Ford Cortina MK3 rebuild

[jethrel]

I've read through it all as much as I can and you can ignore my advise as it's just a suggestion.

If I had your car, I'd

1. Fill in the holes, re-weld back what is ruset and what not and then only paint the car interior. Exterior you can do it after you plonk in the engine.
2. I do hear alot of carb eunthisiast here though perhaps to me, for long term use, I'd go for injection. That sorta big car, there's quite a number of engine you could consinder. Yet however, to source it out - GAM BAH TEH! lol
3. After the work of re-welding, painting and putting in the engine, then there's the carpeting (PJ Old town or Bukit Kemuning or Klang there's a place to do it)
4. Then there's the interior other parts that you can mod; Seats, dashboard, meters etc.
5. If you're ICE fan which I am not, then only I'd put in the sound system.
6. Last but not least, and idea on a body kit or you're keeping it standard?

 

[jinkl]

i found a 2 door cortina cabriolet in klang , yellow colour, original ? dunno

 

[whatdamn]

ken yeang,
what if i remove the engine bit by bit? like remove the rocker cover, cylinder head and cylinder block? it should be lighter to remove by hand then right?

khoyos,
already visited that website when i first got the car. very tempting, but the engine modifications will have to wait as i plan a rebuild of the current engine (for now). bodywork is of utmost importance.

jethrel,
thanks for your opinions. anyway here's what i think:
1. will be doing the bodywork and painting of the interior and exterior in one go. since i'm not capable with engine rebuilding, i'll farm out the rebuilding to somebody else to complete while the car is having bodywork done.
2. i'd honestly love to go fuel injection. example maybe a zetec or duratec conversion. but not really bothered due to budget constraints. so it'll be a rebuild of the stock engine to get the car functioning smoothly again.
3. i might not bother with carpeting as i have plans for a weld-in roll cage at this point of time. however, things might change depending on circumstances.
4. seats will definitely be full bucket for me, and a semi-bucket for the passenger. i'm still contemplating on whether or not i should put in the rear seats as i have a habit of removing the rear seats and not putting them back in (like my putra for instance). as for the dashboard, i'm leaving the air con out of the picture and will be looking around for speedometer, rev meter, fuel gauge, water temp gauge and a vacuum gauge among other things, to replace the meter cluster. will hold it all in place by a sheet of aluminum.
5. no ICE. period.
6. i might consider wheel arches and a front skirt. like some of those ford rs2000 race cars. really nice stuff. but it depends on the budget once again.

jinkl,
are you sure it's a cabriolet? cause the vinyl top can be deceiving. haha. you want a cortina? :P

picture update guys!

 

[whatdamn]

oh, for those of you who are really interested in keeping up to date with this project, feel free to visit

Ford Cortina MK3 Rebuild

 

[jethrel]

Have book marked your webpage on rebuilding the Ford Mark 3. Interesting ...

1. That's the way it should go mate! Body and paint would be a side by side job and well, to me, it does require some time and quite a lot of speculation here and there for the outcome to be sweeeeeeet. The engine building I'd usually leave it to the mech with a slow step by step rebuilt. Unless of course I want more power, I'll have a discussion with the mec wanting this to fit here and there and blah blah blah ....

3. Oh! I didn't know that you're planning to put in a roll cage ... fuh ... can't wait to see the ending of this rebult.

Anywayz, good luck yo ...

 

[whatdamn]

jethrel,
thanks. pls feel free to comment on my work. always welcome constructive criticism.

i'm obsessed with roll cages. hahha. they really give a good solid feel to the car.

 

[E3newbie]

Hi Nick,
Happy New Year to you too! It seems to me that you are quite competant in bodywork ya? I don't think i have any good imputs for you but i'm just wondering why not mate a newer engine to it? It'll probably cost less than a rebuild & be much more powerfull. Maybe even Forced Induction??:)

 

[whatdamn]

e3newbie,
thank you :). but just to be clear, i'm not a panel beater. just your regular engineering student hahah. no skills in bodywork. just stuff i picked up along the way from personal encounters.

going for a newer engine would require JPJ approval, and you know how that is. i've read up on the duratec and zetec conversions for the cortina and it is very very tempting. but alas, my budget is very very small. hahha. so no choice la.

also, i don't think a newer engine would be more feasable than rebuilding the current engine as the additional costs of wiring, firewall and transmission tunnel modification, not to mention engine mounting relocation/tampering and other miscellaneous items might bring up the cost of the whole project.

the number one goal is to get the bodywork done and get the car driving again so that my grandad can see. hahha. have to let him see some results right?

more pics at the blog. should be up by tmrw morning.

i shall not waste zth bandwidth and posting space.
but keep the ideas flowing.

