A Brief History of the Ford Crossflow Engine

20 January 2025

One of the most iconic and popular engines Ford ever made only earned its commonly used name some eight years after it was first introduced. This is the Crossflow, which was originally launched as, and is properly named, the Kent engine. This designation came from nothing more highfalutin than Ford’s top engineer at its Dagenham plant happened to live south of the Thames in the county of the same name.

When a Crossflow’s not a Crossflow

This first Kent engine was not of a crossflow design, either. It has since become known as the Pre-Crossflow engine, which clearly delineates it from its illustrious offspring. Even so, the first Kent engine showed promise and was used on the Anglia with a 997cc capacity. Compared to the wheezy engines that Ford had been using in its small cars up to that point, the Kent was a revelation. Revvy, decently smooth, and with more power, it was a great new unit for the burgeoning next decade.

It also helped this engine had a huge tuning potential, which the aftermarket was quick to recognise and exploit. It might have left the factory with a modest 39bhp, but was soon putting out much more in race-spec Anglias and single-seaters, where its light weight and compact dimensions further endeared it to race car builders and drivers.

A famous partnership

Ford also had an eye on making its new engine more powerful and quickly launched 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, and 1.5-litre versions. The 1.5-litre Pre-Crossflow motor was a good match for the sharply styled new Cortina range, and it also piqued the interest of one Colin Chapman. The Lotus founder was looking for a more bespoke but affordable choice for his sports cars and engineer Harry Mundy came up with the perfect solution – a twin-cam cylinder head for Ford’s new compact engine.

It ran as early as 1961, but didn’t really start serious testing until the following year. Fitted to an Anglia mule, this small but potent Ford rang rings round much larger, more powerful cars at its initial track test at Goodwood. Lotus was on to a winner and Ford enjoyed the reflected glory, as well as using this twin-cam engine in some of its own models such as the Lotus Cortina and Escort Twin Cam.

Developing the Crossflow

Back in the more workaday world of Ford’s mainstream models, the Pre-Crossflow carried on happily until 1967, when it received a major update. The most important change was moving the carburettors and exhaust manifold to opposite sides of the block. This was a far more efficient design than the previous Pre-Crossflow set-up that placed the intake manifold and carburettors right above the hot exhaust. The new design avoided this completely and made for a smoother flow of the fuel/air mixture and exhaust gases through the engine. As this involved these gases crossing from one side of the engine to the other, it was christened Crossflow.

At a stroke, Ford had unwittingly created one of the most popular and loved engines of all time. Even in its most lowly 1.1-litre form it felt willing and happy to rev. A 1.3-litre was another option, but Ford hit the jackpot with the 1.6-litre version. Tuning firms and Ford alike were quick to cotton on to just how much power could be released from this larger version, and the engine also received a huge boost to its credibility and profile when it was adopted as the standard engine for the massively popular and high-profile Formula Ford single-seater series. Dozens of household names earned their racing spurs at the wheels of these simple, fun machines, and the series continues to this day. There is also a vast following for classic Formula Fords for race drivers and fans.

From sportscars to vans

On the road, the new Crossflow unit was making just as many friends with new car buyers who lapped up Ford’s Escort, Cortina, and Capri models, and even the Transit van used a Crossflow. When Ford launched its new Fiesta supermini in 1976, guess which engine was under the bonnet? Yup, the Crossflow was adapted to work with front-wheel drive and it was soon being offered in sportier models of the Fiesta such as the 1600 S and XR2. It was also now the darling of the low volume sports car and kit car worlds, with Caterham adopting the Crossflow as its default engine of choice for almost two decades. Even today, a Caterham Seven 1700 Supersprint with a 135bhp version of the Crossflow is a quick car. Other names to make use of this superb motor included Morgan, TVR, Marcos, Ginetta, Dutton, and myriad other small manufacturers. The engine also saw service in the US and South Africa, so it was not just a British or European phenomenon.

As the 1970s became the 1980s, the Fiesta’s version of the Crossflow proved to be the one that would carry the legend forward. Known as the Valencia engine, this version of that original Kent motor had a crossflow design but was made in Spain, hence the new designation. It was fitted to the Mk3 Escort, which swapped to front-drive from the rear-wheel drive of previous Escorts. This kept Ford right in the hunt for family buyers and the engine was updated in 1988 to retain its relevance and emissions compliance.

Kent – twinned with Valencia

Another makeover came for the Crossflow in 1995 when the Valencia version of the motor gained fuel injection and evolved into the Endura-E. This was used in the striking new Ka city car and, while the Ka was all bold design and sharp angles, under its bonnet Ford chose an old faithful motor which was a wise move. The free-spinning Crossflow with its decently torquey delivery made even the most basic Ka a hoot to drive. By the time the Ka went off sale in 2002, the Kent engine had notched up an impressive 43 years in service, with 35 of those in the definitive Crossflow format.

Yet that was never going to be the end of the Ford Crossflow’s story. Today, there is just as big a following for it and the tuning world is still working out ways to squeeze ever more power from this characterful motor. Little wonder you only need to mention it name for everyone to know what you’re referring to.