1967 FORD CORTINA MKII
JUST THE THING TO ROUND OUT A SMALL-FORD COLLECTION
FORD’S SECOND tilt at a competition-focussed Cortina had very big shoes to fill, since the MkI had been such a monumental success, despite some initial reliability issue.
For a mix of reasons, this car had a much closer Ford involvement than the first, which meant that if nothing else it was going to be reliable. As it turned out, it shared much of its DNA with the legendary first car (see our feature this issue), including the high-spec twin-cam engine, a four-speed manual transmission, and disc/drum brakes.
A surprising departure was the cars left the factory without the famous green stripe down the flanks, but pretty much every car sold ended up with stripe being applied by the dealer.
This was the changeover year for the Cortina, and effectively the last of the series expected to take on a serious competition role. That particular torch was eventually handed over to the smaller and
“THIS EXAMPLE HAS BEEN USED THE WAY FORD INTENDED”
more nimble Escort range, again with a huge amount of initial success.
This example has in fact been used the way Ford intended, on a racetrack. According to Oldtimer Australia, the broker in Queensland that has the keys, it’s had some big names behind the wheel, including: Dennis Brown, Brian Michelmore, Dick Johnson, Steve Johnson, Warren Luff and David Besnard.
However, all of the above, and whoever else raced it, somehow managed to keep it off the fence and we’re told that overall it’s in very good working condition. Apparently the sale also includes a set of Minilite wheels, which adds to the appeal.
Perhaps just as importantly, it comes with badges from various events and an extensive history file with information on previous owners, people who drove the car and events with results that the car participated in.