Though much of 1983 is a bit of a blur for me, being far back and all, I vividly remember lusting after the Ford Cortina XR6 and a number of performance offshoots from that basic concept, the most famous of which was the Interceptor, a limited edition homologation special built with an eye on class T of the Lodge Spark Plugs Group One series.
Launched in 1981, the Interceptor boasted triple downdraft Webers, a hot camshaft and a free-flow exhaust. This was enough to hike power to 118kW – about a 15% increase over the standard Essex V6 lump. And a lump it was, being heavy enough to cause ongoing tyre and suspension wear issues throughout the lifetime of the Cortina Mk IV and V.
Nevertheless, the whole car only weighed about 1 200kg and the result was a healthy power to weight ratio. With a relatively sophisticated rear suspension system for a Ford (coil springs, not leaves) it put its power down well and was thus quick off the line. Ford claimed a brisk 0-100 time of 8.6 seconds and a slightly less impressive top whack of 196km/h for the Interceptor.
With a direct drive fourth gear, 3.08:1 differential and with 185/70/13 rubber, my calculations suggest it would be pulling about 5 600r/min flat out, which equates more or less to the power peak of the engine. More mundane 3.0 litre Fords made maximum power of just 102kW at 5 000r/min – a rev range almost diesel-like by modern standards.
The Interceptor also sounded a bit different, with a more menacing burble when cruising and an occasional lumpiness to the idle quality. Spotting it was easier still. All 250 were a unique red with a hint of pink to it. Ford called it Wild Coral.
The distinctive Ronal wheels were especially imported from Germany and they’re more or less the only thing on our photo car which aren’t correct. The inner section of the rim has been painted black, whereas they came from the factory in a pure aluminium alloy finish. They have also been widened by an inch to measure 6.5J. Still, the actual style is correct.
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Ford XR6
Great car. Great engine, greta chassis... it´s a Ford.
No matter wat ppl say,old
No matter wat ppl say,old fords are legends.interceptor was a limited edition and are fun car's even today.a clean original one would be appreciated by true ford fans,not ur kidz.ford never die's they only got faster.I've gt a stock e92 m3.and the interceptor which parks in the garage and which I only use weekends.you'll never know the feeling of an interceptor unless u own one(a good one)
Cortina XR6
Hi to all readers
The Cortina's are the best, between my friend and I we have 11 Cortina's including a XR6 TF, Interceptor 2 x normal XR6's, GLS, MK5 3ltr van and 1.6 van MK5 2ltr Cortina and MK3 XLE, all in excellent condition. Most of them are used for show purposes. So stuff all you critics LONG LIVE THE CORTINA........
The Brave Cortina
The engine like all Fords was superb, the ride fine and the plesure of driving dazzling!! Long live the brev Cortina XR6!
Guys ....my first car was a
Guys ....my first car was a ford XR6 and now my latest car is a ford xr6. Ive owned all sorts of cars , GTI 1 , 3 , 4 and 5 .... Audi S3 , 2010 BMW 323i , Grand Cherokee 4.7 , Honda civic vtec etc .... but nothing gives me the enjoyment of driving an XR6..yes its an old car , with an old engine ...but theres something comforting knowing that youre driving a vehicle with a much stronger body than most cars on the road , and has a 30 year old engine which keeps going.....lets see how your vehicles perform in 30 years time...ponder that..
Ford Cortina,XLE up to last XR6
The old V6 Essex engine was used for many decades in various opplications.
It could be modified to make serious horse power for their time, and excellent quater mile times without compromising durability.
all you new age Yuppy [filtered word] FOOLS are welcomee to speak to Mick van Rensburg and Sybie Coetzee who isstill active in VERY SERIOUS DRAG racing today.
ASSHOLE YUPPIES pls "WAKE UP GET A GRIP , and smelll the coffee.
Cortina 3.0 GLS 1982
Does any one here know what rear axle the 3.0 GLS had fitted. English or Atlas? I seem to remember that the 3.0 GLS had anti tramp bars or a 5 link rear axle?
Please reply only if you know what you're talking about.
Cortina XR6 Interceptor
Good day to all.
I have a request please. The gent who posted the add about his Interceptor pushing out 260 kw, can you please contact me via email - sheldon.moonsammy@cnonline.co.za.
