The Cummins Engine Company was founded on February 3rd, 1919, in Columbus, Indiana. Banker William G. Irwin put up the starting capital and Clessie Cummins, a self-taught engineering talent, was elected as President at the age of 30 after being a chauffeur, an auto repair shop owner, and a pit crew member. Cummins was inspired by the creation of Rudolf Diesel’s diesel engine prototype in 1897. Cummins grasped the potential of the diesel engine and built the Cummins Company into a leading diesel engine brand, though there was an ill-fated venture making licensed engines for Sears, Roebuck & Co. But, by 1924, Cummins had developed its first diesel engine, the Model F. The Model F first powered fishing trawlers, then went on to be used in air compressors, generators, and other devices. It was followed by the Model U diesel engine in 1928, which solidified the Cummins engine’s potential for automotive use. The first Cummins-powered automobile was created in 1929, a diesel-engined Packard.
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Cummins promoted the fuel savings and durability-related benefits of its engines: A Cummins Model U-powered racecar finished the 1931 Indianapolis 500 without a single fuel stop. Later that year, a truck using another Cummins Model U engine (and carrying the Indy 500 racer) drove from New York City to Los Angeles in 125 hours — a new record. Fast forward to 1952 and a Cummins racer got the pole position at the Indy 500, qualifying at an amazing 139 miles per hour.
What makes Cummins engines so different?
What has made Cummins engines so different is the company’s spirit of innovation, which has propelled the company forward throughout its history. This includes Clessie Cummins’ early, groundbreaking direct fuel injection system, the company’s successful efforts to move from marine and stationary engines into becoming a major engine supplier to the trucking industry, its successful promotion of the performance and longevity of the diesel engine, and the more-recent development of the Cummins-powered Ram pickup truck in 1988. This very successful alliance catapulted Cummins into the top ranks of automotive industry suppliers with more than 3 million Cummins Ram engines produced since this partnership began, including the heavy-duty Ram with one of the most powerful Cummins pickup truck engines. Cummins celebrated the production of the 3-millionth Ram engine in 2019, the same year Cummins observed its 100th anniversary.
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In addition to its solid achievement as a supplier of diesel engines for Ram pickups, Cummins continues to supply even larger and more powerful diesel engines that meet the needs of today’s environmentally-focused industrial users, including the X15 shown above. Cummins’ ongoing innovations in this area include improvements in friction reduction, better waste-heat recovery, and the use of biodiesel fuels.
