RE: PH Heroes: Lotus Cortina
Discussion
aeropilot said:
graeme36s said:
aeropilot said:
graeme36s said:
Ford registered quite a few MK1 escorts as twin cams to obtain the homolagation numbers needed but they where fitted with the 1600 crossflow engines. A mate up until recently owned such a beast.
Ford pulled a number of 'interesting' homologation tricks in their time, but they didn't do that....Ford were interesting in cutting time, not wasting time swapping engines around in cars, when they could just build the real thing. Ford didn't fit any Escort with a 1600 X-Flow until the production Mexico, or before that of course, the World Cup Rally cars.
Homologation of the Twink was actually achieved after the first 25 cars had been hand built built at Boreham by the rally team mechanics, with full production of the road cars starting at Halewood in the spring of '68.
Many Twinks were re-engined with X-Flows by owners when the Lotus engine blew, especially as many were bought and rallied from new.
It's also a possibility it wasn't actually a Twin Cam, it may have been an early RS1600. The first few months production of RS1600's in 1970 were actually Twin Cams built at Halewood but with a BDA fitted as the intended AVO production facilty for the RS1600, and later the Mexico was going to be opened until Nov 1970.
Because the BDA was based on the X-Flow block, unlike the pre-X-Flow blocked Twin Cam, again many were re-ngined as owners couldn't afford BDA engine rebuilds.
As proved in a post above, being reistered as a Twin Cam doesn't mean it was a factory built production car....only the chassis number will prove that (should start with BB49...), if it's it's original identity of course. And the BDA and 1600 X-Flow engines were both listed as 1599cc as well, which may lead someone to believe they are looking at a Twin Cam that had been fitted with a X-Flow.
Further to your informed post aero, the BDA block was longer than the Lotus Twin Cam, and consequently part of the bulkhead had to be trimmed to fit the BDA engine in. It was at the longitudinal join half way up.
There's a video link from the RS club on this page
stuttgartmetal said:
aeropilot said:
graeme36s said:
aeropilot said:
graeme36s said:
Ford registered quite a few MK1 escorts as twin cams to obtain the homolagation numbers needed but they where fitted with the 1600 crossflow engines. A mate up until recently owned such a beast.
Ford pulled a number of 'interesting' homologation tricks in their time, but they didn't do that....Ford were interesting in cutting time, not wasting time swapping engines around in cars, when they could just build the real thing. Ford didn't fit any Escort with a 1600 X-Flow until the production Mexico, or before that of course, the World Cup Rally cars.
Homologation of the Twink was actually achieved after the first 25 cars had been hand built built at Boreham by the rally team mechanics, with full production of the road cars starting at Halewood in the spring of '68.
Many Twinks were re-engined with X-Flows by owners when the Lotus engine blew, especially as many were bought and rallied from new.
It's also a possibility it wasn't actually a Twin Cam, it may have been an early RS1600. The first few months production of RS1600's in 1970 were actually Twin Cams built at Halewood but with a BDA fitted as the intended AVO production facilty for the RS1600, and later the Mexico was going to be opened until Nov 1970.
Because the BDA was based on the X-Flow block, unlike the pre-X-Flow blocked Twin Cam, again many were re-ngined as owners couldn't afford BDA engine rebuilds.
As proved in a post above, being reistered as a Twin Cam doesn't mean it was a factory built production car....only the chassis number will prove that (should start with BB49...), if it's it's original identity of course. And the BDA and 1600 X-Flow engines were both listed as 1599cc as well, which may lead someone to believe they are looking at a Twin Cam that had been fitted with a X-Flow.
Further to your informed post aero, the BDA block was longer than the Lotus Twin Cam, and consequently part of the bulkhead had to be trimmed to fit the BDA engine in. It was at the longitudinal join half way up.
Edited by aeropilot on Wednesday 14th January 14:54
ggaffney said:
Pistonheads say the Lotus Cortina was the fastest but nothing was quite like the 'Jeff Uren Savage' version now THAT was fast!
3 litre V6 with the kick of a mule.
A guy called Roscoe, of all names, had a Jeff Uren Savage in the early eighties in Harrow,3 litre V6 with the kick of a mule.
Two door with a 3.0S engine out of an 81 Capri, mated to a Scimitar box with electric overdive. I remember four up, coming home from the East End one Friday night about 12 on the A40 doing a ton with ease.
They were fast, but heavy.
I had a Ford red 1970 Mk2 Cortina Twin Cam which I bought for £450 at the time.
