![CVH Kopf2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/CVH_Kopf2.jpg)
The Ford CVH engine is a
straight-four automobile engine produced by the
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
. The engine's name is an acronym for either ''Compound Valve-angle Hemispherical'' or ''Canted Valve Hemispherical'', where "Hemispherical" describes the shape of the combustion chamber.
The CVH was introduced in 1980 in the
third generation European Escort and in 1981 in the
first generation North American Escort. Engines for North America were built in Ford's
Dearborn Engine plant, while engines for Europe and the UK were built in Ford's then-new
Bridgend Engine plant in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
.
The CVH was produced in capacities from 1.1 to 2.0 L, with the smallest version offered exclusively in continental Europe, and the largest only in North America.
History and Details
The engine was originally conceived in 1974, and was a key plank of the "Erika" world car programme which spawned both the third-generation European Escort and the 1981 North American car of the same name. Although the European and North American Escorts ended up being substantially different from each other in execution, the CVH engine was the one major common part shared between them. The CVH largely replaced the overhead valve
Kent ("Crossflow") engine in Ford of Europe's portfolio, although the 'short block' Valencia version of the Kent remained in production for many decades (ironically outliving the CVH by two years) - positioned below the CVH as an entry level engine in the smallest capacity Fiesta and Escort models.
The CVH is a cam-in-head design (as distinct from an overhead camshaft) with a single camshaft operating two valves per cylinder via rocker arms.
As indicated by the name, the valves in original versions are mounted at a compound angle in order to allow for a
hemispherical combustion chamber
A hemispherical combustion chamber is a type of combustion chamber in a reciprocating internal combustion engine with a domed cylinder head notionally in the approximate shape of a hemisphere (in reality usually a spheric section thereof). An en ...
, but without the need for dual camshafts (or an elaborate rocker system) which a "hemi" engine normally requires. The later "lean burn" versions of the engine launched in 1986 had reshaped combustion chambers to improve swirl, and were strictly speaking no longer hemi-headed at all. The CVH features
hydraulic valve lifter
A hydraulic tappet, also known as a hydraulic valve lifter or hydraulic lash adjuster, is a device for maintaining zero valve clearance in an internal combustion engine. Conventional solid valve lifters require regular adjusting to maintain a sma ...
s, a first for a European Ford engine. In North America the engine was sold under different names, being called the "1.9L SEFI" from 1991 to 1996 in that market's Ford Escort, the "Split Port Induction 2000" or SPI2000 from 1997 to 2002, while from 2000 to 2004 it was simply the "Split Port" when offered in the Ford Focus.
1.1
![CVH Kopf1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/CVH_Kopf1.jpg)
The 1.1 L CVH had the shortest production life of the different variants. Bore × stroke are , and displacement is . It debuted in the 1980
Escort MkIII for Continental Europe only, where it was offered as an alternative to the 1.1 L
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
overhead valve
An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located be ...
(OHV) engine, which was the only 1.1 L engine offered in UK market Escorts. The 1.1 L CVH offered negligible improvements in economy or performance over the older Valencia unit, which was simpler and cheaper to manufacture, and hence was dropped in 1982.
Applications
* 1980–1981
Ford Escort Mk 3 (Continental Europe only)
1.3
The 1.3 L CVH was introduced in the 1980 European
Escort and used in the
Orion and
Fiesta from 1983 to 1986. Bore and stroke are , for a displacement of . The 1.3 L was to be offered in the North American Escort, but testing found it to be unacceptably underpowered, and plans to produce it in the US were scrapped just months before full-scale production was scheduled to start.
For the facelifted
fourth generation European Escort of 1986, this CVH was replaced by a 1.3 L Valencia engine in entry level models, while higher trim level models used the 1.4 L CVH described below.
Applications
* 1980–1986
Ford Escort Mk 3
* 1983–1985
Ford Fiesta Mk 2
* 1983–1986
Ford Orion Mk 1
1.4
![CVH Kopf3](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/CVH_Kopf3.jpg)
The 1.4 L CVH replaced the 1.3 L CVH in the Escort, Orion and Fiesta from early 1986. Bore and stroke are , and displacement is . In European trim, this engine produced .
Known as the 'Lean Burn' engine, it was designed primarily for
fuel economy and featured a different cylinder head than other CVH engines.
