| Geoff
Shirley & Julie Osborne's 1965 Cortina GT (Ballarat, Victoria, Australia) |
| Here's a Mk.I Cortina that's a little more unusual than the average two-headed mule. This is just one of about a dozen (!) that they own. It all looks pretty standard in its original colours and mouldings, doesn't it? Just some Centerlines, hey? The thing that may horrify the purists is what's under the bonnet: |
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What's that? It's a fuel-injected Nissan 1800cc DOHC 16 valve engine, as used in an Australian model Nissan, the 1988-90 Exa. And it's all run by a computer, in this case known as an Engine Management System - and you can program it with a laptop computer. Kind of looks like a Lotus donk if you stare long enough. The car runs a 5-speed, and 3.9:1 diff. Also of interest is the braking system. This car is
an advertisment on wheels for Shirley Engines' disc brake conversion
for Mk.I Cortinas. Up front it's running 4-piston calipers and vented
rotors, plus a dual circuit master cylinder.
Future plans include... lookout, a turbo! Want to know more? Email Geoff and Julie at shirleyengines@cortina-mk1.com, take a look at their home page, or get in touch the good-old-fashioned way: Shirley Engines
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