34 replies to this topic

[lotcor]

To celebrate the 50 year since the first Cortina. The Cortina Mk1 Owners Club of Australia (CMOOC) will have the 1st cortina nationals in Australia. The venue will be in Albury NSW and will be held over the June long weekend 2012. It is open to all variants of the marque. We are hoping to have a fair gathering of race cars, some special ones like the old Satisfaction drag car and many current group N cars. The may be even an ex Bathurst mk1.
We have also had interest from the US and England and across the pond in NZ
This has been a long time coming in Aus and for a car that has won so many races in different forms and one of the most recognized, there must be a few out there that may want to dust off the old race car.


Please go to our website for more information.

www.cortinanationals.com



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[Wirra]

A chap I know has a 'low score Tina' which belonged initially to a Bob Caddy. He would be interested in knowing a bit about its history. Can you suggest anywhere he might start looking? Apparently it won a division of the Australian Hillclimb Championship in 1964 or thereabouts.

[GeoffR]

the old Satisfaction drag car

The Joe Pirotta/Charlie Caruana (sp?) car from years ago(?), that was still in action last year with a blown 427 sohc engine.

[David Shaw]

Having owned a '63 GT, I might have to head up to the border in June.

[Patrick Fletcher]

Just down the road from my home, a guy has a few Cortina two doors. One is a GT250 or is it a GT500?
Were they GT engines or Twincam?
Should be a fun event.

[D-Type]

How many different Cortina models might have raced? Offhand I can think of:

Mk1: 1200, 1500, GT, -Lotus, (with and without the A-frame suspension), the Australian Bathurst Special (was that the GT500?)
Mk2: 1200, 1300, 1600, 1600E, 1600GT, -Lotus

Then there's the South African variants: was the V6-engined Perana a Mk1 or Mk2?
The Uren Savage with V6 engine, again was that a Mk1 or MK 2 body?

Plus countless specials

[275 GTB-4]

I'm no expert but do know that the Australian Bathurst Special was the GT500!

Edited by 275 GTB-4, 29 July 2011 - 14:59.

[Lee Nicolle]

The Joe Pirotta/Charlie Caruana (sp?) car from years ago(?), that was still in action last year with a blown 427 sohc engine.

I think that is the defenition of loose!!
Reputedly the Windsor engine from that car is doing service in the TC Cortina Sports Sedan that used to be Joes wifes road car.

[peter kropotk]

To celebrate the 50 year since the first Cortina. The Cortina Mk1 Owners Club of Australia (CMOOC) will have the 1st cortina nationals in Australia. The venue will be in Albury NSW and will be held over the June long weekend 2012. It is open to all variants of the marque. We are hoping to have a fair gathering of race cars, some special ones like the old Satisfaction drag car and many current group N cars. The may be even an ex Bathurst mk1.
We have also had interest from the US and England and across the pond in NZ
This has been a long time coming in Aus and for a car that has won so many races in different forms and one of the most recognized, there must be a few out there that may want to dust off the old race car.

Ah. "Cortina" plus "Australia" takes my memory back to Silverstone in approx. 1962, where Australian dentist "Doc" Merfield was driving this beast:

http://www.oldstox.c...rfield 1587.jpg

http://www.oldstox.c...rfield 2589.jpg

It had a 300 cu.in. Chevrolet V-8 under the hood, fed by three Stromberg downdraft carbs, and to keep it on the road it used a Jaguar XK-150 rear axle, and Ford Zephy wheels.

[lotcor]

Just down the road from my home, a guy has a few Cortina two doors. One is a GT250 or is it a GT500?
Were they GT engines or Twincam?
Should be a fun event.

The GT500s were GT engines re worked by Harry Firth and co.

How many different Cortina models might have raced? Offhand I can think of:

Mk1: 1200, 1500, GT, -Lotus, (with and without the A-frame suspension), the Australian Bathurst Special (was that the GT500?)
Mk2: 1200, 1300, 1600, 1600E, 1600GT, -Lotus

Then there's the South African variants: was the V6-engined Perana a Mk1 or Mk2?
The Uren Savage with V6 engine, again was that a Mk1 or MK 2 body?

Plus countless specials

A mk2 lotus crayford convertable built by Vegantune also ran in sports cars in the UK. It now resides in Aus and will be there.

[Wirra]

A few photos of Jim McKeown's Cortinas on this page and the following.

http://forums.autosp...w...148&st=3000

[lotcor]

A few photos of Jim McKeown's Cortinas on this page and the following.

http://forums.autosp...w...148&st=3000

Thanks for the link.
The Mk2 lotus in those pics (pale blue) still exists and awaits restoration in NSW. It was made up from all the good factory stuff out here sort
of like a kit.

