# Ford Capri 2.8i



## JoT

Can't get the idea of owning one of these Capri MkIII 2.8i out of my head









I am sure it's a bad idea


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## Mrcrowley

JoT said:


> Can't get the idea of owning one of these Capri MkIII 2.8i out of my head
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Great cars in their day.

If only they had still been around when I was driving.


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## pauluspaolo

I like them a lot. I had the chance a couple of years ago to buy a decent one for about Â£500 - wish I had done now







. They are rising in value so grab one whilst they are still reasonably priced that's what I say







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I'm on the lookout for a new car and an XR4x4 is begining to appeal - sporty yet practical







. Finding a good one could be a problem though


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## jasonm

Trouble is the most recent (1987 Brooklands) is now 18 years old! Good ones owned by Owners Club members fetch Rolex money









Average ones are on their 8th owner and half of them will have been boy racers...

Tickford made a turbo version


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## Griff

Got a lift once in Wales in a 3.5L version. The driver put his foot to the floor with a teethy grin of pride and pleasure. He tried speaking to me, but the g force had me pinned in the seat, and the acceleration was that great I couldn't speak!







The 0 to 60 must have been phenominal. He later told me his garage friend had "done one or two improvements to the engine"!!!


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## Jules

Admit it JoT .... which one do you want to be ...









Bodie or Doyle


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## JoT

Jules said:


> Admit it JoT .... which one do you want to be ...
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Ahhh ... those wondeful pre-PC, pre-human rights act days


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## jasonm

Im sorry to be a killjoy but Im pretty sure they used 3.0L 'S' Capris


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## JoT

jasonm said:


> Im sorry to be a killjoy but Im pretty sure they used 3.0L 'S' Capris
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Yep you are right they had a MkIII 3.0S in their last series and MkII's in earlier series


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## Griff

jasonm said:


> Im sorry to be a killjoy but Im pretty sure they used 3.0L 'S' Capris
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The Welsh guy who gave me a lift was a motor fanatic, and the version he had was one fitted with a fuel injection Rover V8 3.5L, that his garage friend had done up for him etc etc. I'm not sure if it was made turbo as well, but it went like bloody stink!


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## pg tips

I went to a Ford Angila once on a job that had a Rover V8 in it!


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## JoT

I have seen them in a Ford Sierra and a Triumph Stag as well. I remember the Stag conversion was quite common ... but a Sierra









Wasn't the Rover V8 originally made by an American company later bought by Rover and used in cars like Buick and Oldsmobile?


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## Mrcrowley

My dad had a Hillman Hunter with a V8 or somthing ridiculously powerful in it. Bright orange thing it was.................

Bloody awful looking car but wow could it shift.


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## pg tips

The three subsidiaries of General Motors, Buick, Oldsmobile and Pontiac were to use the 215 cubic inch (3.5 litre) engine, although each insisted on making changes to make their offering unique. The engines first appeared in 1961 models of the Oldsmobile F-85, Pontiac Tempest, Buick Special. Larger variants of the design were considered but the costs of retooling for the relatively new processes of dealing with aluminium were deemed too high and GM returned to cast iron blocks.

As legend has it, a senior Rover executive was on holiday in the US when he spotted a Buick 215 V8 sitting on the floor in a boat builder's workshop. After enquiring about its origins he followed up with Buick and acquired rights to manufacture the engine in the UK in the late sixties, to power Rover's new saloons.

Rover did well out of the deal, itself then selling units on to power all manner of cars both as factory fit options and as power plants for all manner of kit cars and race cars. Ironically some years later, General Motors were looking for a smaller capacity V8 to power a new model and approached Rover about producing them. Various options were looked at, including GM producing the engines for Rover but the exchange rate and the power of the UK unions scuppered the deal.

