The Ford Pinto engine was the unofficial name for a

four-cylinder The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized. Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categoriz ...

internal combustion engine An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal comb ...

built by

Ford Europe Ford of Europe GmbH is a subsidiary company of Ford Motor Company founded in 1967 in Cork (city), Cork, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, with headquarters in Cologne, Germany. History Ford of Europe was founded in 1967 by the merger of Ford of Bri ...

. 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 sometimes called the "metric engine". The internal Ford codename for the unit was the T88-series engine. European Ford service literature refers to it as the Taunus In-Line engine (hence the TL codenames). In North America it was known as the Lima In-Line (LL), or simply the Lima engine due to its being manufactured at

Lima Engine Lima Engine is a Ford Motor Company automobile engine plant located in Lima, Ohio, United States. History The factory opened in 1957 as the site of production of Ford's '' MEL'' V8 for the Edsel car. It subsequently produced six-cylinder engi ...

Lima, Ohio Lima ( ) is a city in Allen County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 35,579. It is located in northwest Ohio along Interstate 75 in Ohio, Interstate 75, appr ...

. It was used in many European Ford

cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

and was exported to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

to be used in the

Ford Pinto The Ford Pinto is a subcompact car that was manufactured and marketed by Ford Motor Company in North America from 1970 until 1980. The Pinto was the first subcompact vehicle produced by Ford in North America. The Pinto was marketed in three bo ...

, a successful

subcompact car Subcompact car is a North American Car classification, classification for cars smaller than a compact car. It is broadly equivalent to the B-segment (Europe), supermini (Great Britain) or A0-class (China) classifications. According to the Unite ...

of the 1970s, hence the name which is used most often for the unit. In Britain, it is commonly used in many

kit car Kit may refer to: People and fictional characters * Kit (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Kit (surname), a list of people Places * Kit, Iran, a village in Mazandaran Province * Kit Hill ...

s and

hot rods Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimized for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and ma ...

, especially in the 2-litre size.

Pinto OHC (TL)

In Europe, the Pinto OHC was introduced in 1970 to replace the Essex V4 used in the Corsair as that range was subsumed into the Mk3 Cortina and Taunus V4 for the German Fords range (mainly the new

Taunus The Taunus () is a mountain range in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located north west of Frankfurt and north of Wiesbaden. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg' ...

TC). It was the first Ford engine to feature a belt-driven

overhead camshaft An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine in which 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 combustio ...

. Early Pinto engines suffered from excessive cam and follower wear, this was later addressed by nitriding the cam lobes and followers, and the fitment of a spray bar, which sprayed oil directly at the camshaft. All standard production Pinto engines had a cast iron cylinder block and a cast iron, crossflow, single overhead camshaft cylinder head with two valves per cylinder operated by finger followers. Applications: *

Ford Taunus The Ford Taunus is a family car manufactured and marketed by Ford Germany throughout Europe. Models from 1970 on were manufactured using the same basic construction as the Ford Cortina MkIII in the United Kingdom, and later on, the two car mode ...

Ford Cortina The Ford Cortina is a medium-sized family car manufactured in various body styles from 1962 to 1982. It was the United Kingdom's best-selling car of the 1970s. The Cortina was produced in five generations (Mark I through to Mark V, although of ...

(TC1 (1970-76), TC2 (1976–82)) * Ford Escort Mk1 RS2000 * Ford Escort Mk2 RS2000, Mexico *

Ford Capri The Ford Capri is a fastback coupé built by Ford of Europe and designed by Philip T. Clark, who had been involved in the design of the Ford Mustang. It used the mechanical components from the Mk2 Ford Cortina and was intended as the European ...

(Mk2 and Mk3 (1974–86)) *

Ford Sierra The Ford Sierra is a Mid-size car, mid-size/D-segment, large family car manufactured and marketed by Ford of Europe from 1982–1993. It was designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Bob Lutz (businessman), Robert Lutz and Patrick Le Quément, and was noted for ...

(1982–1992) * Ford Granada Mk1 and Mk2 (Mk1 (1974–77); Mk2 (1977–85)) * Ford Scorpio/Granada Mk3 *

Ford Transit The Ford Transit is a family of light commercial vehicles manufactured by the Ford Motor Company since 1965, primarily as a panel van, cargo van, but also available in other configurations including a large passenger van (marketed as the Ford ...

