When McLaren terminated its relationship with Peugeot at the end of 1994, Jordan Grand Prix moved quickly to secure the supply, switching from Hart engines. The arrangement gave Jordan access to a works-class V10 at a time when the team was seeking to establish itself as a consistent midfield contender. Peugeot's motivation was to continue accumulating Grand Prix experience and development data while maintaining a competitive programme in the sport.
The EV5 engine family was progressively refined during the three seasons it powered the Jordan cars. While the unit was regarded as underpowered and unreliable compared to the leading suppliers — principally Renault, which was then winning championships with Williams and Benetton — it represented a significant step beyond the troubled A14 that had served McLaren the previous year. Each successive year brought incremental improvements in output and dependability, though Jordan consistently found itself unable to translate pole lap times or race pace into victories.
The highlight of the Jordan-Peugeot relationship came at the 1995 Canadian Grand Prix, where Rubens Barrichello and Eddie Irvine finished second and third respectively behind Jean Alesi's Ferrari. It was the best single-race result Peugeot achieved with any partner during its entire Formula One programme. Despite this showing, the team ended the 1995 season in sixth place in the Constructors' Championship, a solid but unspectacular position that reflected the engine's limitations relative to the front-running units.
In 1996, with Irvine departing for Ferrari and Martin Brundle joining alongside Barrichello, Jordan again finished fifth among the constructors. Neither driver reached the podium that year, but both scored consistent fourth-place finishes across the season. By 1997, Giancarlo Fisichella and Ralf Schumacher drove the Jordan-Peugeot cars, with Fisichella achieving two podium finishes. Jordan again ended the year fifth in the Constructors' Championship, with Peugeot scoring 33 points across the season.
At the end of 1997, Jordan chose to replace the Peugeot supply with Mugen-Honda engines, a switch that proved transformative. The team won its first Formula One race the following year at the Belgian Grand Prix with Damon Hill driving. Peugeot in turn redirected its engine programme to the newly formed Prost Grand Prix for 1998.
The three-year partnership with Jordan yielded five podium finishes and demonstrated that the Peugeot V10 could be made competitive with sustained development, even if a race victory remained out of reach. The experience informed the development of the subsequent engine variants that went to Prost Grand Prix, though the results there proved even more difficult. Jordan's decision to move on after 1997 effectively ended the French manufacturer's most productive relationship in Formula One.