There's barely a model of car in existence that hasn't had a V8 dropped into it at some stage. Amongst the madder conversions have been Fiat 500 (with ladder frame chassis), Reliant Robin and even 2CVs. The whole range of tuning options have been explored with big bore engines, turbos and superchargers all seen at one time or another.










from http://www.pistonheads.com/features/roverv8/

btw I remember the Anglia had 4 holes in each wing to make spark plug removal easier! A reliant Robin V8


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## jasonm

In 1989 when I was a yougster (19) I was into VW Beetles and went to 'BUG JAM' a VW meeting at Santa Pod raceway, there was this knackered looking rusty dirty Beetle blowing EVERYTHING away down the 1/4 mile, it was running a twin turbo 3.5 V8


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## Griff

They produced fast, very fast,......and good morning Judge!!!


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## MarkF

The car for you John


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## JoT

I like the plate ... not so sure about the Mazda though


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## pauluspaolo

My friend has a custom car (a 1936 Morris 10 fitted with Jag running gear and a 3 litre Ford V6 engine with overdrive gearbox) which he used to take to local custom car meetings. It's been off the road for a while now (which is a shame) but it used to be quite practical being a full 4 seater with 4 doors, also it wasn't chopped so headroom was good too - happy days







. Anyway at one of these meetings was a V8 Reliant Kitten - when I looked inside it all I could see were a couple of very cramped seats with a huge bellhousing between them, apparently half the engine was in the cab covered by said bellhousing. It also had a huge rollcage in it - I can't imagine it was the most comfortable car in the world but it must have been a blast to let it rip once in a while.

Talking about Reliant Robins I recently had the "pleasure" of driving one around the car park at work - that brief drive convinced me that it must be the worst car in the world


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## MIKE

JoT said:


> Can't get the idea of owning one of these Capri MkIII 2.8i out of my head
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Hi John,

As the advert used to say "The car you always promised yourself"

My memory of these great car's is my Dad borrowing (he worked for a Ford dealer) a Broardspeed tuned one and taking us kids out for a spin.

This was the road going version of the famous race cars from the 70's. Those where the day's, you could take a car up the M1 for a blast with out to much worry from "plod"









MIKE.


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## MIKE

And they could "fly"


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## JoT

I like :yes


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## Jules

pauluspaolo said:


> Talking about Reliant Robins I recently had the "pleasure" of driving one around the car park at work - that brief drive convinced me that it must be the worst car in the world
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Paul - when I was 17 one of my mates hadn't passed his test but, as I remember, traded in one of his motorbikes for a Reliant Robin - you could drive them on a provisional/bike licence then, couldn't you? I hadn't had much experience driving then but I just remember laughing as I had a ... erm "burn" in it. I seem to remember it had the gearstick above the gearbox like some kind of sportscar, and this one of my mates probably had a knackered exhaust because it sounded like one too







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I don't think I'd like to own a Reliant Robin but I certainly enjoyed a quick razz round in that one nearly 20 years ago


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## JoT

I still can't shake off this insane desire for a big Ford Capri .... unfortunately just lost out on a Capri MkI 3000GXL on E-Bay ...... and now please tell me I don't really want a 1982 Mustang straight six


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## jasonm

Again?









2 years ago


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## grey

JoT said:


> I still can't shake off this insane desire for a big Ford Capri .... unfortunately just lost out on a Capri MkI 3000GXL on E-Bay ...... and now please tell me I don't really want a 1982 Mustang straight six


I had three of them in period, a Mk1 3000GT, and 2 Mk2 3000GTs - did about 200,000 miles in them. At the time they seemed quick.

Very reliable, had them serviced at night by Brown & Whites in Leeds, so never off the road, though a common fault was head gasket eventually going on one cylinder bank, followed next week by the other head failing.

Once shattered the (non-laminated) windscreen of the Mk1 in Honeypot Lane Stanmore on my way home to Leeds, so dug out my Polaroids, wrapped a georgette scarf of the 710's round the head and drove home. At 80 mph the buffeting sorted itself out and I got the screen changed in Leeds that night. Never saw the Feds once, just a few odd looks from those I overtook.

