Regan Brown
The history of fuel injection in cars is a long and complex one, dating back to the early 1900s. The first fuel-injected compression-ignition engine was constructed in 1902 and produced in 1906. This French engine, called the Antoinette 8V, was designed by aviation pioneer Léon Levavasseur. However, it wasn't until the 1950s that fuel injection started to appear in cars, with the Goliath GP700 in 1952 being the first. By the 1970s, fuel injection was becoming common in mainstream cars, and by the early 1990s, it had largely replaced carburetors. The development of fuel injection was influenced by its use in aircraft engines during World War I and World War II, where it offered advantages such as improved performance and the prevention of engine stall-out during high-speed aerial maneuvers. Over time, electronic fuel injection (EFI) emerged as a more efficient and precise alternative to carburetors, with companies like Bosch and Mercedes-Benz dominating the early era of automotive fuel injection.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| First fuel-injected compression-ignition engine | Antoinette 8V, designed by Léon Levavasseur in 1902 |
| First fuel injection for petrol engines | Goliath GP700, in 1952 |
| First commercially available EFI system | Bendix Electrojector, in 1958 |
| First production electronic fuel injection automobiles | Chrysler 300D, DeSoto Adventurer, Dodge D-500, and Plymouth Fury, in 1958 |
| First fuel-injected car | GM introduced its first model in 1957 |
| First successful fuel-injected model | Corvette, in 1958 |
| First direct-injected compression-ignition engine used in road-going vehicles | Hesselman engine, invented by Swedish engineer Jonass Hesselman in 1925 |
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What You'll Learn
Early fuel injection systems
The idea of fuel injection has been around for over a century, though it only became commonplace in petrol engines relatively recently. The first fuel-injected compression-ignition engine was constructed in 1902 and entered production in 1906. The engine in question was French and called the Antoinette 8V. It was designed by the famous inventor and aviation pioneer Léon Levavasseur. The first fuel injection for petrol engines, a reworked diesel system, appeared on the Goliath GP700 in 1952. In the same year, the British company Lucas came up with its own variant of fuel injection, which was promptly fitted to Jaguar racecars, resulting in a D-type winning the Le Mans.
During World War II, several petrol engines for aircraft used direct-injection systems. The otherwise advanced Supermarine Spitfire and the Hawker Hurricane fighter planes of the Royal Air Force ran into problems in dogfights with the Messerschmitt Bf 109s of the German Luftwaffe. The Rolls-Royce Merlin engines in British fighters were fed by carburettors, which resulted in fuel supply interruption during negative-g manoeuvres, but the Daimler-Benz 601 V12 engines in the German planes didn't suffer this problem. Many other German aircraft engines used fuel injection, such as the Junkers Ju 88 bombers.
In 1954, the Mercedes-Benz Formula 1 team fitted its “Silver Arrow”, the W196 racecar, with Bosch direct injection derived from the system used in the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter plane from World War II. The first commercially available electronic fuel injection (EFI) system was the Bendix Electrojector, which debuted in several models made by the American brands AMC and Rambler. In 1958, it also appeared in Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge, and Plymouth cars. The patent rights to the system were bought by Bosch, which became the de-facto hegemon of electronic fuel injection for years to come.
In 1974, Bosch introduced the L-Jetronic system, a pulsed flow system that used an airflow meter to calculate the amount of fuel required. It was widely adopted on European cars during the 1970s and 1980s. Single-point injection was used extensively on American-made passenger cars and light trucks during 1980–1995, and in some European cars in the early and mid-1990s. The Bosch K-Jetronic system, introduced in 1974, was the most common automotive continuous injection system. It was used until the mid-1990s by various car manufacturers.
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The 1950s and 1960s
The 1950s saw the first fuel injection systems for petrol engines, which were based on diesel systems. Goliath GP700 introduced the first such system in 1952. In 1954, the Mercedes-Benz Formula 1 team fitted its "Silver Arrow" W196 racecar with Bosch direct injection, which was derived from the system used in the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter plane from World War II. The 2.5-litre straight-eight engine, equipped with mechanical fuel injection, produced 257 hp without supercharging, which was remarkable at the time.
In 1955, Stirling Moss drove a Mercedes-Benz 300SLR with the Bosch direct-injected aircraft engine to victory in the Italian Mille Miglia endurance race. The same year, Chevrolet introduced the "Small Block" V8, which was fitted with Rochester fuel injectors next to the intake valves. This was the first instance of indirect injection.
In 1956, Lucas Industries, which had been developing a fuel injection system since 1941, saw its system used in Jaguar racing cars. At the 1957 24 Hours of Le Mans, the first to fourth-placed cars were Jaguar D-Type entries using the Lucas fuel injection system. Also in 1957, General Motors introduced the Rochester Ramjet option, which included a fuel injection system for the Chevrolet Corvette's V8 engine.
The first commercially available electronic fuel injection (EFI) system, the Bendix Electrojector, was introduced in 1957. However, it suffered from reliability issues and was only fitted to a few dozen cars. Most of these cars were later converted to four-barrel carburetors. In 1958, the Electrojector system was offered on the Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge, and Plymouth cars, although it was still riddled with problems. That same year, American Motors worked out some of the glitches, and the Electrojector was used in the Chrysler 300D, DeSoto Adventurer, Dodge D-500, and Plymouth Fury, making them the first production electronic fuel injection automobiles.
