Posts Tagged ‘ford’

WRX Wannabe – 1974 Ford Capri

January 2, 2011

As long as people have been driving old cars, they’ve been updating them to match contemporary trends. That’s how you get 1950s sports cars in beautiful brown with shag carpet and vinyl seats. And it seems that, love it or hate it, the recent interest in “patina”, even if that means worn around the edges, we’ve started realizing that in the long run, putting shag and brown paint on your car is not worth the effort. So it’s weird when you see WRX blue on a classic car, even if it does kind of work on some of the 1970s designs. Find our car in eastern Oregon for $900.

Ford Capri right rear

That said, given this car already has what it’s got, I’d say go all out and find some 1970s wheels… gold mesh wheels so you’re going with that blue/gold theme, but keeping it period. The Rostyle wheels are actually pretty cool on this car, but once you’ve updated the paint, keeping the other stuff the same is not the greatest option. The good news is, the bolt pattern cross references to old Alfas and probably other Fords, so you’ve got a ready choice of good wheels if you can’t find one from another old Capri.

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One Thing Leads To Another – 1982 Ford Mustang GT

March 18, 2010

Given my recent crack about backwards-ballcap-types driving Fox-body Mustangs, I figured the proper act of contrition would be to feature one. After all, there has to be something good in a car if it has such massive appeal. I also have to admit there’s something fun which I’ve never explored in having a common classic, for which there are a plethora of aftermarket parts to create your own version. And hey, I’ve never owned a V8-powered car – some people would say I haven’t really lived yet.

As I was looking through Mustangs, I found the best deals were available on the earlier cars. You might assume this is because in the early 1980s, the new smog rules and the recent fuel crisis were still having pretty serious impacts on cars’ power outputs. However, by 1982, Ford had already reinstated the 302 ci V8 in the Mustang, producing 157hp (competitive with, say, an Alfa GTV6). Using the aforementioned aftermarket parts, or simply upgrades from later models, you shouldn’t have a hard time going beyond this if you want. And you get to have the clean, square simplicity of the earlier Fox-body cars, before the redesign made it look like a microwaved stick of butter. Find today’s car in Omaha, NE for $3500.

1982 Ford Mustang GT left

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Euro Ford Fever – 1987 Merkur XR4Ti plus bonus Capri

February 2, 2010

Along with the Alfa Milano and Peugeot 405 Mi16, the Merkur XR4Ti imported by Ford in the second half of the 80s is an under-appreciated alternative to more common cars in its category, such as E30 BMW 3-series or M3, Mercedes 190E 2.3-16, and Saab/Volvo turbos. It’s got unusual styling that was very modern in the 80s, keeping up with the baby Benz but making the 3-series and Swedes look very dated. Nonetheless, it did not get the same kind of popular appreciation, no doubt thanks to poor marketing on the part of Ford/Lincoln-Mercury, who were as excited about pushing high-margin floaty-boats like the Town Car and Cougar (couldn’t sell a car with that name nowadays!) as they were in the days of, say, the Capri.

As with many under-appreciated cars, good examples are hard to find. I’ve been keeping my eyes open for a clean example of one of these for many moons now, and this is the first one I’ve found which I would take seriously. Most are project cars that have blown turbos, missing exhaust components, and faded paint. The bonus of being under-appreciated is that even the really nice cars are affordable, and this one seems to be a case in point. Behold, for $2500, this solid looking example in Mesa, AZ. With only 123K miles and running great, it looks like a decent deal.

1987 Merkur XR4Ti front

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