3,412 cc (208.2 cu in), and was highly competitive against the BMW straight-sixes. The GA was also used in the later years of Formula 5000 in Europe.

The FBA and FBC V6

The FBA and FBC engines engines were found in the Ford Granada and Ford Scorpio Ultima. The FBA came first in 1991 also known as the 'BOA', it was based on the Ford Cologne V6 used in the Ford Sierra and Ford Capri and other models and was a twin overhead camshaft 24valve conversion for more power, producing 195 metric horsepower (143 kW; 192 bhp) and better idle quality. In 1995, with a new version of the Scorpio, it was upgraded with a wider torque spread and higher power - to 204 metric horsepower (150 kW; 201 hp), from a variable intake system and reprofiled cams. The NVH was improved with a change from a single chain to drive all four camshafts - to one chain to drive one bank of cams and a second for the other bank, this engine was known as the 'BOB'.

A racing version was also available for a short time - FBE - with individual throttle butterflies for each cylinder.

FBB and FBD engines did exist as development engines but these were never released.

The two production engines were always mated to an automatic gearbox but have become popular in the custom car scene where they have been mated to the 4x4 manual transmission and the rear wheel drive manual transmission from the Ford Sierra XR4 and XR4x4. There are also companies that offer twin and single turbo conversions, and other modifications to increase power to usually around 400 bhp (300 kW). These engines can be bought relatively cheaply and providing they are well serviced, engines have been known to cover over 200,000 miles without major work being required.

The BDA series

Cosworth increased its association with Ford in 1969, by developing a double overhead camshaft (DOHC) 16-valve inline four cylinder engine for road use in the Ford Escort. Working from the Kent block, Cosworth created a 1,601 cubic centimetres (97.7 cu in) for homologation purposes. The camshafts were driven by a toothed belt, hence the name BDA, literally meaning "Belt Drive, A type". Running in Group 2 and Group 4 on either rallying or touring car racing, this engine could be enlarged to a maximum of 2,000 cubic centimetres (122.0 cu in). The nominal homologation at 1,601 cubic centimetres (97.7 cu in) capacity meant that BDA-engined cars competed in what was usually the top class (1600 cc and up) so were eligible for absolute victories rather than class wins.

In 1970, the BDC evolution received fuel injection for the first time. Two years later, the BDA series was being used in Formula 2, first at around 1,800 cubic centimetres (109.8 cu in), until reaching a maximum of 1,975 cubic centimetres (120.5 cu in) in 1973, as the developed BDG form of the engine, which also received an aluminium block.

The block could also be shortened, starting with the 1,599 cubic centimetres (97.6 cu in) Formula Atlantic engine in 1970, followed by the 1,100 cubic centimetres (67.1 cu in) and 1,300 cubic centimetres (79.3 cu in) variants for SCCA club racing and sports car racing. There was even a one-off 785 cubic centimetres (47.9 cu in) version built by Cosworth employees Paul Squires and Phil Kidsley; fitted with a Lysholm supercharger it was installed in a Brabham BT28 Formula 3 chassis and competed in the British Hill Climb Championship as the Brabham-Lysholm.^[6]

In the 1980s, the engine saw its final incarnations, the 1,700 cubic centimetres (103.7 cu in) BDR, used in the road-going version of the Caterham, and the 1.8 litre BDT, which powered the never-raced Escort RS1700T, and the more competitive Ford RS200, which was created for Group B rallying. A 2,137 cubic centimetres (130.4 cu in) evolution model was developed by Brian Hart just as Group B was cancelled by the FIA. The BDT-E turbocharged versions gave over 600 brake horsepower (447 kW; 608 PS) in Group B rallycross configuration.

In 1970, Ford asked Weslake and Co of Rye to build the BDA Engine for them, and by the end of 1970 the production line had been installed at Rye and production was under way.

The Hart 420R owes much to the BDA series, being essentially an aluminium-block derivative using similar heads.