[lyntonh]

Here are some Cortina pictures from 1969 - 1970... all at Warwick Farm.

Bob Inglis


Smith


Jim McKeown






Bob Lynch


Bill Fanning




Bob Inglis


Bill Fanning

Edited by lyntonh, 20 February 2012 - 20:37.

[lotcor]

Great Pics, love some of the sideways shots.
I believe Jim's car was the first touring car in Aus to run on slicks.

[D-Type]

We see loads of pictures of Mk1's and Mk 2's but did anybody race a Mk3 or a Mk4?

Edited by D-Type, 03 August 2011 - 23:05.

[arttidesco]

We see loads of pictures of Mk1's and Mk 2's but did anybody race a Mk3 or a Mk4?

I am not at all sure this is Noel Edmonds the radio DJ driving this MkIII but I do remember the Radio DJ of that name raced a production Motorcraft Mk III. I am sure that there may have also been a celebrity Cortina MK III event possibly prior to the Granda Consul celebrity events organised by John Webb.

[arttidesco]

Turns out South Africa a P100 MK 3 series !

Edited by arttidesco, 03 August 2011 - 23:53.

[lotcor]

We see loads of pictures of Mk1's and Mk 2's but did anybody race a Mk3 or a Mk4?

Kent Youlden TE sports sedan



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[Lee Nicolle]

I am not at all sure this is Noel Edmonds the radio DJ driving this MkIII but I do remember the Radio DJ of that name raced a production Motorcraft Mk III. I am sure that there may have also been a celebrity Cortina MK III event possibly prior to the Granda Consul celebrity events organised by John Webb.

I think you will find that that is the John Mann Cortina Sports sedan. The pic is at Calder. That car is resting comfortably here in Adelaide powered by a 302 windsor with an auto trans! Last raced in the 90s

[Lee Nicolle]

Turns out South Africa a P100 MK 3 series !

I never knew they made Cortina utes at all. Yet alone raced them! And I love the one with the high roof panel van style canopy!!
Now were they the UK body with the flat firewall or the Aussie body whith the recess firewall for the 6 cyl engines. The Aussie body is a good bit stronger. Though still tram track everywhere on rough roads.
I guess the UK body as they had the longer doors for the 2 door version which we did not get [or need] here in Oz.
And here in Oz they are TC TD and TE TF for the square body

[austmcreg]

I think you will find that that is the John Mann Cortina Sports sedan. The pic is at Calder. That car is resting comfortably here in Adelaide powered by a 302 windsor with an auto trans! Last raced in the 90s

No, the picture shown is definitely Kent Youlden's TE Cortina, originally powered by a 6 cylinder Chevrolet engine and later by an ex F5000 Chev engine he purchased from Alan Hamilton. I worked with Kent at Ford at the time and from memory the car was built from a new bodyshell which he managed to talk out of Ford parts and accessories, which is the way most of Ford's racing money was channelled in those days. I remember him saying it handled much better with the 6 cylinder engine as the weight distribution was all wrong with the v8.

The John Mann car was earlier, being a TC or TD Cortina, powered by Ford 250ci six and was painted in yellow Shell colours from memory..

[Lee Nicolle]

No, the picture shown is definitely Kent Youlden's TE Cortina, originally powered by a 6 cylinder Chevrolet engine and later by an ex F5000 Chev engine he purchased from Alan Hamilton. I worked with Kent at Ford at the time and from memory the car was built from a new bodyshell which he managed to talk out of Ford parts and accessories, which is the way most of Ford's racing money was channelled in those days. I remember him saying it handled much better with the 6 cylinder engine as the weight distribution was all wrong with the v8.

The John Mann car was earlier, being a TC or TD Cortina, powered by Ford 250ci six and was painted in yellow Shell colours from memory..

If you click the link on the artidesco post you will find the John Mann Cortina n Scotties colors. The other pic is the Youlden TE.
If Kent reckoned the TE handled better with the Chevy 6 over the v8 it must have had some problems. The 6 is a long heavyish engine wheras the V8 is about the same weight and far shorter. Maybe the extra power did not help. I ever only saw the car with the 6 and it went ok then.

[David Shaw]

I saw Pat Crea in a V8 powered TC at Sandown with Kleenex sponsorship in the mid seventies. My brother and I always knew it as the "snotbox".

[Ray Bell]

Were any of these the Graham Moore or Bob Stevens TC/TDs from Sydney?

[275 GTB-4]

Great Pics, love some of the sideways shots.
I believe Jim's car was the first touring car in Aus to run on slicks.

Hmmmmmm the Mini folk might challenge that statement!

[lotcor]

Just what I was told by his mechanic, can you give us something else?

