Ford Turkish JV Licenses Engines to China’s Jiangling

VIENNA – Ford Otosan, the Turkish joint venture of which Ford and Turkish Koc Holding each control about 41%, sign a technology-licensing agreement with Chinese auto maker Jiangling Motors, of which Ford holds a 31.5% stake, and its affiliate JMC Heavy Duty Vehicle.

Under the agreement, Ford Otosan grants the intellectual property rights to the Ecotorq engines designed for heavy trucks to be used exclusively in JMC-branded vehicles produced in China, and to sell the licensed engines and JMC vehicles powered by these engines both in China and in export markets jointly chosen by the partners.

A license fee that varies from €150 to €190 ($197 to $250) will be charged per product and  €1 million ($1.3 million) will be collected as advance payment.

Ford Otosan will be responsible for the engineering of the engine, while the product responsibility of the licensed engines will belong to JMC.

The agreement is in effect for 12 years following the first production of the Ecotorq engine at JMC Heavy Duty Vehicle, which is planned for the ’16 model year.

JMC, a manufacturer of SUVs, pickups, Ford Transit vans and trucks up to 10 tons (9.1 t), acquired Chinese heavy-truck maker Taiyuan Changan Heavy Duty Truck, located in Taiyuan in Shanxi province, in August 2012.

Annual capacity of the factory is 15,000 units on a single shift. However, Taiyuan Changan Heavy Duty Truck produced only 2,896 heavy trucks in 2011 and 265 in 2012. Taiyuan Changan sourced engines for its main products from other companies.

Based on the acquired company, the newly formed manufacturer JMC Heavy Duty Vehicle started operations in early 2013. It plans to expand capacity to 100,000 trucks a year.

The Ecotorq 6-cyl. common-rail engine, unveiled in 2003, was designed by Ford Otosan with help from Austrian engineering company AVL List and with Robert Bosch’s technical assistance on the common-rail fuel-injection system.

The Ecotorq engine is available as 7.3L or 9.0L version with 260 to 380 hp. It is destined for the Turkish-made Ford Cargo heavy truck.

Both the engines and the trucks are manufactured at Ford Otosan’s Eskisehir Inonu plant.