The YB series

The YB series of 1,993 cubic centimetres (121.6 cu in) engines are based on the older Pinto engine block,^[7] and were introduced in the road-going Ford Sierra RS Cosworth in 1986 with 204 metric horsepower (150 kW; 201 bhp).With 5,000 units built for homologation purposes in Group A, both for rallies and touring cars. Racing versions could develop about 400 horsepower (298 kW; 406 PS). A limited edition evolution model was introduced in 1987, the RS500, with power now exceeding 550 horsepower (410 kW; 558 PS) in full racing trim. The RS500 came to dominate touring car racing in its heyday. The various colour cam covers that distinguised each version were as follows: Red=YBJ(original Sierra Cosworth), Green=YBG(Catalyst equipted 4x4 Sierra Sapphire Cosworth), Blue = YBT(Large turbo Escort Cosworth), Silver = YBP (Small turbo Escort Cosworth).

Further evolutions of the YB included a reduced-emissions road version, as well as the block used in the Escort RS Cosworth (which used the Sierra floorpan). The engine stopped being used on new cars in 1997, with the Focus WRC and road-going Focus RS relying on Zetec designs.

Other Formula One engines

Cosworth experimented with turbocharged BD derivatives, before settling on an all-new turbocharged 1,500 cubic centimetres (91.5 cu in) V6 engine to be badged as the Ford TEC (internally it was known as the GB-series). This had a long development history but raced only briefly, in 1986, with the Haas Lola team and in 1987 with the Benetton Formula team. The development of the GBA engine at Cosworth became the subject of a British TV documentary in Channel Four's Equinox series (it was broadcasted in 1986).

The final DFV/DFZ/DFR replacement, the 3,500 cc (213.6 cu in) HB V8 was introduced with the Benetton team midway through 1989, winning the Japanese Grand Prix that year. This exploited a narrower vee-angle than the DFV. As the works team, Benetton maintained exclusivity with this model through the rest of 1989 and 1990. 1991 saw the introduction of customer units, two specifications behind their works equivalents. In 1991, these were supplied to the fledgling Jordan Grand Prix outfit, and for 1992, Team Lotus. 1993 saw the customer deal extended to McLaren, who won five Grands Prix with Ayrton Senna that year. It was not until the introduction of the new Cosworth unit, badged as a Ford Zetec-R, that Michael Schumacher won the Drivers World Championship with Benetton, in 1994. This was the last Ford powered F1 title.

A Jaguar-badged version of the HB was briefly used in sports car racing, fitted to the extremely successful Jaguar XJR-14.

Cosworth also developed a Ford-badged 72°F1 V10 engine for the Sauber Formula One team. (An unrelated 4,300 cc (262.4 cu in) V10 designated WDA was also built and tested in a Volvo S80, but this did not see production).

Cosworth has subsequently made several 3,000 cc (183.1 cu in) V10 engines for a number of Formula One teams. The Stewart Grand Prix team effectively became the Ford works team, and used Cosworth CR-1 engines from its first season in 1997. Over the next few years Ford had increased its involvement with the Stewart team, and finally bought the team, renaming it Jaguar Racing for 2000. Jaguar pulled out of F1 at the end of 2004, but the team (renamed Red Bull Racing) continued to use Cosworth V10 engines until switching to a Ferrari V8 for 2006. Minardi also used re-badged Cosworth engines until 2005.

Williams began testing the new CA2006 2.4 litre V8 in November 2005, and used the Cosworth V8 engines for the 2006 season. In the same year, Scuderia Toro Rosso used detuned V10 engines based on the 2005 units.

In 2007, however, the company was left without a partner when Williams chose to switch to Toyota power, and Scuderia Toro Rosso made the switch to Ferrari engines (as used in 2006 by their mother team Red Bull Racing).

In Max Mosley's letter following the withdrawal of Honda from Formula One in December 2008, it was announced that Cosworth had won the tender to provide a standard engine to any interested participants. The new engine would become the standard design and manufacturers could opt to use whole units, construct their own from designs provided by Cosworth, or produce their own engine with the caveat that it be limited to the same power as the new "standard" engine.

