anglia 105E

twin-cam terror

just how good is this anglia? its incredible...

Blue In Your Face

Tony Amdur set out to create a Lotus Anglia as if Ford had done it, and then some... Welcome to one of the best-built 105Es youll see this year.
Words Marc Stretton Photos Gerard Hughes

dmission time. Occasionally, just occasionally, we on Classic Ford underestimate the amount of time one of our projects is going to take. I know, hard to believe unless youre now recalling a Corsair, a Fiesta, a Capri, a Cortina Estate, another Corsair... and another Fiesta, among many others that appear in the Our Cars pages. Fortunately, this affliction doesnt apply to one of the magazines good mates, Tony Amdur from Motech Vehicle Services in Romford. In the April 2010 issue we featured Tonys Lotus Anglia project in the Grafters section of the mag, and within a year here is the finished article ready to be displayed in all its glory glory being a bit of an understatement as to how good this

motor is, by the way its incredible. And, if it hadnt been for a couple of engine niggles that were double-checked for good measure, this feature would have come about several months ago already. Good work Tony and his business partner, Steve Thomas, of course. Steves the man whos put a vast amount of graft and his considerable skill in to the build too. Lets recap...

First Love

Tonys first car was a 1968 Anglia in flakey Blue Mink, that ended up painted Alfa Red and fitted with a 1650 Pre-crossflow. Many years later he found himself the owner of terminally-rotten Mk2 Lotus Cortina and was on the lookout for a decent Cortina shell when inspiration hit him... build a Lotus

Anglia! A very nice 1967 Anglia Super was sourced through John Blythe at Goldendays when one of his customers had to sell up his toys to pay for his daughters wedding one mans misfortune and all that. The Anglia was stripped to a shell (with its tasty 1500GT motor sold to help fund Tonys plans) and very little bodywork was needed to bring it up to scratch. New sills and a rear valance were not really necessary but put on as a precaution, a small accident repair was required on a rear arch and a new bootlid came from Ray Gimbert (a fellow Grafters subject last year, with his spaceframed Anglia). Some fabrication to take the uprated mechanics followed, plus lead-filling of the trim holes, a bit of arch rolling and many hours attention to get

36

March 2011

March 2011

37

anglia 105E

twin-cam terror

the car was painted in stunning blue mink, as a homage to tonys first anglia

Fully-rebuilt twin cam originally came from a rotten Mk2 Lotus Cortina, and made a healthy 158 bhp on the dyno.

the panel gaps perfect. That finished the metalwork stage.

Why isnt this a more common site in an Anglia engine bay? Custom radiator hides a Lotus Cortina core.

Kind Of Blue

When we first saw Tonys Anglia it was almost ready for painting (in Blue Mink in homage to his first cars original shade), and hed bought 90 per cent of the parts needed for the build up, while the all important Lotus engine was in kit form ready for Steve to work his engine-building magic upon. The painting was done by a friend, Alio, who usually works on Ferraris and Lamborghinis, so that went well, Tony reports. Eventually there were a couple of fitting up marks to be touched in, but that was fine as Alio did want to redo a couple of places he wasnt happy with either. The final result can only be described as stunning, and theres absolutely no chance of this Blue Mink finish disintegrating like the original Ford colour used to. Tony could then get on with the enjoyable, if slightly stressful, fitting up stage of the build. Despite the outward look of a period Anglia, 38

March 2011

March 2011

39

anglia 105E

twin-cam terror

Like the rest of the car, theres very much a factory special look about the inside, thanks to Lotus Cortina seats, a Mk1 Capri centre console and a Lotus Europa steering wheel. Note the attention to detail in the custom badging. Its pretty much an all Lotus interior, right down to the genuine seatbelts which include the black badges. A Mk1 Lotus Cortina donated its speedo and rev counter which sit next to aftermarket and original gauges.

with new or as-new parts used, there was no way tony was going to scrimp on the details

Tony and his freshly-finished pride and joy. The car owes its immaculate Blue Mink paintjob to a painter that normally sprays Ferraris for a living.

the running gear is plenty up-to-date, making the handling and stopping a more modern experience. High-quality Milton kits improve the steering, suspension and brakes with other top companies like Wilwood and Burton all supplying parts. With either brand-new or as-new major components used, there was no way Tony was going to scrimp on the details and heres where hes really gone to town on the Anglia. Luckily hes an expert at sourcing rare spares. Some people chase women, he says. I chase old parts and am very good at it. Sometimes its a case of rummaging in every box at an autojumble, or I can scour the world on the internet. Examples on the Anglia are the Motorola radio found just down the road in Romford, and then there are the cork gaskets for the door handles they came from New Zealand. Much of the chrome is either new or as-good-as-new collected over many years.
It may look period on the outside, but underneath its a different story with a Milton-supplied front end set up.

Badge Of Honour

The cream of Tonys buys are his Anglias badges though. Black Lotus ones (reputedly

used on some Lotuses after Jim Clarks death in 1968) are complemented by a black badge gearknob made out of a lapel pin bought on the net. The badge was just a bit too big and I spent hours filing down the edge, Tony reports. Best of all is the one-of-a-kind Twin Cam bonnet badge, computer designed by Tonys friend Terry and made up by Classic Capsule. Other less obvious but equally important details are a period sprung roof aerial that took lots of sourcing and very rare and expensive Cibie Biode headlamps with built-in dip and high beams. The most important ingredient in this recipe is, of course the Lotus engine. The overbored L-block is fitted with forged Accralite pistons and a 1600 Crossflow crank, the cams are special grind Piper L14s and the head was created by Neil Roper, an ex-Hart man with plenty of F1 experience. The motor was built up by Steve, who Tony has always told us is the finest engine builder he knows. He backs this up with dyno figures of 158 bhp and 140 lb.ft of torque. That compares to an all-steel Crossflow we saw on the same dyno, the same day, says Tony.

