Edwin Foden took over the company Plant and Hancock that he had been apprentice at in 1887 when the founder retired. Renaming it 'Edwin Foden Son' he manufactured steam engines and traction engines. The first Foden lorry appeared in 1901 for a War Office trial, and although it came second in the trials it so impressed many that a business was built on this steam lorry. His son Edwin Richard Foden disagreed with his father over continuing with steam-powered vehicles rather than turning to diesel and resigned in 1932. Dennis Foden launched ERF using the name of his father 'Edwin Richard Foden' who had left Foden Trucks after a boardroom row. The story is often told that the Foden family fell out over the issue of steam versus diesel, but in fact Foden had built a diesel as early as 1931 and switched to diesel in 1934. After the Second World War Foden trucks became quite innovative, introducing a rear-engined bus chassis in 1950 years ahead of the Leyland Atlantean bus. Foden took up GRP for its cabs in 1958, and with the S21 cab produced the first mass production tilt-cab in Britain. However, fortunes declined and Foden was bought by American PACCAR in 1980, and after merger with PACCAR's Leyland Trucks operation the only Fodens were badged Leylands and then in 2006 even the 'Foden' badge was dropped.