UK Edition
UK’s rarest cars: 1981 Ford Cortina Mk5 1.3, one of only 25 left on British roads
In the very early 1980s, certain types of vehicle were often reserved by fleet managers as “punishment cars” for errant sales representatives. For anyone caught photocopying their backside at the office Christmas party or heard loudly comparing the Chief Accountant to Blakey from On the Buses, come the New Year they would be handed the keys to the Vehicle of Shame.
For the next 12 months, their fate was to drive a bottom-of-the-range Cortina Mk5 across the land, enduring mockery even from Morris Ital owners.
However, this was not the case with the pristine 1981 example owned by Russell Macfarlane, who revels in its many and various economies.
Macfarlane takes up the car’s story: “It was bought new from Gilbert Rice, the main Ford Agent in Cambridge, by a Mr Chapman. He had the car until 1991, when I believe he either passed away or gave up driving.” By the early 2000s, the Cortina was part of the Bob Epsom Collection, and Macfarlane acquired it in September of this year.
One of the major attractions was its condition: “100 per cent original; it has been neither painted nor welded. It’s in wonderful condition with all books, manuals and keys present, the original number plates, tax disc holder and dealer sticker. It has now only covered a genuine 44,000 miles.”
Equally importantly, GVA 434W is an ultra-rare 1.3 Standard with a two-door body, and today only 25 remain on the road. Although most people think that the Cortina Mk4 and Mk5 were only sold as four-doors, this variant sold well in Germany, largely due to Ford making it available “with the full complement of engines, all the way up to the V6”, according to Macfarlane.
In the UK the two-door was available only with the 1,298cc engine in either basic or L guise. The Macfarlane Cortina is also a fascinating reminder of the past marketing approaches to pauper-specification models. The Ford all-car brochure gave equal prominence to all trim levels, although you could sense the copywriter’s desperation on having to extol the luxuries of the entry-level offerings.
For £3,741.48 you gained fixed rear side windows and a dashboard that was a riot of blanked-off switches but at least there is a cigarette lighter for that post-sales appointment Rothman’s King Size. There were also “Servo-assisted, self-adjusting front disc brakes”, a “Viscous coupling fan” and, best of all, a “Window-mounted, spring-back rear view mirror”.
Macfarlane points out that aside from a passenger door mirror, his car has “zero options ticked – so no headrests, no radio, no speakers, no aerial, et cetera”.
He says he enjoys the “simplistic charm” of the cabin and notes that at least the seats are trimmed in tan fabric. When the Mk5 debuted in September 1979 (although “Cortina 80” was Ford’s preferred name) the Standard boasted vinyl trim but by early 1981 “it changed to cloth – thankfully”.
Later versions even featured a “black finish to window frames, door handles and locks”, all of which must have caused a sensation in the car park at the local supermarket.
On the road, the Cortina is “beautiful to drive, with a light, precise and slick four-speed box”. Performance is “not as lethargic as some may have you believe; the OHV Kent unit moves the car along with ease and it sits at 55-60mph without strain”.
When Macfarlane and his father “went on a road trip adventure from Scotland to Darlington” to purchase the Ford, the public reaction on the return journey was one of “people waving” and “thumbs up aplenty”. He vows the Cortina “will remain a dry weather-only car and never deviate from standard”.
The Sierra replaced the Cortina Mk5 in the autumn of 1982 and Macfarlane’s car is a form of automotive “time-warp” hailing from the days of three-channel television and a Wimpy Bar on virtually every high street. And just as Venus Gold metallic paintwork is ideal for an upmarket 2.3 Ghia version, this Tuscan Beige hue perfectly suits the 1.3 Standard two-door – innocuous, understated and, most importantly from the fleet manager’s perspective, utterly reliable.
With thanks to Russell Macfarlane
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