(1978–1994) * TVR Tasmin 200 The Pinto engine was available in five displacements: , earlier , later , and the . Later . Due to emission requirements, it was phased out towards the end of the 1980s to be replaced by the CVH engine and DOHC engine, the latter being (contrary to popular belief) a completely new design and not a twin-cam development of the Pinto unit. The only

DOHC An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine in which 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 combus ...

direct derivative of Pinto engine is the Cosworth YB 16-valve engine, powering

and Ford Escort RS Cosworth variants and featuring a cast aluminium alloy cylinder head developed specially by Cosworth fitted to a modified Pinto cast iron block. The final Pinto engines used in Ford of Europe production vehicles were the litre versions used in the Sierra until 1992, and the last units were used in the Transit until 1994.

1.3 (TL13)

The smallest member of the family was the which had a bore and stroke. It was produced in two

compression ratio The compression ratio is the ratio between the maximum and minimum volume during the compression stage of the power cycle in a piston or Wankel engine. A fundamental specification for such engines, it can be measured in two different ways. Th ...

versions: * TL13L – the low compression (LC) variant, which developed / depending on

carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor or carburetter) is a device used by a gasoline 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 Ventu ...

model, had a compression ratio of 8.0:1 and the engine codes started with 'JA' * TL13H — the high compression (HC) variant, which developed / depending on carburetor model had a compression ratio of 9.0:1 and the engine codes started with 'JC' The fuel was supplied by the

Motorcraft Motorcraft is an auto part brand owned and operated by Ford Motor Company. Products under the "Motorcraft" brand include spark plugs, batteries, brakes, fuel filters, A/C condensers and accumulators, motor oil, automatic transmission fluid, am ...

single-barrel (1V) carburetor in the early models (until April 1979), and

VV ("variable venturi") carburetor for the vehicles built after April 1979. Applications: * 1970–1982

(engine codes JAA/JCA, JAC/JCC, JAR/JCR) * 1972–1974

(engine code JCE) * 1982–1984

(engine code JCT)

1.6 (TL16)

Early low compression variant (TL16L)

Initially, the had a bore of and shared the

crankshaft A crankshaft is a mechanical component used in a reciprocating engine, piston engine to convert the reciprocating motion into rotational motion. The crankshaft is a rotating Shaft (mechanical engineering), shaft containing one or more crankpins, ...

with the 1.3 L model with a stroke of giving the displacement of . The TL16L had a compression ratio of 8.2:1 and developed of power and of torque depending on the carburetor and application. As the 1.3 L model, it used the

1V and, later, the

VV carburetors. The engine code of the low compression variant started with 'LA'. Applications: * 1970–1982

(engine codes LAA, LAD, LAR) * 1979–1986

(engine code LAT) * 1975–1985

(engine codes LAC, LAN)

Early high compression variant (TL16H)

The HC version of the early had the same bore and stroke as the LC version, but the compression ratio was higher (9.2:1), allowing it to produce of power and of torque. It used the same carburetor models as the low compression version (

1V and

VV). Applications: * 1970–1982

(engine codes LCA, LCJ, LCR) * 1982–1992

(engine codes LCT, LCS) * 1975–1985

(engine codes LCE, LCN) * 1981–1985

Ford Granada Ford Granada was a name used by the Ford Motor Company for two unrelated vehicles sold in different markets: * Ford Granada (Europe), built and marketed in Europe from 1972 to 1994 * Ford Granada (North America) The North American version of the ...

(engine code LCK) * 1983–1984 Anadol A8-16 SL

Increased performance (GT) variant (TL16G)

From the beginning of the production run, the had a special, 'sporty' version which featured: * modified cylinder head (larger inlet valves and 2.0 L camshaft with higher valve lifts) * DGAV 32/36

Weber carburetor Weber Carburetors is an automotive manufacturing company founded in 1923, known for their carburetors. History Eduardo Weber began his automotive career working for Fiat, first at their Turin plant (in 1914) and later at a dealership in Bologn ...

* tubular

exhaust manifold In automotive engineering, an exhaust manifold collects the exhaust gases from multiple cylinders into one pipe. The word ''manifold'' comes from the Old English word ''manigfeald'' (from the Anglo-Saxon ''manig'' anyand ''feald'' old and ref ...