The Ford variable venturi
carburetor
A carburetor (also spelled carburettor) is a device used by an internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the venturi tube in the main meteri ...
was replaced by a
Weber 28/30 TLDM which used a manifold vacuum-actuated secondary choke instead of the more usual sequential linkage which opens the secondary butterfly at 3/4 to full throttle. The 1.4 L version is less responsive to power modification than other CVH engines, and some common tuning parts cannot be used.
In South Africa, the 1.4 L CVH was fitted to the
Ford Laser
The Ford Laser is a compact car, originally a subcompact car in the first three generations, which was sold by Ford in Asia, Oceania, and parts of South America and Africa. It has generally been available as a sedan or hatchback, although con ...
and Meteor, which were rebadged
Mazda Familia
The , also marketed prominently as the Mazda 323, Mazda Protegé and Mazda Allegro, is a small family car that was manufactured by Mazda between 1963 and 2003. The Familia line was replaced by the Mazda3/Axela for 2004.
It was marketed as the '' ...
s. It replaced the 1.3 L
Mazda E engine
The iron-block, alloy head E family was an evolution of Mazda's xC design. It was released in June 1980 with the introduction of the first front-wheel drive Mazda Familias and Ford Lasers. Some later variants of the E5-powered Mazda Familia and F ...
used in these cars and was itself replaced by the 1.3 L
Mazda B engine
The Mazda B-series engine - not to be confused with the Mazda B-Series truck - is a small-sized, iron-block, inline four-cylinder with belt-driven SOHC and DOHC valvetrain ranging in displacement from 1.1 to 1.8 litres. It was used from front-wh ...
.
Applications
* 1986–1990
Ford Escort Mk 4
* 1990–2000
Ford Escort Mk 5
* 1986–1989
Ford Fiesta Mk 2
* 1989–1995
Ford Fiesta Mk 3
* 1986–1990
Ford Orion Mk 2
* 1990–1992
Ford Orion Mk 3
CVH-PTE
The CVH-PTE is a revised version of the 1.4 L CVH introduced on the European Ford Fiesta 1.4 Si and Ford Escort in 1994. It features
multi-point injection
Manifold injection is a mixture formation system for internal combustion engines with external mixture formation. It is commonly used in engines with spark ignition that use petrol as fuel, such as the Otto engine, and the Wankel engine. In a mani ...
and a thicker crankcase to reduce harshness at high revs. Through the 1990s it was gradually phased out in favour of the newer
Zetec
Ford Motor Company used the Zetec name on a variety of inline 4-cylinder automobile engines. It was coined to replace "Zeta" on a range of 1.6 L to 2.0 L multi-valve engines introduced in 1991 because Ford was threatened with legal acti ...
16-valve unit.
1.6
The
naturally aspirated
Naturally may refer to:
;Albums
* ''Naturally!'', an album by Nat Adderley
* ''Naturally'' (Houston Person album)
* ''Naturally'' (J. J. Cale album)
* ''Naturally'' (John Pizzarelli album)
* ''Naturally'' (Sharon Jones album)
* ''Naturally'' ...
(NA) 1.6 L CVH debuted in the 1980 European Escort and the 1981 North American Escort. Bore and stroke are and total displacement is .
European NA 1.6
![CVH XR3 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/CVH_XR3_01.jpg)
European versions produced with the Ford variable venturi carburetor, with the twin venturi 32/34 DFT Weber carburetor used in the Fiesta XR2 and the Escort XR3, with
Bosch K-Jetronic Jetronic is a trade name of a manifold injection technology for automotive petrol engines, developed and marketed by Robert Bosch GmbH from the 1960s onwards. Bosch licensed the concept to many automobile manufacturers. There are several variations ...
injection, with
KE-Jetronic mechanical fuel injection
Fuel injection is the introduction of fuel in an internal combustion engine, most commonly automotive engines, by the means of an injector. This article focuses on fuel injection in reciprocating piston and Wankel rotary engines.
All comp ...
, and with
electronic fuel injection
Manifold injection is a mixture formation system for internal combustion engines with external mixture formation. It is commonly used in engines with spark ignition that use petrol as fuel, such as the Otto engine, and the Wankel engine. In a mani ...
