My Capri II is another car I picked up for $400.00, which is the approximate price point of several memorable cars in my past, and for the use I got out of it, it was money well spent. The picture above is the sole photo I have of the car, and that’s me on the hood. From my clothes and hair, you might guess it was taken in the mid-1990s.
After selling my Accord, I had been living in San Francisco for a while without a car. Between scarce parking and heavy traffic, SF is not an easy city to own a car in, and I’d been getting by renting a car whenever I needed – on one vacation my girlfriend and I spent a memorable week traveling to Las Vegas, Death Valley, and Yosemite in an unmemorable rental Pontiac Grand Am. I’ve always had an eye for interesting cars, and when I came across a 1976 Capri II with a 2.8 V6 and a 4-speed (the top powertrain combo) with a for sale sign in the window, I was lured back into car ownership.
It was owned by a mechanic at a Ford dealer (the long-gone S&C Ford on Market street), and he’d picked up a new car and was selling his old one. It seemed in decent shape, with just a few rust spots on the hatch — the owner’s manual was still in the glovebox, and showed it had been sold new in San Francisco and had likely lived there all its life, and the car was free from the body rot typical of cars that had lived in harsher climates. After test driving it and giving it a close going over, I decided to buy it – talking the $450.00 asking price down to $400.00.
I was at least partially motivated by the inclusion of the V6 Capri in Road & Track’s 10 Best Enthusiast Fars for Under $5000.00. I had read that article when it came out, and had already had experience with two of the other cars on the list — I had earlier owned a 1978 Celica, and had fond memories of a Datsun 510 owned by my family.
Capris were built in both England and Germany and sold as a Ford in Europe but as a Mercury in the US through Lincoln-Mercury dealers. While my car said Mercury on the title I don’t think it had a single Mercury badge on it. The Capri II was a restyle that came out in 1975. The stamped vents and contour line on the side from the first generation were missing, and the car had grown by a few inches in each dimension. The Capri II was available with either the 2.3-liter inline-four or a 2.8 liter V-6. While these powertrain options were similar to what was available in the contemporaneous Mustang II, the lighter Capri made better use of them. Opting for a V6 on a Capri II gave one upgraded suspension, wider tires, and a true dual exhaust (exiting through dual catalytic converters) which was very unusual in this era. And whereas the first-generation Capri had a trunk, the Capri II was a hatchback.
Standard, “Decor”, Ghia, and “S” trims were available. Mine was a V6 in standard trim, in white with caramel-colored vinyl upholstery and a folding rear seat where the rear seatback folded down as one piece. The Ghia and Decor packages offered upgraded interiors and a split folding back seat so either the left or right seatback could be folded separately.
The Base Capri II still came with an impressive complement of equipment.
The top-of-the-line S edition, advertised as “Le Cat Black” came in black, with the trim a mix of blacked out and gold – reminiscent of the John Player Special team cars of the time.
As a car-mad kid growing up in the 1970s, I was aware of the John Player Special racing team, but it wasn’t until visiting England later in life that I realized John Player was a cigarette company, and the black and gold livery was lifted from one of their cigarette packs. It was even later that I realized UOP and Elf were both oil companies.
The Capri was a fun car to drive. The V6 was more than adequate to move the car and produced a nice growl. The 4-speed had long throws but shifted very positively, and it was very satisfying to work the car through the gears. It handled nicely, and the ride was firm but comfortable. The overall driving experience seemed a mixture of opposites — a bit like a scaled-down V8 American pony car, a bit of European coupe.
The interior wasn’t cavernous, but definitely comfortable for two and the back seat was usable with a third or fourth passenger. The hatchback was convenient and I recall hauling a large armchair home from a garage sale at one point. Both front seats were a bit worn and ripped, and the previous owner had swapped the driver and passenger seats to give the driver a less disheveled perch. This meant that the levers to lean each seat forward were on the inside of the seat backs rather than on the outside. It made it difficult for a back seat passenger to get in or out unless they knew the drill to reach to the inner edge of the seat to get in or out of the back seat, and it was often easier for me to just reach over and hit the lever to fold the seat forward.
