Cortina bakkie newbie questions..

[essaa]

Hi,
I'm very new to cortinas, I discovered them a few months ago and fell in love immediately.
Excuse my stupid questions but I have no idea about these cars yet, so I'm here to learn.
So, did the v6 engine (essex?) cortina bakkie come with automatic gearbox too or are they all manual? The ones i see are mostly manuals and not sure if the automatic ones are customs or original?
Could someone shed some light on the engines and transmissions on the mk4 and mk5 cortina bakkies?
All I found is wikipedia, almost nothing about the south african ones..

Thank you in advance!

[FPT]

Welcome to the group.

Yes there were auto Cortina pick ups from the factory, but very few.

The ones I have seen were all light green and leisures.

[First V8]

Yes they did come with auto boxes . I had one but due to me wanting to tow a big caravan i changed the box to a 5 speed toyota gearbox and changed the diff ratio ( cant remember ratio ) . It towed beautifully and was fairly economical in 5th gear on the open road when not towing .

[marnus]

The autobox used was the Ford C3 box.
Some say the 5spd manual had T5 boxes, i've also seen some 5spd models with the same box used on the couriers.

But the type9 sierra box has some nice ratios for final drive, very similar to the Toyota W58 just alot weaker than the W58

My dad had a 3.0 Cortina LDV LWB with the 4spd bullet box

[marnus]

there was a 2.5 diesel model, but very few not sure what motor it was running

[essaa]

Thank you for the replies guys!
I'm thinking to change the original 3L engine and box to a lexus v8 with auto box. (I can't help myself, missing the v8 sound)
My question is, what else needs to be replaced if I decide to go for the v8?
I guess this question comes up frequently, but unfortunately i didn't find much information.

[bmwmaniac]

rather fit a 302w/5.0.

some importers are selling them complete with fuel injection systems

[ZA Perana]

rather fit a 302w/5.0.

some importers are selling them complete with fuel injection systems

Agreed, a Lexus will totally ruin the value of the vehicle and introduce electrical issues.

[marnus]

I would rather see that Ford running a bow tie V8 than a lexus.

To fit the lexus, you would need to change a lot more to make it run. Electricals, fuel delivery

To run the 302, minor mods to be made. a stock 302 will be able to run on the stock fuel lines. basically just plumbing, motor mounts, exhaust and prop.