VM Motori was founded by two entrepreneurs, Claudio Vancini and Ugo Martelli (hence the "VM") in 1947.
VM merged with Stabilimenti Meccanici Triestini in Trieste in 1971, then Finmeccanica took a majority stake in the combined company. The company was referred to as "Finmeccanica VM" for many years.[1]
In 1989, Finmeccanica restructured, selling its stake in VM Motori to company managers and Midland Montague in a leveraged buyout, leaving the company with its single Cento plant.
In September 2008, GAZ Group announced plans to purchase a 50% stake from Penske Corp,[3] but ultimately cancelled them in February 2009.[4]
On 11 February 2011, Fiat Powertrain Technologies and Penske Corporation had reached an agreement under which Fiat Powertrain would purchase Penske Corporation's fifty-percent stake in VM Motori S.p.A.[5][6]
Fiat Group Automobiles acquired the remaining 50% stake of VM Motori S.p.A. owned by General Motors,[7] on 28 October 2013.[8]
In 1947, the company produced the first Italian air-cooled diesel engine with direct injection.
In 1964, the company introduced entire new families of air-cooled diesel engines for fishing boats and the industrial machine markets.
The year 1974 saw the introduction of a new series of high-speed (4,200 rpm) HR-series, pre-combustion chamber, water-cooled, turbocharged engines.
The Alfa Romeo Alfetta, produced in Arese, rolled off the line with a VM Motori engine under the bonnet in 1979, signaling VM's move to the OEM automotive market. This was Italy's first turbodiesel engine.[1] The engines still retained some maritime features, such as individual heads for each cylinder - a design which made it easier to produce different cylinder configurations.[9]
During the 1980s, British Leyland chose VM engines as the smoothest, most petrol-like units available for diesel models of their Range Rover and Rover SD1; the choice continued with the later Rover 800.
The Covini B24, T40 and C36 models all used VM Motori turbodiesel engines ranging from 4 to 6 cylinders.[10][11]
In 1998 a new four-cylinder 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel engine and its three-cylinder derivate a 1.5-litre turbocharged diesel engine was developed by VM Motori. Engines featured a single overhead camshaft, four valves per cylinder, and common rail direct fuel injection.[12] Both engines were licensed to the South Korean manufacturer Hyundai.[13][nb 1] 1.5-litre engine was used in the second generation of the Hyundai Accent, the Hyundai Getz and the Hyundai Matrix.[14] These were produced and marketed between the fall of 2001 and the end of 2005.[14] The 2.0-litre engine was used in many Hyundai and Kia models as the only diesel variant.
The latest vehicle to benefit from a 2.5 L VM Motori diesel engine is the purpose-built LTI (London Taxis International) London style taxicab. The TX4 is the first of the TX range of taxis to include a VM Motori engine.
The company is also selling its products to off-highway applications, such as marine and defense. MTU Friedrichshafen, a German diesel engine manufacturer, holds the exclusive sales rights for VM Motori off-highway engines outside of Italy In the years 2007–2010 the Diesel 2.8 was used in the Dodge Nitro: power: 177 PS (130 kW; 175 hp); torque: 410–460 N⋅m (302–339 lb⋅ft)
In June 2010, VM Motori started the production of the new 2.8L 4-cylinder Euro 5 engine to power the 2011 Jeep Wrangler, 2011 Jeep Cherokee and 2012 Lancia Voyager. The A428 makes 200 PS (147 kW; 197 hp) and 460 N⋅m (340 lb⋅ft) of torque at 1,800 rpm. On the manual version of the Jeep Wrangler, the A428 features the Stop/Start system to reduce the CO2 emissions.
In January 2011, VM Motori launched its brand new engine 3.0L V6 Variable Valve TimingA 630 DOHC With 241 hp (180 kW; 244 PS) and 550 N⋅m (410 lb⋅ft) of torque. Thanks to a collaboration with Fiat Powertrain Technologies, the engine features the latest FPT Common RailMultijet2 technology for improved performance, fuel economy and NVH. In 2013, the engine was redesigned to comply with Euro5+ emissions standards.
The first application of the A 630 DOHC was the 2011 Grand Cherokee. From 2014 to 2023, the same engine—rebranded as the EcoDiesel—powerd the Ram 1500, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Wrangler, and Jeep Gladiator; and in lightly tuned form, the Maserati Ghibli III. The engine won several awards including Ward's 10 Best engines of 2014 during its first model year of production in the Jeep &Ram. And has gone on for an unprecedented diesel 'repeat' winning Ward's Top 10 List again in 2015 and 2016.[16][17][18] Stellantis has sold upwards of 250,000 vehicles with the engine but an estimated 50,000 of them have failed. The engine has been a subject of several class action lawsuits.
^ abMádaro, G (March 1979). "Ecco il primo Turbo Diesel italiano" [Here is the first Italian turbodiesel]. Quattroruote (in Italian). 24 (280). Milan, Italy: Editoriale Domus: 56.