The seatback releases (black rectangles above) were on the inside of the seatbacks on my Capri
Like many Fords of the era, the horn was on the tip of the lever that also operated the turn signals and high beams. I recall Ford Fairmonts & Fox-body Mustangs from the late 70s to early 80s also having this setup.
The windshield washer pump was foot-operated and located on the floorboard, in about the same spot where older American cars put the high beam switch. I wonder how often a new Capri driver tried to turn on their high beams and ended up with a squirt of washer fluid on their windshield.
I also remember feeling vaguely insulted when a friend mistook it for a Pinto.
After owning it for a while, the steering started developing a lot of play, and examining the car, it was evident the rag joint in the steering shaft was disintegrating. It was a fairly simple repair, but I couldn’t find a new rag joint at any of the auto part stores I contacted. After quite a bit of searching, I finally located a wrecked Capri II in a junkyard and pulled the entire steering shaft with a fairly intact rag joint from the car. I recall there being another car balanced atop the Capri in the wrecking yard, but thankfully I was able to get into the engine compartment of the Capri and pull my part without any disaster. Wrecking yards seemed a lot more haphazard then, and the pick-your-part format with cars parked in neat rows was not yet prevalent, at least around San Francisco. A quick web search leads me to believe this part is still hard to find, though I did locate a specialist who sells a urethane upgrade, as well as a discussion in an online board about adapting a rag joint repair kit from another car to a Capri.
An aftermarket steering coupler for a Capri — a part I was unable to find in the 1990s.
The disintegrating rag joint was not long after followed by disintegrating steering rack mounts, and locating parts was again a headache. It took visits to numerous auto parts stores and having the wrong parts ordered more than once before I was able to find a parts person who could even locate the correct parts to order. This was before computers were widespread in retail establishments, and the counterperson would typically flip through an immense rack of catalogs to find the part to order.
Sometime later, the car wouldn’t start in a parking lot. I was able to get a jump and get it home, and I swapped in a new battery, assuming that was the issue, but it continued to have periodic hard starts or no starts. It was time to do some diagnosis, and after digging out my multimeter and confirming that the battery was holding a charge and the alternator was charging it, I decided to pull the starter and have it tested – after lengthy parts searches on my last two repairs, I’d confirmed that I could, in fact, order a rebuilt starter for my car from a local parts store — perhaps the use of the 2.8 motor in the Mustang II made engine parts easier to find. At the time, I didn’t have a garage and did all my repairs on the street. I unhooked the battery, and being in my 20s and fairly limber, I slithered under the car without jacking it to pull the starter. Unbolting the starter cable, the problem became evident – the terminal where the battery cable attached to the starter was green and fuzzy with corrosion. With my pocket knife and some sandpaper, I cleaned up the terminal, getting it back to bright metal, and gave the stud on the starter where the cable mounted a good cleaning as well. After reconnecting everything, the starting problems were resolved. It’s always gratifying when a nagging problem has a simple solution, though at the time I wish I’d caught it before I had sprung for a battery. I’ve since had other instances where hard starting was traceable to a bad battery cable and if I were doing this repair today, I’d probably replace the battery to starter cable out of an abundance of caution.
Even after the rag joints and rack bushings, the front end was starting to get loose, and was probably due for a rebuild. I was enjoying owning a car again, especially for taking trips out of town, and after some thought, I decided to look for another car rather than sink money into the Capri. My frequent difficulty finding parts was a big contributing factor – I had visions of breakdowns out of town, and this was not the type of car for which a fuel pump or alternator would likely be in stock at a chain auto parts store on a Sunday afternoon. In the pre-internet era, it seemed the case that old or unusual cars that weren’t worth much would often be junked or parked for good simply because a part couldn’t be located. Another issue was that street parking in San Francisco required moving the car on a regular basis – often every few days, so any repair that kept the car from being drivable for more than a day or so risked a parking ticket at best and a tow at worst. I felt like I should unload the car while it was still running fairly well, so I took out an ad in a weekly classified paper and sold it to another young guy for the same $400 price I’d purchased it for, and started my search for another car.
Worth gold here now, Ford Capris are very collectable especially the V6 models, earlier models here had the 3 litre Essex from the MK4 Zephyr/Zodiac with higher compression heads they looked the part but a workmate who had one said his topped out at 106mph using timing equipment on a track so not particularly fast, but great looking cars and being a British Ford the parts were easy to get here.