In 2010 Cosworth returned as the engine supplier for Williams and three new teams; Hispania Racing, Lotus F1 Racing and Virgin Racing. The CA2010 is the same 2.4 litre V8 base of the CA2006 used by Williams, but has been re-tuned for the current 18,000 rpm limit required on all engines, down from its original 20,000 rpm implementation.^[8] First units were ready and shipped to teams in mid-January for fitting 2 weeks prior to first track testing for the year.^[1]

Other IndyCar and Champ Car engines

Cosworth designed a series of replacements for the DFS to be used in IndyCar and Champ Car racing: the X-series, beginning in 1992 with the XB. The XF was developed for the 2000 season to replace the XD, and was chosen as the spec engine for the Champ Car World Series in 2003. The most recent derivative of the XF, the 2,650 cubic centimetres (161.7 cu in) XFE quad-cam 90° V8 overhead camshaft, continued in that role through the 2007 season. The Champ Car World Series imposed a rev limit of 12,000 rpm down from the over 15,000 rpm of 2002. The 2004 model of the XFE had a rated power of nominal 750 horsepower (559 kW; 760 PS) at 1,054 mmHg (intake boost pressure), and a maximum power of 800 bhp (597 kW; 811 PS) at 1130 mmHg (during Push-to-Pass). The 2004 XFE maximum speed was 12,000 rpm (rev limited) and torque of 490 newton metres (361 ft·lbf). The aluminium and iron turbo housing ran a boost of 5.9 psi at sea level (= boost of 12 inches of mercury which is 41.5 inches of mercury absolute). The Methanol-fuelled engine used a steel crankshaft and aluminium alloy pistons. Weight was 120 kilograms (264.6 lb) and length was 539 millimetres (21.2 in).

In 2007, the Ford name was removed from the engine pieces as the manufacturer elected not to continue sponsorship of the series. Several other engine changes were made, notably the removal of the calibrated "pop off valve" designed to limit turbo boost pressure, replaced by engine electronics. The rated life of the engine was 1,400 miles (2,300 km) between rebuilds. Engines were sent by the race teams to Cosworth for the rebuild. In 2007, Champ Car switched to the new Panoz DP01 chassis, which was said to provide better ducting of airflow into the engine. The Champ Car World Series merged into the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series prior to the 2008 season, and Cosworth does not currently provide engines to any American open wheel racing series.

There is evidence that Cosworth was working on a 3,400 cc (207.5 cu in) push-rod V8 along the lines of the Ilmor/Mercedes 500I to exploit the peculiar loophole in the Indianapolis 500 rules permitting such engines higher turbocharger boost - this was assigned a project code (CD) but seemingly never completed.

In mid 2003, Cosworth provided the 3.5 L V8 XG badged as a Chevrolet Gen 4 engine to IRL IndyCar Series teams after the proprietary Chevrolet Gen 3 engine proved inadequate against rival Hondas and Toyotas during the 2003 season. While many teams left Chevrolet after the 2003 season, those that stayed saw a significant improvement in performance with the new "Chevworth" engine compared to their previous units. The XG finished second in its first race at Michigan on July 27, 2003. Sam Hornish, Jr. went on to win 3 races that season with the new XG. The XG was reduced in size to 3 L for 2004 season and it won one race in 2005 during Chevrolet's final season in IRL.

Formula Atlantic engines

Currently these are 300 horsepower (224 kW; 304 PS) 2,300 cubic centimetres (140.4 cu in) inline-four engines based on the Mazda MZR engine. Changes includes a billet crankshaft, barrel throttle bodies, new cylinder head with larger valves, pistons, con rods and camshafts. A detuned 250 horsepower (190 kW; 250 PS) version, targeting club racers, is sold to the consumer market. This engine retains the standard crankshaft, and has a different cylinder head. Both engines are built by Cosworth in Torrance, California, under the guidance of newly appointed technical designer Wayne Merry (formerly of Cosworth in Worcester UK).

Road engines

Best known in Europe for its relationship with Ford^[2] - in particular because of the COSWORTH name in the vehicle title on the high performance Ford Sierra RS Cosworth and Ford Escort RS Cosworth,^[2] but also in the creation of other Ford models; the Escort RS1600, Escort RS1800, RS200, and Scorpio 2.9i 24V.

In the USA, the name has also appeared in the title of a road car (well before it did in Europe) as the Cosworth version of the Chevrolet Vega. Only 3,508 1975 and 1976 Cosworth Vegas were produced from March 1975 through 1976. The engine features the Vega sleeveless, aluminium-alloy block fitted with forged components. The twin-cam, 16 valve, aluminium cylinder head design was assisted by Cosworth, but Chevrolet did the development work. The engine features electronic ignition, Bendix electronic fuel injection, and stainless steel headers.^[9] The final US emissions standardised version produces 110 bhp. Cosworth's EA racing version was not successful due to engine block structural failures. Chevrolet later produced a heavy-duty 'off-road' block with thicker walls to better withstand the racing application, but by that time Cosworth had moved on. Projected first year sales of the Cosworth Vega had been 5,000. With only 3,508 cars produced and many unsold, the car was discontinued. 1,500 hand-built Cosworth Vega engines were simply scrapped for lack of demand.^[10]

Other published projects for Adam Opel AG include the Opel Ascona 400 / Manta 400 rally cars and the 2.0L 16V engines in the Opel Kadett, Opel Astra GSi, Opel Vectra and Opel Calibra turbo.

