The Ford Capri Laser Page

Hi

Just joined the forum as this seems to have a number of knowledgable users and wondered if they could share some words of wisdom. As a bit of background both myself and my wife have owned capri's in the past and would like to find a car which we can use as a fun daily driver, in an ideal world we would like a white 3.0 S that does not require any significant work.

First question is that even possible today ? What sort of money could we expect to spend on such a car ?

I've seen a lot of comments about cars being converted to 3.0 S spec and implications that some don't have the correct strengthening etc. Is there a simple way to check for this sort of thing (for someone who is not particularly mechanically minded) I did see the comments about the strengthening to be expected but must admit that I didn't follow it.

If it's not possible to get a car that's usable today how expensive would it be to get one that needs restoring and have someone do the work for us ? Is this approach possible, ie are there 3.0 S cars available which require restoration ?

I've seen some cars advertised without keys or documents - how is that legally possible ? Surely a v5 document is required to tax and insure a car ?

Any suggestions about where to look for cars ? eBay seems to have a lot of what appear to be scams, carandclassic.co.uk don't seem to have many current ads, and there are few on pistonheads.

Any other tips / warnings ?

Many thanks

Ian

Anything is possible, just depends on your budget & by that I mean realistic budget.

For a fully restored to original spec, Genuine 3.0S from a respected dealer you can pay up to 25K so you are in the same ball park as a top notch 280 Brooklands.

Depending on who does the restoration & to what standard, including the cost of the car, this can invariably mean you will spend about 30% more than the ultimate current market value of the car if done properly.

As for looking at what should be on a V6 shell, where abouts are you ? I'm sure someone on here local to you with a 3.0 would show their car & point out the things to look for. I would happily show you my car, I'm in Worcester.

So, back to you, whats your budget & then folks can be a little more specific

Thanks for the quick reply

We're in Worthing on the south coast

As to budget that's the tricky one, we may be able to stretch to the low twenties. Given the uplift for a restoration car it sounds like that's out of the window. To be honest buying from a dealer would be my preference as I (possibly naively) expect a dealer to be easier to research and also to go back to if something did go wrong

I've seen one ad for a 3.0s which was also mentioned here a couple of months ago (a garage in St Neots) for 15k - based on what's been said about price is that likely to have a lot of issues or not a genuine 3.0s ?

Thanks again Ian

I wouldn't place a lot of faith in the classic car dealers to be honest. I have seen plenty of cars for sale at dealers that are at the very least not as they describe and some are downright liars
To be fair they are not experts on every car and I would think that they had bought the cars without knowing the truth - possibly?
There are a lot of suspicious cars out there at the moment, many of them are 3 litre models so do your research very carefully before shelling out.
Any doubts then walk away.

Ebay do get a fair few on but not all of them are scams, just the obvious ones!
If there is one on ebay that takes your fancy go and look at it first before you bid or offer because there's no turning back once you have; I got my first off ebay and has been a treat ever since! I think a lot of people avoid it because it does have that reputation but like Martin said, any doubts just walk away.

With regards to cars needing restoration, there are some out there but they aren't overly cheap either... cars that started life as 4cyclinder and are now just shells go for anywhere between £500-2000 depending on how much comes with them and how rusty they are etc. and V6 shells go for even more! You could find something within your budget that could also be restored but you never know how many things you will find once you start a restoration...

Let us know how you get on!

Cheers
Danny

If you see one advertised that you fancy, stick a link to the ad on here and I'm sure everyone will look over it and give you guidance.

Rust is the biggest enemy of a Capri, followed by poor quality repairs and bodges.

All sound advice from the chaps above.

Your budget is realistic for a good car. Like I said, try & find a member who is local to you & they can point out the specifics to look for & of course post a link to any that takes your fancy & you will get advised on whether it looks genuine & worth a look or to avoid etc.

Happy hunting but buy with your head & not your happy glands

White 3.0S.......Good taste, hope I don't see one first

All good advice above

Not many people around who would have the guts to use a 3.0S as a fun daily driver. But no reason why not, full credit to you if you achieve it. Hope you find one

pbar wrote:Not many people around who would have the guts to use a 3.0S as a fun daily driver. But no reason why not, full credit to you if you achieve it. Hope you find one

I would personally love to, if my wallet could afford all the fuel

Id suggest devoting a couple of hours reading though various posts on this forum and also possibly Capri Power to get an idea of what owners have experienced. Reading a few threads on body repairs and restorations will show you where the main areas of rust and concern are etc. You will also be able to get some idea of the price and availability of parts and who the main parts suppliers are that we tend to buy from.

As the forum has been around for several years you will see how attitudes have changed towards what is regarded as acceptable to buy and sort out later as the car's values have increased over time. Cars that some would have shied away from 10 years ago are now regarded as practical to buy and restore.

As others have said, because the sale value of the V6 cars is currently that much more than the 4 cylinder cars of an equivalent standard there are many cars driving round badged as 3.0 S which will have started out life as 1.2, 1.6 or 2.0 cars and been upgraded subsequently to increase their value. Plus many a 1.6 L has been sacrificed to recreate a badly damaged 3.0 S. So long as the conversion was done to a proper standard with the right parts there would seem no real reason to walk away from such a car especially if you can get it slightly cheaper because of this.