With such an improvement package, the engine produced of power and of torque. Applications: * 1970–1973

GT (engine code LEA) * 1970–1976

GXL (engine code LEA) * 1970-1976 Ford Cortina GT (engine code LEA) * 1970–1976

GXL (engine code LEA) * 1976–1982

S / GLS / Ghia S (engine codes LEC, LEE) * 1975–1978 Ford Escort Mexico * 1972–1976

GT (engine codes LEC, LEE)

Late variant (TL16E)

At the beginning of 1984, Ford Pinto engine displacement range switched from 1.3/1.6/2.0 to 1.6/1.8/2.0. The newly introduced 1.8 L engine used the 2.0 L crankshaft, so to uniform engine parts for the whole range after dropping the 1.3 L — the 1.6 L was redesigned to also take the 2.0 L crankshaft which had a stroke. This of course led to bringing the bore down to to keep the displacement within range — it was now . The TL16E became now the only available 1.6 L engine of the Pinto range. Although the compression ratio was raised to 9.5:1, the power figures did not differ much from the earlier TL16H version — the engine developed of power and of torque. This engine is sometimes referred to as 1.6 E-Max engine. Applications: * 1984–1989

(engine codes LSE, LSD)

1.8 (TL18H)

The Pinto engine was introduced in 1984 as a replacement for the "old" 1.6 L. The engine had an bore and stroke giving the displacement of . Output was of power and . Fuel was supplied by the Pierburg 2E3 28/32 carburetor. Applications: * 1984–1989

(engine codes REB, RED, REF) * 1985–1992

Ford Scorpio The Ford Scorpio is an executive car Executive car is a British term for a large car, and is considered equivalent to the European E-segment and American full-size classifications. Executive cars are larger than compact executive cars (a ...

(engine code REC)

2.0 (TL20)

The was used in many Ford vehicles from the early 1970s. Due to its robustness and high tuning potential, it was often used as an aftermarket engine upgrade or base for building race and rally engines — not exclusively in Ford cars. The engine has bore of and stroke giving the displacement of . It was manufactured in several variants:

Low compression variant (TL20L)

Three completely different LC variants of the 2.0 L were produced. One was used on the 1970–1982 Ford Taunus export version to Sweden — fitted with the Weber DGAV 32/32 carburetor and compression ratio lowered to 8.2:1 to meet the rigorous emission specifications; it delivered of power and of torque. The second one was used on 1978–1991

s and P100 models. With modified induction and Motorcraft 1V carburetor, it produced of power and of torque available at only 2800 rpm. The compression ratio in this case was also 8.2:1. The Transits also used the third variant called the "Economy" engine. The power figure of this one was even lower — it developed only . Applications: * 1970–1982

Sweden export version (engine code NA) * 1978–1994

(engine codes NAT, NAV, NAW, NAX, NBA) * 1988–1993

Ford P100 The Ford P100 is a car-based pickup truck that was built by Ford from 1971 to 1995, initially in South Africa, and later Portugal. It was based on medium-sized Ford passenger cars, originally the Cortina/Taunus and from 1988 the Ford Sierra. I ...

(engine code NAE) * 1977–1986

"Economy" version (engine code NUT)

Standard (high compression) variant (TL20H)

Although Ford marked its standard 2.0 L engine as HC, it actually uses engine codes meant for the 'increased performance variant' engines (coding starting with 'NE'), these have a compression ratio of to 9.2:1. This engine used different carburetor models across the years: * Weber DGAV 32/36 - on all cars up to 1987 * Weber DFTH 30/34 - from 1987 until the end of production run (1989) * Weber DFAV 32/36 - on engines exported to USA The engine produced of power and of torque, though a few models with a higher output were produced (for example an version used in 1976 Ford Escort RS2000). Applications: * 1973–1980 Ford Escort RS2000 (engine codes NEA, NE) * 1974–1982

(engine codes NEG, NER) * 1975–1985

(engine codes NEE, NEN) * 1973–1984

(engine codes NEB, NEH, NEK) * 1983–1989

(engine codes NES, NET, NEJ, NE5) * 1985–1989

and

(engine code NEL, NER, NE4) * 1971–1974

Injection variant (TL20EFI)

The injected 2.0 L used the Ford EEC-IV engine control system which brought the output up to of power and of torque, although much of this increased performance can be attributed to the improved design of the EFI variants cylinder head. As the EEC-IV installation on most of those engines contains some Bosch parts that are easily visible in the engine compartment (air flow meter of the electromechanical "flap" type, injectors, fuel pressure regulator etc.), it is often - but falsely believed that they are fitted with the Bosch

L-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 numerous variati ...

injection Injection or injected may refer to: Science and technology * Injective function, a mathematical function mapping distinct arguments to distinct values * Injection (medicine), insertion of liquid into the body with a syringe * Injection, in broadca ...

system. Some of the TL20EFI engines have closed-loop lambda control, while others are lacking that feature. Applications: * 1985–1992

