Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Rick]

Continuing with the occasional one make/model recollections threads, how about one for the Cortina (all variations of). What memories do you have of Dagenham's mid-size saloons and estates?

Has anyone dabbled with a Lotus Cortina, or had a Mk2 as a rep-mobile?? Perhaps used an estate on a window cleaning round, or remembers their first ride out in the back of a Mk1 base model????

RJ
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[peter scott]

My first impressions were of the Mark I. I wasn't impressed by its appearance but a friend and work colleague bought a two door GT and I found it was embarrassingly difficult just to keep up with him in my Sunbeam Alpine. After that I became very impressed by this wolf in sheep's clothing.

My experience of the Mark IIs was mainly just with the ordinary cooking models and these just left me with nasty wallowy memories.

When it came to the Mark III once again I was taken by surprise. In this case it was in a 2 litre automatic. My impressions of driving automatics up to this time were that regardless of engine size none were capable of good standing start acceleration. This impression was quickly dispelled by the Cortina.

Peter
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https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[victor 101]

I have owned all models of Cortinas from Mk1 to Mk5 The Mk1 was a super with bench seat and column shift, the Mk2 was a 1600E, the Mk3 was 2000E Auto, the Mk4 was forgettable but the Mk5 was a 2.3 Ghia auto previously owned by an American airman which would lay rubber through first gear and momentarily in second and the most I ever got out of it was 115mph with some left, great comfortable cars with a bit of style.

[Jim.Walker]

My memories of Mark3 and 4 Cortinas would be best forgotten.
For years we ran "Leyland Land Crabs" as taxis (Austin/Morris 1800s). These were loved by our customers, very economical and quite cheap to maintain having only one inherent fault (denied by British Leyland) which was to strip the splines in the front wheel drive flanges. Admittedly clutch changes were also a bit of a problem, but we had a fitter who could change them in 6 hours! At the end of their useful life they were replaced with Cortinas as the best(?) alternative. Two Vauxhalls were tried and better liked, but spares availability left them out of service too frequently.

The Cortinas regularly shed cam belts at far below scheduled mileage changes (Embarassing, but fortunately without engine damage). We soon halved the belt change schedule. Upholstery split and tore regularly and drivers seats typically lasted about 8 or 9 months before collapsing. Fuel costs rose significantly as did repairs because so many parts had to be replaced with new because parts to repair were not available. A simple example of that was the wiper motor drive gear - The Lucas part cost about 50p in those days and could be replaced in minutes -the Ford Wiper motor had to be replaced at a trade cost of over £20. To be fair the engines lasted well, but the number of cam and follower overhauls ran well into double (if not treble) figures for 12 cars.

I suppose the moral is that cars are produced to satisfy the initial user, he being a rep, or private motorist etc. who will never subject the car to the type of use/misuse suffered by a taxi at the hands of a taxi-driver or its passengers. As long as the majority of initial users are happy repeat sales are assured.
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Quote from my late Dad:- You only need a woman and a car and you have all the problems you
are ever likely to want". Computers had not been invented then!

[47Jag]

I was working at a Ford dealership when the MK1 was released. We all gathered around the first car to see what was different and I remember thinking how fimsy it looked under the bonnet. Then when we got the training pack it was talking about crumple zones and why certain parts of the chassis looked thin for this reason. One of the first GTs that we sold went to the son of a local scrappy. I cut the grille and fitted a couple of spotlamps for him. It lasted a couple of weeks until he tried to straight line a 2 foot high roundabout. But he did walk away thanks to the crumple zones.

Art

[victor 101]

Your right about the camshaft wear Jim. I guess the reps doing high mileages with regular oil changes was fine, but taxis with short stop start journeys would clog the oil feed pipe, which I believe they modified at some stage. On the bright side you could change a cambelt in less than an hour.

[47Jag]

I just remembered, the MK1s had a problem with the gearboxes where the bushing between the mainshaft and the spigot shaft would sieze, locking up the rear wheels. In one case we had putting the car into a ditch.

Jim,

I had an Austin 1800 in Canada that I had MGB stage 3 engine mods. on. I never had any problems with driveshafts despite drag racing Camaros & Corvettes at the lights. The looks on their faces as my 'little rocket' left them for dead. The only drawback was the low diff ratio.

