Earliest Cortina in the world?

[mr Costin 56]

Have had this car some 20 years, traced it down since it is so very early built in june 1962. Attended the mk1oc grand national in 2002 and received first price from Alan Manns hand. Back then the car looked good but was not as good as it looked. Color was refrigerator white and alot of the early special parts were missing. So I decided to make it all right and took the car apart well before the 50th anniversary in 2012. Some bad body repairs was sorted including sills that was aftermarket or home made flat ones, fitted way better panels though not genuine Ford ones. Left it with a guy for reapray and got chocked when I collected it. The refrigerator white was way better than the ermine beige. I got so dissapointed that I put it in storage and left it there for 10 years.

This spring (mid may) 2022, I took it out and put it in the workshop. Sorted some repairs again that I didnt do correct last time. And since then I have learned to check the color before spraying, so this time it got the correct ermine white. Then assembly started to make it to the mk1 oc grand national. Parts were ordered but due to wrong information stated by mk1 oc parts department on parcel label it got stuck in customs. I spent hours trying to sort it but eventually the parcel went back to the sender and I couldnt finish the car in time for the national. Now the car is finished at last and I am very happy with it!

[mr Costin 56]

I have studied the parts list and other cars to find the correct parts and managed to get it all correct. Try to spot some in the pictures that you dont find normal and it is probably an early special.

[johnny boy 164]

Very nice, well done. 

[SusanButcher 33]

Did the very earliest Cortinas have the Cortina/Corsair petrol tank, the type with an extra  pressing to take the central filler pipe? Not that would bother me, it's a lovely car! 

Edited August 12, 2022 by SusanButcher

[mr Costin 56]

When I bought the car there was a different fueltank that was very difficult to fill up. The frame around the tank looked home made and the tank was triangular not square. There was an adapter between the cars wiring loom and the tank sender. All looked home made so I cut out a frame from another shell and welded it in and fitted a NOS tank. When I interviewed the second owner he told me the car got rear ended i the spring 1963, he sold it after the accident. He said the fueltank had crumbled. Third owner didnt remember the car he ran a body shop back then and most likely he repaired the car and sold it on. Probably he did the tank modification due to lack of parts or wanting to save some money fitting a tank he had lying around.

I have another very early car 276 numbers later than this one, dont think I have lifted the boot mat on that one, cant remember I did but if that one has the same triangular tank I have done a misstake.

 

[mr Costin 56]

Checked the tank in the other car it is like normal so my guess is the triangular tank got fitted during the repairs. Had to crawl under the carto check the tank coulnt open the boot somebody has put alot of stuff on the car... Managed to get a dash pic anyway.

Edited August 12, 2022 by mr Costin

[consul315 180]

congratulations, a very lovely car Bertil! i doubt you ll find an older one.especially the very early rear bumper gets my vote! GOOD LUCK with it!

[SusanButcher 33]

Here's the early Cortina 1200 tank from the Ford manual. Note the drain plug. I don't have a picture of the actual item, and I'm not sure that I've ever seen inside the boot of a 1962-made Cortina even though I've visited dozens of Australian scrapyards. I would GUESS that the tank changed when the Corsair started production in May 1963. If so, there must have been very few early tanks available as spares in Europe.

Edited August 13, 2022 by SusanButcher

[mr Costin 56]

Ah, now I understand what you mean by early tank Susan. The tank in this car is a semi model and is a NOS one. What I mean by semi model is that it has the small hole for the sender but NO drain plug. In the tanks with drain plug there is a piece of metal holding the nut for the drsin plug. There are always rust and most often holes around the plug. I have a couple of such tanks but they are in poor condition. Here they can be found in cars up to -64 models.

The tank in the car was a NOS one but stored badly so very much surface rust, I sandblasted it inside out and put tank sealer inside. That was easier than straighten out a dented one with rustholes.

Why I mention it is a NOS one is because the tank with drain plug was not possible to buy as a spare part after the plug less tank was introduced.

Edited August 13, 2022 by mr Costin

[mr Costin 56]

Thanks all for the nice words! Allready looking forward to do the -63 GT

Edited August 13, 2022 by mr Costin

[G.O 20]

Looks fantastic Bertil.  Maybe ready for C2C after all?

[consul315 180]

On 8/12/2022 at 7:02 AM, mr Costin said:

When I bought the car there was a different fueltank that was very difficult to fill up. The frame around the tank looked home made and the tank was triangular not square. There was an adapter between the cars wiring loom and the tank sender. All looked home made so I cut out a frame from another shell and welded it in and fitted a NOS tank. When I interviewed the second owner he told me the car got rear ended i the spring 1963, he sold it after the accident. He said the fueltank had crumbled. Third owner didnt remember the car he ran a body shop back then and most likely he repaired the car and sold it on. Probably he did the tank modification due to lack of parts or wanting to save some money fitting a tank he had lying around.

I have another very early car 276 numbers later than this one, dont think I have lifted the boot mat on that one, cant remember I did but if that one has the same triangular tank I have done a misstake.

 

quite a long time but:

Bertil, have you got any pics of that triangular tank? to me it sounds quite like one from a Taunus 12m P4, as these were triangular.

Edited May 21, 2023 by consul315