Ford Cortina-Lotus Mk II: Jim McKeown, Rallying and The Marathon

Image thanks to the Shannons Club & the Jim McKeown Collection

In an age when big V8s were throwing their formidable weight around in touring car racing, Jim McKeown and his Ford Cortina-Lotus Mk II stood tall for the little guys.

Jim built a great reputation racing and developing his fierce Lotus-Cortina Mk I throughout the mid-‘60s, winning state touring car championships and engraving his name on the top of the record sheets at circuits around the country.

When it came time to move on from the Mk I the logical progression was to follow performance trends and jump into a big bad V8. Jim’s long-standing contract with Shell, however, would preclude him from making the jump.

It didn’t preclude him from attaining motorsport glory in a Ford Cortina-Lotus Mk II, however, and you can find out what the pair got up to in Ford Cortina-Lotus Mk II: Jim McKeown, Rallying and The Marathon at the Shannons Club.