From The Classifieds: 1970 Ford Capri GT

Although the Ford Capri convertible from the late 1980s is a dwindling memory for a growing number of Australians, even fewer will remember the first Ford Capri, a two-door coupe that arrived here in 1969.

Described in some quarters as a two-door sedan, the original Capri is unarguably, by today’s frames of reference, a coupe.

It was styled by Philip Clarke, who was part of the team that designed the original Ford Mustang, and derived from the Ford Cortina with the intention of being a sort of
Euro pony car with its long-bonnet, snub-tail looks.

In the UK and Europe, the Capri came with a variety of powerplants including inline four-cylinders and V4s, and culminated in a collection of V6s ranging in capacity – depending on the market – from 2.0 litres to 3.1 litres.

The smaller “Cologne” V6s – displacing 2.0, 2.3 and 2.6 litres – were consigned to Europe while the bigger “Essex” 3.0 and 3.1-litre V6s were built essentially for the British market.

Locally, Ford Australia committed to assembling Capris at its Sydney plant in Homebush from 1969, with the initial line-up including 1.6-litre inline four-cylinder GT and Deluxe models. The base Deluxe, which was available with four-speed manual or three-speed automatic transmission, squeezed out just 56kW and 131Nm, while a bit of tweaking saw the four-speed manual-only GT version producing 69kW/137Nm.

An XL model followed in 1970, using the GT’s powerplant and listing a three-speed auto as an option. In the same year, Ford Australia unveiled the Essex 3.0-litre V6 powered GT 3000 model with 107kW/260Nm and a four-speed manual transmission only. An auto came later.

As road cars, the Capris were pretty nimble for their time. And possibly the best-balanced of all was the 1.6-litre four-cylinder GT which benefitted from a more favourable weight distribution than the V6 models, as well as a more tied-down suspension that complemented the extra grunt over the base Deluxe.

The chassis, typical of the time, was pretty basic with MacPherson struts at the front and a leaf-spring, live axle at the rear. Braking was by front discs and rear drums.

The Capri was an early adopter of enlightened driver ergonomics with its clear and intuitive control layout and comfortable driving position.
On the racetrack, the Capri was a star. Among the European drivers that took Capris to success were Germany’s Dieter Glemster and Jochen Mass, who took out successive Driver’s titles in the 1971 and 1972 European Touring Car Championships.

It was successful on-track locally too, particularly in the hands of driver Barry Seaton who started a rush to Capris as he took on the dominant Mazda rotaries that had had things pretty much their own way in under 3.0-litre touring car racing in the early 1970s.

And so we come to this tasteful V6-engined 1970 Capri GT on sale through carsales.com.au for an asking price of $30,000.

The car, which has been in the hands of the current owner for the past 38 years, moves a little way from being entirely original with a five-speed twin-clutch transmission and four-wheel disc brakes, but not too far.

The “recently reconditioned, with unleaded heads, and a new carburettor” 3.0-litre V6 engine is claimed to be the same one in the car when it was new, while the interior looks extremely well presented with an aftermarket sports steering wheel and some splashes of wood trim on the dash. The engine bay looks totally tidy too.

Rightly, the owner, who lives in Toongabbie in NSW, says first-generation Capris in good condition are “becoming very rare.”

It’s unlikely you’d readily find a more presentable first generation Capri in Australia.