Re: 1970 Ford Cortina

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"...it puts one in mind of a cola bottle..."

At Vauxhall´s offices in Luton we collected a Victor with four doors and the 1.6 litre straight four engine. Power output was an unimpressive 88 hp. In terms of styling, Vauxhall's boys have delivered a rather North American-looking car but this is no surprise as Vauxhall is part of the American firm, General Motors. Among the questionable styling devices there is a pronounced bump over the rear wheels which puts one in mind of a child´s bottle of cola. A strangely sloped rear windscreen cuts into the rear headspace. The gearchange is a 3-speeder which should probably manage most things asked of it. A bulky 12 gallon fuel tank is needed in order to keep the thirsty and slightly too-large engine properly nourished. In a nod to contemporary taste, there is available a set of bucket seats for the driver and the front-passenger, but fortunately bench seating is still available for the typical Vauxhall customer.

"...the more cautious British motorist finds the hatchback off-putting..."
Finally, we arrived in the Midlands to collect a Maxi from Austin´s offices in Birmingham. Unlike the other cars, the Maxi comes with a fifth door, aping the peculiar Renault 16 which has been on sale for the last five years. While the French seem to accept this eccentricity, the more cautious British motorist will find the idea of a "hatchback" somewhat off-putting. The Maxi has been revised for 1970 in attempt to compensate for some its more obvious shortcomings but it´s still a "hatchback." A badge has been added to the grille along with rubber side stripes. There are new gearchange rods which replace the loose and unreliable gear cables of the original. The old car was a noisy beast and to ameliorate this defect there is more sound insulation (making the car heavier). A wood- effect dash and a revised steering wheel complete the transformation but can not hide that the Maxi is still a low and strange-looking motor car. The engine falls in between the thrift of the Cortina and the Mid-Atlantic excess of the Vauxhall, being a 1485 cc installation. The fuel capacity is a rather paltry 10.8 gallons, meaning that one will quickly learn the location of all your local petrol stations.

"...front wheel drive might suit the ladies..."
Having covered about 180 miles in the cars, we came to a swift conclusion very early on. Austin´s unorthodox approach to their engineering has not paid dividends. While Mr Issigonis is to be commended for his brilliant Austin Mini he must reconsider whether or not this rationale really applies to a large, man´s car. Front-wheel drive might suit a car for ladies, but it does not work for the enthusiastic motorist. In point of fact, despite its size, the car feels small to drive, as if designed very much with ladies in mind. Though the Maxi is a relatively smooth-riding car, its understeer is hard to manage and the small steering wheel is fiddly to use. While we admired the bold and futuristic Bull Ring in the middle of the Maxi´s home city, we felt less keen about the Maxi´s driving ability as we drove through it.  Britain´s motor city deserves a car as well-executed as the progressive new architecture of Birmingham.

"... spacious oddity..."
The so-called hydrolastic suspension promises to be as troublesome as Citroen´s notorious oleo-pneumatic system.  The rod-linkage must come in for special criticism as the gearchanges were always slow and awkward. The spacious interior, comfortable accommodation, competitive prices and reasonable costs are not enough to make this spacious oddity anything but the choice of the minority.

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&n

Re: 1970 Ford Cortina

Bert,

What on earth would we do without your boundless resources? Even though Mr Vicar seems quite focused in this article (a more stringent brief from the Driving & Leisure editor perhaps?), he is still able to engage the reader with a panache that is missing from today's authors (Mr ffrench-Constant excepted).

I do hope that Mr Vicar's articles will continue to be reproduced.
 

Thank you Bert, for enlivening my morning, it has made it that much more pleasant.

Re: 1970 Ford Cortina

Another fine effort from the archives, Bert.  I agree with Batty, Mr Vicar seems to have found sobriety and a surprising focus on the motoring in this article.  Having experienced all 3 cars I can't fault the verdict, although perhaps he missed the MPV-like capability of the Maxi to carry a couple of children in the rear hatch area, thanks to the lack of a parcel shelf allowing said adventurous youngsters to peer out at following cars. (Yes, that did happen to me in the wild frontiers of NZ)

Re: 1970 Ford Cortina

Excellent find Bert! Very interesting article,enjoyed it thoroughly I must say!

I would love to read an old review on the MK1 Fiesta...Do you have any of those?

Re: 1970 Ford Cortina

...lol i was born in the early 80s,I can relate to cars from the 70s easier than the 60s,also a lot of people in the family use to own Fiestas,MK1s and Mk2s