Proper barn find Lotus Cortinas (JTE 532B)

[Andy M]

Think the above just about sums it all up!

 

[ray8829]

And if you really want to be picky, it wasn't even a 'barn find' as I new of these cars about 10 years ago and they were in a wooden shed come garage with no animals or hay in sight!!

 

[Lotus Outlaws]

To be fair Andy I also had A few issues with steve back in the early days but we met up shook hands and moved on and to be fair we have helped each other out Yes he has good days and probably very bad days but if he can help you he will and I did come to your defence ANDY and steve also talks highly of you as well there is two sides to every coin and somones rattled him and there are other people on here that have thrown as crap about as him but only in a different way but is as much insulting as what he has said

 

[L2Man]

Who would have thought that a post starting 18 months ago with a reasonably interesting subject like a barn find Lotus Cortina would end (please God) with a reference to a member's haemorrhoids.
Could this post be a contender for the title of "most disconnected from original subject" award?
Knowing this forum, probably not.

Missed you Michael...

 

[Keith Halstead]

More info from Facebook Feb 2021

Roy Giles

Hi all. I see your all talking about my cortinas lol I was the original finder of these rare beauties . In Stoke 4trs ago probably now . I knew the owner a lovely guy called John who had 3 of these in his garage over the road from his house the mill 1 was his wife’s car she drove it for 2 years untill she had a little bump in it then wouldn’t drive it again bless her she then got took Ill with cancer I believe . And the car never moved . The mk2 was a later addition and was johns own car . Untill he took Ill with a lung problem . Which debilitated him for some time . The mk1 got in the other picture I still had till recently & was going to do it but circumstances changed and I let it go partially done . I foolishly trusted somebody to help me and confided in a guy . I shall not mention names but let’s say it went a bit wrong and I ended up loosing out on the 2 lotuses . But retained the gt . I would love to know where they went and see the finished project on the road it would have made johns day believe me god rest his soul .

 

[ray8829]

That's an interesting response as the guy who originally 'bought' them said the GT was given to the finder as payment, there are always two sides of a story. I don't think John, the original owner, would have let them go if he knew they were all just going to be sold on again. I visited him at least half a dozen times over a five year period before the cars were 'found' and he slowly realized that he would never get around to restoring them due to his deteriorating health but just couldn't face seeing them go. I told him about my love of Cortinas and showed him photos of cars that I had restored so that he would know they were going to a good home and he even promised to call me when "the time is right" but it never happened.

 

[Keith Halstead]

That's an interesting response as the guy who originally 'bought' them said the GT was given to the finder as payment, there are always two sides of a story. I don't think John, the original owner, would have let them go if he knew they were all just going to be sold on again. I visited him at least half a dozen times over a five year period before the cars were 'found' and he slowly realized that he would never get around to restoring them due to his deteriorating health but just couldn't face seeing them go. I told him about my love of Cortinas and showed him photos of cars that I had restored so that he would know they were going to a good home and he even promised to call me when "the time is right" but it never happened.

It's a strange case this one as the owner often promises to give you first dibs then someone appears at the right moment & everything changes. I know Steve Lingy did plan on doing both cars originally, then ran out of funds, as you do, so decided to sell the MK2 to fund the Mk1 resto but I lost track of him after that. Perhaps the current owner of JTE will know more?

 

[Keith Halstead]

More 'History' from Facebook

Roy Giles

... Has the guy that brought the mk1 lotus got a thing in mind for it hopefully back to original condition . . That’s what it needs they spent 20 yrs in that garage . The pikies nicked the top end of it . And took the engine out of the mk2 thru a hole in the roof bet the buggers only weighed it in cheeky gits . Thankfully they left the gt in one piece tho .

 

[ray8829]

This one is getting stranger by the day. The owner of the three cars, John, showed me the the Mk1 engine, just the cam caps had been stolen and I would have thought only a Lotus owner would have any value in them. As for hauling a complete twin cam out through the roof of the garage, I wouldn't fancy that job myself and it was certainly never mentioned to me by John, he was only ever concerned about the missing cam caps.

 

[scrab]

From was has been done to the GT I'd say it's a blessing he did get to keep the Lotus'.

 

[Keith Halstead]

This one is getting stranger by the day. The owner of the three cars, John, showed me the the Mk1 engine, just the cam caps had been stolen and I would have thought only a Lotus owner would have any value in them. As for hauling a complete twin cam out through the roof of the garage, I wouldn't fancy that job myself and it was certainly never mentioned to me by John, he was only ever concerned about the missing cam caps.

Must have been disturbed - why just nick the caps?