(engine codes N4, NRD, N4B: 74 kW; NRB, NR2, N4A, N4I: 85 kW) * 1985–1992

and

(engine code NRA, NRC, NRI) * 1991–1994

(engine code NCA)

Single point injection variant (TL20CFI)

This variant was used in Ford Transit exclusively. The power output was . Applications: * 1985–1992

(engine code N6T)

Cosworth YB (CH20EFI)

In the beginning of the 1980s,

Cosworth Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for auto racing, automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream Automotiv ...

developed a 16-valve performance head conversion for the Pinto engine. This was seen by a Ford executive who asked Cosworth to develop it with a

turbo In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (also known as a turbo or a turbosupercharger) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake air, forcing more air into the ...

for use in the new

Ford Sierra RS Cosworth The Ford Sierra RS Cosworth is a high-performance version of the Ford Sierra that was built by Ford Europe from 1986 to 1992. It was the result of a Ford Motorsport project with the purpose of producing an outright winner for Group A racing in ...

. The engine is therefore based on a modified Pinto block topped with the Cosworth-developed alloy head and

Garrett Garrett may refer to: Places in the United States * Garrett, Illinois, a village * Garrett, Indiana, a city * Garrett, Floyd County, Kentucky, an unincorporated community * Garrett, Meade County, Kentucky, an unincorporated community * Garrett, ...

turbo.

Lima OHC (LL)

The "Lima" versions of the engine debuted in form in the

, but although they share their basic architecture with the European version (and to a casual observer, look almost identical), they actually have few interchangeable parts. The European version did find its way into North America however in the

Mercury Capri Capri (later Mercury Capri) is a Nameplate (automotive), nameplate marketed by the Mercury (automobile), Lincoln-Mercury division of Ford Motor Company over three generations between 1970 and 1994. From 1970 to 1978, the Capri was a sport compact ...

, which was a

captive import Captive import is a marketing term and a strategy for a vehicle that is foreign-built and sold under the name of an importer or by a domestic automaker through its own dealer distribution system. The foreign vehicle may be produced by a subsidia ...

from Ford of Europe's factories in Germany.

2.0

The 2.0 litre version was a narrower-bore version of the original 2.3 liter "Lima" four. Bore and stroke are , respectively, for an overall displacement of . This engine was installed in the 1983–1988 Ford Rangers and in some Argentinian Ford Taunus. ;Applications: *

Ford Ranger The Ford Ranger is a compact or mid-size pickup marketed globally by Ford over a series of generations, varying between both in-house or outside development and manufacturing — and with a hiatus in North America from 2011–2018. Debutin ...

(North America) *

Argentina models

2.3 (LL23)

The

used the OHC version, a unit introduced in 1974 which has a bore and stroke. This version lasted until 1997 in various guises. The earliest units produced and . This engine has also been known as the Lima engine, after the

plant in

, where it was first manufactured (it was also manufactured in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

starting in 1974). In 1979–80, a draw-through, non-

intercooled An intercooler is a heat exchanger used to cool a gas after compression. Often found in turbocharged engines, intercoolers are also used in air compressors, air conditioners, refrigeration and gas turbines. Internal combustion engines Most ...

turbo version was produced for Mustang Cobras and some Capris. Lack of dealership and owner training resulted in many stuck turbochargers and other maintenance problems. They were limited to of boost, though Ford Motorsport sold a wastegate with an adjustable rod which allowed an increase up to . It was used in this carbureted form in a number of passenger cars, from the Fairmont Futura Turbo to the 1979 Indy Pace Car edition Mustang. In 1983, Ford introduced a fuel-injected version of the turbocharged engine, which was used in the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe and the Turbo GT trim of the

Mustang The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish conquistadors. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticate ...

. In 1984, the Mustang SVO was introduced with an intercooler, initially producing and later increased to in 1985½. After the SVO was discontinued, the intercooler was added to the Turbo Coupe. Output for this turbo/intercooled version was and for the 1987–88 models with the five-speed (T-5)

manual transmission A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canadian English, Canada, British English, the United Kingdom and American English, the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed ...

. In addition to the 1983–1984 Mustang Turbo GT and 1983–1986 Turbo Coupe, the non-intercooled version of the engine was also used in the 1985–89

Merkur XR4Ti The Merkur XR4Ti is a performance-oriented 3-door hatchback sold in North America from 1985 to 1989. A product of the Ford Motor Company, the car was a version of the European Ford Sierra adapted to U.S. regulations. The XR4Ti project was champion ...

and 1984–1986 Mercury Cougar XR7, producing and . A version with two spark plugs per cylinder, distributor-less ignition, and reduced main bearing sizes was introduced in the 1989

and 1991

Ford Mustang The Ford Mustang is a series of American Car, automobiles manufactured by Ford Motor Company, Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its Ford Mustang (seventh ...

