Ford Motor Company and PSA Peugeot Citroën have announced the fourth phase of their groundbreaking diesel engine co-operation, with the launch of two new families of light, clean, efficient engines.
From October 2005, Ford’s Dagenham engine plant will produce a 2.2-litre commercial diesel engine for the Ford Transit, and for PSA Peugeot Citroën’s new range of light commercial vehicles.
From January 2006, PSA Peugeot Citroën will produce a 2.2-litre premium, high output diesel engine for both companies’ medium/large and executive models from its Trémery plant, Moselle France: the world’s largest diesel engine facility.
Each facility will produce up to 200,000 units each year.
Both new engines feature a number of technical innovations. The new LCV 2.2-litre diesel engine features technology which allows its ‘brain’ constantly to adjust itself for maximum efficiency during the life of the engine. The new 2.2-litre premium diesel engine for passenger cars features a new Extreme Conventional Combustion System (ECCS), which reduces emissions while improving performance and running noise.
Since the start of the joint co-operation programme in 1998, more than four million diesel engines have been produced, making Ford Motor Company and PSA Peugeot Citroën jointly the world’s leading diesel engine makers.
Over £200 million has been invested in the new phase of the programme, taking total investment into the Dagenham Diesel Centre to nearly £560 million in the last three years. It was opened in November 2003 by the Prime Minister, Tony Blair MP.
Lewis Booth, executive vice president of Ford of Europe, and Jean-Martin Folz, chief executive officer of PSA Peugeot Citroën described the co-operation as ‘one of the most successful engine development programmes in the car business today’.