I had not considered the problems with repairs when you need to frequently move a car for parking reasons. But then I have never lived in such an area.
I recall when these came out. I had been a fan of the original Capri, but always found the looks of the Capri II slightly off, somehow. And oh, how I remember scouring for parts in the days before the internet. Even a 1959 Plymouth in 1979 was a problem, like with the cartridge oil filter. And oh how I had wished my 66 Fury III (owned in the 80s) had been a 67, as so many parts books did not go back before 1967 with the LA 318, introduced one year after my car’s old-design 318 was built. Something like a Capri would have been worse without a large base to support a decent aftermarket.
The only parts issues I had was in my 77, Ghia was u joints/ drive line not available. Had to have custom made as joints we’re not replaceable. And the 2700VV carb. Great carb but bear to rebuild and pricey. About $600 in the 90s. Just changed to a Holley 390. Great car.
Terrific read about one of my favorite cars of the ’70s! I love reading about people who are handy with cars and can actually do their own repairs.
When the rag joint in my ’88 Mustang also disintegrated, I had no idea what a rag joint even was before then.
I also looked at a ’76 Capri II to buy in the early ’90s for about the same price. Our family mechanic said it was solid and would be a decent first car, but he also mentioned the potential challenge that getting parts could be.
I also just noticed that parked next to the driver’s side, there’s a first-generation Ford Probe – which (in the U.S. market, anyway) could be considered the Capri’s spiritual successor as a FoMoCo sporty coupe that wasn’t a Mustang.
Considering how many were around at the time, I haven’t seen one for many years. I’m afraid to ask, but where did they all go?
Unfortunately, nearly all of the Capris here in the U.S. rusted away years ago. My sister had a 74 V6 with every option but air conditioning. She got it lightly used as a dealer demo and was very happy with it. I was the one who bugged her endlessly to buy a V6 Capri, but when I finally got a chance to drive it, I thought it was less than stellar, the earlier V6 and even the 4 cylinder cars I felt were more fun. Her’s was finally junked when terminal rust ate away at the metal around the windshield.
Me? I would buy a 73 4 cylinder Capri in 1990 for $600. It was sitting on the back of a small BHPH lot. When I test drove it I checked it for problems knowing that down the road parts might be a problem. One high beam headlight didn’t come on so I assumed that I could easily fix the car after I bought it and have a unique winter beater. Well, I changed the high beams, on both sides for good measure, but it wasn’t a burned out headlight. So after a really good session of troubleshooting I determined the problem was a ” junction box ” for the electrical system. When I told the Mercury dealership that I needed part number XXXXX, they were dubious, but ordered the part. When it came in, I noticed for the 1st time that there were fuses on the underside of the part. Uh, oh. Nope, fuses were okay, it really was the junction box.
BTW, I don’t know for sure, but assume it was a factory option, there was a white counterpart to the John Player Special ” Black Cat “. Maybe because it wasn’t associated with a brand of cigarettes it isn’t as well known.
I did see one on a used car lot several years ago, but don’t recall seeing any others anytime recently.
In the mid ‘80s in the UK, there were a fair number of these, as they stayed in production for years and years. They really stood out, as a comparatively large fastback in a sea of small sedans typically powered by four cylinder engines. The V-6 versions were often equipped with various, often “special edition”, slightly flashy factory paint and stripe jobs. The cars and their younger male drivers carried roughly the same reputation as the late ‘70s Trans Am drivers did in the U.S.
I liked my two Capris, a ’76 bought new and when my brother wrecked that I searched and found a used ’77, a Ghia. Both v-6’s, both 4 speed. A competent cruiser and you didn’t see yourself at every other stop light. I added konis’, and either Stebro or Ansa exhaust to both. That v-6 sounded sweet. My parts buggaboo was the rubber gromets and clips in the shift linkage. Always haunting salvage yards for those. For many of the ancillary parts and switch gear, the ford dealer was cheaper than the Merc dealer.
Expensive car for its time. I traded in my ’72 510 2 door for my first one, a car I will always remember fondly, a car I wish I still had.
