Perana — every.autos

Ford-approved South African performance-car identity developed by Basil Green Motors, combining production-grade engine conversions with chassis, brake and suspension engineering

PE Identity / Register monogram

8models on record

1968–1991recorded span

Model activity by decade

1960s1990s

2 limited editions

420 total units across the few-off lineage

All limited editions →

About the marque

Founded: 1968 – 1991
Country: South Africa

Johannesburg engineer and racer Basil Green established the Perana name in 1968 with a Ford Cortina Mk2 conversion powered by the three-litre Essex V6. Its speed, factory-like integration and competition success brought close cooperation with Ford South Africa: Peranas were sold through Ford dealers with Ford warranties, and later Capri shells were prepared by Ford before Basil Green Motors completed them. The range expanded through rare Capri V6 and famous Windsor-V8 Capri, two-litre Escort, Mk3 Cortina V6, Granada V8, Escort XR3 and final Sapphire 3.0/3.4 programs. Perana was neither a stock Ford trim nor a generic aftermarket kit; it identified repeatable, marketed Basil Green production conversions with substantial drivetrain and chassis development. Donor marque and model remain explicit in every record, and ordinary Ford production is not duplicated. The company later continued as a Ford dealer and performance specialist, while the historically documented Perana production lineage culminated with the 1991 Sapphire program.

Text adapted from “Perana” on Wikipedia ↗ · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗

Catalog

8 models

Ford Cortina Mk2 Perana V6

First Perana production model, based principally on the Cortina GT and sold through Grosvenor Motors with the standard Ford warranty. Basil Green…

Ford Capri Perana V6

Rarest early Perana and probably the first V6 Capri, advertised publicly but never progressing beyond very low-rate pre-production. Ford's subsequent…

20 builtCURATED

Ford Capri Perana V8

Best-known Perana and the only V8 Capri officially approved as a Ford product. Ford Port Elizabeth built specially prepared engine-less cars, which…

400 builtCURATED

Ford Escort Mk1 Perana 2.0

Created at Ford South Africa's request when one hundred RS1600s proved ill-suited to local servicing. Basil Green substituted the simpler Pinto…

Ford Cortina Mk3 Perana V6

Rare second Cortina Perana generation and the first Mk3 V6 Cortina in South Africa, preceding Ford's own Cortina Big Six. The accessible register…

Ford Granada Perana V8

Based first on Granada 3.0 GXL and later Ghia donors. Ford evaluated exported examples for European production and Lee Iacocca used one, but the oil…

Ford Escort XR3 Perana 1600

Unlike earlier Peranas, retained the donor engine displacement and achieved its gain through induction, camshaft and exhaust development. Period test…

Ford Sapphire Perana 3.0 / 3.4

Final historical Perana family, developed from Basil Green's personal Sapphire. Both versions received suspension and exhaust revisions; the 3.4…