Wouldn’t it be amazing if Mercury was still around, and some of the same tactics that gave birth to cars like the Capri 5.0 were employed today? While realizing some of these decisions back in the middle 80s ultimately led to Mercury’s declining popularity in the U.S., the absence of an American luxury car maker with its own performance vehicle has been felt. The Capri shown here on craigslist is a bit of a running project but it looks pretty close to being a reliable weekend driver. The seller is asking $8,500 OBO.
Thanks to Barn Finds reader Tony Primo for the tip. The Capri originally came to the lineup as a captive import that was as cool as the example shown here. Ironically, the first run of the Capri was a muscle car in its own right, just not in the traditional American sense. These days, our enthusiast counterparts overseas still fawn over clean Capris like we go crazy over minty Fox bodies. However, American muscle car enthusiasts seem less interested in a V8-equipped Capri such as this one despite its excellent street machine credentials and oddball appeal.
And like a lot of domestic new model offerings, the initial intro was slightly muddy, with Mercury including luxury-oriented trims as well as an RS Turbo. By the time this 1985 model rolled out, Ford had finally gotten the 5.0L V8 under the hood and addressed the other features muscle car fans favor (big front air dam with fog lamps, 10-hole alloy wheels, sport seats, a 3-spoke steering wheel, and so on.) But by this point, there’s really no luxury to speak of and it’s simply a Ford Mustang with a different nose panel and badge.
So how do you make the justification for buying a Capri over a Mustang? Well, it comes down to the individual. If you’re tired of seeing rows of Mustangs at your local car meet, a Capri is an easy way to march to the beat of your own drummer without incurring the penalty of obscure parts and body panels. The Capri will raise a few eyebrows and questions while still being extremely easy to live with. This example sports the carb’d version of the 5.0L, good for 210 b.h.p. and 265 lb.-ft. of torque. The seller notes it runs well but will need paint at some point. Would you go for the rare Capri or stick with a conventional Mustang?
These are good runners w the 4V H.O 302, and stick. Buddy had a Mustang same setup. Nice Mercury interior, and square front end.
Some of the BF readers already have or had one of these and have shared the pros/cons already. As such, I’ve always believed these to be a good mix of American and German builds. Would prefer one of these to the same vintage Mustang for that reason and too that they’re more distinctive accordingly.
If it’s solid it’s worth giving a good hard once over in person.
GLWTS
They had the right idea with that rear bubble of a hatch, but then they ruined it with that slab of a front end. They should have kept the Mustang leading edge. Otherwise this is a decent example but even though it’s got a 5 liter V8 and four speed, Fox Mustangs/Capris don’t really move the meter for me.