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The brands behind performance cars tend to earn themselves a certain amount of pop-culture fame: think of Ferrari, whose Prancing Horse logo is ubiquitous on baseball caps and T-shirts in all corners of the world, or Aston Martin with its James Bond association. However, engine builders don’t get quite as much attention.
One company that should have earned household-name status by now but isn't all that famous outside car-enthusiast circles is Cosworth. The British engineering firm has been responsible for countless winning engines in the world of motorsport and several iconic road cars. Let’s take a look back at its history and its accomplishments.
How Two Lotus Mechanics Built the Engine That Conquered Formula One For Seven Straight Years
Cosworth was founded in 1958 by two former Lotus employees: Mike Costin and Keith Duckworth, who created the company's name as a portmanteau of their own last names. Far from cutting ties with their former employer, Costin and Duckworth maintained a close relationship with Lotus during Cosworth's early years. Its engines were initially built exclusively for Lotus’ racing team. Eventually, however, Cosworth branched out and started building a portfolio of other clients.
Cosworth was an engine supplier in the world of Formula One for half a century, starting in 1963 and continuing until 2013 (with a short break between 2007 and 2009). Many legendary teams from Formula One history used Cosworth engines, including Lotus, Matra, Tyrrell, McLaren, Brabham, March, and Hesketh. Its success peaked in the late 60s and early 70s; between 1968 and 1974, every Formula One Constructors' Championship was won using a Cosworth engine. Cosworth bagged a total of 10 Constructors’ Championships and 176 wins over the course of its history.
As the years passed, Cosworth expanded beyond Formula One and into the world of rallying, while also working on road-going homologation models that became veritable legends of 80s and 90s motoring: the Ford Sierra RS Cosworth and the Escort RS Cosworth. While the firm is no longer involved in Formula One, it continues to supply engines to high-performance cars today, as well as being involved in engineering consultancy.
But Cosworth's most legendary work didn't happen on a Formula One grid — it happened on the streets and rally stages of Europe.
Homologation Legends: The Ford Sierra RS Cosworth And Escort RS Cosworth
In 1983, Ford wanted to build a car that would allow it to be competitive in the newly created Group A racing category. Stuart Turner, then Ford’s Head of Motorsport, led the project, choosing the Sierra sedan as the starting point due to its rear-wheel-drive configuration and strong aerodynamics. Some of the changes made to the Sierra included an upgraded suspension and a quicker steering rack.
Cosworth was brought in to build an engine for the new car; the result was the YB-series engine, which was derived from an existing Ford engine used in the Pinto. Its output was 201 horsepower and 205 pound-feet of torque. The engine was paired with a five-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential. The model was dubbed the Sierra RS Cosworth, and was in production between 1986 and 1992 with a total of 5,542 units built.
In 1987, 500 of these units were upgraded to create a special edition dubbed the Sierra RS500 Cosworth, built to keep the car competitive over the years. This version bumped power output up to 220 hp, added a new body kit, and upgraded the suspension setup.
Two further generations of the Sierra RS Cosworth were built over the years, though neither is nearly as well-known as the first. The second-gen model, the Sierra Sapphire Cosworth, was produced between 1988 and 1989 and had a RWD drivetrain. The third-gen model, the Sierra RS Cosworth 4x4, was built in the early 90s and had an AWD drivetrain.
At the start of the 1990s, Ford decided to improve its racing competitiveness by creating a new homologation car, as the Sierra RS Cosworth was aging. The Escort, a smaller and lighter car, was chosen as the base for the new project. However, the mechanical underpinnings of the Sierra were retained, with a modified version of the Escort body being fitted around them.
The front doors and the roof were the only parts of the bodywork that remained unchanged from the standard Escort; all other panels were custom-made. A few other key updates were introduced, such as the addition of a new turbocharger, a new four-wheel-drive system, and a large spoiler.
The Escort RS Cosworth was in production between 1992 and 1996, with a total of 7,145 units built. Power came from an updated version of the YB-series 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four engine, producing 224 hp and 224 lb-ft of torque. Once again, the engine was paired with a five-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential.
