1975 TD Cortina Project

[corty1980]

ent72olds dont think you would see many cortinas in the states thats for sure. Iam sure that you did get some mk1 & mk2 models in the states but not sure about the latter models like the TC, TD, TE & TF. I got the floor edge section welded into the corty today and also got the inner sill section sorted. Hopefully by the end of the weekend I can get the inner sill and outer sill section welded into place. Once this is done I can move onto the bootfloor and repair that.

Floor edge welded into place



Inner sill temporarily in place

[corty1980]

Ok I didnt get heaps done on the corty this weekend as I only spent about 6 hours on it as Iam still recovering from the flu. But I did manage to get the inner sill welded in and cleaned up. Also replaced the bottom section of the A piller and managed to get the outer sill ready. I had to modify the outer sill slightly as the one I had got from rare spares wasnt exactly the same as the origional, but wasnt really a big deal. Once all this was done I put the out sill on the car and atm is just clamped into place. Will need to do some adjustment and it will be ready to be welded back in place.

Outter Sill Modified



Outter Sill Clamped onto the car, still need to be adjusted

[corty1980]

Ok I finally got the sill all welded into place and finished up today. I then started on the passengers side quarter panel, which surprise, surprise ended up being worse than it looked. Initially I thought I maybe able to just patch up the hole in the quarter. But due to what looks like rust in the bottom wher the other and inner quarter join at the bottom Iam going to have to replace the quarter panel.

New sill welded into place and finished





Passengers side quarter panel to be repaired

[corty1980]

Started working on the passengers side quarter panel. Initially I was going to replace the whole bottom section, but have since decided not to do that. Seems the lower back panel has been repaired, and it looks like part of it has been replaced as where the quarter panel and lower back panel overlap it has been welded and ground flush.

Part of the Quarter Panel cut out, will also have to repair the inner quarter panel at the bottom due to rust :(



Some damage to the Lower Backpanel

[corty1980]

Iam glad that I got the car cheap, at this stage the cost of shipping for replacement panels from england is going to be more than I paid for the car. It could be worse, I could have paid alot more for the car and found myself in the same situation. I was watching a video on youtube the other day and a guy mentioned harad car panel for replacement parts for capri, cortina etc. Has anyone heard of them, tried to google them without any luck. Guy sounded Kiwi so assume he was in New Zealand.

Started removing some more rust today, this time it is the passengers side outer/inner sill. Decided that Iam going the replace the complete inner/outter sill instead of patching it in a few spots. I have got to the point where Iam not going to do any more untill the parts arrive from England.


Removal Of Left Hand Side Outer Sill

[corty1980]

As Iam waiting for the inner/outer left side sill to arrive from England, I decided to start on something else today. I managed to paint strip the roof and surprise, surprise I found more rust. The good part, if you could call it good is that its surface rust only, but heavy surface rust Could be worse, it could have rusted through.

[corty1980]

Finally got the inner/outer sill from England and have started to replace it. Word of warning on the inner sill is that it isnt the full length. As a result of having removed the sill before I got the replacement I ended up having to make up a replacement rear section. Not really a major drama as it wont be seen in the end. Here are some more progress pics, managed to get the inner sill in and welded in this weekend.

[corty1980]

I managed to get the outer sill placed onto the car and partially welded in today. Unfortunatly I ran out of gas for my mig and wont be able to finish it this weekend, bugga :( Looks like I will have to finish that next weekend. Then it will be onto the passengers side full quarter once the panel arrives from the UK. Fingers crossed it doesnt get damaged in transit. Anyhow a few pics of the sill in place.

[CruizinKev]

good work so far!

[corty1980]

It has been a while since my last post and things have been coming along slowly. I have managed to get the sill that I was working on all finished up Since then I have been getting the doors to line up better, which they are now. Also had my brother inlaw come over to help me to get the bootlid to fit, and its fits nicely now, no big gaps. Also decided to remove the stock rods that the bootlid used and will use struts instead. Also cut out the bootfloor as the rust was worse than I initially thought.

[corty1980]

Ok so nothing much has been happening of late on the corty due to me waiting on replacement panels which are coming from England. Though I did decide that Iam wanting to use struts on both the bonnet and boot. cant start on the boot as yet, will need to repair that before that is started on. So I decided to do the ones for the bonnet. Here are a few pics of how they came out.

[corty1980]

I finally have all the panels I need to repair the bootfloor

So I started cleaning up the bootfloor and getting it ready to receive all the new panels. I will endup temporarily fixing the panels with clamps and rivets to make sure everything is right before I weld the panels into place.

Passengers side panel inplace, held with a few pop rivets and a clamp

[AusMarty]

SWEET.

I love Corties.

And to the guy who said something about 1975.
We've had them here in Oz since the Mark I.


And.. The only cool thing that we actually made for ourselves was the XA-XC Coupe and the HG-HJ Monaro.

America has much cooler stuff.

MAKE IT AWESOME.
Please.

Corties with the XA GT Facelift always look cool.

[corty1980]

Not a happy person atm, I unwrapped the rear lower apron which I got from England and what did I find ? Damn panel had been damaged, great thats all I need is to have to repair a new panel. Now I have that off my chest I only got a little done over the weekend. I managed to get the drivers side bootfloor panel temporarily put in place, just pop riveted it down in a few spots. Once Iam happy with how everything goes it will be welded into place.

Drivers side bootfloor section

[Glenn]

You sure have your hands full with repairs and your doing a good job with them to.

[corty1980]

I sure do Glenn and Iam hoping to have all the rust repairs done within the next 6 months, though being summer now in Australia and working in a tin garage isnt going to make it easy. Did a few hours work on the cortina today and managed to partially mock up the bootfloor. I decided to get some mdf and use that as a template before I get the steel, just incase I make a mistake. Its ends up being alot cheaper to stuff up mdf than the steel. I just got some 3mm thick mdf sheets and have pretty much got it sorted out, just a few minor touches to be made. Anyhow here are a few pics of what I got done today.

[corty1980]

It has been a while since my last post. Just a quick update today. I managed to get the bootfloor temporarily tacked into place this morning.
Putting the bead into the bootfloor for extra strength, which involved me having to modify the roller so that I could work with a large sheet.



Floor tacked into place. I will still need to finish welding it in.



Closer look at the beads

[Glenn]

Well done mate!

What suspension mods have you planned?

[corty1980]

Well done mate!

What suspension mods have you planned?

Not sure at this moment, I would like to have IRS in the rear like in my Falcon. In the picture of me putting in the beads its the white car infront, a 2001 AU Series 2 XR6 Falcon. I cant use that IRS as its a fair bit wider than the Cortina. Perhaphs go with a JAG IRS. Once I have all the body work done I will decide what the suspension and running gear will be. Motor wise it will be a 6 cylinder from a Falcon, may put a snail on it. Also its going to be manual, has to be manual not auto for me.

[Aussie:]

Good project model. I liked the TE & TF's more.
Couldn't you find one that wasn't in the ocean man that has some holes.