Lotus Cortina Information : Mk 1 Alan Mann 1963 / 64

Mk 1 Alan Mann 1963 / 64

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-Race Cars-

Being Updated Winter 2024#

INTRODUCTION

The Alan Mann Race (AMR) team were the third string to Ford’s racing bow for the Lotus Cortinas, along with Team Lotus and the Willment Racing Team.

Alan was a salesman in the 1950s who dabbled in racing, and set up a garage dealing in race cars. He bought into a Ford garage in Brighton, quickly making it a success, and in 1962 set up Alan Mann racing (AMR) and started racing a Zodiac and an Anglia.

For 1963 he approached Ford to get hold of a Lotus Cortina for racing, but as with Willment, he was told that the cars were running late and were not available. As Willment had used most of the racing budget from Ford with their GTs, AMR were offered one ‘Super’ Cortina, a spare engine and a bit of cash!

AMR build the Super to GT specification for GP2 and raced it under the Alan Andrews banner. The team acquitted themselves well in the 1963 season, and was invited to take the car to the USA, along with two of the Willment GT cars, to compete in the Marlboro 12 hour race, in which they came 2^nd. They then went on to compete in the Double 500 Bridgehampton race in New York.

The exposure and success of the Alan Mann team endeared them to Ford UK competition group, which led to them given cars, parts and funding to compete in the European Touring Car Championship (ETCC) in 1964, and then on in 1965 and 1966.

They were also noticed by Holman and Moody in the USA, which led on to them racing Lotus Cortinas in 1966 in the USA, and of course support for their rally and race teams with Falcons, Mustangs, Cobras and GT40s.

THE GT CAR

Jimmy Blumer in the AMR Cortina GT at Silverstone 11th May 1963

Jimmy Blumer’s Ford Cortina MkI GT leads Sir John Whitmore in his Mini Cooper. A very significant photo for things to come for the AMR Team and for Lotus Cortinas!

The Alan Mann / Alan Andrews Cortina GT at Silverstone July 1963

Alan Mann driving his GT at the 1963 Brands Hatch BRSCC race on Boxing day.

Alan Mann at the 500 mile Bridgehampton race in New York

THE LOTUS CORTINAS

Overview

Whilst Team Lotus and Willment were focused on the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) in the UK, Walter Hayes gave Alan Mann Racing the task of representing Ford in the European Touring Car Championship (ETCC) across Europe, including the UK.

For 1964, AMR campaigned 2 cars : BTW 297B driven by Sir John Whitmore, and BTW 298B usually driven by Henry Taylor, but also by Jackie Ickx, Peter Proctor and Jackie Stewart. Both these cars were initially in the standard livery of white with green stripe. Not to be confused with the two Willment cars racing in 1964, BTW 299B and BTW 300B !

The first race was in May 1964 at Zolder, and AMR came in 1st and 2nd overall.

The highlight of the year was the Brands Hatch 6 hr in June, when again, AMR came in 1st and 2nd. Alan Mann wrote in his book that the cars probably couldn’t have completed another couple of laps, such was the state of the back axles in both cars.

In July 1964 AMR were invited to enter the 24hr Spa Francorchamps race, along with 2 Lotus Cortinas entered by Ford of Belgium. AMR built two new cars for this race, EHK 489B and EHK 490B. Again, both of these cars were white with a green stripe.

They knew that the cars wouldn’t last 24hrs due to the weakness of the back axle, so decided to ‘go for it’ and put on a good show for as long as they could. The cars lasted longer than they expected, but both retired, one with a failed clutch, and the other with a blown engine.

It was during the 1964 season that Alan Mann decided to make his cars ‘stand out from a sea of white and green stripe’ Lotus Cortinas, which were becoming quite numerous as the year progressed. He decided on a scheme that wouldn’t be too easy to copy, and created the Ferrari Rosso Red with gold stripe and gold roof livery.

AMR didn’t win the championship in 1964, but made a very credible debut for the Lotus Cortina.

The 1965 season carried on with the 1964 cars, still on their ‘A’ Frame suspension, and it wasn’t until June 1965 that the Lotus Cortina was homologated with leaf springs, and many ‘KPU’ cars were registered by Ford for press, rally and race activities.

The following were registered to Alan Mann. Some were used in 1965, and some in 1966. Several of them came out of Ford painted in Ford Monaco Red, a colour very close top the Ferrari Rosso that Alan Mann had painted the earlier cars. The cars were…

KPU 384C

KPU 388C

KPU 390C

KPU 391C

KPU 392C

KPU 393C

KPU 397C (originally white/ green stripe and used as a Press Car)

The main leaf-spring cars driven by Sir John Whitmore were KPU 392C (in 1965) KPU 390C (in 1966) , and he won the ETCC championship in 1965.

KPU 391C was raced in 1965 and 1966 as well, with many photographs found. It seems unlikely that KPU 397C was raced in 1965 as it was a converted Press car, still in use as such in early 1966.

As a footnote, I have shown photos KPU 397C run by AMR in white with a green stripe. It was originally a Press car, and converted by AMR later to race specification. It seems that it raced in white at least once, but was soon repainted to the familiar Monaco Red with Gold roof and stripe.

Numberplates and Identifications were mixed up by Ford / AMR / Boreham, and some cars that raced as a given registration number had a different Vehicle Identification Number to that allocated when registered. This has caused a lot of problems over the years when cars have been restored, and when registration has been applied for, it has been found that they already exist! The original vehicle identities and registration numbers are known from original registration records, and the anomalies are still being worked through.

As another consequence of the mix-up, some cars have been raced with the incorrect registration number displayed on the car, and they have been credited, incorrectly with the result of the race. In 1966 the rules changed in the ETCC whereby cars racing had to be recorded by the Vehicle Identification number only, which can make things even less clear.

So, it’s complicated, and it gets worse! In 1966, AMR sends three of its cars out to the USA to run in the Trans Am Series. As 390, 391, 392 and 397 definitely ran in the 1966 ETCC, it is probable that it was 393 and 388 that were sent to the USA. But the third one?

THE BTW CARS 1964 to 1965

Many of the photos of the BTW cars below are from the Brands Hatch 6hr Race on the 6th June 1964.

Sir John Whitmore and Peter Procter drove BTW 297B into first place, with Henry Taylor and Peter Harper driving BTW 298B into 2nd place.

INSERT CAPTIONS

Sir John Whitmore and Peter Procter having won the 6 hour race, looking a little weary!

On the 25th / 26th July 1964, Alan Mann Racing entered the non-championship 24hr race at Spa in Belgium, using the Ford of Belgium Lotus Cortinas with registration numbers ‘EHK’. These cars are covered after this ‘BTW’ section, but an important note here is that it was this race that made Alqan Mann decide that he wanted his team cars to stand out from the ‘sea of white with green stripe’ Lotus Cortinas. So the famous red with gold livery was launched in August 1964, with both ‘BTW’ cars repainted.