:: 1972 Ford Capri ::

:: Good Points : Parts are very cheap ::

:: Bad Points : Bulk buying of even cheap parts, is expensive ::

This was an inspired choice. I had a lovely wee (fairly new) Vauxhall Chevette which ran on for ages despite a complete lack of maintenance. Despite this, I decided to save money by buying an older car that I didn't have to pay up. I happened across this Ford Capri and for some reason, bought it.

It was a 1600 GT, green with black vinyl roof. It didn't take long to realise that it was grossly underpowered - nearly as bad as the NSU!

Then the first time I checked the oil I thought there was none in it - the dip stick was totally dry. A quick inspection showed that the dip stick didn't actually go into the oil sump - the dipstick was at the front of the engine and the sump was at the back. Realisation dawned - this was not the original engine but was out of a Cortina or something which had the sump at the front - the Capri had the sump at the back to clear the crossmember and steering rack.

Then I connected to the underpowered problem... what if this wasn't a 1600 at all? The 1300 and 1600 Ford engines use the same block - it's only the piston stroke that gives the capacity difference. Spark plug out, dip stick in plug hole and turn engine till I felt top dead centre - mark the dipstick with a little scratch. Turn the engine to bottom centre and scratch again - then measure the distance between the two scratches.

It's a 1300. In a Capri that weighs about a ton and a half. Real mutton in wolf's clothing.

Back to the dealer who sold it to me - he tried to say it wasn't his fault, cos he didn't know. I pointed out that he could have checked the engine number, and anyway ignorance is no excuse; he misrepresented the car when he sold it to me. He gave in and gave me half my money back. A whole £100.

Then I took it for an MOT. It failed - back brakes leaking, back pipes rusty, front brakes corroded, and last but not least, rust in nearly every structural panel underneath.

I should have scrapped it, but instead I fixed all the mechanical wrongs in one weekend.

The rust took a bit longer - every time we cut out a rusty bit and went to weld a patch on, we found more rust, and while welding can repair anything metal, you do need something metal to weld the patches to. When we thought it was fixed, I took it back for an MOT. Another fail - still too much rust.

Repeat process, weld more patches together, attach patches to floor where possible, back to MOT station. Pass!

I drove it home and parked it outside the house, and the next morning it wouldn't start - so I went to work in the Chevette (lucky I kept it).

I never fixed it. A man came to the door one night and asked if it was for sale. I said yes. He offered me £100. Supressing my first instinct to take his hand off, I haggled him up to £150. He drove away in it. (Lucky I'd jump-started it earlier in the evening to move it a wee bit). I never saw him or the car again, despite reading the local papers assiduously for reports of green Capri ram-raiders or bank robbers.
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