Ford Escort & Capri

Magazine Subscription

Subscribe to Classic Motoring Magazine and save over 20%

Subscribe NOW

Available at all good newsagents including WHSmith

Working class classics but with upper class prices, originality is main concern

Why buy?

Pure and simple 60’s fun, Ford’s Capri and Escort are in a class of their own providing memory lane motoring yet with easy DIY potential but values are starting to soar to silly levels. DRIVING Sporting Escorts are pure old school driving delights and can be further tuned and improved. Capris are always best in muscular V6 guise, 2.8i is quite sophisticated and very fast.

What to pay

The days of cheap and cheerful fast family Fords are history, especially GT and RS models. Top Capris and Escorts, generally Mk1s, can sell for £25,000 upwards while anything with a sporting history can easily top five figures!

General

Check out as many as possible as standards vary, as will originality and as a result watch for RS fakes. Ex-pressed Steel is producing panels and Harris is making new Mk2 bodies available.

Body and chassis

Vet the MacPherson strut top mounting, inner wings, inside edges of the bonnet and the area around the grille. The A-posts similarly corrode. Check fit of each door where it meets the B-post to determine body state. Bodged sills common.

Engine

V6: oil pump is driven from the distributor by a hexagonal shaft which sometimes breaks. Another weak point is their fibre timing gear plus some parts are becoming hard to obtain. Pinto units can become tappety but easy to fix; Kents sturdy but become noisy.

Transmission

There’s a good chance second gear will be worn. Vibration signifies the propshaft centre bearing has worn.

Suspension and brakes

The bushes in the inner track control arm anchorage break up, leading to a shudder through the steering. Wheel wobble on Capris extremely common and hard to cure.

Best model?

RS and GTs

Worst model?

Fakes and rusties

Budget buy?

No sporting Mk2 Capri

Ok for unleaded?

Needs an additive usually

Spares situation?

Reasonably good

Diy ease?

It’s an old school Ford

Club support?

Very good

Appreciating asset?

Yes, especially RS models