Ford Kent Engine - Valencia

Valencia

A new version of the Kent engine was conceived to suit front wheel drive installation in 1976, coinciding with the launch of the Ford Fiesta. The ancillaries were repositioned, the cylinder block shortened slightly with a new transmission flange to suit the BC4/5 transaxle and the cylinder head redesigned using flat-top pistons and the traditional combustion chamber in the head. Although internally named within Ford as "L-Series" it became better known as the Valencia to the wider world, after the new Spanish factory built for its manufacture, but eventually the name was officially adopted by Ford as well - although in sales literature it was always called simply OHV. It was available in 957cc and 1117cc versions, the 1.3 Fiesta having a modified Kent block (Very few minor components were shared between the Valencia and Kent engines.

It would later see service in the third and fourth generation Ford Escort. The cylinder heads and pistons were modified in 1986 for unleaded fuel and the cams changed to meet the new European emissions standards along with the addition of electronic ignition.

Destined for the American market, beginning with the 1977 model year, the Valencia plant began manufacturing a 1.6L, 63BHP, 5 main bearing version that included a low emission bowl-in-pistons combustion chamber design based on the Crossflow head, and was equipped with a Dura-Spark electronic ignition. This version was used in the short-lived 1977-80 USA Mk1 Fiesta. This engine would be later used in the XR2 version of the Mk.1 Fiesta.