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The about bloody time Capri resto thread - resto done! We are on the road!


Tamworthbay

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Just never got around to starting a thread on my Capper project, been at it for a couple of years. I will put some old pics up when I dig them out. It was MoTed when I bought it (just) but was a bloody death trap. It’s now mechanically and structurally solid but needs a fair bit of work to finish. Hardest part was sorting the passenger side rear arch which had been cut about badly by the previous owner. More info when I think about it. Bet the pics are upside down (good old apple)post-19712-0-79412200-1523711506_thumb.jpegpost-19712-0-96212700-1523711527_thumb.jpegpost-19712-0-94505200-1523711547_thumb.jpegpost-19712-0-83402000-1523711579_thumb.jpeg

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Has the makings of a nice one that. Whats the interior like?

Immaculate, it only had three owners before me and the middleone bought it to sell on. It’s the very end of the L line so is a weird mix. It has GL style seats with headrests but the L doorcards povo spec centre tray instead of the full length console. It is in a very rare colour - Imperial red. That makes it even weirder as the cost for metallic paint on an L would br8ng it to with a few quid of a GL which would have the metallic paint as well as loads of other extras. Because of this and some other info I think it was a dealer show car and then sold on. The original owner had it years and used to tow a trailer tent to Cornwall every year with it apparently. As far as I can determine it’s the only Imperial red Capri left but there may be others. I would like to pit it back on steels but haven’t found any in my miserly budget yet.
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Sweet! It’s the mk3 successor to mine being Base spec! I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a Capri in that shade before tbh.

I must admit, I love basic Capri’s, they’re much less ‘fussy’ without body side trims and vinyl roofs etc etc. It makes them look cleaner and you can see the nice shape of the car better. No rubber boot spoiler either.

 

Looks in decent condition really. How bad was the rot?

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Sweet! It’s the mk3 successor to mine being Base spec! I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a Capri in that shade before tbh.

I must admit, I love basic Capri’s, they’re much less ‘fussy’ without body side trims and vinyl roofs etc etc. It makes them look cleaner and you can see the nice shape of the car better. No rubber boot spoiler either.

Looks in decent condition really. How bad was the rot?

Mine had the side trims, still unsure whether to put them back or not. And I have to admit I love the rubber boot spoiler! The rust was in the usual places, front wings went (should have saved them with hindsight) and repairs done to the sill ends behind them and local repairs in the A pillars. Front panel needed a bit of work, couple of tiny patches in the headlamp bowls. Local repairs in the floor, only tiny ones and a couple near the spring hangers which were small but complicated as three panels come together there. Both rear arches needed work, drivers side had been bodged with fibreglass by the lads so that was easy to strip and sort properly. Passenger side has been the nightmare, the morons had drawn around the repair panel and cut to that then fitted it appallingly. It had to come out but left nothing to work to so I had to build the whole thing back up, it took a hell of a lot of time. Mechanically it has had a fair bit including a full brake rebuild front and rear. It still needs a clutch but I have a 2.0 so may drop that in.
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small but complicated as three panels come together there.

I hate that stupid forward facing overlap that ford decided put in that area probably being the start of the rot, I repaired the same place on mine

 

That's a nice colour, I broke one in that shade it had been resprayed though it was a modified Ls that started white, looks a good project

 

I reckon leave the bump strips off they look much cleaner without them

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EFA - Stoke on Trent, and the Ford dealer there was Cowies.

 

Remember the Capri LS? It was a sort of budget Capri S but came as a 1600 and had wider versions of the multi hole Mark 3 Escort steels. 

 

Never seen that colour before on a Capri but it was fairly common on early Sierras.

They did a few different ones as the model got a bit ‘old’ to the mainstream. Like the calypso and cameo. I always liked the Laser models and lusted after one, in reality they were no different to my 2.0GL but looked better.
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Like the calypso and cameo. 

 

 

'Two new Capris to make a song and dance about'.  Calypso and Cabaret iirc.

 

I can remember the GT4 as well, they were 1600 with some red stripes on.

 

Never liked the Laser because I don't like those later RS alloys that much or the side decals.

 

 

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Christ! Looking at your ‘in progress’ shots brings it all back from mine! Distressingly familiar!

 

 

Thinking about this I reckon the good used door I got off eBay for mine was in this shade of red. It’s a superb frame so I got a new skin for it but in this shot of mine you can still see the red on the frame. What do you think?

 

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Blow me down, you're right - there was a Capri Cameo.

 

 

 

I'd forgotten that. Proper L with misery wheels.

  It don’t even get a parcel shelf, true povo spec that makes the L look like a Roller

Christ! Looking at your ‘in progress’ shots brings it all back from mine! Distressingly familiar!

Thinking about this I reckon the good used door I got off eBay for mine was in this shade of red. It’s a superb frame so I got a new skin for it but in this shot of mine you can still see the red on the frame. What do you think?

attachicon.gifE33A2ED6-7610-4FE8-912A-FED83A248847.jpeg

Could be, there are a couple of similar colours and Ford also reused the name on a very similar colour a few years back. Yours certainly looks close. It’s must richer when fresh. If I get a second I will take a pic of the colour when it’s new so you can compare. I have found pics of one other Capri in the same colour but checking the pate shows it hasn’t seen the road since the late 80s so mine could well be the last one unless someone knows better.
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It was up for sale for 8k which I thought was a fair price hes not selling now though as he is giving it to his granddaughter when she is old enough to drive, its low mileage with a huge paper trail of its life including original bill of sale it wasn't perfect but very easy to make it so, I went to pick up some wheels off him a very nice chap let me look at his toys while we were talking crap over a brew

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This thread reminded me something my partner's Dad told me.  He worked in car hire for a very, very long time and was South East manager for one of the larger firms before changing careers.

 

Apparently one of the companies he used to work for (on the South coast) used to have Cortinas and Capris.  Both 1300s.  Stupidly, they charged the same for either car.  His general rule of thumb was that if somebody really wanted the Capri, they're the last person you should actually rent a Capri to.  Unfortunately, his colleagues didn't really understand what he meant and they used to come back in with the corners nicely rounded off on a regular basis...

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£8000 for a beige 1300 Capri?

 

Jesus.  :shock:

They have just gone stupid. Three or four years ago £2k was a decent useable car, £5k was a show car, now its £5-7k for something presentable and £10-20k for a show car. I was lucky and got in just in time. This one won’t be sold as I will never afford another if I do.
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Is the Laser his as well?

Yep it's his mrs daily, he has a v6 track car with nitrous and he is restoring a 2.8i shell, iirc he is 67 he gets on forums I told him about this place while I was there as he would fit right in

 

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As yourself I bought my laser before the huge hike in prices, all of my fords were bought before the dreaded omg old ford or rs tax was applied

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EFA - Stoke on Trent, and the Ford dealer there was Cowies.

 .

Where in stoke was cowies I don't remember that one? I remember Appleyards (rs dealer where mrs fps escort rs was from) Newcastle under lyme, chatfields hanley, king ford fenton

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