Dirty nasty loud (in a good way) rusty Capri.

[heathrobinson]

Right then. I've avoided putting anything up on here because I didn't really feel like I'd done much worthy of note - Bought an old Capri, in about 8 shades of white (at least 3 of them claiming to be Ford's quixotic Diamond White), with a badly installed cossie 24v, driven it, broken it, repeated that cycle up until I really fried the horrid mare's nest of wires in the passenger footwell a couple of years ago. In that time I'd managed to brake and replace the rear axle, the single leaf springs, the fuel tank, the exhaust, and the prop. So the end is in pretty good shape now! At about this point it looked like this -



It has been off the road since then, and I've hacked in a new engine loom, with no melty bits at all, and sorted out the mare's nest a bit, and the exhaust cam that was one lump out on the chain, and ditched the P/S pump, as there'd been a hole in the pipe so no fluid for ages... and I hadn't really minded that much. I badly fibreglassed the left wing where a tractor had run it over a little bit (the whole front end's fibreglass, as it had all rusted off. Adding lightness, don'tcha know!) and found that I didn't mind the look of the raw fibreglass. I've never got round to painting the bonnet, so I guess it's all coming together quite nicely!

Recently however, I've taken it to a mate's barn in the middle of nowhere, and actually got on with it! So, what's afoot currently - Having everything removable at the front end powdercoated, fitting new everything to the suspension (Roller top mounts, new springs and TCAs, polybushed everything, rack converted to manual and painted gold, obvs) and having the Bilstein legs powdercoated in blue. And building up a new engine from the bottom end of the later Cosworth 24v, the BOB, and all the earlier, simpler, stronger timing gear and heads off the BOA. With a girdle, high tensile main bolts, ARP rod bolts, and a few other little tweaks that should see the best part of 250 of everything, in a very light, very rusty rocket.

Along with all this, there's been something fulminating in the areas of my brain to do with style. There's a lot of "rat" cars around that are essentially good cars covered in rust-paint. That to me seems like the complete antithesis of what things should be (Sorry if this doesn't sit well dear reader, it's just my thoughts at the mo). The ratty thing should come about from worrying not that much about what the outside of yer car's like, at least until you've got the thing going like the proverbial off a shovel. However, there's a few stylistic touches that I've seen lately that really flick my switches, to which end I've been having a play with pinstriping... And I have to say I rather like it!

*edit - there were definitely supposed to be pictures. I don't know why there aren't...

[heathrobinson]

Gotcha!
So, as it was last time it went anywhere

Obligatory fluffy dice, 8-ball and rust

The new naughty exhausts, while fixing yet more rust

and my favourite bit of rust. So good it's still there! Handy for getting stuff out of the door that's fallen in where the window seals used to be...

[heathrobinson]

FFS! I ain't very good at this.
Read from top to bottom, look at the pictures above from bottom to top. Got it?

So, where the P/S pump used to be

Please ignore that I was too lazy to paint the rocker cover that didn't need to come off, or clean anything, ever.

So here's the girdle, being sized up to tie the main caps together for a higher rev limit. Or maybe some boost one day, who knows...


As she sits at the moment


and my first play with a pinstriping brush. I like it, but there's room for improvement.


I'll get a few photos of the front end gubbins as I build it up, but it's the motor that's most interesting to me at the mo, so there'll be more pics as I build that up. I'd like to get an electric water pump from a new beemer, as with that and manual steering, you get about 15bhp back, which ain't too shabby. But that's a way down the line.

[foldy]

I love Capri's. Probably the first car I really noticed. I'll be keeping my eye on this thread.
I quite like ZZR's too, not a bike I knew of until my uncle bought an immaculate one a few years back.

[PhoenixCapri]

Love it - is that girdle laser cut, and if so any chance of getting another one knocked up please?

[cap78]

Yeay, another Capri onboard, me like (known as Norwegian Caprinut on a different board, and mostly known as Caprinut on non Capri related forums).

Need to get my finger out and post my project too as I'm in need for some mojo boost..


Keep working on it sir 

[heathrobinson]

Hi cap78 , thought I recognised your car from the other place! Yeah, actual progress is a great feeling, especially after it languishing for so long! Get the car up and feel the love!

PhoenixCapri, I've had you bookmarked for a good long while, you've some really great ideas on your car. I'm not sure how the girdle was made, it was a trial run of Lemon-Ade's for his 500hp twin turbo sierra, on the Ford Power forum. That's where I've got most of my advice and knowledge for this engine, there's a wealth of info and know-how about these engines on there.
However, it's a ridiculously simple design, I can measure it up for you if you'd like.
Mine needs a little fettling of both the sump and girdle to make it fit - Ade's final one was a bit narrower, necessitating little recesses for the rod bolt nuts to clear. Mine's wide enough that I don't have to do that, but the single leg opposite the oil pump needs to be taken back in a little to clear the oil return from the head. A little hacking up (technical term) of the sump was necessary, so for a race engine like yours I'd recommend narrowing the girdle a bit, and going with the indents to clear the rod nuts.


