Following fifty years of engine production at its East London plant, Ford Dagenham has announced engine manufacturing has reached the milestone of 40 million engines.
Ford Dagenham, which has been engineering and manufacturing engines since 1931, now manufactures fuel-efficient diesel engines for Ford’s small, medium, and large car ranges, as well as featuring prominently in Ford’s commercial vehicles. Over 50% of global Ford diesel engine demand is supplied by Dagenham.
Dagenham-built engines have powered generations of vehicles including the Ford Escort, Cortina, Capri, Granada, and Transit models. Today, engines from Ford’s largest UK plant power three of the best-selling vehicles in Britain: the Ford Fiesta, Ford Focus and Ford Transit.
“Dagenham producing 40 million engines is a significant milestone for Ford’s biggest UK site,” said Joe Greenwell, Ford of Britain Chairman. “Ford Dagenham now produces Ford’s most fuel-efficient engine in the 1.6-litre TDCi unit and exports to 12 countries around the world as part of our global ‘One Ford’ strategy. This site is helping to power the UK’s sustainable economic recovery.”
Ford Dagenham’s 1.6-litre TDCi diesel engine powers the latest Ford Fiesta ECOnetic model, which delivers fuel economy of 85.6mpg and CO2 emissions of 87g/km.
Production for Ford vehicles accounts for around 70% of Dagenham’s output, with the balance comprising over 270,000 engines per year for Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, PSA Peugeot Citroën and Volvo.
Total production of petrol engines from Ford Bridgend in Wales and diesel engines from Ford Dagenham is sufficient to power one-in-three Ford vehicles produced globally. These two plants have a total combined annual UK production capacity of two million engines, of which over 85% are exported.
Over the past decade, Ford Dagenham has been at the forefront of the urban and industrial re-generation taking place in the area. Ford has committed to investing £1.5 billion over a five year period across its UK sites to engineer and manufacture low-CO2 vehicles and engines.
Find out more about UK automotive manufacturing in SMMT’s handy Motor Industry Facts 2012 publication. To read the latest announcements on investment, manufacturing expansion, new vehicle models and employment within the UK’s automotive sector, go to www.smmt.co.uk/investment.
