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Yet another '66 Cortina GT

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Frod Cortina
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2015/04/26 08:31:22 (permalink)
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Yet another '66 Cortina GT

Picked this one up after about 18 months of looking for a good one (had 3 in the past, one GT, two Lotus, all MK1s).
 
 Previous owner had completely redone the body and gave me the photos of the build and he had installed a Fiat 1.8 TC/5 speed in the car which meant it drove a bit like a Lotus Cortina 'cept at the top end.
I wanted more power - who doesn't - so I looked at going for twins in place of the single Weber , gasping away under the hood, plus decent headers/exhaust which would have helped a little but probably not enough so I then looked at adding a turbo but I don't especially like turbos because when I have one I tend to blow things up...
...so, I had a 'distressed' Mazda Miata to hand, pulled the drivetrain out of that but then I looked at all the plastic on the top of the engine, I thought, nah.
 
 Then I looked at the Zetec which came with the Cortina (in addition to the Fiat motor and the 'built' Pinto motor - which was way too heavy in my estimation) so I tootled around with the Fiat motor until I had had enough, flirting along the way with SR20Dets and the like.
 
Yes, there is a theme here, I like 4 cylinder engines but couldn't find one I really thought would fit the bill until I drove an S2000 and thought hmm.
 
Picked up an S2000/6speed from a nice gent and proceeded to remove the Fiat drivetrain, sold it, sold the Zetec, sold the Pinto engine and all the bits that came with all these engines and tehn stuffed the S2000 engine in place.
 
It didn't quite fit so
 
post edited by Frod Cortina - 2015/04/26 08:37:56

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    Frod Cortina
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/26 08:41:28 (permalink)
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    ...I pulled it out again, dropped the crossmember and unbolted lots of other smelly bits so I could get the stupid hoist underneath and once again installed the S2000 drivetrain.
     
    Will need some chopping of the tunnel and fabbing of mounts but hey...
     
    More photos when I work out how to upload them.
     
    #2
    escortinadriver
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/26 13:35:05 (permalink)
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    My guess is the guy is in the states, and over there you can pretty much do anything. Car is LHD, refers to Mazda miata instead of mx5, and the pinto has American fan, dizzy and inlet assembly.

    Some detailed pics would be good of both the f20c and Mazda engine especially clearance around the sump, bulkhead and gearbox tunnel.

    Project looks great and will go like a rocket.

    Shaun.

    'If I'd asked what people had wanted, they'd have said faster horses....' Henry Ford
    #3

    Flighter
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/26 13:52:09 (permalink)
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    That Pinto looks to be running a 4 barrel carb too.

    WTB: Recaro seat - any condition considered
     
     
    #4
    retro666
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/26 15:09:49 (permalink)
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    I like the look of the Fiat motor, if mine looked like that I would be happy.
    #5
    Frod Cortina
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/27 02:50:28 (permalink)
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    Yes I am in North America - Canada specifically though born and raised in Britain. Registration is a little more 'relaxed' here so swapping a more eco-friendly engine is a good thing for the environment and the extra horsepower is really minimal. 
     
    I'll be doing more detailed pics when we get to that point - I have done all the work to this point myself but visualising the end result and fabricating it is not my strong point so I'm getting help with that.
     
    Plus, I'm edging ever closer to 70 and the body just doesn't work as well as it used to!
     
    The Pinto motor was a 'built' one - not by me and was a beast but it was really set up for drag racing and though it was tractable low down it wouldn't have worked as well as (I hope) the Honda motor will.
     
    The Fiat was a nice motor, sounded great as well without being overly loud, had a nice rasp to it but it seriously ran out of breath at the top end and I wanted something a little newer.
     
    The Zetec was tempting but I also wanted an engine which I could easily source the parts for and Honda is very big over here, the aftermarket is very big with lots of 'tuners' for the Honda make and specifically for the S2000.
     
    Plus I think the Cortina has always deserved an engine which can rev to 9000rpm!
     
    Now I have to figure out how to insert more photos when I do a reply.
     
     
    #6

    Frod Cortina
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/30 04:17:38 (permalink)
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    Since the drivetrain is out and bits are dangling in the air I thought now would be a good time to investigate converting to rack and pinion. 

    I'm fine with the current steering but I suspect that going to rack and pinion will free up a little space (which I need for the Honda S2000 drivetrain I am wedging into the engine bay) and would give me some options on the location of some of the steering parts. 

    Couple of potential problem.. 

    1. the car is LHD 

    2. I don't have access to Escorts and the like (there are about 5 Escorts in North America and two of them are RHD). 

    Any suggestions?
    #7
    Flighter
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/04/30 20:09:20 (permalink)
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    Rally Design isn't known for being the highest quality:
     
    http://www.rallydesign.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=10620&osCsid=h4dm361u98ehgsklmtpof12ve5
     
    This probably the same unit, and after my own experience with Rally Design, I'd sooner buy from Burton's:
     
    http://www.burtonpower.com/quickrack-metric-2-4-short-stem-lhd-escort-mk1-mk2-mp195.html
     
    These guys have a very good reputation for top quality parts, but the price is also higher:
     
    http://www.grp4fabrications.com/product_info.php?cPath=58&products_id=435
     

    WTB: Recaro seat - any condition considered
     
     
    #8
    Frod Cortina
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/05/01 01:19:56 (permalink)
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    Tks Flighter, more reading to do!
     
    Based on the cost of shipping etc it may be cheaper for me to fly back to the old country and bring the bits back as luggage!
    #9
    Frod Cortina
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/05/06 08:08:36 (permalink)
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    But wait, there's more!!!
     
    And since the steering etc is all hanging loose, I may as well replace all the steering and suspension bushes - any ideas where (ideally on this side of the pond/country) I can get these?
     
     

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    Frod Cortina
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    Re: Yet another '66 Cortina GT 2015/08/14 02:45:34 (permalink)
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    Progress has been slow as life gets in the way...I located a Capri rear axle which was going to be all that I needed for this project until I actually saw what appeared to be a large ball of rust connected to two smaller balls of rust, none of which wanted to move in either direction and was not quite as advertised so the hunt has now switched to a first gen Mazda RX7 rear axle...
     
    Don't hold your breath waiting for this part - as I said, life gets in the way.
    #11
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