Grant wrote:Hi Kev.. It looks brilliant,..lovely shell that Kev, the metal looks really original.. is it?
Hi Grant, about 75% original, its had new sills, wings front valance, front section of inner sills and the usual lower bits of the boot floor. I bought an Aussie shell as Tony said, and because it was an export shell it comes with all the strengthening already on, just needed the anti-tramp bar brackets welded on to make it a GT shell, which the MK2 Lotus used. The dash had to be swapped out as the Lotus dash is different. It was a big decision but I realised I was trying to restore a shell that was too far gone. This proved to be true when loading the old shell onto a truck to be scrapped, the boot folded up to the rear screen.
If I had rebuilt it I would have replaced everything except the roof and bulkhead,so how original would it have been, I now have an original Ford strengthened shell, it took me a long time to get the correct one, and one that was any good.I have all the rest of the original car and suspected the shell had already been replaced once before, perhaps early on in it's life, as it had no rear chrome on it, and no holes, filled or otherwise, where it would have been fitted, but it's sister car did have. It was one of three consecutive registered cars, believed used as rally support cars for a dealer who was rallying an Escort. Legend has it that a farmer took a dislike to them being on his land and peppered one with a shot gun.
Pulled the bearings on the half shafts today, and re-taped the wiring loom ready to go back in, with a few additions and repairs to existing wiring.
My Toys: Lotus Cortina MK2.RangeRover P38, Yam inflatable, Saab 9-3 Convertible.
Mk1 Interceptor, 115/3067