Pintopunter Small Fords UK

One of my long term Capri project is a Mk 3 that I've owned since 2005. More on that car later but in pursuit of parts for that project, I have wanted to option to build that particular car in a number of engine specifications. The car left the factory as a lowly 1300 L but came to me with a 2.0lt pinto on board. I was looking to build it in 3.0s specification however V6 Essex engines are in very limited supplies down under. Only 3000 original V6 Capris were every sold in Australia, so these engines more often than not ended up in 4 cylinder shells when the V6 cars were written off or rusted away. One such car came up for sale on ebay. It was advertised as a genuine matching number V6 engine car and on initial examination of the photos presented, it looked genuine. Numbers matched, and all V6 components like the 140mph dash, correct redline on tacho etc all pointed to the car being genuine. At a buy now price of just $7500 it looked like a bargain despite obvious rust and a fibre...

Growing up in Australia, there wasn't the culture that exists around the Ford Capri that exists in the UK. To most Australians, mention Ford Capri and the automatically think of the Mazda based convertible the Ford Australia produced (and exported to the US) in the early 90's. The European Capri was a blimp on the Australian motor industry map and is mostly unknown to most people down under. Most young drivers couldn't even identify it. Older drivers confuse it for an Escort or (worse still) a Torana which was the Holden rival at the time.  Those that did remember them, generally have some fond memories of either owning one, or knowing someone who did. Unfortunately, many of those people who ventured out and to sort one as a project were often bitterly disappointed when they realised firstly, how difficult they were to find, and secondly, how difficult they were to restore with limited supply of parts. If I had known this when I bought my first Capri back in 1993, I p...

Although quite a common conversion in the UK, my Zetec powered Mk 2 Escort was one of only a handful about in Australia at the time. The reason for this was the strict pollution and engineering requirement imposed on modified cars in Australia (and particularly Victoria) where I lived. This particular car was probably the best driving Escort I have ever owned. Very smooth and easy to drive and had bags of performance. You could cruise around at 60kph in 4th, then drop it down a gear and have the back wheels spinning all over the place. Unfortunately there were very little options for driving it on the roads as VicRoads, (the local roads authority) would not allow it to be registered without costly engineering tests and certificates.  I looked into getting it engineered and registered however I already had a very nice standard RS2000 to drive about so I thought it was best to reserve for the track. After some basic modifications, I prepared it for a couple of track days. The f...

Australia went through a panel van craze during the 70's (although for some its still going on.) Ford, Holden and Chrysler all had their own versions of the "Recreational Panel Van" that was very much focused on youth culture, the beach and camping. There vehicles were built in limited numbers and were quite expensive at the time. Ford had the smaller version sewn up with minimal competition. The closest thing was the Holden Gemini van which was basically a wagon (or an estate car) rather than a purposed built panel van. Fords range consisted of the big Transit, the Falcon and the Escort, all bases covered to counter the Holden Sandman which was also available in rare utility (pick up) version. Around 2000 (don't quote me) Escort Sundowners were produced and sold between 1977 and 1980, but they were still being run out into 1982. I owned one of the very last Sundowners with paperwork stating a sales date in 1982. This one featured an RS quick shifter and a full ...

Initially, Mk 1 Escorts never really attracted me for various reasons. I was never a fan of the running gear. The suspension was crap, the diffs were weak and the gearboxes were horrible in my opinion after driving a MK 2 RS2000 with a quickshifer everyday for seven years. Again, initially the shape didn't attract me. It always looked like a poor man's version of the Capri. It wasn't until I became familiar with the RS models with the round lights that I even started to warm to the model. None of which made there way out to Australia, in large numbers, anyway. Australia got a very limited number of Twin Cam Escorts, no RS models, Mexico, RS2000 or RS1600s. There were a few 1300GTs sold but rare in the land of the V8. 1300GT seemed like an oxymoron. The Kent engine was nothing more than a lawnmower sized engine and adding the GT just signified it was barely able to keep up with traffic. Many of the Mk 1 Escorts sold in Australia were also automatic, so top speed was never ...

As a wheeler dealer in the car game, its all about making the connections. I would trawl the internet for possible unfinished project and call contacts on a regular basis just to see what was out there. Sometimes I was lucky enough to have people call me and this next car was one of those occasions. I had bought a shell of an RS2000 replica for spares from a speedway racer who had liberated the engine and box. The guy was an affable chap who would buy wrecks and unfinished small Ford projects from time to time to get parts, take off what he wanted then move them on. He was located in a less than fashionable suburb at the time (mid 2000s) that was know for its car culture. The catchcry of the suburb was, to quote one associate at the time, "If you aren't into V8s, you are either gay or a girl." Small four cylinder Fords just weren't socially cool in this bayside suburb, despite an underground following that was very much present, if not shouting it from the roof tops...

