Cortina Savage MK2 Racing

[Speedgroup 27]

Hi!

I want to know more about Cortina Savage MK2 and ecspecially what stuff the used when they was racing it. Someone did it 1968 in London-Sydney rally and then in sought Africa with the Perana built "Savage" they have been used in 68-71.

I´m trying to build a Savage racecar and it could be possibly to get a FIA HTP on it because it had been raced in period.

[Neil. 96]

The savage was not really built as a race car, more of a Q car.

Whilst one did enter the 68 london -Sydney rally it didn't finish, there was also a mk2 Savage estate that was used as a rally support vehicle but I can't remember the details.

The Savage was built by Jeff Uren at Raceproved, the Perana is also a v6 Cortina but not called a Savage, built by Basil Green in South Africa, I don't know if these where raced?

 

My first Savage was an estate with a 2000E gearbox, my second a saloon with a Zodiac o/drive gearbox, and out of the two, the estate was much more fun to drive, the toe out on the front wheels were set like /  \ so it handled very well but wore tyres out quickly. The saloon was more of a relaxed cruised with good overtaking power in a straight line.

 

I think if I was looking at racing one, I'd go for a modified crossflow or lotus engine unless you are allowed to get something a little more modern, it'll be lighter on the front and better handling.

[sheffieldcortinacentre 529]

The MK2 3.0 perana was raced in South Africa by or was sponsored by gunsons (I don't think this was the uk tool company) who moved onto the V8 MK1 Capri.

 

I think there's some info on the the African musclecar forum.

 

I've a copy of the FIA homologation papers for the Mk5 XR6 & I know there's ones for the MK3 & 4 3.0 V6 version's not sure on MK2.

 

There are RAC papers for the MK1/2/3 4cyl cortinas to compete in the UK & in the late 90's I helped Martin Doherty of car clinic in the north west convince them that he could race a 3.0 MK3 in classic production  saloon races due to ford factory building/racing them in South Africa.

They wouldn't let him compete at first as they said the car wasn't based on a factory based vehicle but an aftermarket conversion (IE savage, etc)

Until we got hold of copies of the FIA paperwork.

 

But you may have a problem in the UK as the perana was like the savage, superspeed & crayford 3.0 cortina  an aftermarket conversion not a a ford factory built model  (but the perana cortina & capris) were eligible to race over there atleast against the Chevrolet can-am Firenza V8 which was as far is I know a production model. 

There are a couple of Capri perana spec cars ( replicas) that compete in rallies in the UK perhaps the owners might be able to help you.

But this can be different regs to circuit racing.

 

 

[Speedgroup 27]

Hi and lots of thank`s to you bought for the answers!

 

Yes, I know that not Savage nor Perana was a Ford own model but on the years I fond some info that bouth models had been rallied and raced. I found an entry list for the London-Sydney rally and there was several Cortinas and the first list that I found I think there was 3 Savages but later on I only found that it was one, Peter Graham that had tried twice with the Savage, in -68  to run the London-Sydney rally and -70 London-Mexico but retired bought times.

 

The info i found of the Cortina Perana was that it was used in 1970-71and the driver was Koos Swanepoel. He was a Ford driver and drove with Anglia 1478 ccm and Lotuscortina Mk1 before that.

 

The idea of the hole thing why I´m starting to think about a Savage/Perana Cortina MK2 as a racingcar was when I read the new FIA app K for 2022 and there I found that it could be possible to race an unhomologated car and get FIA HTP if the car had been raced in the period.

 

I live in Finland and we drive all our historic racing under FIA international rules, then we need a FIA HTP.

Most of the time since I started racing in 1995 I´ve been driving with Fords (I started with Fiat and Alfa Romeo but those cars wasn´t mine). At first with 1200-Cortina, then GT63 then a few 1200 SuperAnglias.

Just before Christmas I sold away my MK2 -race GT-69 that is one of the very few GT MK2 that had been rallied here in the period but I got fedup on it. I bougt it for 8 years ago and started to do a racecar of it because rally is so hard to the bodywork here. But it wasn´t as good as it should be that got bored to fix others "tuning" and crasch repairsafter som years. The only thing that was ok was the engine, 1600 Xflow that gave about 135 horses at the rear wheels.

 

At the same time we, my bouth sons and I, have raced with the GT63 (a former winner of the Swedish racing championship in 1963 with Bo Ljungfelt as the driver) and the the Anglia Super -64 (old rallycar since 1997)...