I own a Cortina XR6 (not the interceptor) and the motor has been modified a bit. I have a set of Inteceptor carbs on there, and I would really like to know what kind of mods I can do to achieve such awesome raw power!
Thanks!
Die Hard Ford Fan!
The only way to get decent kW
The only way to get decent kW is to replace the useless piece of cast iron with a modern motor.
XR6 interceptor
To all the dumb fools dissing the XR6 interceptor dudes I got an original interceptor,and I modified the motor that now pushes an amazing 260 kw,suck on that.Oh just for your info,maybe you should remember it was also known as "THRIPS",I assume you are a small boy so you wont know this ne'
danville kW's
260 kw ? Maybe on your home-made Danville dyno @ Sandput Motors, you idiot. Do you even know, what 260 kW feels like ? You have probably never had more than 100, with your "Your worst nightmare, power by Ford" stickers. Suck on that.
260 kw
Hey, XR6 interceptor
60 kw on a old pushrod V6 without forced induction ? I have had one myself with triple carbs, cam, high-comp, lekka Danville exhaust etc. The maximum is 150 kW, you are dreaming of 260, you tappet ! It's an old motor of poor design and it cannot breathe or rev. Wake up and smell the coffee. Why do you think all breakdowns now use Nissan VG30s and no more Ford V6s ? Because they never lasted and always smoked and overheated ! Rook and kook, lekka Danville ! A 2.5 Alfa V6 killed a hotted-up Essex.
an alfa 2.5 will never
an alfa 2.5 will never outrun a hotted up xr6
hi there I dont know about
hi there
I dont know about you guys but i love the cortinas.My father has a cortina ghia 3.0 with the white roof in showroom condition and I own a cortina xr6 with a borg warner t5 gearbox and a 3.8L ford engin the car is still in the prosses of being restored and I just love the sound of the enjin
That Ford XR6 is really an
That Ford XR6 is really an old car. I wish I could get its cylinder head bolt set so that I can install it on my car.
Motorsport heritage
XR6 Interceptor, XR8, GTV6 3.0L, Superboss, 325iS Shadowline were all uniquely South African special built vehicles which were part of our SA motorsport history. If you do not like motorsport you will not appreciate and love these Fords for what they added to our motorsport heritage. The XR6 Interceptor was the original factory built homologation special in SA that started all this. (Bazil Green build post-production specials). These special/homologation vehicles, no matter how terrible the wings etc. were part of SA motorsport history and created enthusiasm at race tracks when there used to be huge crowds supporting these vehicles. They are gone and so are the crowds.
interceptor caburators
hi i have built a colt bakkie with a ford black block v6 with a 286 billit cam
she run fine but i am having problems with her for a couple of weeks now,
i was breaking gearboxes until i put in a cressida 3.0liter gearbox with hardend steel gears in it ,then i started breaking diffs untill i put in a 411 flat diff in now i dont so much of wheel spinning but my fuel consumption is ridculious .
she does about 150km on 50liters of lrp petrol i have tride everybody that i know about these caburattos and nobody can get it right.please can somebody help me in anyway
thanks
anand naidoo
073 660 9661
your help and comments would be appricated
RE: Colt with a ford motor
Hi Anand,
I am interested in coverting my colt club cab 2.8 tdi to run on an xr6 v6 engine & 4spd gearbox and would like to learn from your experience in convertion. (my engine is giving me grief)
who did it for you, how much and what additional parts did you need? how did the diff work out at the end, what ratio did you use between 4.11 & 3.08 and what were you using the car for? what exhaused system did you use? assuming that your first gearbox you used was the colt gearbox, how did you deal with the gearbox housing?
073 567 7148
triple interceptor carbs
HI THERE . IF YOU REALY LOOK FOR HELP ON YOUR FORD CONTACK ROWLEY STANTON OF MOTORDRIVE CAPE . I THINK THAT HE WILL BE THE ONE TO SORT OUT THE PROBLEM FOR YOU . REGARDS GERHARD
consumption
Hello
I assume the 411 diff is a 4.11:1 which is definitely letting the van run on a higher rev band continously but with some good acceleration :-) Ideally you should have a 3.08 diff ratio depending on the use of the van. i also would recomend checking other items that may need service or adjustment. the carbs are the last thing to tackle because people usually keep them in good condition. and its a tedious process to set them once disturbed.
