This section provides information on forums, clubs and parts / services providers that the Lotus Cortina owner may find useful.
UK WEBSITES AND CLUBS
MkI Cortina Owners Club
This is an active club with many local meetings around the country and in the USA, with the large annual National Day held at Stratford-upon-Avon Race Course. The National Day, held in early August, is usually shared with the Mk 2 Cortina Owner’s club, and many Lotus Cortinas, MkI and MkII, attend.
The club supports many other classic car shows, including having a stand at the Classic Car show at the NEC in November.
The club holds a superb parts inventory with great service….lot’s of the ‘Cortina’ stuff that you may not get at the Lotus specialists, and at a more reasonable price.
Excellent and informative website for the non-member, which is enhanced for the member.
The club provides assistance with DVLA registration for all Mk I barn find and imported cars.
The club also provides insurance valuations for all models.
Ford Cortina MkII Owner’s Club
The club was formed to include all MkII Cortinas.
It has active local and national meetings, with annual national day held with the MkI Cortina Owners Club at Stratford-upon-Avon Race Course in early August.
It maintains an excellent parts inventory with an interesting and informative website.
They have a Facebook Group with well over 3000 members which has become most active group for all MkII Cortinas, including the MkII Lotus.
Insurance valuations for all models given.
The club provides assistance with DVLA registration for all MkII models for barn find and imported cars. The chap doing this work is an ex- Police vehicle inspector, so if he says it’s right…it is!
http://www.fordcortinamk2oc.co.uk/
Ford Cortina MkII Owners Club (Facebook Group)
This is a very active forum run by the Cortina MkII Owners Club, with open discussions and knowledgeable folks who are happy to share information. With over 4000 members, it’s rare to find a question that can’t be answered.
The MkII Lotus Cortina does share many parts and assemblies with the GT and 1600E, and that makes this group all the more useful for Lotus Cortina owners.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/464661623571657/
MkII Cortina and 1600E Owner’s Club
The club started off as the 1600E club, then expanded to include all Cortinas after the Ford Cortina MkII Club got going.
Local and national meetings, with their National Day held at Gaydon in mid-July along with many other old Ford clubs.
The club also maintains an excellent parts inventory, and is one of the few places you can buy a Mk2 Lotus Cortina exhaust system.
Good website
They have an active Facebook Group for all Mk2 Cortinas, including the MkII Lotus.
http://www.mk2cortina-1600e.co.uk/home.htm
MkI Lotus Cortina Group (Facebook Group)
There is only one forum you will need to go to for the Mk1 Lotus Cortina, the Lotus Cortina MkI Group. It is the most energetic and enthusiastic site for the cars I’ve ever seen, and now has over 2900 members.
http://www.facebook.com/groups/60028367741/
Lotus Cortina Register
The club is focused on maintaining a register of Lotus Cortinas, the details of which are submitted by members.
The club also offers an inspection service for Lotus Cortinas, which they call a ‘Car Authentication Service’. This service is charged for at a fixed rate (higher for non-members) and an hourly rate / mileage rate.
They do not offer a spares service, but have negotiated a discount with a chap who re-makes parts for Cortinas and Escorts. Discounts are also offered for a few other related services, such as insurance and engine building.
The website consists of a few ‘static’ information pages containing information about the club, with no information at all about the Lotus Cortina cars or the history of the marque. The website links to a forum.
The forum is mainly closed, for members only. It is now very quiet on there, with Lotus Cotina enthusiasts and owners finding the Facebook pages of the MkI Lotus Cortina, MkII Cortina and its own Facebook group more useful and engaging.
The LCR are on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with links to those feeds on the website. Whenever this Lotus Cortina Information site gets mentioned on the Facebook site, the comments get removed, as LCR members are not allowed to know of the existence of this website!!
Except of course that they all do, and contribute enthusiastically to the content.
FORUMS
LotusElan.net is a forum dedicated to the Lotus Elan. The Elan obviously shares it’s engine and gearbox with the Lotus Cortina, and it is the most informative resource on the internet for the Twincam engine.
http://www.lotuselan.net/forums/
BuySellCortina is a forum for all Cortinas, Mk 1 through to Mk 5. There are many Lotus Cortina owners on there, and the model is well represented…some think perhaps too well!
As the name suggests, it is an excellent place to find cars and parts for sale, and when I have needed rare parts I have found them via this site.
http://www.buysellcortina.co.uk/forums/
UK SUPPLIERS
LOTUS CORTINA SPECIALISTS
Team DeVille (General parts plus race equipment)
Now the go-to place for Mk1 Lotus Cortina parts, especially for the race cars.
Guy Smith Motorsports
Guy has some very interesting Lotus Cortina parts, new and 2nd hand, available. He has a great network and can often dig out the bits others can’t find!
http://www.guysmithmotorsport.com/index.php
BakerGinn Lotus Cortina Parts
Colin Ginn is well known in the UK as the pre-eminent Lotus Cortina restorer in the country. He has restored many Mk1 Lotus Cortina, and quite a few Mk2 as well, and in so doing has come across parts that are no longer available.
So he made them, and having made the tooling, started to make additional parts to help fellow Lotus Cortina enthusiasts.
This is where you will find many of the ‘A’ Frame bits and pieces that are not available anywhere else. But there are many other bits and pieces available.
Stage 1 Motorsport
This company is remaking some of the small production and hard to find parts for Lotus Cortinas, Mk1 and Mk2
The workmanship of their reproduction parts really is superb, and I have bought quite a few parts for my Lotus Cortina and Escort Twincm from these guys.