(EFI) and a
Ford EEC-IV engine control unit
An engine control unit (ECU), also commonly called an engine control module (ECM), is a type of electronic control unit that controls a series of actuators on an internal combustion engine to ensure optimal engine performance. It does this by re ...
(ECU) as found in the XR3i or Orion GLSI. A version was offered in the Escort RS1600i developed by Ford Motorsport Germany for
FIA
FIA is the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (English: International Automobile Federation), the world's governing body for all forms of motor sport where four or more wheels are used.
Fia or FIA may also refer to: People
* Fia Backst ...
Group A
Homologation. This version featured a reworked cylinder head, solid cam followers and bronze bearings, and a host of other motorsport features.
European versions of the carbureted 1.6 L engine from the 1986 model year on were revised and, like the new 1.4 L, benefit from cylinder heads with a heart-shaped lean-burn combustion chambers and a slightly raised piston crown. The carburetor is a Weber twin venturi 28/32 TLDM unit. Power output is improved to with the benefit of improved torque and fuel economy. EFI versions used in the Escort XR3i, 1.6i and Fiesta XR2i retained hemispherical combustion chambers. From the 1989 model year all EFI variants are fitted with the Ford EEC-IV ECU.
Applications
* 1980–1986
Ford Escort Mk 3
* 1986–1990
Ford Escort Mk 4
* 1983–1989
Ford Fiesta Mk 2
* 1989–1992
Ford Fiesta Mk 3 (Replaced by
Zetec
Ford Motor Company used the Zetec name on a variety of inline 4-cylinder automobile engines. It was coined to replace "Zeta" on a range of 1.6 L to 2.0 L multi-valve engines introduced in 1991 because Ford was threatened with legal acti ...
from 1993 model year onward)
* 1988–1993
Ford Sierra
The Ford Sierra is a mid-size car or large family car manufactured and marketed by Ford Europe from 1982-1993, designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément — and noted for its aerodynamic styling producing a drag coefficien ...
* 1983–1986
Ford Orion Mk 1
* 1986–1990
Ford Orion Mk 2
* 1990–1992
Ford Orion Mk 3
* 1990–1991
Ford Escort Mk 5 (Replaced by
Zetec
Ford Motor Company used the Zetec name on a variety of inline 4-cylinder automobile engines. It was coined to replace "Zeta" on a range of 1.6 L to 2.0 L multi-valve engines introduced in 1991 because Ford was threatened with legal acti ...
in 1992)
North American NA 1.6
Standard 1.6 L output started at and . The early North American engines are built with cast pistons and connecting rods, a low-flow version of the CVH head, flat hydraulic lifters, a 0.229" lift camshaft, 32/32 Weber-licensed carburetor, cast exhaust manifold, and low-dome pistons. Over the years compression ratios ranged from 8.5:1–9.0:1, while power started at in 1981, rising to by 1985.
A 1.6 L High Output (HO) motor became available in late 1982 through 1985. Changes to it included a 4-2-1 header, higher-lift (0.240") camshaft, a 32/34 Weber carburetor, a dual-snorkel air-box, and high-dome pistons making 9.0:1–9.5:1 compression making in 1982 and in 1983–1985.
A 1.6 L EFI motor became an option in 1983 through 1985. It had all the features of the HO (Higher Output) motor but had a totally different intake system to allow for multi-point EFI running on Ford's EEC-IV ECU. The 1.6 EFI shares the same head as the carbureted 1.6 found in North America but without a mechanical fuel pump. The 1.6 EFI engine was replaced by the 1.6 HO in all high-altitude regions, making the 1.6 EFI a rare model.
Applications
* 1981–1984
Ford Escort
* 1981–1984
Mercury Lynx
The North American version of the Ford Escort is a range of cars that was sold by Ford from the 1981 to 2003 model years. The direct successor of the Ford Pinto, the Escort also largely overtook the role of the European-imported Ford Fiesta as ...
* 1982–1983
Mercury LN7
Mercury commonly refers to:
* Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun
* Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg
* Mercury (mythology), a Roman god
Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to:
Companies
* Merc ...
* 1982–1985
Ford EXP
The Ford EXP is a sports compact coupe produced and sold by the Ford Motor Company in North America for the 1982 to 1988 model years. The EXP debuted at the 1981 Chicago Auto Show. It shared many mechanical components with the contemporary Ford ...
