THE FORD CAPRI MK.I – RIGHT CAR, RIGHT TIME, RIGHT MARKET

This writer was recently re-watching the Capri launch film and marvelling at a) how the plot gave hope to all middle-aged Brylcreemed would-be lotharios and b) Ford's superlative marketing. The development costs amounted to £20 million, so nothing was left to chance with the launch of "The Car You Always Promised Yourself" on the 5th of February 1969. A PR fleet 1600 GT guest-starred in the groovy ITC series Department S, while "Capri Girls", clad in berets, orange miniskirts and Mary Quant wigs, hosted cocktail parties in Ford dealerships. The late 1960s were indeed another realm.

For many potential customers, the Capri represented a British Mustang. The fact it was introduced in the same year as the UK premiere of Bullitt cannot have harmed its chances. There were also engine choices to suit the junior sales rep and the MD alike. The initial power options were 1.3-litre or 1.6-litre units in standard or GT forms, augmented by the 2.0-litre V4 and six-cylinder 3.0-litre Essex units by the end of the year. Then there was the elaborate choice of trim levels, and for a modest £15, the "L Pack" gained you extra chrome trim and fake air extractors on the rear wings, plus a fuel cap lock.

The "X Pack" was more elaborate, including a dipping rear-view mirror, reversing lamps, bucket-style rear seating with a folding armrest and front reclining seats. Finally, GT owners could specify the "X-Pack" with a black bonnet, a leather-covered 'sports' steering wheel, Wipac auxiliary lights and naturally, Ro-Style wheels. After all, if you were prepared to spend £1,096 5d on a Capri 2000GT, it would be churlish not to invest another £79 12s 10d on the complete XLR package.

But no amount of sales campaigns or elaborate model hierarchy could have masked a poor product. Autocar believed the Capri 1600 GT was, “Really it is just a saloon with very sporty lines, but it does things without apparent effort much better than lots of so-called modern sports cars." They seemed even more taken with the 2-litre GT:

“We are an ultra-critical collection of drivers, but it was generally agreed that the Capri provides fast, safe and comfortable transport for what is by current standards, a very reasonable price.”

Nor did any other of the UK's 'Big Four' car manufacturers build a direct rival to the Capri. There was no equivalent Vauxhall and from the British Leyland empire, a Triumph Herald Coupe prototype never entered production. Meanwhile, Abingdon offered the B GT which debuted in October 1965 and proved so popular it increased the model's sales by more than 40%. But, even with the most optimistic of sales campaigns, an MGB GT could never have been considered "a full four-seater."

That left the Rootes Group's Arrow series Sunbeam Rapier, which predated the Capri by over a year, having made its bow in late 1967. Its styling, reminiscent of the 1964 Plymouth Barracuda, was undeniably striking and 1968 saw the launch of the H120, named for the in-house tuning firm Holbay. Rootes provided the outfit with a budget and power output targets. The result boasted a modified rear axle, a high lift camshaft, a four-branch exhaust, twin Weber 40DOCE carburettors, plus a close ratio gearbox.

On paper at least, the H120 seemed a ready competitor to the Capri 2000 GT with its s rear spoiler, Ro-style wheels and all-important side stripes. But the Sunbeam, perhaps unfairly, was sometimes perceived as middle-aged compared with the Ford. This writer also treasures the comment of one motoring scribe: "The Capri follows the toucan - lots of hollow beak and no back; the Rapier is like the peacock – lots of tail and not much beak." Nor was there a six-cylinder option for the Sunbeam or an equivalent to the Capri 1300. Dagenham intended the cheapest version to appeal to a customer base of motorists looking for a more dynamic-looking alternative to the Escort for just £890 7s 6d. And spending another £19 11s 9d on "sports wheels" might convince some neighbours you owned a 1300GT.

It was in 1971 that BL and Vauxhall finally introduced two potential Capri rivals, with the Morris Marina 1.8TC Coupe's engine having an MGB pedigree. A group test by Motor concluded it was the "easy winner among this quintet if you want maximum accommodation in a coupe of sorts." But it suffered from a rapid gestation and Leyland's ill-planned decision to install the Morris Minor's lever-arm dampers rather than MacPherson struts. Consequently, the first models suffered from chronic understeer.

The August 1971 edition of Car bluntly stated that as "a semi-sporting coupe," the flagship version "could hardly stand up to the Capri even in its 1600 form." The Daily Telegraph of the13th of October reported, "Owners of about 1600 early Morris Marinas 1.8 TC models are being asked by the makers to take their cars to dealers for modifications to improve handling." Had Leyland more development time the Marina, the 1.8TC might well have proved a viable alternative to the Capri.

As it was, Vauxhall's Firenza appeared to be a more formidable rival, with engines ranging from 1,159cc to 2-litre and attractively mid-Atlantic bodywork. Autocar thought the 1,975cc unit of the top-of-the-range 2000SL well-suited to a "fast, responsive touring car" and Motor believed it superior to the Ford in terms of ride, road noise, visibility, luggage accommodation and low-speed torque. In their opinion, the Capri had better fuel consumption, rear-seat space, interior appointments and gear change but in all other respects, the two were "fairly evenly matched."

But the Vauxhall with the "big, bold, brilliant shape" lacked a 3-litre option and was too Spartan for its intended market. Worse, as with the Morris, it bore a close resemblance to the parent model, both inside and out. The Firenza was obviously a modified Viva HC - a design mistake avoided by Ford. The Capri appeared to owe little or nothing to the Cortina Mk. II or any other Dagenham offering.

That some 400,000 Capris found owners in the first two years of production is a testament to its formula and its execution. It was a car that appealed to the owner's aspirations and even in the bottom of the range 1300 "'You sit low. Relaxed. Pretty much the way a Grand Prix driver sits." Cue the infamous launch film - Launch of the Ford Capri Mark I - 1969 - HD version - YouTube