Art

[Peter_L]

I loved my MkIII and Mk V Cortina Estates. The Mk V did 220k miles on the 2.3 engine, can't remember how many on the 2.8 because the body got a bit sad and I traded it for a Granada.

The 2.3 V6 was an awesome machine. When I fitted it with the 2.8 V6 engine it was a real wolf in sheep's clothing.

Will try to find some photos...

[exbmc]

The only Cortina I have owned, was a 1965 (I think, maybe 63) 1500 de luxe Mk1 2 door.
In dark blue with two tone ambla upholstery. the best heater i had ever had in a car. Little to say about reliability, it just went on and on. I once went from Derby centre to Skegness clock tower in 2 hours. With today's traffic and all the assorted by- passes, I doubt I could achieve that time now!

[gresham flyer]

In 1973 the car to impress the girls was a MK 11 Cortina with rostyle wheels and 8 track stereo.

Have it parked outside a dance or your city centre pub (do you remember when you could just pull up and park) and the girls all wanted a lift home.

These cars were purchased out of the local newspaper,from their middle aged first or second owners who had stood the depreciation,i think about £495.00 was the going rate.

A lot of money for an apprentice lad on about £30.00 a week.

After the purchase it was round to the car accessory shop in the high st for some Huggy bear seat covers,whip aerial,8 track if not fitted,and other stuff guaranteed to make it appear quicker.

Then it was off to sunny hunny (Hunstanton) on a sunday morning passing everything else on the road.

But then came the Ford Capri 1600 GXL GT,we all wanted one of those when cheap enough.

[Peter_L]

[Jim.Walker]

47 Jag,

We used to keep cars for sometimes over 200,000 miles, which sometimes was only three years. In that time we met problems others had never heard of. The drive flange wear problem might never occur in the life of a private motor, which would probably be on the scrap pile at half that mileage in those days. Incidentally, the cars were running for more time than stationary and we rarely had to change engines on either the 1800s or the Cortinas. Most seeing their lives out with us on the same engine. I think the record was around 278,000 and still running beautifully on one car when we sold it as seen. I often wonder how much longer it went on.
_________________
Quote from my late Dad:- You only need a woman and a car and you have all the problems you
are ever likely to want". Computers had not been invented then!

[47Jag]

Jim,

Yes I suppose if you put 200K miles on a car you will see problems that few others see. I only had mine a couple of years until I became an
Alfa-iste. A Bertone 1600 GTV Quardofoglio...........AAAAAHHHHHHHHH

Art

[peter scott]

[poodge]

My 1st was a 64 1500.Only 4 door models and estates sold new in NZ.In 1971,that was a modern car here.I really liked it,so next I got a mk2.
This was a UK assembled 2-door,which was sold to me as being a 1500.I fitted a remote gearchange,which worked only so-so,and after spending hundreds on remedial suspension work,blew a couple of pistons clean in half,one vertically,the other horizontally.
It was then I found it was only a 1200!
After a few other makes,my next tina was a 63.horrible metallic green repaint,but it went quite well.
again a few others,then a 64 estate.By now we're in the 80's,so a mk1 was getting a bit older.This one had a vibration in the back axle,which I never managed to trace.It also had the endearing habit of locking the gearlever in reverse.Then I had to switch off the engine,give a the lever a good whack,and restart in neutral.
Then I had a VW kombi"splitty",and then a mk3 estate facelift model.Nice car,apart from the 2L pinto engine leaking oil onto the garage floor.Somebody ran up the back ofit,so next came a mk4 in baby blue.And blow me down,2 weeks after I bought it,a half-asleep sales jockey ran up the back of that in his rental car.
I got that fixed though,and only had some trouble with a leaking exhaust manifold.My father-in-law had a lovely 66 mk2 aeroflow ,but he didn't keep it very long.I was rather sad to see him trade it in on a 73 mk3,which he ran for over 20 years,till he had a stroke.He had the motor overhauled twice,so he must have liked it.My wife's uncle had a 2.3 auto V6 Ghia mk5,immaculately kept.
I was rather diappointed when he traded that in for $500 on a pice of jap-crap.If I had known,I would have happily given him a grand for the V6.This was the only model here that used that engine.
There were a few mk3'sand mk4's in Australia,that were fitted with a straight 6 ,out of the Ford Falcon series.The muttering rotters gave these cars a real drubbing,because they were very nose-heavy and lumbering .