A little treat this week for us with a nice ’66 Coupe has has been pretty much unmolested. The owner wanted to have a few little bits done to her so we gladly obliged. The end of the post we will reveal Adam’s latest toy. We had very near miss with the answer.

‘66 Coupe

A nice straight car with red stripes always a good mix and guaranteed to turn heads. The headliner needed to be changed which is a big job as the front and rear windows need to come out to do it properly. Of course when the windows are out we check for rust damage and clean up ready for the refitting.

With the old headliner out we can see the original sound proofing still in place on the roof and the rear pillars. This is often removed or falls down and not replaced.

We changed out the rear quarter felts as they had all but disappeared.

The front quarter rubbers is a simple task but the overall process is a much bigger job, as they have to be removed. There is a definite technique to it, but we can’t be giving away all out little secrets.

Metal Mayhem

We are now at a pint where we invite the owner down to see the progress and decide on the next steps of their project.

Big Reveal:

The last few weeks we have been teasing you with the guess the car quiz. We have had a near miss courtesy of Peter R. with his guess of the Perana 4 door.

The (Full) Answer: Ford Cortina MkII “Perana” – 2 Door

The Twist? This is the only two door Perana with a V8 in white from the Perana workshops.

History:

Basil Green Motors (VIN: BG) is a former car manufacturer and racing team which is located in Edenvale, Gauteng near Johannesburg, South Africa.

The company has specialised in Ford vehicles, in which the manufacturer’s models are recognised by the brand name Perana added to the model name. The name Perana is a deliberate misspelling, as Piranha already had been protected.

Founded in 1967 by Basil Green the company dealt with engine tuning of Ford vehicles and participated in a variety of races as a racing team. After winning several races the Ford Motor Company became aware of the company and used the company for some of the South African models as a kind of in-house tuner.

The first model of the manufacturer was the Ford Cortina Perana V6, which was launched in 1967 as a tuning model. Production began one year later in the summer. Grosvenor Motors, then the largest Ford dealer in South Africa, took over the sales. The standard version was based on the Ford Cortina Mk II GT. For the units ordered by the Gunston Cigarette Company, the Ford Cortina XL was used as base model. The Ford Essex engine with 2994 cc was used as engine. Those engine were taken from the Ford Zephyr as well as the powertrain. Along with the engine conversion and lowering the Cortina Perana V6 was 64 kg heavier than the Ford standard model Cortina. The original recognisable features for the Cortina Perana V6 are a black strip over the bonnet, a black front grille and black coloured rims.

Why?

Adam has been looking for an unusual UK Ford with something different to the normal modded UK stuff. During his hunting around his contacts led him to a source in South Africa. This car was owned by one of the tuners who worked for Perana works in South Africa. He took his own car in and it was given the same treatment as the other cars that were Perana(ed) at the time. A perk of the job if you like. This car did indeed have the V6 as they were designated at the time. But with the quest for power that never ends, the owner took this V6 back into the workshops for the nice new V8s that were becoming available from Ford.

So, Adam now owns a rare Perana from the original South African Perana workshops. He didn’t want the four door that he could of had that he found during his searches. Like all things from those days, this is not a fully documented Perana, but as it’s one of a kind. Adam just had to have it, a unique South African piece of Ford history to add to the collection.

The car needed a few things doing to it, like having a new fuel tank for a start. These fuel tanks are not off the shelf items, so Adam had one made for his car along with a couple of extras while he was at it. Now they are available of the shelf, whether he will sell them or not is a different matter of course. The rubber filler hose and fuel hoses were shot and perished. All the rubber fuel lines have now been changed over to the E10 compliant rubber hoses, available here. The rear mounted battery gave the engine bay the little extra room it needed for the V8.

The Adam has the original wheels, but he wanted something different, so he had these made just for his car.

The transmission is fine and shifts as you would expect.

Under the hood a new radiator was needed, water pipework and the fuel lines as we mentioned. The old carb was working (sort of), but wasn’t consistent in running. Adam has replaced it with a new Holley and will have a look at rebuilding the old one as little sideline hobby when he has nothing better to do! (Ed: Sounds like a Christmas Day job to us when the crap TV comes on.)

This single exhausted car sounds like a Mustang, not in your face loud, but you know it’s a V8 from that classic Ford burble.

Inside is pretty much original, except for a couple of bits missing. Nothing that can’t be sourced from the internet or an auto jumble.

Adam is pretty smitten with his new toy, ask nicely and he may take you to see if when you pop in!

E-Vouchers

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