Not sure how much you'll like this one foldy , it's pretty ropey! Still, it'll be quick and ropey soon. That's a mate's bike, he's a high-speed tree surgeon - A big backpack with his climbing saw and ropes, and he's away!

[yoeddynz]

I like this.. the idea of old 2 door cars with overly powerful V6 engines. Liking the tatty look too :-)

I might be biased though.

[beakster]

Hi,

Before you call my car dirty and nasty please do your home work. When I bought her, my first classic ford, she had just completed the mocaco challenge and was rotten as a pear. I spent 2 years fabrication and welding to save her. I could easily have made a profile breaking her but then I had to move to Canada .

So after a rush job I got her road worthy and took her home to Scotland.

I used her to take my American girlfriends on tours of Scotland and she was fast as curse word! I had to sell her because I didn't had a garage on the UK.

Now I live in Indonesia but I'm still keeping an eye on her so please look after her.

I'm here for you if you need any advise.

Here's there thread on the forum I run about my car www.fordcapriforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1710

[heathrobinson]

Ha, hiya beakster! I'm not using dirty & nasty in a derogatory sense... I like her like this! I'm not going to do anything to the shell past necessary repairs - the floors need a few patches, and I've a pair of wings for the tail end, to allow some arch-rolling for the new shoes, and to stop chunks falling off these at speed . There's some to be done to the sills, and the busted remains of the passenger wing mirror need to go for an mot, but outside that, why tart a car up until you've made it go as fast as possible?
The wiring in the footwell that tried to kill me wasn't my favourite thing, and as a pointer using masking tape for labels doesn't work well in a damp footwell... And painting over the gravel somehow wedged into the spring cups doesn't really help stop the rust underneath! That aside, I love her to a rather irrational degree. She's getting looked after, just not prettified.

I guess that I like my cars like I like my women - about the same age as me, good looking, loud, dirty, and liking a good thrashing.

[caprijake]

Oh i remember this car! Good luck with the work!

Get rid of the BOA, give it to me ..... and go down the V8 route

[PhoenixCapri]

Feb 7, 2017 12:16:40 GMT heathrobinson said:

PhoenixCapri, I've had you bookmarked for a good long while, you've some really great ideas on your car. I'm not sure how the girdle was made, it was a trial run of Lemon-Ade's for his 500hp twin turbo sierra, on the Ford Power forum. That's where I've got most of my advice and knowledge for this engine, there's a wealth of info and know-how about these engines on there.

Thanks for the info Will have a look through in that case, looks like something that's worth doing. Going to keep an eye on how your's comes together, should be mega when its done.

[heathrobinson]

Yeah, fingers crossed! It might look tatty, but pretty much all the running gear bar the gearbox will be either completely refurbed or new, and I have a plan for the gearbox in the long run. It shifted unreasonably fast before, it's going to be exceptionally quick after, and might be that for more than it's usual 1.5 journeys between breakdowns!

It's got the axle off a 1.6 in it at the moment, so the speedo's comically inaccurate (a fact I should have realised far sooner than I did. 70mph indicated is actually 84mph!) and it's essentially got a short-shift box on it. I worked out that fitting a 2.8 back axle and a mazda rx8/mx5 6-speed box would give me exactly the same gearing as I have now, literally within 2 or 3 mph different in each of the first 5 gears, but with a cruisy 6th on top. There's an adapter available, and I have a hydraulic clutch in my bias box, so bar a little tin-bashing in the tunnel, and cutting up my lovely new shiny prop, it's not too much work!

Find Ade's thread on FP, it's an amazing engine build, and let me know if there's and measurements or photos that I can get while it's all apart that'll be of use.

[heathrobinson]

S, picked up my new wheels over the weekend... Sneak peak of the goodness!

And got my parts hauler back, 24v 4x4 fun until the Capri's back on the road

[sarkie83]

Feb 24, 2017 11:43:05 GMT heathrobinson said:

S, picked up my new wheels over the weekend... Sneak peak of the goodness!

Banded Citroen steels?

[markske67]

Nice build & project !

[heathrobinson]

Feb 28, 2017 12:25:17 GMT sarkie83 said:

Pugeot Partner I think, which means that they are probably on a few Citroens too. Well spotted! With a little luck, they'll look pretty damn good in BMW Pyrite Brown.

Thanks markske67

[heathrobinson]

As an aside, I did a few little jobs on both cars, nothing momentous, but a new leather gear gaiter on the Sierra neatens things up, and for something that was a tenner off Eblag, I'm pleasantly surprised.

Also, stuck a pair of new gas struts on the capri's boot. That's been a long time coming! A chap turned up on the Capri facebook page offering new sets for £20! Think he's on the Capripower forum too. Spot on, and less than getting them regassed!

[heathrobinson]

Powder coat all the things!

That's the front end sorted then. Roller top mounts, stiffer springs, polybushes, new TCAs, new bolts etc, new gaiters still in the post, refurb'd and de-powered rack, happy days.
X-braces and bumpstops for the tail end, and new crystal h4 lights for the front. And a shiny mirror just because.

[darrenh]

Hi,

Before you call my car dirty and nasty please do your home work.

homework = observable fact ?