Chinese production
Chery
Chery Automobile Co. Ltd., trading as Chery and sometimes known by the pinyin transcription of its Chinese name, ''Qirui'' (), is a Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Wuhu, Anhui, China. Founded in 1997, it is curre ...
manufactures 1.6 L version to be used for their
SEAT Toledo
The SEAT Toledo is a small family car produced by the Spanish manufacturer SEAT, part of Volkswagen Group. The Toledo name was first introduced to the SEAT line up in May 1991 being named after a Spanish city with the same name, with the fourt ...
based vehicles.
Chery purchased the production line for this engine in England, which then transferred to Anhui. The first engines left the production line in May 1999.
[Hessler, p. 65] The engine is codenamed SQR480. Later revision of SEAT Toledo based car made (
Chery A15
The Chery A15 (), also known as Cowin, Flagcloud or Amulet, is a subcompact car produced by the Chinese manufacturer Chery from 2003 to 2010. A facelifted variant was called the Cowin 2 and was sold from 2010 to 2016.
Overview
It is based on a r ...
) doesn't use this engine, has been since replaced with
ACTECO engine.
Applications:
* 1999–2006
Chery A11
The Chery A11 (), also known as Fulwin, Fengyun or Windcloud, is Chery's first car. Created without government approval, it has nonetheless been the first step of Chery's success story and helped transform the Chinese automotive market from one de ...
1.6 Turbo
European Turbo 1.6
A turbocharged version of the 1.6 L was developed by Ford Europe for the RS Turbo Escort and the later
Ford Fiesta RS Turbo
The Ford Fiesta Mk3 was the third generation of the Ford Fiesta supermini built by Ford Europe. Originally introduced in 1989, the Mk3 represented the biggest change to the Fiesta since the original car was introduced in 1976. In addition to th ...
. It makes at 6,000 rpm, and of torque at 3,000 rpm. The block is modified to provide an oil return from the
turbocharger
In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pro ...
.
Crankshaft
A crankshaft is a mechanical component used in a piston engine to convert the reciprocating motion into rotational motion. The crankshaft is a rotating shaft containing one or more crankpins, that are driven by the pistons via the connecting ...
and
connecting rod
A connecting rod, also called a 'con rod', is the part of a piston engine which connects the piston to the crankshaft. Together with the crank, the connecting rod converts the reciprocating motion of the piston into the rotation of the cranksh ...
s are identical to the standard 1.6 L models, but the
Mahle pistons are unique to the RS Turbo, and are manufactured using a pressure cast method which makes them considerably stronger and more expensive than the normal cast pistons. The compression ratio was reduced to 8.3:1, allowing the use of higher boost pressure. The engine only needs of boost to produce its quoted power output.
Applications
* 1980–1986
Ford Escort Mk 3
* 1986–1990
Ford Escort Mk 4
* 1989–1995
Ford Fiesta Mk 3
North American Turbo 1.6
The North American 1.6 turbocharged CVH was developed by Ford's Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) with help from Jack Roush for 1984 and 1985 in the Ford EXP Turbo, Ford Escort GT Turbo, and Mercury Lynx RS Turbo. At , its output is 50% higher than the carbureted North American 1.6 L HO, making it the most powerful production CVH offered in North America while returning impressive fuel efficiency and without reducing the engine's lifespan. The turbocharged engine featured a specially designed cam profile (0.240", comparable to the 1.6 HO and EFI camshafts), a Ford Performance/SVO modified head (comparable to European 1.6s), the EFI intake manifold, a unique cast exhaust manifold, low-dome pistons, and Ford's top-of-the-line EFI and ECU. These engines only appeared in the 1984–1985 Ford Escort GT Turbo and 1984–1985 Ford EXP Turbo, of which only about 10,000 were made in total. The 1.6 turbocharged Fords came standard with a TRX package that included upgraded suspension and specialty Michelin tires.
Applications
* 1984–1985
Ford Escort
* 1984–1985
Mercury Lynx
The North American version of the Ford Escort is a range of cars that was sold by Ford from the 1981 to 2003 model years. The direct successor of the Ford Pinto, the Escort also largely overtook the role of the European-imported Ford Fiesta as ...
