[Editor's note: This article originally appeared in the July 2009 issue of Classic Motorsports.]
Story by Don Weberg
Ah, the 1960s. The Packers nabbed the first-ever Super Bowl title, hips across America were shimmying to “Twist and Shout,” and political rebellion was the word of …
With a new wife and an ME degree I moved to SoCal in early 1967. A few years earlier I owned an Austin-Healey 100 for a while. Ford couldn't sell the Lotus Cortina at $3500 so they let the dealers offer them at $2700. I bought one. It was fun to drive and the freeway offramps became test corners. I drove it to Riverside and Willow Springs to spectate at races. The distributor was fragile and adjusting the valves was a pain for a nonpatient person. One of the cam bearing bolts broke off in the head but the engine didn't seem to care. The Webers are complicated but except for replacing leaking floats didn't need much attention. The gas tank was very small so I had a bigger one welded up in aluminum. Had to cut a bigger hole in the trunk. My experience with that engine helped 20 years later when I bought a '69 Lotus Elan +2. I did SCCA drivers school at Sears Point in that car and competed in Solo 1 for several years while driving it daily. Alas I got run into on the street and the car was totaled.
In the early 70's my neighbor had a 67 Lotus Cortina. The body was banged up but it went like heck!! My brother and I had between us 5 Lotus Elans and a +2, so......... It was so great to see the Lotus badge on one of those gawky Cortinas. You know there was an animal under that humble skin. Great memories of days of simple vehicles with a heart!!
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