I always preferred the Mk2 Cortina shape, my first car was a two door Mk2 GT WGX485G, which I subsequently fitted a Twin Cam lump into. Scary quick, well I say scarey, at the time it was a flyer.
The engine sound on cam was glorious.
The on cam flat six Porsche Engine, and the Twin Cam fitted with twin side draught carbs are the two sounds that always make the hair stand up on the back of my neck.
There was a way to get the power down with the Twin Cam efficiently.
You'd build up the revs, slip the clutch a bit to get the thing rolling, then fed all the power in on cam. What a hit.
The thing that let the Cortina down was the steering. The steering box with drop arm was awful.
It was when the engine and drive train was dropped into the escort that the potential in Rally Sport was immediately noticeable. Steering on the escort was much more precise, and modern.
The stuff that used to come up in Motoring News classifieds that used to be get-able.
Minilites. Wow, magnesium wheels. Look good on any ford.
RS steering wheels. Atlas Axles. Bullit boxes, these weren't 2000E boxes, they were much stronger, and enabled 50MPH in first in a Mk1 Cortina.
Different world.
O/T
Top of the tree rallying in 1981, the Escort RS1800 wasn't that far away from the Escort Twin Cam I had at the time. Ari Vatenen was my hero, what a guy.
After rolling his, his quote was " It landed very heavily and bounced off the road, its as simple as that" is still in my head.
Russel Brookes used to cane a chevette with a 2300 twin cam in it. Jimmy McRae had the Opel, Stig Blomqvist was in the Sunbeam Lotus, all similar little arched boxes with Dellortos/Webers on them. Privateers were up with the action because Ford could supply virtually everything.
Berties Fisher's Red RS in the Circuit of Ireland was right up there.
Of course Hannu got into the Quattro, and it all changed.
Bloody hell Rosco. In aubergine from memory. There where a few nice bits of kit around then. Steve Twitchin, remember him, I seem to remember he had a twin cam. There was a chap possibly chris kito had a Mk1 cortina with a 3 litre V6 and an indian chap whose name escapes me had a mk1 Escort again with a 3 litre V6. I had to make do with a Mk1 facelift 3000 GXL Capri in sebring red, UGY 313M. If nothing else it taught me how to drive, happy days 
graeme36s said:
Bloody hell Rosco. In aubergine from memory. There where a few nice bits of kit around then. Steve Twitchin, remember him, I seem to remember he had a twin cam. There was a chap possibly chris kito had a Mk1 cortina with a 3 litre V6 and an indian chap whose name escapes me had a mk1 Escort again with a 3 litre V6. I had to make do with a Mk1 facelift 3000 GXL Capri in sebring red, UGY 313M. If nothing else it taught me how to drive, happy days
That Capri was sweet though, very straight. Bright Orange, with black between the rear lights and a vinyl iirc.Steve had a nice Mk1 Lotus Cortina, an Indianapolis 500 model.
These were celebratory models, and only differed by having an Indy 500 badge in the centre console. He sold that for £1150, two months later they were all worth £3k minimum. He was gutted.
Kitto had a succession of mk2 cortina's. A nice White 1500GT with a 45 DCOE on it at the time, followed by a cortina V6.
Mick Carter had a couple of those also.
One of them was an old 1500 Estate in Metallic brown, with full 3.0 litre running gear. What a laugh that was. One sunday afternoon 5/6 up on the way back from Thorpe Park we were up the aris of Pork on the M40 at around 90, you should've seen the double take.
Nayim Wazir is the name you're looking for, he had a couple of Escorts one with a V6 in it, the same colour as your old GXL.
Ford were just cooking for us then weren't they ?
Simple days, being chased by Plod in an SD1 late at night around Stanmore Belmont Canons Park Harrow Weald and Kenton.
The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
stuttgartmetal said:
Simple days, being chased by Plod in an SD1 late at night around Stanmore Belmont Canons Park Harrow Weald and Kenton.
The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Hmmmmnnn.......might have to send a link to this thread to my mate who nows lives in California.The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Belmont Circle is his old stomping ground.
He used to work at Rippy's in Pinner back in the very early 80's.
He also had a Mk1 'tina GT after his PA Cresta expired.
Edited by aeropilot on Tuesday 20th January 12:11
aeropilot said:
stuttgartmetal said:
Simple days, being chased by Plod in an SD1 late at night around Stanmore Belmont Canons Park Harrow Weald and Kenton.