* 1984–1985
Ford EXP
The Ford EXP is a sports compact coupe produced and sold by the Ford Motor Company in North America for the 1982 to 1988 model years. The EXP debuted at the 1981 Chicago Auto Show. It shared many mechanical components with the contemporary Ford ...
1.8
The 1.8 L CVH was only used in the European Ford Sierra. Bore is the same as the 1.6 L CVH, but a different crankshaft with a stroke of raises displacement to . The cylinder head is equipped with hydraulic roller camshaft followers to reduce noise.
Applications
* 1989–1993
Ford Sierra
The Ford Sierra is a mid-size car or large family car manufactured and marketed by Ford Europe from 1982-1993, designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément — and noted for its aerodynamic styling producing a drag coefficien ...
(Replaced the
Ford Pinto engine
The Ford Pinto engine was the unofficial name for a four-cylinder internal combustion engine built by Ford Europe. In Ford sales literature, it was referred to as the EAO or OHC engine and because it was designed to the metric system, it was som ...
from 1989 model year onward)
1.9
![1990 Ford Escort GT, 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/1990_Ford_Escort_GT%2C_1.9_HO_engine_%28Hershey_2019%29.jpg)
The CVH was enlarged to 1.9 L for the 1986 model year North American Escort. Bore and stroke are . This stroke length was later used in the 2.0 L CVH engine, and again in the ''
Zeta
Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; grc, ζῆτα, el, ζήτα, label= Demotic Greek, classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived f ...
'' engine which replaced it. The long stroke necessitated a raised engine block deck, a design also shared with later units. All 1.9s from 1989 on are equipped with a roller camshaft and roller lifters. The camshaft and water pump are driven by the timing belt. This engine is a
non-interference design. Output is and with a carburetor. In models with electronic
single-point fuel injection (or throttle-body injection, called Central Fuel Injection (CFI) by Ford), an additional is produced, while torque is little changed.
Multi-point fuel injection and hemispherical combustion chambers are features of the 1986 Escort GT's EFI HO engine, raising output to and .
The 1.9 L CFI engine of the late 1980s, particularly when equipped with either the four- or five-speed manual
transaxle
A transaxle is a single mechanical device which combines the functions of an automobile's transmission, axle, and differential into one integrated assembly. It can be produced in both manual and automatic versions.
Engine and drive at the ...
, was noted for delivering outstanding fuel economy. The four-speed Escort Pony models achieved better mileage than five-speed cars, with upwards of in city driving and on the highway not being uncommon.
The second generation American Escort received
sequential electronic fuel injection (SEFI) for 1991–1996 (sharing the same head as the 1.9 CFI), but power and torque are little changed at and respectively.
Applications
* 1986–1996
Ford Escort
* 1985–1987
Mercury Lynx
The North American version of the Ford Escort is a range of cars that was sold by Ford from the 1981 to 2003 model years. The direct successor of the Ford Pinto, the Escort also largely overtook the role of the European-imported Ford Fiesta as ...
* 1991–1996
Mercury Tracer
The Mercury Tracer is an automobile manurfactured and marketed by Ford's Mercury division for model years 1987-1999, over three generations in three- and five-door hatchback, four-door sedan, and five-door station wagon configurations.
The first ...
* 1986–1988
Ford EXP
The Ford EXP is a sports compact coupe produced and sold by the Ford Motor Company in North America for the 1982 to 1988 model years. The EXP debuted at the 1981 Chicago Auto Show. It shared many mechanical components with the contemporary Ford ...
* Gen 2
Spec Racer Ford
Spec Racer Ford is a class of racing car used in Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and other series road racing events. The Spec Racer Ford, manufactured and marketed by SCCA Enterprises (a subsidiary of SCCA, Inc.), is a high performance, close ...
2.0
The 2.0 L was introduced in the 1997 North American
Escort sedan and wagon as the SPI2000. Ford's Split Port Induction (SPI) system is a form of
variable-length intake manifold
In internal combustion engines, a variable-length intake manifold (VLIM),variable intake manifold (VIM), or variable intake system (VIS) is an automobile internal combustion engine manifold technology. As the name implies, VLIM/VIM/VIS can vary ...