At the rear its more Milton stuff with an A-frame kit used to support the Quaife LSD that lives inside the alloy diff housing.

40

March 2011

March 2011

41

anglia 105E

i wanted a car that the ford engineers would have turned out

Genuine Magnesium wheels are a nicely-suited period touch. The Twin Cam badge at the front was custom made to match the other Lotus badging.

Its figures were 160 bhp and 120 lb.ft Theres no-one like Steve on this planet if you ask me!

Noise Annoys

There were a couple of issues with the engine, though these were more engineering glitches, but they did mean that Steve insisted the whole

In the boot its as clean and period as you would expect.

lot came out and was stripped again, delaying the projects finish. One was that a first set of rings wouldnt bed-in properly, causing excess smoke. This was cured by an extra hone. The second was more worrying. A slight tappet noise. Nothing could be seen on stripdown so Steve decided hed put the engine back together, run it up and look for a witness mark to do the diagnosis after a second strip. Luckily, the noise lasted only a short while on revving the motor and then disappeared for good. Steve now presumes it was a very slight edge on a bucket that wore off pretty quick. And with that problem solved, Tonys Anglia was complete. I wanted a car that looked like something Fords engineers would have turned out as an experiment, he says. In my wildest dreams I didnt think it would turn out like this. The car drives as good as it looks too, he adds. My

wife Alison, has already got it sideways. A finished project with immaculate bodywork, performance, an incredible standard of workmanship, and all done in less than 12 months? Theres a few on this mag that should be looking pretty shamefaced next time they get down the workshop!

Tech Spec
Body
Restored 1967 105E Anglia Super shell, Cibie Biode headlamps, black Lotus badges, bespoke Twin Cam bonnet badge, boot-mounted Sierra battery tray (bolt-in), bullet mirrors, brand-new stainless bolts and fixings throughout. Paint; Ford Blue Mink A3. Weight: 720 kg. LotusTwin Cam L -block, Neil Roper head (gasflowed, 1.62 inch inlets, 1.43 inch exhaust), steel buckets, Piper special grind L14 high-lift cams, Cosworth head gasket, Accralite 83.5 mm forged pistons, 1600 Crossflow crank, 125E shotpeened and stress-relieved rods, ARP large stud conversion and aircraft-spec bolts, all balanced and lightened, double-dowelled lightened flywheel, Vernier timing pulleys, twin Weber 40 carburettors, Aldon distributor, Lumenition ignition, Lotus Cortina 4-2-1 exhaust manifold, 105Speed stainless exhaust system, custom radiator (Lotus Cortina core), 10 inch Kenlowe fan, Burton Power water pump with removable module, Facet fuel pump, Filter King fuel filter/pressure regulator, Fiesta (Mitsubishi) alternator, brass unions on all connections. Power: 158 bhp @ 7100 rpm, 140 lb.ft @ 4700 rpm.

Transmission

Engine

Suspension

2000E gearbox (fitted with Sierra baulk rings and hubs on first and second,Transit hubs on third and top), Lotus Cortina Spares Centre quickshift, heavy-duty Borg & Beck clutch kit, Milton gearbox crossmember, 105Speed prop (shortened 10 mm), original Anglia axle casing, 3.54:1 crownwheel and pinion, Quaife ATB gear-driven LSD, alloy diff housing. Front: 2.25 inch coil-overs, Milton fully adjustable top-mounts, Group 4 alloy front hubs, Milton anti-roll bar, strut brace and rack conversion, Lotus Cortina steering arms, adjustableTCAs. Rear: Milton A-frame rear axle location kit, Milton weld-in turrets, adjustable dampers, standard springs, polybushed throughout. Wilwood billet alloy four-pot front callipers, Fiesta rear discs, Sierra callipers, Sierra 4x4 handbrake cable, Milton fitting kit, Girling Mk2A remote servo. Magnesium Minilites, with Falken 175/60R13 ZIEX tyres, standard steel spare.

Interior

Thanks

Mk2 Lotus Cortina tip-and-recline front seats trimmed with non-basket weave (Capri) material, AldridgeTrimming repro door cards, original rear cards and back seat, Lotus Europa Chapman signature steering wheel, Mk1 Lotus Cortina rev counter and speedo, split oil temperature/oil pressure gauge, customised Capri Mk1 centre console, Mk2 Cortina toggle switches, Escort Mexico interior mirror, black headlining, Lotus Cortina belts, period Motorola radio, black-badge gearknob, repro rear window sticker. SteveThomas for all his help and skill (www. motechvehicleservices.co.uk), Alio at Accident Repair Centre for the paint (020 8806 7111), Neil McCarty, Barry at Burton Power, John Blythe at Goldendays, Charlie at CTM Performance, Milton, Neil Roper for the head work, Randall Motorsport,Terry Bowyer for front badge graphics, Kerry Sealy at the AVO Owners Club, John Prior for the wiring loom, Ray Gimbert for the bootlid, Windsor Signs & Graphics, Classiccapsule.com for front badge manufacture,and my wife, Alison, who will be the Anglias main pilot.

Brakes

Wheels And Tyres

42

March 2011