A few different versions of the model were built over the years; the Escort RS Cosworth featured two different turbochargers throughout its production run, as well as various trim levels and special editions.
What made both cars so special wasn't just their bodywork or their aerodynamics – it was the engine at their heart. And that engine has a story of its own.
The BDA Engine: A Weapon Made For Racing
One of Cosworth’s most memorable creations is the BDA engine, which arrived in the late 60s as the result of a collaborative effort involving Cosworth and Ford. The BDA was built to fulfill Ford's need for a new racing engine that would allow it to be competitive in Group 2 and Group 4 (touring car and modified sports car racing). Cosworth engineer Mike Hall led the project, using a previous Cosworth engine (the 1.6-liter FVA, used in Formula 2) as the starting point.
The BDA used the 16-valve, dual overhead camshaft cylinder head design already seen in the FVA, but added a few more features that made it suited to the world of competition. A cast-iron cylinder block was used to keep costs down and fulfill homologation requirements. The use of a toothed belt to drive the camshafts kept weight down and gave the engine its name (Belt Drive A-Type, or BDA).
The final result was a family of engines that became legendary for its aggressive, angry character and iconic sound. Several variants of the BDA were produced through the mid-80s, with the highest-revving versions reaching 9,000 rpm. Power and durability were the core characteristics of all variants, with the BDA prioritizing raw aggression over refinement.
The first car to be powered by a BDA engine was the Ford Escort RS1600, introduced in 1970 as a homologation special. The Escort became the model most famously associated with the BDA, although it powered several other road and racing cars over the years. The engine excelled in the world of motorsport, racking up victories in various domains including Formula 2, Formula Atlantic, and sports car racing.
From A Bugatti V16 to Hydrogen: How Cosworth Is Engineering Its Next 70 Years
One of Cosworth’s most recent creations is a masterpiece of engineering with a rarely seen layout: the V16 engine used in the Bugatti Tourbillon, a stunning hypercar introduced in 2024 and inspired by the world of luxury watches. The 8.3-liter, 90-degree V16 produces 986 hp and 664 lb-ft of torque on its own; however, in the Tourbillon, it is paired with three electric motors to produce a total of 1,800 hp.
Cosworth and Bugatti had a formidable task ahead of them: making the engine fit in the Tourbillon's engine bay while minimizing noise, weight, and vibration, and maintaining aesthetic value. A unique hybrid timing system (inspired by the world of Formula One) was used in order to manage harmonics. The cylinders were sprayed with a plasma coating, rather than fitted with cylinder liners, to keep weight and dimensions down.
Ancillary components were replaced with the hybrid system, and materials such as titanium and carbon fiber were employed. The final result was a fitting engine for a hypercar such as the Tourbillon, which effortlessly combined performance and beauty.
Today, Cosworth is showing no signs of slowing down, keeping an eye toward the future and what developments in engine technology will bring. Speaking to CarBuzz at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, commercial director Chris Willoughby stated that the firm is involved in multiple automotive projects, as well as aviation piston engines.
Alternative forms of fuel, such as synthetic fuels and hydrogen, are another point of focus for the company.
So what is it that makes Cosworth so good? Well, there are a number of factors at play. The connection between the world of motorsport and that of road cars is one such factor: when building engines for road cars, Cosworth applies its decades of knowledge and expertise as a racing engine builder to create high-performance engines that are truly memorable. Its commitment to innovation throughout the decades has allowed it to stay ahead of the curve instead of being relegated to the archives of automotive history.
High-revving, naturally aspirated engines are one of the areas where Cosworth has shone in recent years, powering mind-blowing hypercars such as the Gordon Murray T.50 and the Aston Martin Valkyrie. The firm's skill at reducing engine dimensions and weight without compromising performance is also what, only a couple of years ago, allowed it to fit a V16 into the engine bay of the Bugatti Tourbillon.
Sources: Cosworth, Ford