. In this system, the intake path to each intake valve is split into primary and secondary passages. The primary passage contains the injector for the cylinder, and introduces the air tangentially to the cylinder for maximum swirl. The secondary passage contains an intake manifold runner control (IMRC) deactivation valve which opens for high speed and wide-open throttle (WOT) situations to provide a minimally restricted path for additional air to maximize volumetric efficiency and power.
With SPI this engine produces and . The additional displacement is achieved by boring the 1.9 L engine to . As with the 1.9, the water pump is driven by the timing belt. Like the 1.9 L, this engine is a non-interference design. It is the last CVH engine made, and production ended with the 2004 Ford Focus LX/SE sedan and wagons. These engines have "2.0L Split Port" in raised letters on the top of the valve cover.
Applications
* 1997–2002
Ford Escort
* 1997–1999
Mercury Tracer
The Mercury Tracer is an automobile manurfactured and marketed by Ford's Mercury division for model years 1987-1999, over three generations in three- and five-door hatchback, four-door sedan, and five-door station wagon configurations.
The first ...
* 2000–2004
Ford Focus
The Ford Focus is a compact car (C-segment in Europe) manufactured by Ford Motor Company since 1998. It was created under Alexander Trotman's Ford 2000 plan, which aimed to globalize model development and sell one compact vehicle worldwide. The ...
Common problems
Noise, vibration, harshness
Throughout its 20-year production life, the CVH had a reputation for excessive
noise, vibration, and harshness
Noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH), also known as noise and vibration (N&V), is the study and modification of the noise and vibration characteristics of vehicles, particularly cars and trucks. While noise and vibration can be readily measured, ...
(NVH).
Jeremy Clarkson
Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born 11 April 1960) is an English broadcaster, journalist, game show host and writer who specialises in Driving, motoring. He is best known for the motoring programmes ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' an ...
said of the CVH-powered Escort that "''it was powered by engines so rough, even
Moulinex
Moulinex is a Groupe SEB brand along with Rowenta, Calor, All-Clad, Lagostina, Krups, and Tefal, all household products brands. The company designed and produced the Mouli grater. The company was founded by Jean Mantelet who in 1932 invented the ...
wouldn't use them''".
This harshness is mostly due to the cylinder head and valvetrain design. At at full lift, the valve springs in the CVH are considerably stiffer than is typical in other engines due to the angle at which the valves are positioned in the combustion chamber - necessitated by the need to create a "hemi" design with a single camshaft. The stiff springs are needed to prevent valve float, which they do up to around 6700 rpm, and also overcome the weight of the rocker arms and hydraulic self adjusting tappets used. The stiff valve springs add more friction and pressure to the already high friction "flat tappet" design.
Sludge
The camshaft is oiled by small holes in the cylinder head casting next to the lifter bores. These holes are prone to blocking up with
oil sludge
Oil sludge or black sludge is a gel-like or semi-solid deposit inside an internal combustion engine, that can create a catastrophic buildup. It is often the result of contaminated engine oil and occurs when moisture and/or high heat is introduced ...
if the engine is not serviced regularly, starving the camshaft of oil. The CVH is known for producing excessive sludge if the service schedule is ignored or if poor quality oil is used. The cause is the design of the crankcase ventilation circuit, which Ford revised several times over the engine's lifetime but never completely cured. Due to this, camshaft and tappet wear problems are common. A worn camshaft can cause heavy clattering and ticking from the engine's top end, especially at high engine speeds.
Valve seat failure
A common problem with later CVHs is their tendency to drop a valve seat,
which happens most often in VIN number P engines. This can occur with no warning, even if the engine has been well maintained. In most cases, a seat drops on the number 4 cylinder, with the next most common being the number 2 cylinder. With the factory valve seats, the typical life of the 2.0 L SPI in a Focus is about ,
but a failure can happen as early as . When the valve seat drops out of the cylinder head, it falls into the cylinder and damages the cylinder wall,
piston
A piston is a component of reciprocating engines, reciprocating pumps, gas compressors, hydraulic cylinders and pneumatic cylinders, among other similar mechanisms. It is the moving component that is contained by a cylinder and is made gas-tig ...
, and
cylinder head
In an internal combustion engine, the cylinder head (often abbreviated to simply "head") sits above the cylinders and forms the roof of the combustion chamber.
