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A special class of its own - Ford Cortina GT (historical test)

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Created on November 3, 2020

Text:

Heinz Kranz

Photos:

Bruno von Rotz

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Bruno von Rotz

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Ford Cortina (1962) - during test drives

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Ford Cortina GT (1963) - Arthur Blank on the fast Cortina during a hill climb

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Ford Cortina (1963) - it also arouses interest in the horse stables

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Ford Cortina (1962) - Presentation as a four-door model at the Earls Court London Motor Show

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Ford Cortina (1962) - at the presentation of the Consul-Cortina in Paris in 1962

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Ford Cortina (1963) - also four-door

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Ford Cortina (1963) - one horse versus many horses (under the hood)

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Ford Cortina (1963) - for the small family

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Ford Cortina (1964) - as a four-door model

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Ford Cortina (1963) - on the road with German license plates

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Ford Cortina (1962) - the new sedan seen from the front and rear

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Ford Cortina (1963) - right and left-hand drive

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Ford Cortina (1963) - production model with band speedometer

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Ford Cortina (1962) - plenty of space in the trunk with spare wheel

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Ford Cortina (1963) - two-door sedan

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Ford Cortina (1964) - The Cortina Lotus was also based on the two-door model

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Ford Cortina (1962) - Transparency drawing

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Ford Cortina (1964) - Consul variant

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - developed as an alternative to the 12 M - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - lots of chrome at the front - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - straightforward and timeless design - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - not only optically trimmed for lightweight construction - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - the Cortina saloon was available in two and four-door versions - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - were popular in racing due to their low weight - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - was often used as a basis for racing - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - sporty interior - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - with a host of additional instruments - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - the additional instruments were also installed in the Lotus Cortina - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - the four-cylinder with side camshaft could be increased in power - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - indicators typical of the 1965 and 1966 model years - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - popular accessory at the time - rear-view mirror on the mudguard - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - part of the "Airflow" ventilation package - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - the lettering - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - the "GT" marking on the side - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1965) - the famous rear lights, which can also be found on TVR vehicles - at the British Car Meeting 2013 in Mollis

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Ford Cortina GT (1963) - at the GP Brugger Schachen 2013

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Ford Cortina (1963) - as a two-door sedan

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Summary

When you think of a sportier version of the Ford Cortina, most people probably think of the Lotus Cortina. The car tested here, however, goes by the name GT and is a sports version of the normal Cortina, which was positioned between the entry-level and Lotus variants, but was sporty enough to excel in hill climbs and slaloms. This article reproduces the wording of the hobby driving report from 1963 and shows the Ford Cortina in many historical pictures.

This article contains the following chapters

Good for championship titles
Spaciousness with a twist
What's under the sheet metal
A sports car in the right hands
What more could you want from a single car?

Estimated reading time: 6min

Preview (beginning of the article)

Let's assume you are the happy owner of a Giulia TI and are driving it to Switzerland. There, on a fast road with little traffic at the moment, you come across a rather inconspicuous sedan called the Ford Cortina. You try to outrun the inconspicuous car with the familiar quick press on the gas pedal. Suddenly the "gray one" makes a leap and takes off, leaving you struggling to keep up with him! This could have been your first acquaintance with the Cortina GT, a car that you can buy for 8950 Swiss francs. When we took a close look at the special class (hobby 21/1963), we knew next to nothing about the existence of this car. There is no Cortina in Germany. Only a flood of letters from Switzerland drew our attention to its extraordinary characteristics - and incidentally also to the fact that the new Swiss touring car champion, Arthur Blank, had won his championship in a Cortina GT.

Welcome to Zwischengas!

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