Hello John gotta new motor?

[scaryoldcortina]

^ that's pretty much what I said, lol...

 

Used to have slotmags would explain the odd mk5 steels... as it happens I have found a full set of mk3 steels with hubcaps and trim rings just lying around the garage.....

[Cavcraft]

Mk3 wheels you say? Hmmm, might just have to p.m you about them.

 

Right, off out now, hopefully back in an hour or two

[Cavcraft]

We have a winnah!

 

Collected it this evening and (so far) really, really happy with it. The seller was a cracking bloke and I discovered the Brucie Bonus of a couple of grands worth of receipts including a full engine rebuild he hadn't mentioned on the listing.

The wing bubbling (as well as the bubbling round the screen) will want sorting before too long and (as he had mentioned) there's a bit of a splutter sometimes. He mentioned if you pulled the choke out a bit it would stop this so I did for a short while coming home but decided to push it back in again in case I flooded it and/or it ran rich.

He explained because it was 'visible smoke only' for the MOT that although it looked fine he set the emissions to the current MOT level anyway and it passed but he suggested re-setting the carb and possibly re-jetting it.

I asked what he thought would be a sensible speed for the (30 mile) journey home and suggested perhaps about 55mph would be suitable. He then asked why I'd want to go so slow and said he had hit a ton in it before and it would cruise at 80 no danger

Lobbed fifteen quid's worth of pez in it round the corner and set off with hope in my heart and fingers crossed. Shouldn't have worried as it ran absolutely superbly (aside from the odd splutter as mentioned before), it pulled very nicely for a car of it's age and it runs like a Swiss watch. No drams on the temp gauge, no sign of smoking or over heating and the heater blew hot which was nice.

Steering was spot on, it didn't vibrate or wander, brakes good (just been rebuilt) though obv. it doesn't stop like a modern car. Clutch is a bit high but I think these are a cable job so I might be lucky and get away with adjustment or new cable.

Some wind noise but known much worse, guessing the door seals need a coat of looking at but they're not too bad at the moment. It pulled well throigh the gears and even in top it still wanted to pull away cleanly and nicely. He said the gearbox was a genuine 29,000 mile job from another Cortina and it's slicker than an oil coated ice rink.

 

Driving position is a bit at odds with a lanky/portly person like myself and the steering wheel is fucking huge but I have no plans to change anything at all (except perhaps fit standard steel wheels and a louder horn to replace the gnat's fart standard effort) as I love it like it is.

 

Coming back down the M6/M56/M53 was absolutely ace, some surprised looks from the people I overtook, plenty of smiles and truck drivers flashing me to come back into lane one and I was grinning like the proverbial Cheshire cat.

It has a laughably awful old radio cassette (looks a bit 1980's Argos catalogue) which seems to work though needs tuning in. My only planned 'modern' update would be a CD player but ideally I'd like to hide it so it doesn't spoil the look of the interior and I might get a standard radio (if I can find one) to put in the dash.

Even my daughter 'almost' likes it and more surprisingly my missus thinks it's ace and my lad said it's class.

 

Only got three shitty pictures from collecting it, I was a bit excited and couldn't wait to drive it back...

 

I'll try and get some more over the weekend and add a progress report.

[Lankytim]

PFFWOOOARRR!!!

 

Theyre they BEST Mk of CortinaEVAR TOP buyings!!

[scruff]

Bloody ace - very envious!! What a top c*****c motor to blez about in.

[dollywobbler]

You've done nicely there methinks! Lovely.

[wuvvum]

GR17 BUYAGE SKILLZ. I would love to roll in that.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Nice purchase.

 

Deffo wants the original steelz with the chrome hubcaps, and the correct all silver grille complete with the long thin 'C' centre badge. the wings are bolt on anyway so so bothere there.....but i bet good ones are $$$$$$$$$.

I do like a Mark Three. My Uncle's first car (in 1976) was a red J plate 1600L Moredoor with a BVR.

[BMC Dan]

What a stunner Needs some original steels and hubcaps, just to be different like

[trigger]

I've just shoot custard everywhere!, That is mega!, I'd love a Mk3 one day, It was one of the cars i was looking out for before i got the Kadett but i never saw one for sale that was dent money.

 

Just sort out the wheel and it will look fab!

[dollywobbler]

So, who's going to be first to post the Mk3 Owners Club-but-only-for-anal-folk poster?

[michiel]

Red Converse sneakers???