In sidevalve engines, the head is a simple sheet of metal; whereas in more modern ov ...
. In some cases, the valve seat is drawn from its cylinder through the
intake manifold
In automotive engineering, an inlet manifold or intake manifold (in American English) is the part of an engine that supplies the fuel/air mixture to the cylinders. The word ''manifold'' comes from the Old English word ''manigfeald'' (from the ...
into another cylinder, where it causes damage.
Kits cars, limited production cars, tuners
Apart from Ford's own models, the CVH engine was used in a number of vehicles built by small volume manufacturers, and was offered as an option in some owner-assembled cars. Several companies also began supplying performance parts and complete engines for CVH owners in search of more power.
Small volume applications:
* 1984–1990
Reliant Scimitar SS1
The Reliant Scimitar SS1 is an automobile which was produced by British manufacturer Reliant from 1984.
Aiming to fill a gap in the small sports car market, Scimitar SS1 was launched in 1984 at the British International Motor Show in Birming ...
— 1.3 L, 1.4 L, 1.6 L
* 1990–1992
Reliant Scimitar SST — 1.3 L, 1.4 L
* 1992–1993
Reliant Scimitar Sabre — 1.4 L
* 1982–1993
Morgan 4/4
The Morgan 4/4 is a British motor car which has been produced by the Morgan Motor Company since 1936. It was Morgan's first car with four wheels, the name indicating that the model has four wheels and four cylinders (earlier Morgans had been t ...
— 1.6 L
* 1983–1989
Panther Kallista
The Panther Kallista replaced the Panther Lima as Panther's volume model for the 1980s.
Unlike the Vauxhall-based Lima, the Kallista used Ford mechanicals, including a range of engines from 1.6 L straight-4 to 2.9 L ''Cologne'' V6 ...
— 1.6 L
Kit car applications:
*
Westfield Sportscars
Westfield Sportscars is a manufacturer of both factory built and kit versions of several two-seater, open top sportscars. Their main product is a Lotus Seven inspired car – vehicles originally designed by Colin Chapman with only the bare esse ...
SE — 1.6 L
*
Sylva Mojo and Mojo 2
* Stuart Taylor Mark 1.
Tuners:
* Burton Power.
* Specialised Engines.
* Ferriday Engineering.
* Norris Motorsport.
Hybrid engines
Schrick 16V
In 1982 the German company ''Dr. Schrick GmbH'', later renamed ''AVL Schrick'', developed a
double overhead camshaft
An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...
(DOHC)
multi-valve
In automotive engineering a multi-valve or multivalve engine is one where each cylinder has more than two valves. A multi-valve engine has better breathing and may be able to operate at higher revolutions per minute (RPM) than a two-valve engine ...
cylinder head for the 1.6 L CVH block.
Each of the two overhead camshafts is installed in a separate camshaft carrier that is attached to the main body of the cylinder head. Each carrier has its own cam cover. Fitted with an original RS1600i engine intake manifold, a tubular exhaust manifold, and modified ignition, prototype engines developed .
In contrast to cylinder head conversions produced for Ford by
Cosworth
Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream automotive industrie ...
, the Schrick cylinder head never went into series production. With the introduction of the multi-valve Zetec engine, Schrick stopped development.
ZVH/ZE-VH
The ZVH or ZE-VH engine mounts a CVH 8 valve cylinder head on a Zeta/Zetec engine block.
This is possible because the cylinder bore spacing, locations of the water and oil passages, and the cylinder head bolts on these engines are identical.
This combination of parts allowed the owner of a CVH-powered car to retain the cylinder head and associated parts from the original engine while substituting a stronger, large displacement engine block. Some builders have built ZVH engines that used the cylinder head, fuel injection system, ignition system, exhaust manifold, and turbocharger from the Escort RS combined with a Zetec block.
The engine's name indicates a Zetec/CVH hybrid.
See also
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List of Ford engines
Ford engines are those used in Ford Motor Company vehicles and in aftermarket, sports and kit applications. Different engine ranges are used in various global markets.
3 cylinder
A series of Ford DOHC 12-valve inline-three engines with Twin Ind ...
References
Further reading
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford CVH Engine
CVH
Gasoline engines by model
Straight-four engines