Ford Cosworth DFV Engine

The Ford DFV V8 Engine

In action at the 1967 Dutch Grand Prix

Graham Hill & Colin Chapman

Graham Hill, Colin Chapman & Keith Duckworth

The engine was used in the Matra MS10 in 1968

The Lotus 49 Ford Cosworth DFV Engine

The DFV engine… a powerful force in Formula One…

The 2,993cc V8 DFV engine project cost £100,000. £25,000 of this was used to develop the related 1,600cc four-cylinder FVA engine.
The engine was originally intended for the exclusive use of Colin Chapman’s Lotus Formula One team.
The Lotus 49/Ford DFV combination was successful from the start, driving Jim Clark to victory in the 1967 Dutch Grand Prix.
The DFV proved so successful that Lotus agreed it should be used by other teams from 1968 onwards for fear of scaring away the competition.
The engine was still winning races in the 1980s and derivatives of the engine were raced until 1991.

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The Ford Cosworth DFV Family

1967 DFV 2,993cc. Originally supplied exclusively to Lotus. 405bhp.
1968 DFW 2,491cc. Short stroke engine for Tasman Series.
1975 DFX 2,645cc. Turbo-charged version for the Indycar racing in the USA. Developed up to 840bhp in this form.
1981 DFL 3,955cc. Intended for the Ford C100 Group C endurance car. Subsequently used in other Group and C2 cars.
1982 DFV short stroke. More powerful F1 version of DFV. Used large bore DFL block with shorter stroke crankshaft.
1982 DFY 2,993cc. Development of short stroke DFV, up to 520bhp.
1986 DFV F3000. Rev limited DFV engine for the new Formula 3000.
1987 DFZ 3,495cc. Enlarged version of DFY for the new 1987 F1 regulations which allowed normally aspirated engines of up to 3,500cc. Producing up to 560bhp.
1988 DFR 3,495cc. Updated version of the DFZ with new cylinder heads. 600bhp.
1988 DFS 2,645cc. Short stroke development for US Indycar series.

1967 DFV 2,993cc. Originally supplied exclusively to Lotus. 405bhp.
1968 DFW 2,491cc. Short stroke engine for Tasman Series.
1975 DFX 2,645cc. Turbo-charged version for the Indycar racing in the USA. Developed up to 840bhp in this form.
1981 DFL 3,955cc. Intended for the Ford C100 Group C endurance car. Subsequently used in other Group and C2 cars.
1982 DFV short stroke. More powerful F1 version of DFV. Used large bore DFL block with shorter stroke crankshaft.
1982 DFY 2,993cc. Development of short stroke DFV, up to 520bhp.
1986 DFV F3000. Rev limited DFV engine for the new Formula 3000.
1987 DFZ 3,495cc. Enlarged version of DFY for the new 1987 F1 regulations which allowed normally aspirated engines of up to 3,500cc. Producing up to 560bhp.
1988 DFR 3,495cc. Updated version of the DFZ with new cylinder heads. 600bhp.
1988 DFS 2,645cc. Short stroke development for US Indycar series.