KNOW YOUR MK3 TERMINOLOGY

BISCUIT WITH YOUR COKE?

Large, square-shaped seat pattern found on early cars, which loosely resembles equally-’70s Nice biscuits

Arrow-shaped centre section of pre-1973 steering wheels which resembles the Aboriginal Australian throwing stick

The affectionate term given to all Mk3 saloons, but specifically refers to the kick-up over the rear arch which echoes the lower part of a Coca-Cola bottle.

Mk3s built after September 1973 are referred to as Facelift models, easily identifiable by their rectangular headlamps, and more European-style flat dash and seat trims.

The distinctive, gravestone-style front seats fitted to pre-Facelift (and late Facelift) GT models

Oh-so-cool, the Mk3 Cortina GT had quad headlamps, black grille, black back panel and full wheel covers (Rostyles were optional), while the cockpit wore glorious tombstone front seats, centre armrest, rev counter, sports steering wheel and centre console with gauges.Two-doors (with opening rear quarters) and four-door saloons were offered with 1.6 or 2-litre engines; servo brakes and stiffer springs were standard. Sports steel wheels were fitted from winter 1971, June 1972 brought hazard flashers and rubber bumper inserts, then the two-door 1.6 was dropped in April 1973. September’s facelift meant 2-litre was standard, but rectangular headlamps and low-back recliners reduced the appeal. Cloth upholstery and tombstone seats returned in December 1974, plus circular spot lamps and overriders. A wooden fascia appeared in October 1975, but the GT disappeared in 1976 — never to be replaced.

As the Chairman of the Cortina Mk3 Club, you’d expect Paul to have a few Mk3s on his driveway, and indeed he does, but it’s this rare, Electric Blue two-door that always jumps to the front of the queue when Paul and his wife, Gail fancy a drive out. “We’ve had it eight years now, and we came across it after a guy I was talking to told me I could have it, if I could get it out of his garage. It had been in there since 1977 so it took a while but it was worth it.The bodywork, thankfully, was in good shape — it still has its original front wings,” Paul continues, “and while the tan interior was thankfully intact, a mouse had been living in the headlining and trashed it — we managed to get hold of a four-door one, which Gail then modified to fit.The car was painted by a local VW specialist and it’s held up really well, though we’ve just had the rear arches redone. We take the car all over the UK to shows —it’ll sit happily on the motorway at 70 all day — though people are always pointing out that it has the wrong grille fitted, but this is how it came from the factory. We think it was assembled during one of Dagenham’s many strikes at the time, and so they used the GXL grille as that was all that was available.”

Gary’s no stranger to restoring Cortinas, but even he admits he took on a challenge with this one. Bought as a part-finished project, the previous owner had turned it into a mini Mustang with heavilyreworked front panels and a V6. “It took two solid years of grafting to put the bodywork back to standard and replace any rotten panels and sections,”

Gary admits. “It came from the factory in Fern Green but I’m not a fan so I went for Copper Brown instead, along with a Tobacco Brown vinyl roof — that wasn’t easy to fit and took a few attempts, but I’m glad I persevered.” Luckily, the missing running gear was easier to sort: “I already had a reconditioned Pinto and with a bit of work, I was able to use the five-speed ’box that came with the V6. Everything on the inside is how it should be, though I retrimmed the seats in the black vinyl XL patten rather than the GXL trim as I prefer it. The car’s run like a dream since it’s been finished,” Gary continues. “We’ve been doing events in it with the Cheshire and Great Manchester Police, raising money for charity.”

Ford’s plans to replace the 1600E with the Mk3 2000E had all the ingredients: 2-litre GT underpinnings and a luxury-spec interior, boasting wood veneer door/dashboard cappings, cut-pile carpets, deep-padded Savannah cloth seats with map pockets and armrests, carpeted lower door cards, extra soundproofing, radio and centre console with clock. Replacing the GXL, the 2000E was launched in September 1973 as a four-door saloon with rectangular headlamps, sports steel wheels with trim rings, side rubbing strips, bright mouldings around the windows and wheelarches, plus black or tobaccocoloured vinyl roof.Tinted glass and door mirror became standard, and a 2000E estate appeared in September 1974. October 1975 added front headrests.The limited-edition 2000E Olympic saloon and estate of May 1976 had laminated windscreen, map lamp, driving lights and metallic paint — in gold, silver or bronze; 500 were produced.

Huge even by modern standards, the Cortina Mk3 Estate’s massive rear loadspace was available in almost any configuration except GT.The 1970 launch range offered 1.3, 1.6 or 2-litre base (with plain boot floor), L (with rubber load mat) or XL (with loop-pilecarpeted floor) — all had a folding rear seat and optional front bench. Specs were otherwise the same as four-door Cortina saloons, although the XL lost its rear armrest, bright drip rails and rear panel appliqué. February 1972 dropped the basic 2-litre and 1.3 XL, and all 1300cc wagons were gone by April 1973. September 1973’s facelift added a fast dashboard and driver’s door mirror to all estates, plus bodyside stripe on the XL model. September 1974 introduced a 2000E Estate with tinted glass, vinyl roof and rear screen wiper (also on the XL from October 1975). A similar tail continued into the Mk4 estate of September 1976.

“My Dad bought this Estate new, and it was the family car for years before he sold it to me for £50,” Gareth reveals of theTawny Brown 2-litre, which is reputed to be the last surviving bench-seat model in the UK. “I was in the building trade at the time and for 20 years it got everything thrown in the back of it.When it started to get tired, I parked it up, but I couldn’t get rid of it.Then after 13 years I made a start on the restoration.” Deciding to do all the work himself, Gareth hadn’t let himself in for an easy time — the floors and much of the chassis rails had gone — and it was six years and numerous panels and repair sections before the car was solid again. “The car’s still not really finished,” he admits. “I want to tidy up the interior a little more and I’d like to have another go at painting it. I’m just glad it’s up and running — my Dad couldn’t believe it when I first brought it over to show him; I don’t think he ever thought it would make it back on the road again.”

Glamorous in the ’70s, the Crayford Cortina is now a highly-desirable Mk3 — not least because its construction left the Coke-bottle styling and side windows in place, looking much like a normal two-door Cortina when the was hood raised. Previous Crayford Cortinas had removed the roofs entirely, but customer cars retained more rigidity with the revised design — featuring a brace across the B-posts, which could be dropped with the roof when rolled back, then tidied up with a tonneau cover. Launched in 1971, the Crayford Sunshine Cortina was sold through Bristol Street Motors, and any Mk3 two-door could be converted; it’s reckoned that 400 were produced, making the Mk3 Cortina Crayford’s biggest-ever money-spinner.

Such is the appeal of this Signal Red Crayford, that Lynette and Stephen have owned it twice. “We first bought it in 2000,” Stephen reveals. “We got it off the guy who had just finished restoring it, but he’d decided to make it look like the later facelift model. Luckily though, all the original trim came with the car, though it was a pig of a job to refit it all.” Originally sold through Bristol Street Motors in Birmingham, Stephen estimates there are only around 10 to 15 Crayfords left, but despite its relative rarity, they wanted to use theirs as much as possible, taking it to shows all over the UK. By 2012 though, fancying a change they sold it on — only to regret the decision. “It came up for sale again early this year so we were able to buy it back. Even though it was painted back in 1999, it’s held up really well, and it’s only the interior we’d like to change — it was retrimmed in leather and it’ll be returned to vinyl at some point.”