1962 FIA Ford Lotus Cortina Mk1

A brand new set of FIA papers will be supplied to the lucky new owner. The car will need to go back to Pearsons Engineering after the sale at the sellers cost to finish the process.

• Owned by our vendor since 2004 after purchasing from notable historic racer, Chris Sanders
• Built and prepared by the experts at Pearsons Engineering. Now has the competitive Neil Brown engine
• Current FIA HTP papers valid until 31st December 2025. Also road registered as ‘828 CDL’
• Re-shelled by Pearsons in 2018 and last raced in '19 . Ready to go for next owner
• This is a fast, well-prepared car that’s raced competitively in U2TC + Masters
• Offered at a very competitive estimate considering it would cost a lot more to replicate today

The Lotus Cortina's serendipitous arrival resulted directly from Ford's decision to step up their motorsport involvement in the early 1960s. Their Head of UK Public Relations, Walter Hayes, spoke to Colin Chapman, asking him to come up with a competitive saloon, using their mainstream Cortina as a base that could be produced in sufficient numbers to satisfy the mandatory 'Group 2' homologation requirements, and with which the Blue Oval could beat all comers. The solution was to take Ford's bullet-proof 1500 Kent engine, fit it with a twin-cam cylinder head, pop it into a stiffened Cortina shell, sort out the suspension and brakes and paint a green stripe down the side. The cars would be built by Lotus at its plant in Cheshunt and marketed through their dealer network as the Ford Cortina Lotus. Once fully developed, Lotus Cortinas (as they quickly became known) absolutely shone on track driven by household names including Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill, Jackie Ickx, Roger Clark and many, many more.

This particular race Cortina is a well-known car and has been with its current owner since 2004 when our vendor bought it from notable historic racer, Chris Sanders. Recently built and prepared by the experts at Pearsons Engineering, it has current FIA HTP papers, which expire on the 31st December 2025 and is also road registered with a UK V5C as ‘828 CDL’. It's a fast, well-prepared Cortina and runs a competitive Neil Brown engine. Re-shelled by Pearsons in 2018, it last raced in anger at Spa in the 2019 Six Hours support race and has been competitive in the U2TC and Masters Series. It's most recent outing was a BRDC track day in May 2021 when, we understand, it ran well.

Described as ready for its next owner to enjoy, this is the first time ‘828 CDL’ has been on the open market in 18 years and is offered at a very competitive estimate considering it would cost an awful lot more to replicate this car today.