In truth the handling was appalling, the number of times I have inadvertently changed lanes on the M1 under heavy braking gives me the sweats to this day.









The Mk1 didn't have power steering, so I was looking forward to this on my first Mk2. There was a supplier strike and that arrived without it either. Then, after four years as Popeye, just to join in ,the third one broke it's pump belt leaving Wembley on my way to Leeds, but on the A1. Teaches you a lot about choosing your line on roundabouts......

At the time I tried to persuade my boss to let me have an RS3100, but to no avail. Sure I still get nostalgic about being able to blow away most of the other repmobiles of the day, and the burble of the Essex V6 was lovely at 40mph (but wearing after three hours on the M1).

The first Mk2 was a hideous unique green metallic. I remember taking off from Leeds Bradford Airport sitting in the backwards facing front seat of a Vickers Viscount, talking to the guy sitting facing me.

He asked if I had travelled far to get to the airport. I was able to look out of the window and point out my car sitting in the drive of my home. "Not really", I said.

Got me alll misty eyed now, so must close.









But don't do it JoT. The ride would murder your hemmies; and I don't mean cylinder heads.


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## Boxbrownie

We had our 40th year celebration last Friday at work.....and had loads of the heritage vehicles on display one of which was the 4x4 Capri 3Litre special.....brrrm......if I had known you were into a Capri JoT I would have snapped a load of piccies for you......


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## JoT

I had a MkII 1.6L, a MkIII 2000GL and MkIII 3000S ..... those were the days .. I look back on it and wonder how they stayed on the road!

Winter time was always a trial, usual kit in the boot was a couple of shovels, snow mats, snow chains and a couple of half-hundredweight concrete blocks to add some weight over the rear wheels!

grey that's a great story, my 2000GL was that horrible green you refer to


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## colinryan

Speaking as someone who owned a 2.8 V6 Capri (for about 7 months, then it was stolen) (I bought it for myself for my 20th birthday) I can firmly say that, provided you don't get one that is a total shed, they are amazing fun and staggeringly fast.

Furthermore, I blew the engines on two BMWs (a 525 and a 530) quite easily but no matter how much pure abuse and engine-rape I committed against my Capri, it kept on going.

Buy one. You'll love it.


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## hippo

jasonm said:


> In 1989 when I was a yougster (19) I was into VW Beetles and went to 'BUG JAM' a VW meeting at Santa Pod raceway, there was this knackered looking rusty dirty Beetle blowing EVERYTHING away down the 1/4 mile, it was running a twin turbo 3.5 V8


Didnt know you where into beetles!!! Had onbe as my first car, great fun, a 1972 1200 only had 34.4 bhp!!!!!!!! Still taught me a bit about weight transfer if you lift off mid corner


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## jasonm

Yep, first car was a pale blue 1972 1200 too!, rusty old thing...Next was a '1303' 1300, curved screen 'posh' one, it was the 'Campaign Edition' from 1976, immaculate it was, lovely thing ( shame it was metallic brown)

Its funny, I would love another for a laugh, but even knackered ones are decent money now


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## Steve R

JoT said:


> I still can't shake off this insane desire for a big Ford Capri .... unfortunately just lost out on a Capri MkI 3000GXL on E-Bay ...... and now please tell me I don't really want a 1982 Mustang straight six


You don't want a Mustang, steering wheel's on the wrong side for one, and for another that one's two cylinders short of an engine. However if you have the means and inclination, I'd definitely go for a 2.8 - much coolness!







My grandad always used to have Capris when I was a little lad, and the 2.8 is worth buying just for the sound of the twin exhausts alone - I distinctly recall that back then to me there was nothing cooler - not even the windscreen wipers on the headlights of Volvo 264s! 

If you can find a good one, I'd definitely go for it. Lovely old cars... burble burble burble









S.


