ITALIAN STALLION
Your projects: There aren’t many engine conversions that we haven’t seen before, but a Ferrari-engined Mk3 Cortina might just be up there!
After years of meeting classic Ford enthusiasts from around the globe that build crazy project cars, we often think that not much can truly surprise us anymore. However, when we heard classic Ford veteran Clint Gaskin at Brands Hatch Performance was building a new project, we took a closer look.
“I am often known as Cossie Clint because I have a habit of throwing YB engines in everything,” says Clint. “However, that would have been the easy choice and I knew I wanted something different for this project.”
Different came in the shape of an F136 V8 engine developed by Ferrari and Maserati, and found in a range of Italian supercars. The 4.7-litre naturally aspirated V8 features dual overhead camshafts, variable valve timing and four valves per cylinder, and in this particular guise will make around 454 bhp and 384 lb.ft of torque. Just perfect for a Mk3 Cortina then — only fitting it proved a problem.
“There was nothing easy about fitting this motor, it’s just the wrong size. The crank line is too high and the sump too low,” Clint explains. “But we robbed an inch from here and stole a centimetre there and we’ve found the space we needed.”
With the engine now mounted, we caught up to find out what else is in store for the car.
What did the idea for this madcap project come from? My first road car was a Mk3 Cortina. I have many fond memories of crashing and repairing it or blowing up engines and fitting new ones all the way through my teenage years. I recently saw a picture of a red Mk3 which had Mk1 Escort bubble arches fitted and it brought the fond memories flooding back.
Where did you find this one? I soon realised how expensive and hard to find these are getting, so I placed a wanted advert and a guy who worked for Ford’s media department said he had one. He had started restoring it but realised it was too much, so was moving it on to a caring new owner.
Was picking it up an easy process? I turned up with a small van and trailer, and when he started to bring out boxes of bits and new spares I realised I had under-estimated the task. Fellow classic Ford owner, Matt Little came to the rescue and filled his van to the roof, including his passenger seat with my Cortina bits!
Did the shell need many repairs? The shell is strange, as where most rot usually is was great, but it had tinworm in the oddest places. We started the repairs and a talented panel guy, Paul Mullan, rebuilt the front. Martin Dust has been working on the engine installation, which included shell modifications and reworking of the subframe.
Why the unusual engine choice? I came across this F136 that had essentially been pulled aside at the factory for dyno testing. They do this with random engines in the production line sometimes and these are then sold off. Somewhere along the line, this one was dropped, damaging the sump, exhausts and inlet manifold.
Are there plans to increase power? The short answer is no. However, I have to convert to throttle bodies and I am also adding headers and a new ECU. I don’t know whether adding these will lose or increase power, but I am sure we might find a few extra ponies.
What about the rest of the running gear? I am using the original Tremec 6HP26 transmission. It’s an auto and will be on flappy paddles. Elsewhere will be coil-overs with decent bushes, as it’s a road car we will be trying to keep the use of rubber where possible. For front hubs, we’re using some to take Sierra items, made from billet and not cast, along with arms to suit to our own geometry settings.
Can you give us a rundown of the electronics package? We plan to use a modern 10 inch dash with a 32-channel Power Delivery Module (PDM). This means there will be no fuses or relays in the car and coupled with a state-of-the-art ECU, it will have a few Controller Area Networks (CAN) which will be able to control the complex gearbox and send data to the new ABS and traction control systems.
What are the plans for the look of the car? The outside will be sporting some Mk1 Escort front bubble arches all around and all the chrome is going back on. The inside will be retro
What will the car be used for when it’s finished? I want it for a few shows and shoot to Sunday breakfast meets. I also want to try some new events and 0-100 mph-0 sounds good, fun and fairly safe. The idea is if we have a motor with a very broad torque range, fast gear changes and with an intelligent braking system, I can minimise the times.
So the brakes will be good? I am using Audi R8 356 mm brakes on the front and as the car will be very light, at the rear I am keeping small at 280 mm. These will be on a Bosch ABS system that is programmable for skid and slip, which will mean using data we can maximise the braking effect.
Anyone you’d like to say thanks to for help so far? Andy Oak, Matt Little, Dan Thorne, Martin Dust and Paul Mullen have all played a part in the cars progress so far and are all classic Ford owners too.
“I’M USING THE ORIGINAL TREMEC TRANSMISSION IT’S AN AUTO AND WILL BE ON FLAPPY PADDLES”