1974 Ford Cortina V6 Project

Monday 16th June 2008 - Part 2:

After battling with corroded connectors and seized cables I spent the rest of the afternoon fiddling with the 2.8 V6 engine. I was checking if various parts were still in place and functioning, and if seized giving them a good dose of WD40 and then some 'persuasion'. Amazingly the engine hadn't seized after all these years, something I was worried that might have happend, and a quick blast on the starter had it turning over without too much effort.

The carburettor butterflies also hadn't seized, another pleasant surprise as left unused carburettors have a habit of turning into a lump of corroded alloy. It still had oil in the sump too, so there wasn't much more to do other than pour some petrol into the tank and give a few squirts of 'Easi-Start' down the carburettor throats. Now the moment of truth. What would happen when I tried to start it?

I turned the key and the engine turned over. Not a lot going on. I stop, wait a few seconds, then try again. Engine turns over and coughs this time, then just carries on turning over. I tried this again a few times with much the same result, the odd cough and kick suggesting it was trying to fire.

The battery was going flat so I gave it a rest. The starter motor seemed to be a bit sluggish so I took the time out to remove the cables and clean them back to shiny metal before replacing them. Another quick squirt of Easi-Start into the carburettor and I turned the starter again. A few coughs, then it fired for a couple of seconds before dying. I tried again. The starter span the motor, it coughed and kicked and then...











































...IT'S ALIVE!


As you can see in the video above I got it started and running quite nicely. Not bad considering the last time it ran was in 1998! (Notice at around 1.09 the carburettor spits back and my hand disappears rather sharply ) The engine note sounds gorgeous (it's missing the rear silencer ), a baritone rumble that sounds so smooth and musical.

Biggest problem at the moment is that the brakes are seized solid. It just will NOT shift, even when put in Drive (it's an auto) and given some of its 140bhp. This will need further investigation, or a big vehicle to drag it out of the lock up. Problem is, if I drag it out and can't unseize the brakes then there's no way I'll ever get it back in again...

The alternator is also seized, and the water pump is shot (I knew this when I was working on it, erm, ten years ago). I managed to pick up a bargain waterpump on Fleabay so that would get swapped over at a later date. I also removed the alternator to take home and try to free off.

But I do have to get the car moving so I can assess its underside and decide whether to go ahead with the project or not. If the project is a go'er then I want to try and get it rolling properly so I can bring it home to work on. It will be a lot easier in terms of access on my front drive though a pain as it's out in the open. Being the summer that shouldn't be too much of a problem unless it rains like it did last year...

Thus the end of my first day working on the Cortina proved to be a fruitful one with the engine awakened after its ten year slumber. Just how well will the rest of the car shape up in comparison? Will I ever get the brakes freed off or will it remain in the garage forever more? Will the taste Police arrest me for having a yellow car with a black vinyl roof and chrome trim?

I will keep you all posted

Sounds sweet at least good luck getting it moving

nice! sounds much smoother than i imagined it would, i actually like the colour too! shame on you letting it rot in there lol

Wheels off.. and start applying the hammer.

Awesome, nowt like a nice rusty old Ford! engine sounds well, hope your project doesn't take as long as my Capri is taking

i belive technically its called a shifting stick

wrong again...

they're called MAN TOOLS.

my man tool box contains some big hammers, a crowbar and an angle grinder.

Looking good Chas, really like it.

Very nice project and restoration.