 

Great car!

[Cavcraft]

The seller reckons the wheels are from a Mk2 Escort but S-O-C (our resident expert) and others think they're Mk5 Cortina ones. I can live with them and the grille at the moment, in fact I think the grille really suits the car tbh.

He (the seller) has just mailed me to say he forget to tell me it had a rebuilt propshaft and starter motor a couple of years back. I'll rummage through the receipts at some point and post up what they were for as it appears it had a fair bit of money thrown at it over the years.

[Pete-M]

That's a nice old thing, Billy. I like.

 

Ford wheels have a date mark on 'em.

[scooters]

Paint my face and call me Mildred! THAT sir is a gorgeous MOTAH!

 

really jealous - well done mate hope you enjoy it - uber cool!

[Cavcraft]

Cheers.

 

Pete, I'll have a look for the date at some point. Michiel, those feet belong to my daughter who 'reluctantly' came along for the journey.

 

One other thing the seller did point out were the tags in the boot. They look like the sort of thing you tied to your suitcase in the seventies and he reckons they're the original customer check tags from when it was built.

The spluttering was more noticeable this morning but that is probably partly because I'm not used to the choke yet, as I've found every car I've had with one needed different amounts of choke or more/less time with it open.

Taking the carb off and checking/cleaning/replacing jets might be an option, failing that perhaps some sort of rolling road type tune up might help?

If anyone has any input into this I'd be grateful to hear it.

[scooters]

Cheers.

 

 

The spluttering was more noticeable this morning but that is probably partly because I'm not used to the choke yet, as I've found every car I've had with one needed different amounts of choke or more/less time with it open.

Taking the carb off and checking/cleaning/replacing jets might be an option, failing that perhaps some sort of rolling road type tune up might help?

If anyone has any input into this I'd be grateful to hear it.

 

I had the same problem with the 1974 244 DL I had - gave the carb a really good skoosh of carb cleaner and got a wire brush into the choke lever mechanism and lubed the choke cable - after using the car as a daily for a couple of weeks it sorted itself - the car had hadn't been driven for 6 months before I bought it as the owners mothballed it in the winter for the summer shows

[Pete-M]

Depends on the carb, if it's got a Weber on it then it's probably just the jets blocked. If it's got a V V carb then it could have a few issues (especially as I don't think they were fitted to Mk3s)

 

I'd also check the points' dwell angle, it's amazing how many people cannot set points properly and it makes a massive difference.

[mk1_4dr]

Lovely.

 

Will it be coming to Cholmondeley for us to swoon over?

[M'coli]

It doesn't look like a VV, it could be a FoMoCo single choke job judging by the bolt pattern onto the manifold - IIRC the DGAV weber has 4 bolts, but the auction picture's all I have to go on. If it is the FoMoCo, then it could be one from any number of engines! Also, check the diagphram in the accelerator pump for splits.

Top buy, nonetheless.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

VV's weren't until '79 and the Cortina 80. That'll have an Autolite single choke, basically a FoMoCo thing made from monkey metal. I'd whip the top off and clean out the main and idle jets. The FoMoCo sonic idle economy carb didn't appear until 1975. I wonder if it's the 1300 carb on the 1600 mill? Time to crack open the Haynes and look at some jet sizes.

 

Have you looked at the points and the cap/rotor? Could be shagged plugs giving the old coil a bit of a battering - won't even be ballast ignition on one of these.

[Cavcraft]

Ta.

Last owner's (just) been back to me and said he rebuilt the carb but suspects the jets may need cleaning so I'll try that first. Managed to clear one of my garages out enough to lock the car up into and have another blocking the door as a racer I know told me today these are more desirable in the robbing stakes than Cosworths at the moment. He also told me there's some sort of Cortina based race coming up soon so my paranoia has upped a gear.

[retrogeezer]

thats lovely Billy, I'm well jealous.....hope you are taking it to chumley?

[Cavcraft]

Oh good God aye, can't wait for Cholmondley. In fact the tickets have arrived so I'll update the thread so I can post them out.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

I'm in a Mark Three mood. They're just playing Elton's 'Tiny Dancer' on Radio 2 - a tune I first heard aged about 5 whilst strapped into a yellow 2000XL being driven by my old Man - in 1972. It was a works car belonging to Plessey Electronics, and he did...fuck me....70 mph.

 

"Is it faster than your 1275GT Dad?"

 

 

"Oh yes.........."