Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
October 16, 2026, 01:55:15 PM

1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever

Login with username, password and session length

1 Guest, 0 Users

[gregando]

Hi people I'm Greg and I've got as mentioned a Mk2 440 cortina that I am fitting a stroked 302 clevo v8 into. I've been talking to a very reputable engineer about the conversion and guess what ?? The thing is going to fully engineered and road registered.
.   To start with it was a prime candidate for the not engineerable basket , it was possible but not feasible.  Wider track suspension was required which isnt much of a problem it is the testing that threw a spanner in the works , torsional and rigidity  stress testing is required no real drama there unless it bends or breaks but the engineer has the necessary measuring and testing tools for the job , the problem and expensive test is a on road test (on a race track) for handling and braking from high speeds as well as putting it hard through some corners to make sure it reacts in an appropriate manner and and don't only steer straight. The problem there being I live north of Newcastle and the nearest track is either Sydney 2.5 hours to the south or coffs harbour about 4-5 hours north. It would cost well over a grand just to do the road test  and a whole days travel for half hours testing.
.  That was untill I happened apon an unbeknown to myself and my engineer,  there was 2 performance builders from England and south Africa that  at the time using aussie Mk2 bodies and fitting the lotus 3.0L V6 with a 5spd box into these tiny cars ,they where the south african cortina perana (not to be confused with the 302. V8 Capri peranas) and british made cortina savage , and where it gets good for v8 conversions on these little cars are that  they where actually available here in Australia,  basically on a tick the box order . Now here's where the circumstances start to favor my plans. A 3ltr cast iron V6 is only 1.9 ltrs smaller than the 302 and the 302 v8 is only 20-30 kg if that heavier and the fact that  the cortina perana and savage where actually classed as a production vehicle as the where built for and sold through FORD as on of their production cars albeit with a V6 option.
 what this all means at the end of the day is hopefully fitting wider track front end which would require some huge arse flares to cover the wheels hopfilly is no longer required,  no road testing required and less strength testing to be carried out.
   So as the laws have changed conversions like this are never going to be certified unless your lucky or smart enough to pic ya conversions wisely. I've lucked out big time but I want to share the info my self and my engineer have discovered to inform any Mk2 cortina or Capri owners interested in doing such a conversion that its still possible and a amazing animal to drive with power to weight figure that wins the race all on its own befor the race even starts .

Happy converting people.

[winton]

 Hi Greg
We would love to see some progress  pictures.

[BigNorm]

sounds awesome

[Robmkx]

Mate that sounds awesome... what state are you in? I know that with the national code it should all be the same but still.... what documentaiton is needed to prove that the perana is a viable model to be modifying off? Any idea on it's kerb weight??

[gregando]

I'm in NSW and as for documentation I don't know all I know is my engineer said what I stated ,apparently ford offered both the savage and perana as factoy options and classed them as a commercial vehicle they are 60 kg heavier than stock 4cyl cortinas and this is with the V6 gearbox suspension and cross member mods, so a clevo V8 & C4 auto would only see another 40kg max over the front wheels .Also both the savage and perana bodies where Australian built cortina bodies as the Aussie bodies where built stronger for the conditions. I'm in the process of getting more info and will post it as I find out more the pics I posted of both I have shown my engineer and he seems happy so far . Maybe ford Australia  have some info about them I'm not sure but ill be looking for more so it makes things easier if questions are raised come certification.

[Robmkx]

Mate that'd be awesome if you could post where you can see that the savage and the Perana were just a 'special order' tick in the box in Australia. I was under the impression that they'd be a special import (Uk & SA respectively) and therefore might not be useable? The way I see it is with our rules a 922kg cortina can go to 3.6l N/A and a 1068kg Savage could go as high as 4.2l N/A. Both of these would have to still comply with the other restrictions such as weight distribution etc. But in my case it would mean I could use a rover 3.9 instead of the rover 3.5 I'm restricted to at the moment. Not much capacity change but a big change in availability and reliability! Looking forwards to what you can find. I've got a box and an engine lined up -just need to find the right engineer...

[gregando]

http://www.automobile-catalog.com/car/1970/1007600/ford_cortina_savage_v6.html

[Robmkx]

Cool - thanks!

[Robmkx]

Any movement on the build?

[gregando]

 not just yet IDE like to sell the 1500 and 4 spd first so it's not taking up room in the shed.