The Ford Cortina

A quick look at Ford’s website reveals that the following vehicles are available currently: Mustang, Tourneo, Everest, Territory, Transit, Ranger

That made me think about a time many years ago. The Ford Cortina. A white/beige Ford Cortina sedan that carried us as a family all over the Free State, the Cape, Transvaal and Natal. It was a time without drive-throughs, and we had our lunch, padkos, next to the road. Sandwiches and cold drinks, and for Dad coffee from a thermos.

If I remember correctly, it was a 1.6 litre model and it did not have luxuries like air conditioning. I think it did not even have a radio as standard, and the radio was an aftermarket installation. On the open road the radio had to be manually adjusted as we travelled and often it just produced static.

As a young boy, the back seat was spacious for me and my siblings. The boot swallowed our family luggage when we went on holidays. The 1.6 engine was not powerful, and I remember my father frantically gearing down when overtaking a long convoy of army trucks one time.

The Ford Cortina carried us on tarred roads and dusty dirt roads, sunshine and Highveld thunderstorms. There’s one thing I do not have a memory of, and that is getting stranded next to the road due to mechanical problems. I would then say that the Cortina was a very reliable car.

I don’t think there was service and maintenance plans available those days, as my father for some reason serviced the car in the winter on a cold Saturday Free State morning. I don’t know if he preferred to service the car during the winter months, or if it just worked out that way that the next service was due during the winter.

The Cortina did not have cruise control, but one Saturday morning, my father installed cruise control with a DIY kit. It never worked properly and after a year or so he removed it.

Washing the car was the children’s task, and we had to do that every weekend. Even when on holiday, we had to wash the vehicle in the parking lot of the self-catering unit we stayed in. Wash, dry, clean the dashboard, shine the windows and then polish the body. I am not sure if the car was white or beige, but it was not a brilliant white.

Ford does not have an equivalent of the Cortina available these days, but I suppose if you’re looking for a family car and it must be a Ford, then the Territory is the closest option. Times change, however, and the territory has strong Chinese roots.

To me, the Ford Cortina was a true Ford. Then there was the Ford Cortina XR6. To us as a family, that was a car living in our dreams, but when I saw one, the burbling sound of the V6 caught my attention every time.

I searched cars.co.za now and there is one for sale, an XR6, red.

A 1982 model with 337,908 kilometres on the clock. I can only imagine the roads it has travelled!

The Cortina sedan was not the only option. The Cortina was also available as a bakkie, and I still see Cortina bakkies now and then when travelling.

Would I buy a Cortina? Oh yes, if I have the spare cash. Unfortunately, at the moment, I do not have R205,000 to spare. Just like when I was a child in the 1980’s, the Ford Cortina XR6 remains a dream. One day…

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The featured image: Sherwin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons