1984 Ford Capri 2.8 Injection

First registered on the 7th of March 1984 and still showing well under 70,000 miles, this stunning 2.8-litre injected Capri is one of the nicest we’ve seen in a very long time.

Recommissioned by the previous owner after what seems to have been many years in storage, it looks stunning and drives beautifully. Said to have never been welded (a claim we haven’t been able to verify) it’s a lovely example of a classic Ford sporting coupé.

Being offered with a very sensible reserve price, this is your chance to buy a very nice example of “The Car You Always Promised Yourself”.

If you’ve been paying attention you’ll know by now that we approach black cars with trepidation; while we love the colour – heh, we all like a bit of discreet menace in our lives, don’t we? – the colour does have the unfortunate trait of highlighting even minor marks and blemishes.

That’s not an issue here because it presents very well indeed. True, the panel alignment and shutlines isn’t to modern Germanic or Japanese standards but they’re pretty darned good and at least as good as Dagenham achieved in period. The paint is still in great shape and the red and silver ‘’injection’ side stripes and boot-mounted decal all look like new.

The rubber trim is decent too, and the light lenses, glazing and badging are all good.

The OE Ford ‘pepperpot’ alloy wheels are in great shape as well with only a little wear around the very edges in a few places. They look tiny compared to the monstrosities manufacturers fit these days too, but then the 13-inch rims do allow for the wonderfully of-the-period high-profile tyres we can’t be alone in admiring?

They’re good tyres too, the 205/60R13 directional rubber all coming from Nankang. As we will never tire of explaining, our experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly. Their presence does not, of course, preclude the need for a thorough inspection - something the vendor would welcome, by the way – but it does perhaps give you a shortcut into their attitude towards maintenance.

Problems are few. Aside from the usual stonechips and minor blemishes any car will accumulate in 37 years (including some light bubbling in #203), the front rubber corners of the bumpers are a bit scuffed (photos #131 and #11), the rear bumper could do with respraying (#158), there’s some tidying up needed around the sunroof (#221), and the rear spoiler looks to have hardened and started to perish (#156).

The half-leather Recaro interior is gently patinated and all the better for wearing its history so well; while we know that many of you like a factory fresh finish, we can’t help but admiring honest cars like this that don’t try to hide their past.

Not that there’s anything to hide, not really. The grey leather edges of the front seats are only very lightly creased and those deep bolsters are still firm and supportive, which is important in a sports car with this one’s dynamic potential. The handbrake and gear lever gaiters are made of matching material.

The striped fabric centres are excellent, as are the rear seats. It’s much the same with the headlining, carpets, door cards and dashboard, all of which look terrific.

The boot looks good and solid and free of serious rust and rot. That said, given how good the rest of the Capri is we can see the new owner will probably want to give it a thorough clean before detailing it to bring it up to the same standard as the rest of the interior.

Other faults? Well the first thing you’re likely to notice is that the gearknob swivels in your hand. Other work includes replacing the two missing seatbelt clips in the rear panels, sourcing a new parcel shelf as the old one has a couple of small extraneous holes in it (#211 and #214) and an underdash trim panel (#254), and popping the joystick for the offside door mirror back into place. The top of the dashboard has also started to crack.

In other words, the extent of the interior woes is limited to the sort of stuff you would actually enjoy tracking down and fitting in the knowledge that you will be adding value with every job you tick off your list.

The recommissioning invoices are attached and they include the sort of stuff you’d expect to see when bringing a car out of long-term storage including new drivebelts, a radiator and coolant hoses, brake shoes and pads, and fresh mounts and bushes. The vendor tells us that he was told by the car’s previous owner that he had also fitted a Janspeed exhaust system plus a hefty application of Waxoyl and some polybushes because he, like us, enjoys tinkering with his toys.

We’ve driven it and enjoyed every second. As we mentioned earlier, we sold a very similar car recently and if you were wowed by that then you’re going to love this one as it looks even lovelier and drives even better.

As you can see in the video, it starts on the button, ticks over well, and revs as it should while making a glorious noise via the twin exhaust pipes.

The engine bay is tidy and shows plenty of evidence of recent expenditure including an upgraded alloy radiator and Samco coolant hoses.

The underside looks solid and is well protected by a thick coat of underseal.

The Capri’s MOT certificate, which is valid until August 2021, was gained without a single advisory point, something it’s been doing since it came out of storage in 2018.

It has a number of expired MOT certificates plus a sheaf of invoices and bills to confirm the work that has been done to it.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been recommissioned to a good standard.

If you’ve always promised yourself a Capri – and the chances are that you have - then the chances are you fall into one of two camps: you either want a late 2.8-litre injected car or an early 3.0-litre and while we might not be able to help with the latter but we’re all over the former.

Sympathetically fettled, it’s in great shape and yet still offers you the chance to escape the family for a few hours while you track down and fit the few trim pieces it still needs - and that, after nearly a year of lockdown, is enough to tip you into bidding, surely?

As to what it is going to set you back, pricing a car like this can be hard work. (Don’t worry, we aren’t asking for sympathy; after all, what we do isn’t exactly digging ditches in the rain, is it?) But, in this case the job is a little easier because the last one we sold went for a smidgeon over £18,000 – and this one is even better

With that in mind, we think our guide price of between £18,000 and £22,000 is very reasonable indeed. After all, when did last see one in this condition?

Inspection is always encouraged, within Govt. guidelines of course, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.