 

[Kendconcerto]

Bro,

I do hope your car project goes well.
When I was a kid, my parents used to have a 1600cc Ford Escort.Running on 16 inch I think.....

That car was a monster, too powerful that my dad replaced its carb with a 1300cc (less FC)

But eventually, the car aged, we are not rich, so after parents bought an Iswara (which im driving now) n let the car to rust.

Several years ago, they gave the Escort to a mech, and I think, its somewhere in chopshop, Im afriad.....

I am using Weber in my Iswara now, How I wished if my Weber is in the ESCORT!

Anyways, All the best to ya bro!

GAMBATE

 

[whatdamn]

kendconcerto,
16 inch wheels! wow. what a waste. should have kept it as a family heirloom. which is why i wanna restore the car.

thanks man. :)

do visit the blog fordcortinamk3.blogspot.com for more updates ya.

 

[ae101rulez]

wah....really reminded me of my childhood cars......my aunt and father's friend used to owned one of these but both were the 1.6 model. My father used a Ford Escort 1.6GT before he crashed .....As i am also dealing with a old car(Toyota LE), my advise is
1) strip the car, reweld, restrenghtend, and make sure you repaint the car with antirust and all sort before applying final coat.....so that the car chasis can last for a long time.
2) Try to keep things as original as it is......especially the interior....from my pov, there is no use a old car is kept original outside but inside looks like a modern car, the aroma of the car heydays is gone......take for example, a 1979 Toyota KE70 but fitted with a 1993 Toyota AE101 Levin dashboard, doesn't make sense......
3) For redyeing of the interior, try to ask Wecolor for their help....it may not be cheap, but their workmanship is quite good. ( I am not working for them:tongwink: )
add: No8, Jln T 6/10, Tmn Industri Subang,
47510 Subang Jaya, Selangor D.E.
phone: 03-56311916
4) For exterior, try to keep those crome parts, cromed, for it retains the originalness of the car..... The most important is the badges, antique badges are hard to get, especially if the car is almost 30 years old, so treasure them.....
5) For ideas on exterior, try googling.....especially those brit websites....for most of them are diehard ford fans.......
6) For engine, if not over budget, try overhauling or rebuilding........these is ur best option....if you are able to find rare ford racing parts in m'sia, quickly grab them.....
7) If cannot find them, try some european brands, eventhough the price is high, but guranteed superb satisfication.......
8) Based on my opinion, my best option for engine is do a engine rehauling and fit in a weber....eventhough high on fc, but these type of cars are meant to be weekend cars....so should be no prob.
9) On suspension, if cannot find, try those customise shop.......Some people import the suspension parts from brit, but those cost a bomb:confused_smile: ,
10) on wheels, try getting those retro rims.........the size shouldn't be too big...most prob around 14" to 16" is also enough oredilah....if not will look like those 'new gen' cars pimped........

If the car is done up to its original state properly, i am assure you that sure you will treasure this car....just try looking that motortrader, even a refurbished mini cost around 22-30k......if your car is mantain and retain its original state, surely the price will be higher....:_: :_:

 

[whatdamn]

ae101rulez,
thanks for the writeup. points have been noted. however:

1. do you know of any reliable place that can do good sheet metal fabrication and welding of the rusted parts?

2. the dashboard will be kept. only thing is, the current meters will be replaced where possible for more modern ones from autometer or maybe stack? about the same price for the whole lot of them.

3. i have dealt with wecolour before and i'd say they're alright. but the dye they used on my steering wheel came off after a few days.

4. all exterior chrome finishings have been stored for re-chroming later on. and the 'FORD' and 'Cortina' badges will be restored sometime during the paintwork stage. will be looking up sources for other original badges that used to come with the car.

5. a more stylish apron will be fabricated and maybe wider wheel arches. maybe.

6. gonna rebuild and dump a weber. screw fuel consumption because it'll be a weekend driver with no air conditioning.

9. suspension won't be a problem as i can always go back to uncle richard from Titan Suspension to get my suspension setup. no probs there.

