Ford Cortina ranked as UK’s most-wanted revival as drivers demand return of classic cars

Packed with nods to the previous 2CV, Citroen confirmed that it would be releasing a variant of the electric city car for around €15,000 (£12,570) in the near future.

New research has found that the Ford Cortina is the historic model that most drivers would want to see reissued.

More than one-third (35 per cent) of survey respondents said they would like to see the Ford Cortina return to Britain’s streets.

Although the Cortina was only in production for 20 years, it became a staple of UK roads, becoming Britain’s best-selling car of the 1970s.

Over one million Cortina models were produced at the brand’s Dagenham factory, with a starting price of just £639 in 1962.

Designer Terry Beckett chose the name Cortina in reference to the 1960 Winter Olympics, which were held in Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Italian Alps.

The model became an instant success in the UK before production ended in the 1980s, when the Cortina was replaced with the Sierra.

Another popular classic that was challenging the Cortina in the sales rankings was the MGB, which 25 per cent of people would like to see return.

This was followed by the Ford Fiesta (18 per cent), which only ended production in 2023, the TVR Sagaris (12 per cent) and Austin 1100/Morris 1100 (10 per cent).

Ian Reid, global content director at Carwow, said: “Classic car revivals are rooted in nostalgia, with an understanding of the features that made those models so popular.

“However, our research suggests that drivers want the character of the original model with the functional technology that makes it relevant to how we drive today, which is why EV revivals are becoming increasingly common.”

The Carwow data also uncovered that 25 per cent of people thought the 1970s was the best decade for classic cars, only slightly ahead of the 1960s (24 per cent).

Survey respondents between the ages of 62 and 80 preferred 1970s vehicles the most, compared to 24 per cent of 30-45-year-olds and 36 per cent of 46-61-year-olds who preferred the 1990s.

In terms of the vehicles that had the most successful comeback, the Ford Puma is now the best-selling vehicle in the UK, having been so for the last two years.

So far this year, the Ford Puma has registered just under 43,000 new models, beating the Jaecoo 7 in second place by almost 3,500 sales.

The list of most successful automotive comebacks also praises the popular Renault 5 E-Tech, Land Rover Defender and Ford Capri.

Mr Reid continued, saying: “When we look at some of the most successful comebacks, they execute this perfectly.

“Models such as the Renault 5 E-Tech and, this week at the Paris Motor Show, we’ve seen Citroen take the beloved 2CV and reinterpret it as a modern EV, retaining the same recognisable design elements while introducing new technology and safety features.”