Keith
"Ek scheme lekker zef my gey"
We have 1 *&^%head whom does not know his @#$% from sy elbow in SA that want to discuss the marketing strategy of a international company that ranks 3rd largest in the world.Having said that, I or (on behalf of) FORD fanatics would like to know your intellectual capacity. My name is Krishen Naidoo and my email is krishentcl@gmail.com. We would like to know of what Industry you represent and how you contribute to the motor industry as a matter of fact to flip this script around it was because of your guy's that sanctions were imposed on South Africa and FORD pulled out. So just to educate you FORD has re-invested in South Africa and it is no more SAMSA (if u know what that stands for cake)it's now Ford motor company of Southern Africa. Please mail me [filtered word], and the other fans out there who want a GENUINE FORD man with them.
Response to - Ek scheme lekker zef my gey
There is a reason the Cosworth came out with that FIN for homologation purposes they had to make a certain amount of RS Cosworths for the STREET!!!!
RS 500 Cosworth dominated in Motorsport, that was the reason it was made, and aero dynamically the fin made sense.
my 1st love
My uncle has one and that 3 litre raw has never let my ears. I was 4 years old at the time. I am 24 and still remember that raw engine note and long muscular body. wonder what it is like to drive?
Ford Cortina GLS
LOOKING FOR ONE.
PLEASE HELP
ford cortina 30 gls
there is one available on a car stand in kleksdorp.
ur zef my gey
I am a proud owner of a 1983 Ford Cortina XR 6, its got a perana louvre on, bubbles on the side etc no fur, oranges or dogs thought. I do not drink Brandy etc.
So enjoy your all to plain car while leaving these cars alone to the public who enjoy them.
Have a great ordinary day
Dont be a hater
I dont see anything wrong with the concept of squeezing extra power out of an otherwise stock mid-sized saloon. This very concept has given rise to such legendary cars like the Focus ST, Opel OPC and so on. If you really think carefully, offsprings like the Golf GTi and this here XR6 Interceptor were the founders of hotter versions of main-stream cars. So glad to see an old face, I owned an XR6 back in the early 90's (not an original Interceptor) but kitted out with Interceptor carbs, wilder camshafts and so on. And for the record, I dont drink! Nice write-up. The power ratings were under-rated BTW. Many made closer to 130kW.
that was metal
hi there
even though they are old cars they are still beautifull to look at .when i was younger my brother had a ford cortina 3L gt big six
it was light blue with the black striping that they came out in. he bought it brand new for R3300 and at the time i thought it was the most beautifull car i had ever seen. Today i own a fully restored ford cortina xle big six .and there is not may of those cars around in good condition
enjoy
graham
Xtra Large Engine
The Cortina Mk. 3 must be the most hideous car Ford has ever introduced here (alright, the Zephyr Mk. 3 was also disgusting), and the Xtra Large Engine (XLE) is hardly a collector's item. To be honest, the only six-cylinder Cortina I would not mind having, would be a 3,0 Ghia, a 3,0 GL station wagon (my father owned one) or a 3,0 GLS (sedan or wagon).
Ek scheme lekker zef my gey
I fail to understand why everybody is so excited about the Interceptor. Firstly, Ford has mastered the art of messing up good designs with distasteful add-ons, like the biplane spoiler on the Sierra XR 8, or the even more grotesque version fitted to the Escort RS Cosworth.
Moreover, you probably know about the 1-2-3 people: 1 litre brandy in the liquor cabinet, 2 litre cola in the fridge and a 3 litre Ford in the garage. Any fool can work on a Ford, and to be honest, any fool does. Many Ford owners cannot leave their cars alone, and bubbles on the side windows, fur on the dashboard, oranges on the aerials, dogs nodding their heads in the rear windows and Perana louvres are almost a given.
For this reason, Ford ned to work harder than most manufacturers to restore its imag, and (touch wood) they are succeeding so far. The exception is the bright orange colour the Focus ST is available with. On the outside it looks acceptable by some stretch of the imagination, but heaven knows why this colour is also available for its upholstery. What kind of market is Ford aiming this otherwise great car at?
Please understand me correctly; Ford cars are generally good value for money, and there is not much wrong with them as far as reliability or durability is concerned. However, they must stop tarnishing their cars with disgusting add-ons and dubious colour choices. I also wish that Ford owners will leave their cars the way they are, because if they don't, Ford will continue to have a bad image.
Ek scheme hierdie Interceptor is lekker zef, my gey!
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