The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Hmmmmnnn.......might have to send a link to this thread to my mate who nows lives in California.The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Belmont Circle is his old stomping ground.
He used to work at Rippy's in Pinner back in the very early 80's.
He also had a Mk1 'tina GT after his PA Cresta expired.
Is he a lanky bloke called ? Alan ?
He probably remember my old Escort Twin Cam.
Ripspeed was brilliant when it was on Pinner Green wasn't it.
stuttgartmetal said:
aeropilot said:
stuttgartmetal said:
Simple days, being chased by Plod in an SD1 late at night around Stanmore Belmont Canons Park Harrow Weald and Kenton.
The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Hmmmmnnn.......might have to send a link to this thread to my mate who nows lives in California.The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Belmont Circle is his old stomping ground.
He used to work at Rippy's in Pinner back in the very early 80's.
He also had a Mk1 'tina GT after his PA Cresta expired.
Is he a lanky bloke called ? Alan ?
He probably remember my old Escort Twin Cam.
Ripspeed was brilliant when it was on Pinner Green wasn't it.
Yeah, great old days at the Pinner shop
Bizzarini said:
I stumbled over this article about the Lotus Cortina @ 14.00 today . . A true PH Hero . .
166 RUR used to belong to my uncle . . I had the pleasure of being driven around in the car some years ago . . I also went with him to Goodwood with the car . . he has actually owned many of Jim's cars . . along with a Alan Mann Mk2 LC raced by Frank Gardener and Sir John Whitmore I think . . My first car was a Mk1 Escort . . granted only a 1300 but since then I fell in love with Escorts and Cortina's . . My 4th car was a Mk2 RS2000 Signal Yellow with a 2.2 pinto in it . . now used 2 fly down the M42 . . I absolutely love reading about these cars . . in there day they were amazing . . now a true think of beauty :-)
stanluxe said:
Bizzarini said:
This may be of interest ?.......in one facility not far from where they were built. If needed I can go through the history of each of the five cars.
...badlyaeropilot said:
stuttgartmetal said:
Simple days, being chased by Plod in an SD1 late at night around Stanmore Belmont Canons Park Harrow Weald and Kenton.
The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Hmmmmnnn.......might have to send a link to this thread to my mate who nows lives in California.The roads were empty after 12, what a scream.
F*ck it, I feel old.
Belmont Circle is his old stomping ground.
He used to work at Rippy's in Pinner back in the very early 80's.
He also had a Mk1 'tina GT after his PA Cresta expired.
Edited by aeropilot on Tuesday 20th January 12:11
Back then there where a few naughty boys. Am I wrong or has it all been replaced by loud stereos ?.
Rosco, Steve etc, Dave Powell who drove his P5B like he stoll it and would drive miles out of his way just to avoid traffic lights. To this day I have no idea why. His father passed away last week at the ripe old age of 90. I watched that guy lift a xflow engine out of an escort with his bare hands. It's the only house that I have ever been to that had engine blocks in the kitchen and a cylinder head draining oil into the sink. Made you think twice about haveing a cup of tea. Geoff who had a P6 3500S, Richard Jay who had a P6 in white and would come from nowhere, lights flashing, pull you over and dissappear with an obligatory wave out of the window. Chris Walsh who had a metallic green 1600GT mk2 cortina estate, Panny who also had a white P6 3500,The younger Moore's furnishing guy that had a Hillman Avenger GT and Stuart Wells.
p.s. saw steve last night and he says that his mk1 escort was one of the very last built. Still swears blind that it was registered as a twink but came with a xflow. Can't give you a chassis number but who knows.
stanluxe said:
Bizzarini said:
This may be of interest ?.......in one facility not far from where they were built. If needed I can go through the history of each of the five cars.
Surprised the recent breaking story that NVW 241C, the Lotu-Cortina used by Jim Clark on the '66 RAC Rally may have been 'discovered' in a barn.
Naturally I have my doubts as well, but would love it to be true.
Have to say, that if the guy writing the article is 'that' much of an expert he would know that the Ford Motorsport facility was at Boreham Airfield, Essex, NOT Boreham Wood.....
http://lotus-cortina.com/page22-23.pdf
Naturally I have my doubts as well, but would love it to be true.
Have to say, that if the guy writing the article is 'that' much of an expert he would know that the Ford Motorsport facility was at Boreham Airfield, Essex, NOT Boreham Wood.....
http://lotus-cortina.com/page22-23.pdf
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff