Blue Oval game-changer: How the iconic Cortina steered the footprint of Ford in South Africa

Ford's Cortina was a car that redefined the boundaries between small and medium-sized vehicles that existed until that time. When the Mark I version launched in late 1962, it had a 1.2-litre engine, a unit that would usually be associated with a light car. And yet the performance on offer was close to the levels of the medium-sized cars of that era, and the same had to be said for the packaging of the bodywork.

The first Cortina was a genuine four or five-seater, but with a cavernous boot compared to anything else in its class. Straight away, customers who would have looked at the larger models on offer, with more significant engines and correspondingly higher prices, were prepared to give the new Cortina a once-over and assess whether its performance could live up to expectations of a medium-sized car.