10. as far as retro rims go, i would probably source for those deep-dished rims. either minilites or those long champs. really like those. max i'll go will be 14 inch. although come to think of it, most classic fords use 13x6 or 13x7 wheels. see how la....those all are not top priority.

doubt i'll sell the car. :P looking to keep it for at least 10 years then restore if needed. hopefully i won't have to go through this same process when the time comes. haha.

 

[ae101rulez]

bro,

1) about welding shop, i dun know, bec i also currently finding one:emoticon_U: :emoticon_U: ...hehe
2) hehe, but on research, try googling for ideas....

www.markthreeownersclub.com/
www.mk3cortina.com/

maybe these websites can help....hehe....tells abit of history of mk3.....aniway gud luck...:_: :_:

 

[ae101rulez]

bro,

1) about welding shop, i dun know, bec i also currently finding one:emoticon_U: :emoticon_U: ...hehe
2) hehe, but on research, try googling for ideas....

www.markthreeownersclub.com/
www.mk3cortina.com/

maybe these websites can help....hehe....tells abit of history of mk3.....aniway gud luck...:_: :_:

 

[whatdamn]

ae101rulez,
already visited those sites when before i got the car. but almost little to no help. most of the stuff they refer to does not apply to our very own tropical country, malaysia. most of them diy the restoration themselves. which is why, if i had good welding skills, and a real garage, i'd do the whole thing myself. cheaper in the long run and at least i won't cheat myself by producing poor results ma. hahha.

 

[narx]

Keep up the good work man...

lovely car..

 

[ken yeang]

Whatdamn,

Saw your website. really impresive effort put in so far. Keep up the good work. I bet your energy put in is well worth it at the end of the restoration.

I'm interested seeing the real process of your repair/resto work. Actually, I'm doing one car myself. Maybe we can come out tt sometime?? pm me if you are keen...we can motivate each other, maybe helping each other too........haha

or share buying tools etc...just a thought la..

 

[whatdamn]

narx,
thanks man :)

ken yeang,
thanks for the support. right now kinda tied up with setting up the putra for this year's autocross/time attack so maybe come march only i'll be able to get some proper tools, unless i've got cash left over.

btw, what car are you working on again?

and if you wanna meet up, no prob. i'm staying around len sen, cheras. you?

 

[EcstacyElmo]

damn cool what ur doing to ur MK3
first time i ever saw one was when it drove up beside me, and i thought it was some kinda imported Ford muscle car frm Oz
u could try contacting the guys at AMC cos they too do restoration
http://www.amcmotorsasia.com/

good luck in what you're doing, at least its something worthwhile and not time or life wasting in whatever way u see it :_:

 

[whatdamn]

ecstacyelmo,
haha thanks man. an even BIGGER THANKS for pointing out AMC. ah..can finally lookup guys who've done classic restoration. hopefully their price will match my wallet.

 

[jethrel]

I know where but don't know the exact address though. His price is rather pricy but his workmanship is known to be top notch. Ever heard SRF? The mech is Saidi the name.

I could pass you his number though but he's been so swamped with projects after projects after projects; even I'm waiting in line for him to help me weld my projects.

I dare not say my projects for those who know me, I'm embarass to state the truth here ...

Hey, I want to join the TT too ... distance is no problem for me since on a daily basis I travel no less than 120 km a day ... sigh

 

[jethrel]

Oh yeah I forgot to say, I salute you for all the effort in research, physical work and euthisiasm including dedication to the work.

I've learned alot and wanting to learn more from yourself to this built up. Hope you don't mind, perhaps I'd actually message you to help in certain areas that I need too.

Would definitely be an honour when I have a chance to go crusing with ya on a weekend ...

 

[whatdamn]

hey all.

just wanna let you guys know that the project is still moving along. not much hiccups so far. but welding work should take till the end of the month to complete.

more info at the blog yeah. thanks to the guys who drop by once in awhile. makes me feel like the blog is worth maintaining. however if you guys have any comments, feel free to comment at the blog itself.

here's the link for those whom are new: Ford Cortina MK3 Rebuild

 

[Hassan]

cortina mk3 for sale rm7k

my friend is lettin' go his 71 cortina mk3 1.6L running condition for 7thousand... mail me k for more details [email protected]

 

[Hassan]

yo bro... with that wheel arch u can put up to 9 or 10inch at the back... mines are using 7.5inch at the back right now with the original arch, the standard arch can fit to 8.5inch.... but the tayar looks like drifting tyre laaa...