Launched in January 1969 the Capri was unashamedly aimed at a style-conscious generation. In just 18 years the European answer to the Ford Mustang sold nearly two million units and achieved iconic status with its target audience.
There were no less than 26 derivatives and a mixture of engines – 1.3 , 1.6 and 2.0 four-cylinder units and a 3. 0 V6. Custom packs allowed a degree of personal customising that broke new ground in the industry, as the advertiselent above indicates. For the serious drivers there was the Cologne-built RS2600 and the Halewood-built 124mph RS3100.
The Mk II launched launched in 1974 had smoother design lines and simplified option packs and appearances in TV shows such as Minder and The Professionals kept the model in the public celebrity game.The last car left the line in December 1986. Pictured above is the late Andrew Hamilton, when he was motoring editor of the Irish Times, receiving a miniature replica of the first Capri while on the launch of the Focus ST, to mark the fact that he had been at the original launch of the Capri. The picture was taken by Car+Travel's Trish Whelan with her phone's camera, as the presentation was a surprise and nobody had a camera at the event.
The Capri was appropriate because Andrew had recently voted it as his 'favourite Ford of all time', according to a Ford spokesman.
Advt
