Ford (US) DB 600 ??

[Piper106]

How secret were the DB 600 / 601 and Jumo 211 in the 1938 and early 1939 period??
Could Ford Motor Co. (US) have bought a manufacturing license and a full set of drawings/specifications for either of these engines???
In an alternate time lime could Ford (US) have gotten a head start on their aero engine ambitions (that eventually wound up as the Ford GAA tank engine) by instead manufacturing one of these designs??

 

[EwenS]

How secret were the DB 600 / 601 and Jumo 211 in the 1938 and early 1939 period??
Could Ford Motor Co. (US) have bought a manufacturing license and a full set of drawings/specifications for either of these engines???
In an alternate time lime could Ford (US) have gotten a head start on their aero engine ambitions (that eventually wound up as the Ford GAA tank engine) by instead manufacturing one of these designs??

I came across these links looking at Ford USA and the Merlin in 1940. I'm still trying to digest the contents of the second one. But it seems that one line is that Ford thought they could build a "better" (simplified for Ford production methods?) V-12 aero engine than the Merlin. But Ford USA only got interested in reviving aero engine production when Britain requested it in mid-1940.

So my initial thoughts are that there is no chance of Ford USA getting involved again (since WW1) in aero engine production in 1938/39. Where is the request coming from? Then the question is how would the German engines rate in complexity with a Merlin. Simple enough for Ford manufacturing?

Ford GAA Engine

The Ford's, the Merlins and Maurice Olley – Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum

Ford V12 Aero Engine

Flight, 21 Aug 1941, has a brief article on a planned Ford aero engine. Other than being a fuel-injected, turbocharged V12, there are not many details of this engine. Photo of engine mock-up attached. http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1941/1941%20-%201909.html Engine History picks up...

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