[Kevan]

I am not at all sure this is Noel Edmonds the radio DJ driving this MkIII but I do remember the Radio DJ of that name raced a production Motorcraft Mk III. I am sure that there may have also been a celebrity Cortina MK III event possibly prior to the Granda Consul celebrity events organised by John Webb.

Mk3s were certainly seen in Production Saloons, and on events like the Tour of Britain:
http://s271.photobuc...700ATB41-16.jpg

http://s271.photobuc...700ATB41-17.jpg

Turns out South Africa a P100 MK 3 series !

There was a short-lived P100 series in the UK as well.- P100s first appeared on the UK market in MkIV Cortina guise, though I don't think they were ever raced (Anyone know?) As I remember, by the time of the race series, the P100 had moved on to Sierra panels at the front. Simon Arron posted some pics of these in the British club racing pic thread a while back, though as Sierras rather than Cortinas, I guess they're a bit off-topic...
http://i396.photobuc...8-2010_004b.jpg

Edited by Kevan, 07 August 2011 - 14:56.

[Lee Nicolle]

Mk3s were certainly seen in Production Saloons, and on events like the Tour of Britain:
http://s271.photobuc...700ATB41-16.jpg

http://s271.photobuc...700ATB41-17.jpg



There was a short-lived P100 series in the UK as well.- P100s first appeared on the UK market in MkIV Cortina guise, though I don't think they were ever raced (Anyone know?) As I remember, by the time of the race series, the P100 had moved on to Sierra panels at the front. Simon Arron posted some pics of these in the British club racing pic thread a while back, though as Sierras rather than Cortinas, I guess they're a bit off-topic...
http://i396.photobuc...8-2010_004b.jpg

In Oz only the upmarket 6cyl cars got the quad light front. It seems that depending on the market Cortinas had some very different specifications. I think the Oz 6 cyl body with the recessed firewall was unique. Here the 2 litre ones were just decent runabout cars, or for young people etc. Though the 2 litre was hardly anymore economical than the 3.3 6cyl. And far noisier. And pushrod ones were very seldom ever seen.

[Team Result]

How many different Cortina models might have raced? Offhand I can think of:

Mk1: 1200, 1500, GT, -Lotus, (with and without the A-frame suspension), the Australian Bathurst Special (was that the GT500?)
Mk2: 1200, 1300, 1600, 1600E, 1600GT, -Lotus

Then there's the South African variants: was the V6-engined Perana a Mk1 or Mk2?
The Uren Savage with V6 engine, again was that a Mk1 or MK 2 body?

Plus countless specials

Not sure if there was a racing example, but in Australia the 1967 Mk2 came with 1500, as well as 1200 '105E' engines, before they switched to the 1300 and 1600 crossflow engines in 1968, IIRC.
Those Mk2 non-crossflow engines differed from the Mk1 ones in that they had neoprene rear main seals in place of the ealier rope ones. The Lotus engine in the Mk2 (and Mk1 Escort) were essentially the same (except for the twincam head!) as these later non-crossflow engines.

[Ray Bell]

I doubt that Jim McKeown's Cortina would have been the first to run slicks...

Slicks came into vogue, after years of trying, about 1970. Did Jim still run the Cortina in '71?

[arttidesco]

I think you will find that that is the John Mann Cortina Sports sedan. The pic is at Calder. That car is resting comfortably here in Adelaide powered by a 302 windsor with an auto trans! Last raced in the 90s

Thanks for the background on the John Mann Cortina I came across it when I googled 'Noel Edomnds MK 111 Ford Cortina' or some such

[arttidesco]

I never knew they made Cortina utes at all. Yet alone raced them! And I love the one with the high roof panel van style canopy!!
Now were they the UK body with the flat firewall or the Aussie body whith the recess firewall for the 6 cyl engines. The Aussie body is a good bit stronger. Though still tram track everywhere on rough roads.
I guess the UK body as they had the longer doors for the 2 door version which we did not get [or need] here in Oz.
And here in Oz they are TC TD and TE TF for the square body

The earliest P100's I remember seeing here in the UK were based on the Mk V body, I had not seen a Mk III PI00 either until I found those on google.

[lotcor]

Did Jim still run the Cortina in '71?

I'm not sure Ray when he last ran it.

[GeoffR]

I'm not sure Ray when he last ran it.

According to these links he ran the Cortina in 1969 and had changed to the Porsche in 1970.
http://www.v8central...ar_Championship

http://www.v8central...ar_Championship

[pault]

I'm not sure Ray when he last ran it.

I'm unable to date it at the moment however Jim would have stopped using the Cortina in 69'

The car ran again in 70'? 71' with Brian Cooke as owner painted in Lotus colours with a full green nose.