Ford to relaunch the Cortina?

[mat777]

Looks pretty damn good to me, especially in the lotus colours!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2206496/Fo...

[FourWheelDrift]

Why haven't they posted a photo of the Mk1 Cortina that the new one is taking it's styling cues from..........oh Daily Mail story.

[Zad]

DailyMail said:

The commission came courtesy of motoring magazine Auto Express, which wanted to know how the car giant might transform the legendary family saloon car and re-invent it for today.

They don't even look like they tried that hard. At least design student Rajesh Kutty put some effort into his Escort re-make:

http://www.carbodydesign.com/gallery/2007/05/21-be...

The Capri concept looked more authentic than the "Cortina", and that was derived from a Chevrolet!
http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=257...

[Evangelion]

That's got to be the ugliest thing I've ever seen in my life, bar none.

Still, who cares, it's bound to be FWD, too big, too heavy ... etc.

[killingjoker]

Dream on.

I remember a while back they said they were going to launch a 'new Capri'. Okay, so it was just a Focus drawing that had been stretched and had the famous u shaped rear quarter windows added. Hateful thing really and a pale shadow of when Ford actually built desirable cars back up to the early eighties.

Smiley faced Escort's (no, i mean cars!) slid us into the bland... the future (yawn).

This 'new Cortina' will go the same way. We now live in the age of 'white goods' mass produced cars.

[SeeFive]

I heard they were launching the Ford Pubic.

It's made out of old Corsairs.

[furtive]

[quote]The commission came courtesy of motoring magazine Auto Express, which wanted to know how the car giant might transform the legendary family saloon car and re-invent it for today.
[/quote]

Don't they just need to look at the Mondeo?

[LuS1fer]

There isn't even a hint they intend to relaunch it.
The top design is horrific, the white one isn't too bad but retro is dead, didn't they get the news?

Whilst the Mk 1 rear lights were indeed instantly distinctive, to say the Mk 1 shape itself was "iconic" in the way a Mustang or Beetle is, is hyperbolic nonsense.

[PaulKemp]

Ford Consul/Classic Capri 2 door coupe
That would be a good one to do for the 21st century

[DE15 CAT]

SeeFive said:

I heard they were launching the Ford Pubic.

It's made out of old Corsairs.

I made the same comment on another thread weeks ago, wonder if we are in 'that age group'.

[LuS1fer]

DE15 CAT said:

SeeFive said:

I heard they were launching the Ford Pubic.

It's made out of old Corsairs.

I made the same comment on another thread weeks ago, wonder if we are in 'that age group'.

In fairness, it wasn't funny in 1972 when I first heard it.

[Triumph Man]

The cortina is still going, as the Mondeo!

Well, the same blood line is going anyway.

[900T-R]

killingjoker said:

We now live in the age of 'white goods' mass produced cars.

Which describes the original Cortina and Escort to a tee...?

[croyde]

DE15 CAT said:

SeeFive said:

I heard they were launching the Ford Pubic.

It's made out of old Corsairs.

I made the same comment on another thread weeks ago, wonder if we are in 'that age group'.

Have one of these

I had a Mk3 and a Mk4 estate in my early days of driving.

[AC43]

Is it going to have a massive live rear axle made out of pig iron and wheezing OHV motor. I can't wait.

[LuS1fer]

I'm sure I saw a story about Vauxhall reviving the Viva name and then it appeared on some boxy little Agila style car - possibly for Brazil or something as it never appeared here.

The Cortina name revival would be pointless as the Mondeo is the "new" Cortina and the Focus occupies the lower segement so what could it possibly be, bar something akin to a 1-series RWD car where even BMW are abandoning RWD.

[900T-R]

That, and it would be a predominanty UK phenomenon as on the continent, we only got UK Fords until Cologne and Dagenham's line-ups were erm, aligned with the Escort and 'Knudsen-Taunus' (Mk3 Cortina in the UK) - which is well over 40 years ago, and even before that Cortinas and Anglias were sharing the limelight with a myriad of Taunus iterations - so apart from historic motorsport circles no one remembers the Cortina.

