![]() Its release would create a whole new niche market. With fingers crossed and hopes high, they were about to unleash a sporty little coupe on the American road. While the engines were strong and reliable, they came from a period when things like valve adjustments and regular tune-ups were part of the maintenance schedule.April 17, 1964, was an exciting day for many at the Ford Motor Company. Because the Capri is unlikely to ever become a serious collector car, replacing the seats with aftermarket models doesn't materially affect its value. The seats split and the dashboards crack, although kits are available to fix this. Better to find a car that is solid and strong and worry about the rest later. Because the last Capris came into America at the end of 1977, these are quite old cars by now and parts sources, especially body parts, have begun to dry up. The good news is that if you find a car with a solid chassis, any of the engines from any of the years will shoe-horn into the commodious engine bay. ![]() Unfortunately, much of this corrosion is structural in nature and many of the cars you will look at when looking for a Capri will be worthless for anything but a parts car. The Capri continued on in Europe, where it remained a popular car right until its demise in 1986. More than a half-million Capris had been imported between 1970 and the end of 1977 and in some ways the German import had helped keep Lincoln Mercury dealers afloat through the energy crises and automotive upheavals of the '70s. Unfortunately, with the dollar weak against European currencies, and the Capri suddenly looking like real competition for the soon-to-come new Mustang in 1979, Ford decided to pull the plug on the Mercury Capri at the end of 1977. The Capri was successful and almost no changes were made for the 1977 model year. A 2.3-liter four-cylinder model was also offered, but for most the V6 was the engine of choice. On the plus side, things like side-impact door beams and front and rear crash worthiness were dramatically improved and the car still handled pretty well, especially when compared to other cars of the day. Curb weight for a Capri II V6 was up to 2,800 pounds, while a fully optioned Capri II Ghia V6 model was a non-too-svelte 2,996 pounds. The body had grown larger, more curvaceous and luxurious than sporty and had a hatchback that improved practicality. Despite its shortcomings, the press and the public liked the car and more than 15,000 were sold in the States between April of 1970 and the launch of the 1971 models in the fall.Ĭapri IIThe 1976 model year saw the introduction of the Capri II. There was method in Ford's madness the four-cylinder Pinto was new to Ford's dealer showrooms and probably couldn't stand the competition the sporty European Capri would bring. True, many of these same dealers had recently been given the Pantera to sell, but that Italian-built supercar hadn't made much impression on guys who were used to selling Lincoln Continentals to blue-haired retirees. But a more formidable obstacle was Ford's decision to sell the car through its Lincoln Mercury dealers. This didn't make the car that much quicker than a Volkswagen Beetle, somewhat betraying its obviously sporty looks. First of all, it was pretty anemic, weighing in at 2,135 pounds and pushed along by a 75-hp, 1,600cc four-cylinder engine borrowed from the British Ford Cortina sedan. A car for the timesThe early Capri had two big strikes against it.
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