I´ve been thinking a lot of the TC and I have most of the parts to change the GT or built a Lotuscortina but when I see my friend and his Lotus and an other with a TC Escort how difficult it is when the engines start get some troubble... I drive with a low budget and I cannot afford to blow up a Twincam and then be on the racetrack after some weeks with a new engine.

 

Ok, I don´t know if an Essex is so much cheeper than a TC but I think it´s not as fragile as a 175 BHP TC if I take some 200-250 horses out of the 3,0 Essex, and it have much more torque.

I want some speed straight forward too that I don´t have to take back everything that I lose in the straight lines...

 

I have two 3,0 essex and gearboxes from a really rusty Capri 3000GT mk1 that I can use for this project and 3-4 MK2 bodies, so...

 

This is my GT-63, the oldest GT-Cortina in Finland, raced from day one 1963.

[sheffieldcortinacentre 529]

Unfortunately I can only speak in general terms when it comes to 60's fords.

I'm into the MK3/4/5 cortinas which were only raced in South Africa with only the Mk5 seeing any real development which can be retrofitted to the mk3-4 in some classes.

So we have to use ingenuity/research into other fords & makes that use similar style components when it comes to improving/uprating our cortinas.

But the Capri was the favoured racer on track for the bigger engined class here in the UK.

 Please keep posting as it will be interesting to see how you get on.

[Speedgroup 27]

Hello again!

MK3 Cortinas was sold in Finland only a few years and we got German Taunus instead of the MK4/5. And unfortunately any Savages have never been sold here. But I like little "odd" models and little to be an "underdog" in racing and my oldest son and I have 4 champions tittle in pre 66 class under 1300 ccm with the Anglia Super.

 

Of course I have that realy rust Capri and they was used in the beginning of the 70th here too, most in group one but also a few in group two. But I´m a Cortinaman since 1985 when a got my driving license and got my first road car, a 1600GT MK2 -70. I still have it in the backgarden...

 

This is my wet racing dream...

[sheffieldcortinacentre 529]

Mine is the exworks Mk5 cortina rally car NHK 244V (200+hp 3.0 V6).

 

You can see one of my mk3's (unfortunately not to that eng spec)in the online game "GT legends"

Edited January 12, 2022 by sheffieldcortinacentre

[GhiaMk4/5 206]

That mk2 has some serious rubber on it, I had a Vegantune twin cam that went like stink and was extremely reliable, but have also abused my fair share of Essex V6's, would be good to get the Essex as far back to make it less nose heavy, l have Savage's, and they are a little unpredictable, l did use to abuse my GT Savage, but it's too valuable to drive in anger, which is a shame.

 

[Speedgroup 27]

sheffeldcortinacentre:

I have to ask my younger boy if he could check it for me because he is active in that online game.

 

 

GHIA MK4/5:

I like those fat wheels without any bubble wings on super tourings. I think they used 9-10" rims at the rear an 7-8" at the front on the FVA-Cortinas. But what tyre size did they use will be nice to know.

I had started to fit on the 8" Minilite with 215/50R13 Kuhmo at the Mk2 race GT that I sold but now I try it on my MK1 GT and it looks to fit at the front but at the rear it could be little challenging or I have to chang to an Anglia rear axle...

 

You wrote that Savage is little tricky to drive, in which way, what do it do or not?

 

This picture is when my GT63 was 59 years younger than today. It´s the same car but different racetrack and Volvo Amazon in the erlier picture

[GhiaMk4/5 206]

A Savage is pretty good at both understeer and oversteer, yes the car has double front anti roll bars, revised front geometry etc, etc, but they aren't exactly nimble, l could honestly drive my 1600E faster than a Savage, but on my E, l fitted Capri 3000E rear springs and I squeezed 225 50 13's under it and because the front end wasn't nose heavy, it inspired very sprited driving and the grip from the 225's was excellent, l too have a pre air flow 63 GT.

[Speedgroup 27]

Okay, good to knew if I thinking about racing with a Savage. My wifes 1600E with 7" rims and 215/50R13 Yokohamas was really awful to drive on normal roads here: it searched for every hollow or cavity that could be found on the road. It was messing around and I had really to hold on the steeringwheel steadily. But then on the racetrack it was a nice, kind chap with som underteering and easy to drive.

 

My youngest boy should take his racinglicense and our raceanglia broke the day before when a freezer plug in the engine block flew away and the third cylinder got to hot and the pistonrings, piston... didn´like it. The we had to take plan B, my wifes 1600E. She wasn´t so happy about it but it survived.

