Henry Ford with the First Ford V-8 Engine, March 26, 1932

When the V-8 went into production in 1932, Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company once again revolutionized the automobile market. Although the Ford V-8 was not the first production V-8 in automotive history, it was the first compact (because of the V alignment of the eight cylinders) and powerful engine that was available to the general auto buying audience. Henry Ford personally oversaw the design and development of the V-8 with a selected team of engineers located not in the state-of-the-art Ford Engineering Laboratory, but in Thomas Edison's Fort Myers Laboratory recently relocated from Florida to Henry Ford's Greenfield Village. It is believed that Henry Ford used the building, tools, and machines that Thomas Edison had used to help inspire the engineers and designers.