Call Trevor on 07817 543948 or 01736 754381
http://www.stage1.org.uk/motorsports/
ENGINE / GEARBOX
Paul Matty for engine / gearbox parts (he sells everything for the Lotus Elan)
http://www.paulmattysportscars.co.uk/home.aspx
Paul also provides a comprehensive servicing / repair facility.
QED for engine parts
Burton for engine, gearbox, brake and suspension parts
Distributor Doctor
This is THE place to go for ignition components. He has had condensers and rotor arms re-made to a very high standard, has a stock of quality distributor caps, leads and coils, and can fully re-build your distributor.
This is now the only place I will go to get ignition parts.
http://www.distributordoctor.com
STEERING
Autosteer Direct
Steering box overhaul for Mk1 and Mk2 Lotus Cortinas.
These guys have been in business many years and have a very good reputation.
Chesterbank Business Park, River Lane, Saltney, Chester, Cheshire CH4 8SL
01244 680437
Steering Services
Based in Dorking, Surrey
http://www.steeringservices.co.uk/
SUSPENSION
Coil Springs (1989) Ltd (Sheffield)
OEM specification front springs.
Tel. 01142 758573.
Owen Springs Ltd (Rotherham)
OEM specification leaf springs
Tel. 01709 710700.
GENERAL CORTINA PARTS
Mk 1 Cortina Parts
Mk 1 Cortina Owners club have a very good parts collection….lot’s of the ‘Cortina’ stuff that you may not get at the Lotus specialists, and at a more reasonable price.
MK 2 Cortina Parts
Both Mk 2 clubs in the UK sell parts:
Ford Cortina Mk 2 Owner’s Club
http://www.fordcortinamk2oc.co.uk/
1600E Owner’s Club
http://www.mk2cortina-1600e.co.uk/home.htm
Dale at Cortina Spares Unlimited (General Cortina parts)
01509 264550
John at Goldendays (General Cortina parts)
01603 881155
Speedy Spares (general classic car parts, brake parts for LoCort)
http://www.speedyspares.co.uk/
Classic Ford Parts
Tel 01344 304064
classicfordparts@hotmail.com
Brake/clutch master cylinders, wheel cylinder & shoes/pads, steering parts, suspension parts, lamps.
CHASSIS PLATES
Very good reproduction plates here:
http://www.retro-uk.com/page033.htm
Get a new chassis plate correctly stamped here….you will need to prove you own the car!
http://www.classic-plates.com/index
INTERIOR AND WEATHER SEALS
Aldrich Trimming (For trim such as headlining, door panels, seat covers, carpets and boot carpets)
http://www.aldridge.co.uk/index.cfm
East Kent Trim (general trim parts such as door rubbers etc.)
http://www.classiccar-trim.com/
Scott’s Old Auto Rubber … Window and door rubbers (from Australia…considered to be the best)
http://www.scottsoldautorubber.com.au/Ford%20Cortina%20MKI%201963-7.htm
STEERING WHEELS
Mark Davies Racing
Owns the Springall name and re-makes all the different styles of wheel used in the Mk1 Lotus Cortina.
They are made exactly as the originals, and would suit a car where originality is the main objective. Mark also makes the different hubs to suit the wheels.
Contact Mark on 01452 790111
http://www.jacobengineering.co.uk
Len Chandler
Len repairs most steering wheels
01276 856591
len.chandler@btinternet.com
BADGES
All the Elan parts suppliers have the later (Mk2 Lotus Cortina) round ‘Lotus’ badges, as well as the Indy Winners badge for the lter Mk1 cars
Tony Thompson Racing stock the earler flater badges for the Mk1 Lotus Cortina
PANELS
ExPressed Panels (Reproduction Panels)
EXHAUST SYSTEMS
P.D.Gough & Co. Ltd
Highly recommended by Will Peyton after he took his ex-Jim Clark Lotus Cortina up there to get the custom built exhaust tweaked to stop it vibrating against the bodywork. Genuine craftsmanship.
http://www.pdgough.com/classic-exhaust-and-manifolds.htm
105 Speed (used by many Lotus Cortina owners in the UK)
Telephone: 01234 294674
ELECTRICAL
Wiring looms & other electrical sundries.
Auto Sparks
80-88 Derby Road
Sandiacre
Nottingham
NG10 5HU
Tel +44 (0)115 949 7211
Fax +44 (0)115 949 1955
Email sales@autosparks.co.uk
INSTRUMENTATION AND CABLES
Speedograph Richfield Ltd,
Rolleston Drive,
Arnold, Nottingham
NG5 7JR United Kingdom.
Telephone:0044 (0) 115 926 4235. Fax:0044 (0) 115 920 9912
Flexible Drive and Control Cables
Instrumentation Repairs and Restoration
Instrument Fitting Accessories
Miniature Corrector Gearboxes & Angle Drives
http://www.speedograph-richfield.com/
Speedy Cable
Abercrave
Swansea
SA9 1SQ
Tel: 01639 732213, Fax 01639 732238
Manufacture and refurbishment of instruments, speedo cables, throttle cables etc.
USA Suppliers
RD Enterprises
A supplier of all things Lotus from the 1960s and 1970s, based in PA, and the owner has a Lotus Cortina!
https://www.rdent.com/
Dave Bean Engineering
Similar to RD Enterprises, but based in CA
http://davebean.com/
Omnitech Engineering
Tuning specialist for the Lotus Twincam, with fuel Injection systems and Stromberg to Weber head conversions. Based in Bellingham, WA.
https://omnitech-engineering.com/
