Description

The Ford Cortina is a car that was built by Ford of Britain in various guises from 1962 to 1982.
Using the project name of “Archbishop”, management at Ford of Britain in Dagenham created a family-sized car which they could sell in large numbers. The car was designed to be economical, cheap to run and easy and inexpensive to produce. The car was launched as the Consul Cortina until a modest facelift in 1964, after which it was sold simply as the Cortina.
With its lightweight shell and very decent handling, Ford’s engineers soon realised the Cortina had genuine potential as a performance model and created the GT by adding a Cosworth-tuned 1.5-litre version of the Kent four-cylinder engine, upgrading the transmission, brakes and suspension and extra dials in the centre console. The Cortina GT was soon selling in huge numbers and few cars could match its 95 mph top speed or willing acceleration at such an affordable price. Cortina GTs were homologated by Ford for rallying and notched up numerous wins on the international stage in the mid 1960s.
The Cortina GT enjoyed a similar level of success in Australia, particular on the legendary Mount Panorama circuit, dominating the Armstrong 500 in 1963 and 1964.

Item includes certificate and production number plate, mounted to the chassis.