Rare Ford Cortina up for auction (yes, rare)
Thursday, 30 September 2021
Hands up how many of you ever thought you would see a headline with the words “rare Ford Cortina” in it?
Particularly when you find out that the “rare” Cortina in question is a 1977 MKIV – one of the best-selling generations of the ubiquitous British saloon, with more than a million examples rolling off the production line in 1977 alone, making it the best-selling car in the UK that year.
Well, here’s a shock for you – there are only 70 1977 Ford Cortinas still on the road in the UK today, with this remarkably low-mileage example being one of only two ‘77 1600L models still around.
When it comes to longevity, the MKIV Cortina was largely a victim of its own success – and Ford’s abysmal rust-proofing – being built quickly to satisfy demand and becoming so common as to simply be a disposable item. Particularly when they started rusting, which they all did.
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As such, the ones that did survive were quickly snapped when “banger racing” took off in popularity in the UK as they were both cheap and completely unloved. Much the same thing happened to the equally ubiquitous HQ Holden here when the HQ series was a thing, and the E 32 BMW 3 Series population has thinned drastically thanks to popular, low-cost motorsport too.
So now we find ourselves in the situation where a 1977 MKIV Ford Cortina 1600L Estate heading to auction makes the motoring headlines.
Having evaded the ravages of rust and the attention of banger racers, a true survivor ‘77 1600L with just 7711km from new is heading to auction on UK classic car website Car & Classic.
Incredibly original, this 1600cc left-hand-drive version was assembled in Lisbon, Portugal, and was driven sparingly by an elderly lady owner in the country, explaining its low mileage and incredible level of preservation “rarely seen in UK cars”.
More recently, it was imported into Scotland, where it was housed in dry storage “alongside a plethora of other classic cars and has only been driven a handful of times on sunny and dry days.”
According to the website (and in an example of something only the biggest of classic car enthusiasts will get excited about), the underside is “particularly impressive with clean, smooth finishes on the floor, suspension and drivetrain.”
The 1600cc engine retains its original blue paint on the rocker cover, and on the inside it’s a similar story with a “beautifully preserved interior” and, remarkably for any older Ford, no cracks in the dashboard.
Unfortunately, there are some paint blemishes. The car was featured in the 2021 movie Bell Bottom, an Indian thriller/mystery that was filmed in Glasgow, dressed as a Dubai police car and upon removing the vinyl wrap, some small areas of the paint was taken with it.
Still, the care bestowed upon it by the original owner is obvious, and it even still has its original service books, owners manual, spare key, tools and a set of factory mud flaps that were never fitted.
“Cortinas once graced every suburban semi’s driveway or were a staple for sales ‘reps’ to thrash to the next appointment, yet now they are virtually extinct and finding another like this would be near impossible,” said Chris Pollitt, head of editorial at Car & Classic.
The MKIV range was introduced in September 1976, replacing the ‘coke bottle’ MkIII. It was available as a two-door, four-door or estate with engines ranging from 1300cc through to a 2300cc V6, prices started at £2,533.
In 1979, its best sales year ever, 11.3 per cent of new cars in sold the UK were Cortinas. The MKIV sold well in New Zealand as well, with local assembly being supported by a “considerable number” of imported ones.
As to how many remain on the road here today? Well, when was the last time you saw one?