 

Your GT63 is a RHD, isn´t it?

 

Maybe i have to look deep in my wallet and put together that TC stuff I have and build a race Cortina Lotus MK2, or 1300 prexflow...

[Lobby 99]

I'm loving this thread!

[GhiaMk4/5 206]

My 1600E would out handle and as long as there were no long straights and out run my mates SD1 V8 Rover, trust me he tried to get past, 1600 crossflows with a bit of tuning are great engines, just got to make sure the sump is well baffled.

My GT is a right hand drive, yes, but it's not as nice a drive as a Mk2, it has tried to kill me on a few occasions, it should be called Christine as it also drew blood on its previous owner.

You have probably got more experience than me at setting a car up, if it's an Essex in a Mk2, you want, l would go for it and start a build thread for it.

Edited January 15, 2022 by GhiaMk4/5

[nascar66 74]

Really interesting thread. I'd like to hear more about your race cars and on track experiences. And a build thread on your savage rep would be great!

[Speedgroup 27]

Oh, dear frieds, these comments really warms my heart to hear that !!

Yes, I started with historic racing in 1995 and in the first part of 80:th I was carting, I think in the same class as some halfknow fellow, hakki... hokki.. Häkkinen it was. But I don´t have any memories of that and he was miles better than me.

When he, Salo and Lehto started to drive Formula Ford, I started to drive Formula Ford Cortina GT -70, on the the streets... My parents sayd that if I want to continue my carting or racing I have to pay it by myself, but they helped me to buy the GT-Cortina. I bought that GT-Cortina the 2 july 1985 and still have it, but it needs some repair now...

 

But if I put the racingsavage on the ice for a while (it depends on the FIA rules very much) I will fix that GT and put the Essex V6 in that car for some fun road use.

Back in those days 70-80th it was modern to raise the rear end on the cars and I did too on the GT, of course. Roadholding became the same as an old-fachioned phone box on wheels.

One dark evening in the autumn there was some semi-known chicks and I wanted show them a real burn-out with the Cortina. The whole rear end was jumped up and down as a piston in a longstroke engine in max revs.Then did the engine mounts broke and the whole engine turned over to the right an stopped when the airbox got stucked in the batterys postive pole...

 

Ok, thats not racing but i started to date on of the chicks a few years later and the time went by and even she bougt a Cortina when I did´t buy it, a 1600E. Even three of our four kids have Cortinas... Yes, it´s the same 1600E higher up in this tread.

 

Ghia mk4/5; Maybe I could have but I don´t know your experience of it..

 

But one "red line" in our racing carieers, me and my boys, is that we don´t have to much money to spend on it but if the passion is really strong you have to come up with solutions and be active.

 

1995 I drove the first few races in a borrowed Fiat Mirafiori 2000TC, 1996 in Alfa Romeo Giulia.

 

1999 we put together my first own racecar, a Cortina 1200 DL in 8 weeks outside in the garden outside of the livingrooms window on the lawn, most by myself.

Lowering block at rear and the secound longest leaf upside down, original old in good konditions shocks  all around, cut off two turns of Escort 2" lower and 190 lbs springs at front.

Some weldings, a 6 point roll bar, a cheap used racing seat with and used racing 4 point seatbelts that i got from someone.

Twin 40 webers, GT-manifold, very ground GT head, hone the cylinders and new piston rings and bearings, and a Kent cams 244 camshaft. We got 71,8 horses at the rear wheels with that 1198 ccm engine, none balanced, no baffeling in the oil sump nor oilcooler and original oilpump. We only ad one litre more 20-50 Shell standard oil in it.

But we put it togetherher very carefully.

1500 Cortina front legs with diskbrakes and harder brakepads, 8" drums at rear, single circuit mastercylinder with new sealings. 4" rims with 450M13 Dunlop Vintage rubbers. Original gearbox and reardiff (4,125) then it was FIA-legal and raceready.

 

The first race was in september 1999 and I finished third in class (okey, we where only three in that class, but...) and it hold together with no testing, only on the rolling road once. Only two alternators gave up, one i praktice and one in the race, but I finished! That was the biggest winof all. Two month erlier that car was in a barn and been there fore allmost 20 years, one or was two wheels didn´t even roll. We towed it slowly home with one standing wheel and no brakes...

 

But I saw the chequet flag in it´s first race.