1969 Ford Cortina Savage MkII

Jeff Uren was a very well respected racing driver, engineer and team manager in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and after some early club racing, drove in the inaugural year of the British Saloon Car Championship in 1958. The following year he won the series in a Ford Zephyr beating the Works cars and drivers, prompting Ford to offer him a very prestigious Works drive. He left in 1962, and joined John Willment as competition manager, preparing and racing Ford Galaxies, Falcons, Cobras and of course GT40s. When Willment stopped racing, Uren felt ready to strike out on his own, and formed Race Proved Ltd having recognised the rapidly-expanding market in tuning and modifying road-going saloons. There were a large number of companies already catering for those customers who wanted better camshafts, big-valve heads etc., however, he planned a different approach by fitting larger capacity engines into production cars.

When the Mk.2 Cortina was launched in 1966, Jeff saw the car's potential as a fast, long-distance cruiser and set about fitting a tuned version of the new Essex 3.0-litre V6 (140bhp) into one, and the results were spectacular. The cars featured a revised cooling system, seam-welded chassis, modified cross member, revised camber settings, stiffer front springs, up-rated suspension, a Powr-Lok diff, and an extra boot-mounted, 8-gallon tank above the rear axle. Not surprisingly, they were very well regarded and even had tacit approval from Ford. Eventually, some 1,700 cars were converted by the time these upgrades finished of which around 1,000 were Mk2 Cortinas.

First registered in February 1969, this spectacular example of the rare Cortina Savage is finished in Silver Fox with a black vinyl roof and sits on a set of Minilite-style alloys. The superbly presented interior appears basically standard 1600E but, in period, these cars set the standard for comfort and style in what was essentially a mass-produced saloon. With its folding sunroof, roof-mounted aerial and bolted on reversing lights there is nothing externally to suggest that this isn’t just a beautifully restored 1600E apart from sitting a little lower with a tad more negative camber and, of course, the substantial bonnet scoop which suggests that what lies beneath is in the market for serious quantities of cold air. Filling most of the very tidy engine bay is a Ric Wood-built, 3.4-litre V6 with a Simpson exhaust system, which was rebuilt in 2006, and we imagine will probably generate just shy of 200bhp although we currently do not have a full engine spec.

The car was the pride and joy of the late Alan Monkley and was purchased by him in 1972. He enjoyed taking the car to shows and events and it’s listed on the Savage Register and is well known to members of the of the Savage Owners Club. The history file accompanying this car is unsurprisingly also well maintained and contains invoices, paperwork and correspondence all the way back to when Mr. Monkley purchased the car.

This is a lovely example of a rare car which, we understand, drives as well as it looks and is worthy of consideration by any fan of unusual Performance Fords.