You are also likely to come across some 3.0 Ghia cars which have been redressed in S trim. Though I always think it's rather a pity that people do this there is no mechanical difference between them (assuming it was a manual 3 litre Ghia) so nothing to avoid. The earlier ones often even shared the same style of wheels.

Not_Anumber wrote:
You are also likely to come across some 3.0 Ghia cars which have been redressed in S trim. Though I always think it's rather a pity that people do this there is no mechanical difference between them (assuming it was a manual 3 litre Ghia) so nothing to avoid. The earlier ones often even shared the same style of wheels.

The 3.0 Ghia's are great cars. Obviously different seats, and some may be auto, have a vinyl roof and no rear spoiler......
If you can live with that, you will save quite a bit of cash I think

3.0S,not white but reasonable price? http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ ... red&page=1

Thanks all

Not sure if this one is still available, does it look reasonable ?! http://www.rccarsltd.co.uk/used-cars/fo ... 3103137830


Ian

This was £11000 last year, and was sold at auction for £14000......
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C758113

Seems a nice car but not perfect, here is the auction info http://www.classiccarauctions.co.uk/ford-capri-3-0-s

Discussed on here too viewtopic.php?t=50152

Iscb2017 wrote:Thanks all

Not sure if this one is still available, does it look reasonable ?! http://www.rccarsltd.co.uk/used-cars/fo ... 3103137830


Ian

Same car I put up in post before yours

MOT History;
Vehicle make FORD Vehicle model CAPRI S Date first used 10 August 1979 Fuel type Petrol Colour Black

Test date 27 May 2016 Expiry date 26 May 2017 Test Result Pass Odometer reading 53,758 miles MOT test number 5471 2224 3536 Advisory notice item(s)
Rear fog lamp tell tale lamp not working

Test date 25 May 2016 Test Result Fail Odometer reading 53,758 miles MOT test number 1049 6722 3417 Reason(s) for failure
Offside Front Direction indicator not working (1.4.A.2c)
Nearside Registration plate lamp not working (1.1.C.1d)
Offside Registration plate lamp not working (1.1.C.1d)
Nearside Headlamp aim beam image obviously incorrect (1.8.A.1b)
Offside Headlamp aim too high and too far to the right. (1.8)
Offside Windscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid (8.2.3)
Nearside Front Suspension arm has excessive play in a pin/bush (2.4.G.2)
Offside Front wheel bearing has excessive play (2.5.A.3c)
Drivers seat insecure (6.2.A.1)
Nearside Front passengers seat insecure (6.2.A.1)
Exhaust emissions carbon monoxide content excessive (7.3.B.1a)
Brake pedal has insufficient reserve movement (3.3.A.5)
Advisory notice item(s)
Nearside Front wheel bearing has slight play (2.5.A.3c)
Rear fog lamp tell tale lamp not working

Test date 16 December 2014 Expiry date 15 December 2015 Test Result Pass Odometer reading 53,166 miles MOT test number 3983 9055 4383

Hello,
Welcome to the forum!
Everyone has offered fantastic advice, I would add that, if you can, it might be a good idea to go and view as many Capris as possible. That way you will develop a feel for what is good and what is not so good, as well as seeing common faults to look out for on subsequent viewings of other cars. When you find a peach, you'll know it's the one!

Good luck with your search, I hope you are able to find the car you want.

Andrew.

D366Y wrote:

pbar wrote:Not many people around who would have the guts to use a 3.0S as a fun daily driver. But no reason why not, full credit to you if you achieve it. Hope you find one

I would personally love to, if my wallet could afford all the fuel

I'd fear the bodywork/welding bill after a couple of standard spring/summers and harsh winters like last one more than the fuel outlay!

Welcome to the forum and the rabbit hole that is buying and owning a Capri!

Wont offer any advice as its all been covered very well, though i will say not to be too put off by eBay. Yes there are a lot of scams but they are so easy to spot its easy to avoid them.
Reason i say dont be put off by eBay is because i bought my beloved 2.0 S off eBay based on the description and pictures alone, and aside from needing the usual things (new wings and some minor welding in the foot wells which i had the budget for and fixed myself with help from my father, along with a full respray which was my choice as i wanted to change the color completely) it turned out to be the best car ive ever owned and i use it every day with little to no issues (apart from some problems ive have that are due to faulty aftermarket parts etc, not the fault of the car).

Obviously always have a look before you buy if possible, or if the ad states "cash on collection only" because people dont want to pay huge paypal and ebay fees, if when you go to collect the car theres nothing stopping you from walking away if it doesn't fit the description as you are under ZERO obligation at that stage to go through with the transaction because the seller gave up all their rights and protections that ebay affords them (yourself included mind you) when they said they wanted cash on collection as thats counted as doing business outside of eBay.

There are deals to be had and you never know your pride and joy could just be waiting for you on there.