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## jaslfc5

my dad had a brown mk1 capri with a black vinyl roof when i was a lad it was only a 1.6 but it could put you in youre seat.later i would experience my friends 3.1 bullet mk2 orange my god what a car that was fast as. there used to be a place near to cardiff where people would go and race their cars llandough ind est used to be a race track back in the day ,on a sunday there would be 2000 people watching 205 gti's racing xr4's but there was a couple of q cars that would wipe the floor with all that came before it.

first one was an old ex electric board mini van with a v8 in the back ,that thing flew i hate to imagine what it could do a 1/4mile in, the other was a mk1 never found out what was under the hood .

ive always loved rs 2000 personally when i was young and on the dole we used to mess around with cars and mk2's always held their own ive recently had my eyes on a neighbours garaged unmolested example but so far they are just letting it rot shame such a waste - but my mechanic has just bought an unraced rs500 cossie immaculate .

isnt it amazing how crap cars when you grow up suddenly look cool when youre older. i was in a car park on the weekend and found myself lusting over a mk5 cortina ghia it was immaculate though.


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## jasonm

> rs500 cossie immaculate .


Dribble......


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## jaslfc5

jasonm said:


> rs500 cossie immaculate .
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Click to expand...

i know its white 30000 on the clock never raced or thrashed and the spoiler on the back is the size of a breakfast bar ,he also has a saphire cosworth too lucky bleeder.


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## Guest

You may have noticed that I'm a bit of a Scimitar fan - they're a bit like marmite

The SE6's share the same Cologne 2.8i engine, but with the advantage of Overdrive on 3rd & 4th gear (Manual), rot free GRP bodies on a substantial chassis. If you hunt around there are some real bargains to be had (my white SE5 on the "any one like old cars" posting was less than 4 figures).

Go for a pre 1973 SE5 (3 litre essex) and you'll get a pressie from the chancellor.

There are a few with the 3.1 engine and Rover V8 conversions.

But if it's a Capri you're hankering for, then its a Capri you better get. They aint going to get any cheaper (unless I buy one







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Cheers

Lee


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## JTW

JoT said:


> I still can't shake off this insane desire for a big Ford Capri .... unfortunately just lost out on a Capri MkI 3000GXL on E-Bay ...... and now please tell me I don't really want a 1982 Mustang straight six


I wonder if you could have got hold of any NOS fluffy dice to go with the Capri?


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## ETCHY

Cool cars, a 2.8i or 3.0 would still go like **** off a stick !

I had a 1.6 & it didn't









Go on you know you want to


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## grey

JoT said:


> grey that's a great story, my 2000GL was that horrible green you refer to


Thanks JoT. Re the green paint, one of my wife's customers in Cowley, Oxford, had a new Metro in 'Mentallic Green'. Nice name for the colour of our Capris, I should think.

Just for any anoraks on board, both the Mk2s were called 'S's and not GTs. The last one should have come in JPS livery (gold lining on black), but arrived in silver on black.

As Mr Caine says, 'Not many people know that'.

Or f***ing want too, I should think.









Cheers

Grey


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## pg tips

I had a mk III cortina 2litre gt in that brown / bronze with the brown vinyl roof.

had a 1.6 mkII crappy, I always wannted a black 3litre S


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## mrteatime

mmmmmm i take it that these must be cars before my time..........


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## Guest

mrteatime said:


> mmmmmm i take it that these must be cars before my time..........


Shoulnt you be in bed by now sunshine


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## mrteatime

Timetraveller said:


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Click to expand...

pills aint worn off yet


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## nursegladys

my my this is bringing back memories, my uncle had a 1970's black John Player Special in the 70's, we had a ride and I always wanted a Capri, then The Professionals had them, and I finally bought my very own in 1988, it was a 1986 1.6 Laser and I loved that car. After I bought it I always hankered after the 2.8i and the Brooklands, one of my old sergeants at the time said he had a 2.8i in his garage that was unused and on axle stands........I was always asking if he would sell......he never did.

How sad is this.............. the Capri I owned was sold to buy a Cavalier estate (got married had kids), oh well.


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