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Back in the 60’s, Ford of England made a bunch of Cortinas in 2 door, 4 door and Estate wagon body styles. Lotus took a thousand or so of the 2 door models and made the Lotus Cortina. But a Lotus Cortina Wagon never really came out of the Lotus factory. So this car is not a real Lotus but it is what I think Colin Chapman would have put together if Ford had asked him to build them. This is a nut and bolt of a nearly rust free 1965 English Ford Cortina wagon into Lotus Cortina Sport Wagon. Open the hood and you will find a pristine engine bay with a Lotus Twin Cam engine with twin Weber side draft carbs. Slightly hot cams with big valves and a nice header makes this beauty burble at idle but bellow when you put your foot into it. It puts out maybe 140-150hp. The 1700cc tall block engine is connected to a rebuilt Merkur 5 speed manual transmission. A hydraulic centerforce throwout bearing makes the clutch pedal light and easily modulated. The transmission has a nice tall first gear to get you off the line easily and an overdrive 5th gear to let you cruise on the highway with the modern cars. Lotus Cortina McPherson struts, Lotus thicker sway bar and Lotus short front springs in the front with all new bushings and Spax shocks.
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