Slightly off topic, but I never had a ton of cars, and nothing exotic, but Wheeler Dealers has featured 3 of the 7 cars I’ve owned in my lifetime. The 510, the Supra mk II P-type, and a mustang. Maybe someday they’ll do a Subaru SVX, of which I’ve had two.
That indicator/horn/headlamp flash/main beam switch format has been a constant in Europe for years, from the late 1960s on, and is still with us, albeit the horn is now usually on the steering wheel pad and many main beams are now a fuller pull, rather than push away.
The foot operated wash/wipe – that’s new to me though.
Do not thing this was fitted on Euro Capri 2 s pre 1978 face lift but US specs were so far removed from Euro ones.
No experience of driving early Ford Capris but Mk 1 Euro Granadas also had the floor wash/wipe. There was a slider on the indicator stalk and two separate switches in the dashboard, but I can’t remember which controlled wiper speeds and which controlled side/headlights. What I do remember is how confusing it was to operate – having multiple switches in completely different locations for the same functions was a bit like patting your belly and head at the same time. From 1978 they all had a stalk for indicators/horn/main beam/flash, one for wipe/wash and a third for side/headlights which always felt like a stalk too many.
My MK I Ford Escort 1300XL had foot-operated wash/wipe. Made squirting the windows during a gearchange fun. Could have been worse and had a foot-operated parking brake too I guess…!
Mark 3 Cortinas started off with the foot wash/wipe too, in Australia at least. Later production cars like the one I had integrated the wash function into the wiper switch as a fourth position beyond slow and fast, which meant you’d get several sweeps across a dry screen before the washers came on. Not good.
Maybe it’s a mini-CC Effect, but I was walking down Market Street a few nights ago and noticed the ghost of the S&C Ford parking lot sign, next to the now-shuttered Lucky 13 bar. I was actually going to try and find some old photos of it to see what it looked like!
Nothing wrong with Pinto’s, don”t be offended. My first car was a ’73 Pinto. Only put in a timing belt in 50k or so miles. As long as it is before ’74 it was a good car and engine. Once the 2.0 became the 2.3 (made in the US, not Germany) it was junk.
I remember them being called “fun to drive”, “an electrical disaster”, and as I’m from western PA, “having lousy heaters”.
I liked the “prior to safety bumper” models.
My sister’s first car was a 1976 Capri II, in either 1986 or 1987. Hers had a 2.3L engine with a 4-speed. Being a car-crazy 13 or 14 year old, it didn’t take too long to get some test drives around the neighborhood, complete with learning how to drive a manual transmission. Unfortunately, a few years later someone made a left turn into the side of her and totaled the car.
Several years later I bought a 1985 BMW 318i. After driving it a bit, it occured to me that it and my sister’s Capri felt like long lost cousins.
An accomplished car. Better built than US Fords, although rust was worse in the salt bet to be sure. A brother had a II V6 4sp in the 70s. I’ll never forget riding with 3 other brothers from Harrisburg PA to Waltkins Glen NY. I saw 110-115 more than once (fortunately an excellent driver). Quiet euphoria for a 12 year old car nut!
A good looking little car .
Moms and Lawrence (R.I.P.) bought a pair in 1976, that yellow ocher that was popular then .
I remember it was an O.K. driver, neither special nor bad, it had firestone maypop 500 radials on it and one blew up in Maine was I was buzzing along at 85 MPH or so .
I’m sure the tinworms got it after four years in New England .
-Nate
Growing up and living in SF, I can relate to all the problems described in this article. No place to park, street sweeping enforcement every week. S&C Ford was one of two Ford Dealers in SF. The other was Hughson on Geary. Auto Row is all gone now.
Personally find this car more good looking than the original european Capri Mk2.
A far better option than Comet in the US, better design and faster.
Does anyone know where I can find a steering coupler for a 1976 Ford Capri?
My first car 76 Capri ii v6 also white with carmel. I’d taken my driver’s test early so I drove it to school on my 16th birthday. It was December in Nebraska and I had about 3 hours practice on a clutch. Alot of my friends raced at the time but there was only two of us girls had cars that could keep up. In 1986 I paid $1500 of my own money and my dad put another $1500 in pricey repairs in 4 months when I blew the engine. It was fun while it lasted. Thanks for the flashback