Ford Cortina celebrates 50th birthday

Demonstrating how it connects emotionally with so many people in the UK, the Ford Cortina celebrated its launch 50 years ago on prime-time TV with a feature on the BBC’s One Show. Presented by comedian and actor Alexei Sayle, the feature recalled an hour-long documentary hosted by him on the BBC arts show Arena in 1982 called The Private Life of the Ford Cortina. The Ford Cortina’s appearance on the BBC’s One Show was prompted by a heroic drive planned by members of the Mk II Cortina Club who set off for Cortina in Italy from Ford Dagenham to mark the 50th anniversary. This month the world’s most popular historic race meeting, the Goodwood Revival, also celebrated the Cortina’s anniversary with a display of Mark I models inside and outside its RAC Earls Court exhibition, in addition to its familiarfleet of Ford Cortina Glamcabs. Happy Birthday Ford Cortina Fifty years ago, on September 21, 1962, Ford’s new Cortina was launched. Costing £573 for the standard 1200 saloon, it became an instant best-seller and enjoyed a 20-year career in which 4.3 million were produced. The last Cortina was assembled in July 1982, to be succeeded by the Sierra, by which time the entry-level model was priced at £4,515. The Cortina was so successful and so different from other cars in the industry that in Britain it inspired what became known as ‘the Cortina class’. Along with the parallel success of the Escort from 1968, this helped Ford gain market leadership in Britain, which it has maintained for 35 consecutive years. In 20 years, four generations of Cortina were launched – each selling more than a million around the world. When originally planned, Ford thought it could sell at least 100,000 Cortina models every year – yet more than 260,000 were sold in the first full sales year, 1963. Best seller The Cortina was Britain’s best-selling car for 10 of the 20 years it was on sale: 1967, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980 and 1981. It was in second place for eight years and in third for the remaining two. UK sales for the Ford Cortina totalled 2,816,639 and its best-selling month of all time was 25,790 in August 1981. Total Cortina production was 4,279,079, of which 3,155,161 were built at Dagenham. Cortina assembly also took place in Genk (Belgium), Amsterdam, Cork (Ireland) and at Cheshunt (Lotus-Cortina Mk I only). Cortina – the first fleet car In Britain, the demand for new cars grew steadily through the 1960s and 1970s. More than 820,000 were sold in 1960, 1,126,824 in 1970 and 1,536,243 followed in 1980. Managers looking after fleets of company-owned vehicles faced many pressures. They had to buy cars appropriate to every task and in many cases they also had to match cars to the status of the staff using them. The Cortina was ideal for meeting these requirements. Compared with rivals, it was lighter, had more stowage space and was simple and extremely fuel-efficient. It represented exceptional value and it built up an enviable low-cost record in high-mileage use. As Britain’s market moved steadily towards larger fleets in the 1970s, Ford’s Cortina range evolved accordingly. When the Mk III appeared in 1970 there were no fewer than 32 different versions in a range which included a choice of four engines and no fewer than five different trim/equipment packs. This philosophy ensured the Cortina maintained its appeal to fleets. Cortina in Motorsport First in rallying, then in saloon car racing, the Cortina immediately punched above its weight in motorsport. Formula 1 World Champion Jim Clark used a Lotus-Cortina to win the British Saloon Car Championship in 1964 and a team of factory-prepared Cortina GTs also dominated the world’s most demanding rally – the East African Safari – in the same year. In motor racing the 1,558cc, twin-cam Lotus-Cortina showed that the use of a powerful engine, strong but lightweight construction and driver-friendly handling could be a winning combination. Lotus Cortinas won scores of races – in Britain, Europe and North America – and on the rare occasions when they were beaten it was invariably by 4.7-litre or even 7.0-litre V8-engined cars which also carried a Ford badge. Even before the Lotus-Cortina arrived on the tracks, the Cortina GT was a race-winning car in Britain (where Jack Sears won the British Championship) and in the prestigious 12 Hour race at Marlboro in the USA. In its first full season, 1964, Jim Clark’s Team Lotus entry won the British Championship and Sir John Whitmore’s Alan Mann Racing example won five events in Europe. From motorin news