. This engine produced and . ;Applications: * Naturally aspirated ** 1986–1987

Ford Aerostar The Ford Aerostar is a range of vans that was manufactured by Ford from the 1986 to the 1997 model years. The first minivan produced by Ford, the model line was marketed against the Chevrolet Astro/GMC Safari and the first two generations of the ...

** 1977–1982

Ford Courier Ford Courier is a model nameplate used by Ford Motor Company, Ford since the early 1950s. The Courier moniker has been used on a variety of vehicles all around the world since it was first used in North America for a Panel van#North America, se ...

** 1974–1980

** 1983–1997

/Mazda B-Series (North America) ** 1974–1993

** 1975–1979 Ford Maverick Brazilian models ** Ford

Jeep CJ-5 The Jeep CJ models are a series and a range of small, open-bodied off-road vehicles and compact pickup trucks, built and sold by several successive incarnations of the Jeep automobile marque from 1945 through 1986. The 1945 Willys "Universal Jee ...

Brazilian models ** Ford Rural, F-75 pick up Brazilian models **

Argentina models **

Ford Falcon (Argentina) The Argentine Ford Falcon is a compact car and executive car built by Ford Argentina from 1962 to 1991. Mechanically, it was based on the parent company's first generation Falcon. The Falcon retained the same body style throughout its production, ...

** 1978–1983

Ford Fairmont The Ford Fairmont is a model line of compact cars that was manufactured by Ford from the 1978 to 1983 model years. The successor of the Ford Maverick, the Fairmont marked the third generation of compact sedans sold by Ford in North America. Ini ...

** 1974–1980

Mercury Bobcat Mercury most commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the closest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a chemical element * Mercury (mythology), a Roman deity Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Mercury (toy manufacturer), ...

** 1979–1986

** 1978–1983

Mercury Zephyr The Ford Fairmont is a model line of compact cars that was manufactured by Ford from the 1978 to 1983 model years. The successor of the Ford Maverick, the Fairmont marked the third generation of compact sedans sold by Ford in North America. Ini ...

** 1983–1986 Ford LTD ** 1983–1986

Mercury Marquis The Mercury Marquis is a model line of automobiles marketed by Mercury from 1967 to 1986. Deriving its name from a title of French nobility, the Marquis was introduced as the divisional counterpart of the Ford LTD; four generations of the two m ...

* Turbo ** 1979–1981 Ford Mustang ** 1979–1981 Mercury Capri ** 1980 Ford Fairmont (all body styles except wagons) ** 1980 Mercury Zephyr (all body styles except wagons) ** 1985–1989

** 1983–1986 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe ** 1984–1986 Mercury Cougar XR7 ** 1983–1984 Mustang Turbo GT (W Code) ** 1983–1984 Capri Turbo RS * Turbo/Intercooler ** 1984–1986

Ford Mustang SVO The Mustang SVO is a limited-production version of the third generation Ford Mustang (third generation), Ford Mustang sold from 1984 to 1986, with fewer than 10,000 built. SVO is an acronym referring to Special Vehicle Operations, Ford Motor Compa ...

** 1987–1988

Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupe The ninth generation of the Ford Thunderbird is a personal luxury coupe that was manufactured and marketed by Ford for the 1983 to 1988 model years. In response to the sales downturn of the 1980–1982 Thunderbird, the model line underwent one ...

2.5 (LL25)

A stroked by version of the 2.3 OHC

engine appeared in 1998 yielding 2504 cc. In addition to the longer stroke, it used higher-flow cylinder heads utilizing narrower valve stems. Crankshaft counterbalance weights were increased in count from 4 to 8. Output was and . It was replaced in 2001 by the Mazda-derived Duratec 23, but Ford Power Products continues to sell this engine as the LRG-425. Applications: * 1998–2001

* 1998–2001 Mazda B2500

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford Pinto Engine

Pinto Pinto is a Portuguese, Spanish, Jewish (Sephardic), and Italian surname. It is a high-frequency surname in all Portuguese-speaking countries and is also widely present in Spanish-speaking countries, Italy, India (especially in Mangalore, Karnata ...

Gasoline engines by model Straight-four engines