How a volume manufacturer would ever hope to make a business case out of a retro model that would only appeal to the nostalgia of a single market in Europe, I'm not sure...

[killingjoker]

900T-R said:

Which describes the original Cortina and Escort to a tee...?

Fail. They had character. Modern cars zzzzzzzzzzzzz

[900T-R]

killingjoker said:

Fail. They had character.

"Character" only because they're old now. 'Cooking' Fords were engineered and marketed exactly as white goods; styled to appeal to the general public at the time, engineered to meet consumer demand at the lowest possible cost and the whole process impeccably costed to the -nth degree to maximise profits for their maker.

[Pedmeister]

killingjoker said:

Dream on.

I remember a while back they said they were going to launch a 'new Capri'. Okay, so it was just a Focus drawing that had been stretched and had the famous u shaped rear quarter windows added. Hateful thing really and a pale shadow of when Ford actually built desirable cars back up to the early eighties.

Smiley faced Escort's (no, i mean cars!) slid us into the bland... the future (yawn).

This 'new Cortina' will go the same way. We now live in the age of 'white goods' mass produced cars.

KJ,

Well said! I concur with your point re white goods-the very term I have used for several years now to describe modern cars. With the exception of a comparative handful of out of reach exotica, contemporary cars have dreadful aesthetics IMHO. Due to a combination of EU safety regulations, CAD design and an obsession with aerodynamic efficiency etc modern cars look far too similar-very dull. Rewind 30+ years and there were some genuinely beautiful looking cars being produced. Okay, granted- the build quality from the 60's & 70's cannot compare to that of today, but from a design/aesthetics point of view there is no comparison. EG The current range of Jaguar saloons- very efficient cars, no doubt very pleasant to drive, but are they better looking than a MK2 Jag? An XJ6 series 1/2? Never mind the current Jag coupe V E-Type debate! It's a one punch knockout to the 'E' in the first second, of the first round of the contest!
Does any manufacturer build an affordable car with the beauty & style of a Truimph Stag?(This is purely about aesthetics-not reliability! No Truimph 'Snag' gags please!) How about the Rover P6 3500S? Fantastic looks, lots of chrome, fantastic interior and instruments, an all accompanied by a delighful V8 wuffle. The older cars have far more style, grace, beauty and character than the modern offerings. I think modern cars are so dreary, I have reached the stage were I no longer give them a second glance.

I am a dyed in the wool Aston Martin fan for a myriad of reasons. The V8 Vantage is the finest looking car on the road today IMHO. It is the right size, not too large like many of the Italian supercars-which are gross in size I feel. It looks fantastic and it drives superbly. However, park it next to a pristine E-Type, and it suddenly looks much less beautiful. We appear to be regressing in terms of design/desirability/beauty. I find it interesting, but from conversations in work, an increasing number of people hanker after older cars, and it is not simply a case of nostalgia. People genuinely lament the lack of style on offer today.

Increasingly, I find myself weighing up contemporary cars and asking the simple question, "What on earth compelled somebody to part with their hard earned for THAT?!!" Eg The monstronous Posche Cayenne- it looks truly dreadful!! In days gone by, plenty of cars posssessed what marketing bods defined as, "The X Factor," namely, desirability. People genuinely lusted after them, and aspired to own them. These days, most cars are so dull to look at, they really are on a par with white goods.

With regard to aesthetics, the way forwards is backwards- get a classic with plenty of style, character and beauty, and keep your throwaway Audi/BMW/Ford/Vauxhall etc etc for the daily commuter slog. Ironically, just as an increasing number of people are returning to vinyl records because of their superior sound reproduction V digital alternatives,(sales of Vinyl have increased dramatically over the last five years)an increasing number of people seem to hanker after a return to the days of stylish motor cars. Classic car shows have never been so popular and well attended.....I wonder why?



We live in very dull times I believe.