In the 1960s, mechanical fuel injection was used sparingly in the US, mostly in racing applications. The design for metering the fuel amount was unsuitable for street applications. Towards the end of the decade, European automakers began experimenting with mechanical fuel injection for production vehicles. Porsche, Peugeot, Audi, BMW, Aston Martin, Triumph, and Volkswagen outfitted select models with Bosch Jetronic mechanical fuel injection systems. During this decade, fuel injection systems were also produced by Hilborn, SPICA, and Kugelfischer.
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The 1970s and 1980s
The 1970s saw fuel injection appearing in mainstream cars. By the mid-1970s, European automakers had been experimenting with mechanical fuel injection for production vehicles for almost a decade. Porsche, Peugeot, Audi, BMW, Aston Martin, Triumph, and Volkswagen were among the manufacturers who outfitted select models with Bosch Jetronic mechanical fuel injection. Bosch's K-Jetronic system, introduced in 1974, was used until the mid-1990s by various car manufacturers.
In 1979, analogue electronics were still being used in the control systems of fuel injection systems. The Bosch Motronic multi-point fuel injection system was the first mass-produced system to use digital electronics. The Ford EEC-III single-point fuel injection system, introduced in 1980, was another early digital fuel injection system. These electronic manifold injection systems became more widespread through the 1980s and by the 1990s, they had replaced carburettors in most new petrol-engined cars sold in developed countries.
The 1980s witnessed the rapid increase of the electronic fuel injector, which spread almost universally across various European nations and automobile manufacturing businesses. The increased computing power and smaller size of EFI modules allowed for better control in the fuel injection system and a more consistent performance when used in engine design. By the mid-1980s, automakers were in the process of discontinuing the use of carbureted fuel delivery engines. This was due to stricter US emission guidelines and improved drivability for consumers. Nearly every major automaker made computerized EFI the primary method of fuel delivery for all models.
In 1983, Bendix, an American corporation, was absorbed by Honeywell. They had been responsible for the first electronic fuel injection (EFI) system offered in a production vehicle.
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The 1990s
The widespread adoption of fuel injection in the 1990s was the result of decades of development and refinement. The first fuel injection systems appeared in the 1950s, and by the 1970s, fuel injection was appearing in mainstream cars. The 1980s witnessed the rapid increase and spread of electronic fuel injectors across Europe and the United States. The development of digital electronics for fuel injection systems, such as the Bosch Motronic multi-point fuel injection system, also played a crucial role in the eventual dominance of fuel injection over carburetors.
While fuel injection systems offered significant advantages over carburetors, they also presented some challenges. Initially, automakers struggled to design EFI systems that were optimised for the unique features of EFI, as they had been heavily invested in carburetor technology for many years. However, over time, they learned to utilise the new technology effectively, leading to improvements in both power and efficiency.
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The 2000s
In the 2000s, advancements in computing capacity and speed significantly improved the functionality of fuel injection systems. This increased computing power allowed for better control of the fuel injection process, resulting in more consistent performance and improved fuel efficiency. The use of electronic control units to regulate fuel injection, known as electronic fuel injection (EFI), became standard in vehicle design. The EFI system's precision in delivering the optimal fuel-air mixture for the engine's needs led to enhanced overall power and fuel efficiency.
During this time, automakers continued to refine fuel injection technology, addressing issues such as carbon formation on the intake valve seats, which caused cylinder misfire problems. The introduction of gasoline direct fuel injection (GDFI) systems by Mitsubishi in 1996 faced initial challenges due to incorrect fuel formulation but ultimately contributed to the advancement of fuel injection technology.
While fuel injection had become the dominant fuel delivery system in cars, there were still some vehicles that utilised carburetors during the early 2000s. For example, the G10 engine in the 2000 Chevrolet Metro was the last engine available in an American-sold vehicle to use throttle body injection, a type of fuel delivery system that combines aspects of carburetors and fuel injection.
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Frequently asked questions
Fuel injection for cars was invented by several different people and companies over time. The first fuel-injected compression-ignition engine was constructed in 1902 by Léon Levavasseur, a French inventor and aviation pioneer. In 1925, the concept of injecting gasoline directly into an engine's cylinders was invented by Swedish engineer Jonas Hesselman. In the 1940s, Alfa Romeo experimented with fuel injection in a road race, and by the 1950s, Mercedes-Benz had embraced mechanical fuel injection in the form of Bosch direct injection.
Fuel injection is a system that introduces fuel into an internal combustion engine. It does not rely on carburetion but instead atomizes the fuel through a small nozzle under high pressure. This results in better overall power and fuel efficiency.
Fuel injection started to appear in cars in the 1950s, with the Goliath GP700 in 1952 being the first fuel-injected car. By the 1970s, fuel injection was appearing in mainstream cars, and it gradually gained prevalence until it largely replaced carburetors by the early 1990s.
Fuel injection offers several advantages over carburetors. It provides more precise control over the fuel-air mixture, resulting in better power and fuel efficiency. Additionally, fuel injection produces less waste in the form of emissions, making it a cleaner option.
