The 1976 Cortina was so much of a German Ford Taunus that it was almost impossible for a non-specialist to distinguish them one from another.

Ford U.K. and Ford Germany combined their forces under the new Ford of Europe name and jointly developed Cortina's third generation, and their efforts paid off.

Ford introduced the second generation of the Cortina model in 1966, and it rocketed to the top of the sales chart faster than anyone else.

The Cortina was one of the most important vehicles from the '60s British car industry. It was the car that paved the way to sport-compact coupe vehicles.