That is really quite a car !! SO much of it represents and presents the image of its time
That is really quite a car !! SO much of it represents and presents the image of its time
Amazing what some TLC and elbow grease can accomplish! Looking great Jon!
Tell the story of the seats. I know you love the French Vanilla so I am assuming you bought this for parts and now it's too nice? Or did you have covers already but now used them on this car?
Thanks again, fellas.
Darran, The love for french vanilla goes back to one of my favorite foxes: the 1982 California highway patrol SSP, which came with this one year only color. I've had success getting seats, a MINT dash pad (homer302), and numerous odds and ends from FEP members, eBay and of course, you too!
I found out about the Capri through the FYI section here. After many months and a price reduction to $900, I called and spoke with the owner. I'm a purist at heart so this makes me cringe a little but, I offered to just buy the interior. I figured that it would be going in a more significant car and I could live with that. The seller liked my price but figured it would be easier to just sell me the whole car. Damn, I think! I immediately called my buddy who was doing work on some cars for me and asked if he wanted a Capri (minus the interior) in lieu of some labor. He agreed! It was a great deal but unfortunately, the interior ended up being pretty trashed as was the rest of the car. I was so disappointed. The seats and door panels were removed and the Capri sat for many months.
In the mean time, I had snagged a set of LTD SSP wheels and realized they were 5" in width instead of the 5.5" I needed, so I passed them on to my buddy. This post is almost finished, I promise. I had given him a set of dog dish hubcaps a while back and one night he sends a picture of the Capri sitting on the LTD steelies with the caps. Those wheels and caps was like seeing the girl you previously never gave a second look, in a cocktail dress looking amazing! Obviously, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Almost immediately, I bought the car back. Added the correct for 1982 Mustang SSP dog dish caps, radio delete, and commenced with piecing it all back together. So I now have a cool car and fun project that shares some styling cues and parts with one of my favorite Mustangs.
If you made it this far, here's a couple pics. One from the day the Capri arrived and the pic that made me buy the car back.
Last edited by jlehma13; 12-30-2018 at 09:08 PM.
After deciding I wanted to try a different look, I bought a set of original TRX wheels and tires. It didn't take long to remember that the look of the steelies was what made me buy the car back in the first place so, back on they went.
In the mean time, I resprayed the cowl, mirrors lower windshield trim and front and rear bumper trim. Molding stripes finished the job.
Here's a few pics from along the way.
OH WOW!!!!! Looks gorgeous. TRX wheels really changed it up a bit.
conmech - aka Marshall
Pending build-1983 Mercury Capri RS NOT staying as it left the showroom floor......
Sonic blue pearl, sand beige, netted halos, FR500 wheels and shiny under the hood.
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