Ford has been keeping gearheads supplied with a steady stream of sports or performance-oriented cars for over a century, each decade bringing about its share of stand-out offerings across all markets, worldwide. In the swinging-sixties, the passion for speed really took hold, and while America was blessed with the arrival of the 1965 Shelby Mustang GT350, the European arm of the company countered by offering up the highly tuned Lotus Cortina.
Every bit of a homologation special, much like this generation's incredible GR Yaris, the Lotus Cortina was a race car pretending to be an everyday road car. Ferociously fast from point to point, the lightweight family-oriented racer rewrote the rule book when it came to competing in motorsport events and proved that a small-engined, nimble-handling grocery-getter could bloody the noses of its much more powerful competition. Considered to be one of the best classic Fords ever made, the Lotus Cortina is an exercise in how less definitely leads to more, and for those who have yet to come to appreciate its simple greatness here are 10 things every gearhead should know about the Lotus Cortina.
10 The Original European Sports Sedan
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The standard Ford Cortina, a car aimed at families and those needing compact yet fairly spacious transport, was produced for twenty years and marked Ford's intentions of unifying its brand and manufacturing operations across Europe.
Knowing that with some tweaks to the light shell and stiff chassis would potentially make a formidable race car, Lotus leaped at the chance of creating what became its first collaborated sports sedan, and a distinct motoring legend.
9 Mark One Magnificence
Assembled by Lotus, the Mark One Lotus Cortina was an instant winner and took first place at the prestigious 1964 British Saloon Car Championships with legendary British race car driver Jim Clark behind the wheel.
As a road car, it was pitched at those seeking a keen driving experience but also needed to put a family somewhere, offering up excellent acceleration, superb handling, and a rewarding experience when pushed through its limits.
8 A Glorious Engine
The glorious twin-cam engine fitted beneath the hood of the Lotus Cortina is something of a living legend, its 1.5-liter lump putting out a respectable 105hp, delivering performance levels that reset the benchmarks for European sporting sedans.
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Thanks to its engine tuning and revised parts, the Twin Cam unit would allow the sports sedan to scramble to 60 mph from standing in a still-spritely-today 8.6 seconds, passing through the quarter-mile mark in, a very quick for the time, 18 seconds.
7 Impressive Performance
Benefiting from a low 900kg curb weight, the Lotus Cortina made the most of its power output as its 108 lb-ft of generated torque enabled the car to pull cleanly throughout the rev range, ensuring that thrust was always on tap when needed.
With such a lightweight setup the highly revised Lotus engineered suspension could carry speed through corners like no other car of the period, allowing it to cover ground at a truly impressive rate without needing to rely on just sheer power alone.
6 Mark 2 Revisions
Having excelled on the track to prove itself as a superior motorsport machine the Mark One Cortina, although popular with road users, had not been particularly reliable which was something Ford wanted to amend with the second generation.
Now fitted with a revised powerplant, the MK2 Lotus Cortina became more reliable, produced more power at 109hp, came with a larger fuel tank, featured an updated interior with a much sportier dashboard layout, and wood-trimmed steering wheel.
5 A Motorsport Benchmark
Straight out of the traps, the Lotus Cortina set its own pace, taking scalps from its much larger engined competition as the likes of Jaguar's 3.8-liter engined Mark II, the 7-liter V8 powered Galaxie, and even Mustangs all fell before it.
Even away from the smooth asphalt of the saloon racing circuit, the Lotus Cortina continued to notch up the wins, proving to be as nimble and capable on the mixed, loose surfaces offered upon the highly competitive rally scene.
4 They Need Looking After
The Twin Cam unit fitted into the Cortina is well regarded as a masterpiece, but one that needs careful, frequent maintenance to ensure that it remains in tip-top condition to avoid costly repair bills or catastrophic engine failures.
Engine aside, the Lotus Cortina is also very susceptible to tin-worm, with many original cars having been eaten away over time with a need for extensive bodywork repairs or a complete re-shell being needed to ensure a car is saved.
3 Highly Desirable Collectible
For those growing up in the sixties and seventies, a Lotus Cortina was a lusted-after vehicle, remaining well within the financial reach of those that were enthusiastic performance car fans who couldn't afford a more prestigious brand.
Its sterling reputation for being an everyday hero has won the Lotus Cortina a legion of fans over the years, with the sporting sedan having found lifetime homes with a number of families as the car grew into a collectible classic.
2 An Unassuming Sleeper
With a first dismissive glance, anyone drinking in the quirky classic design would possibly miss the small Lotus badging that set the car out from its less capable siblings, the car's true performance potential being covertly hidden behind plain styling.
In standard Lotus tuned form, the Cortina can still ruffle a few feathers today with performance figures falling in line with a modest hot-hatch, where it will raise eyebrows however is in the corners as its superior weight deficit can't be matched by modern machinery.
1 An Obtainable Slice Of History
Unlike some of Ford's historic special collaboration products or race-inspired road cars like the Shelby Mustang or Escort RS1600 the Lotus Cortina, for the time being, remains a fairly affordable classic for those looking to take the plunge.
A fully equipped pedigree racing version can be sourced and bought from circa $40,000 with decent road-going variants stretching upwards from around $55,000, which isn't a great deal for such a lively and well-respected historic sports sedan.