Other companies known to have benefitted from the Cosworth engineering input are Mercedes-Benz (with the 190 E 2.3-16), Rolls-Royce, and Audi (notably their RS cars).

Cosworth’s involvement with Mercedes-Benz came with moves in the mid-1980s from the German manufacturer to re-enter motorsport after retiring from direct factory participation after the tragic 1955 Le Mans crash which killed 80 spectators. Mercedes-Benz was looking to create a Group B rally car out of its new W201 Chassis (190E Model) and turned to the expertise of Cosworth to shorten the development time for this project.

The request was a huge surprise for Cosworth, and the original brief for a 320 bhp engine based on the 136 bhp Mercedes M102 2.3 litre SOHC 4-cylinder engine was passed duly passed to Mike Hall, who “drew the famed DFV and BDA engine”.^[11] Designed around the existing M102 head bolt pattern, the new twin cam, 16 valve, pentroof head, had its valves set a 45° included angle, rather than the 40° angle of the BDA.^[11] The valves were the biggest that could be fitted into the combustion chamber. Flat top pistons delivered the 10.5:1 compression ratio. The new Cosworth WAA^[12] engine also was Cosworth’s first one-piece head, i.e. the camshaft carrier was cast integral with the head itself. Again the constraints of the existing head-bolt pattern meant that Hall had to shift the camshaft bearings from outside each pair of camlobes as in the BDA to in between each cylinder's pair of cam lobes. The upside being that this configuration made for less flex at high rpm.^[11]

The advent of the AWD turbo Audi Quattro gave the rear wheel drive, normally aspirated 190E rally car no chance of being successful and the competition car was stillborn. Instead Mercedes Benz decided to recoup its development cost by selling the car as a road going sports-sedan. Hall detuned the WAA race engine to 185 bhp by reducing the port diameters and a more restrictive fuel injection and induction was substituted for the race items to complete the detune.^[11] All WAA 2.3-16 engines were built in the Cosworth factory with the heads being produced by the Coscast method.

Cosworth assisted with the later 2.5-16 engine (WAB), and the short-stroke 2.5-16 Evo engines (WAC) although these were all manufactured in house by Mercedes-Benz. The 190E 2.3-16 became the basis for privateer Mercedes entries into the DTM from 1988. The short-stroke 2.5-16 190E EVO II was race-developed to 375+ bhp, gaining the 1992 DTM crown with Klaus Ludwig at the wheel.

Cosworth F1 car

Cosworth made an attempt at designing a full Formula One Grand Prix car in 1969. The car, designed by Robin Herd, used an original 4WD transmission designed by Keith Duckworth (different from the Ferguson used by all other 4WD F1 cars of the 1960s) and powered by a magnesium version of the DFV unit. The car was planned to drive at the 1969 British Grand Prix, but it was silently withdrawn. When Herd left to form March Engineering, the project was cancelled. The external design of the car was a product of Herd's use of Mallite sheeting (a wood-aluminium laminate composite) for the principal structural monocoque sections, a technique he pioneered on the first McLaren single-seat cars, including the McLaren M2B of 1966.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Summary of F1 engine use

See also

• Formula One
• Ford Racing
• MAHLE Powertrain

References

• List of f1 engines by year

Literature

• Bernd Tuchen, Ford in der Formel 1 1965 bis 1994. Die Geschichte des legendären Ford Cosworth DFV Motors. Seine Entstehung, seine Rennställe, seine Siege und Weltmeister (Büchenbach 2006/Verlag Dr. Faustus) (www.Verlag-Dr-Faustus.de) ISBN 978-3-933474-38-4
• Graham Robson, Cosworth: The Search For Power, 4th ed, Haynes, 1999, ISBN 1-85960-610-5

External links

• Cosworth
• Cosworth Performance Parts
• List of Cosworth engine types