People (mainly women) will talk about middle aged men buying mid-life crisis cars to relive their youth. I can safely say, I've never really left my youth when it comes to cars because I've never really given up the cars of my youth. However, I can admit to reflecting on the cars I've sold in the past, as the blog is testament to that fact. Although I don't tend to celebrate birthday's in general, I have made a point of celebrating milestone birthdays by buying a car, if not to distract me from getting older, but simply to acknowledge the milestone. I purchased my first RS2000 when I turned 30. I bought another really nice one when I turned 40. And now as I rapidly approach 50, I'm seriously looking at buying, (or at least committing to one I already own) the car that I always wanted, a Mk 3 Capri....But more from that later. The RS2000 Escort is a dream car for many men in my age bracket, however my feelings have always been torn by this particular model....

I mentioned briefly how I believe there is a bit of fate in this Small Ford malarkey. I've experienced it several times and connections I made through my car "dealing" have and continue to come back to me over the years. My GT V6 Capri (Silver Bullitt) is a case in point. After purchasing it back in 2002, not long afterward I received a phone call from the widow of the previous owner. As it turned out the previous owner had passed away tragically in a car accident about 6 months or so after I purchased the car. Kelvin had 3 Capris when I first went to look at the car which I would eventually buy. His good one, (the one I bought), the "daily" and the "project". I would own all three through this "fate" I talk about. I guess its not the correct term to use but its just a term that I use to describe the journey these cars take. We are just custodians, really. They move on to successive owner sometimes briefly, sometimes for long periods as w...

Growing up and spending my youth in Australia some might think (in the UK) was a joy, but Australia was somewhat deprived, particularly when it came to Small Fords and hot hatches that the UK adored. Australia's history with fast Fords was mainly limited to V8s and later on, the excellent turbo-charged "Barra" motor of the XR6 Falcons. As a country, we never saw any of the FWD fast Fords from Mk3 Escort onward. The fast Focus and Fiestas were limited, we never got any of the Sierras, no Cosworths or Tickford special Capris....any later model Capris at all as a matter of fact. Ford Australia was very much committed to re-badging Mazda-based Fords for many years until the Aussie car culture swayed away from the big 6's and the V8s were pretty much dead in the water. The only fast Fords that saw Australian roads were all personal import, brought in by Ex-pats who hadn't totally embraced the Aussie V8 lifestyle. Very few exist as they were just not on the radar ...

Do you know the joke about the 3 antique dealers who were stranded on a desert island with a chest of drawers? They all were able to make a living. Well, I was fortunate enough to be an antique dealer in a couple of trios on the not-so desert island of Australia in the 2000s. I was part of Capri Mafia in Melbourne and another small group of Ford Escort enthusiasts.  There was a time in the mid to late 2000s when there was more trade of small Fords going on between 5 guys in Melbourne than on the entire internet combined.....Well, it felt like that. As soon as a car came up for sale, the phone would ring. "Did you see that....", "Do you know anything about this car?" "Who got that RS, GT, Etc...." The latter question almost always was one of the elusive 5 character in our little groups. I was fortune to be part of the two groups earlier on but as we all started to "diverse" we all got to know each other and the groups merged, somewhat. By the ti...

The internet and Ebay changed car chasing forever. When it was you and phone and the classified ad, basically everyone had a chance to buy that car. It was a case of first there with the cash won the day. In many way, things were a lot better then. There were no disputes of the condition of the car, no "you said this" or "you said that. There was no payment disputes and blocking, no social media trials. Just a couple of bloke (and sometimes girl) cash and haggling. I don't miss the haggling because I was never good at it. My poker face is same as the kids face when he sees ice cream for the first time....I always pay the asking price (if I have the money) On one particular trip onto the internet, all the starts aligned up for me and I got the bargain of the century. It was mid week and I jumped onto the internet to search for Escorts, {yes, it sounds bad) but it was mainly Ebay. A very straight Rally Pack Escort (basically the Australian equivalent it the RS mode...

I've always had a thing for Escort Panel Vans....Not sure where it comes from, maybe from a friend's dad in primary school who was a stonemason from Essex and drove a Mk 2 full of marble chips and cement dust. When I was at Uni, my housemate used to borrow her brothers Escort van on the odd weekend. We would head down the coast, Maria and Bill up front and me bouncing around in the back. I remember falling asleep on the way to see the glow-worms and waking up in Barwon Heads at 3am. The first Escort van I bought was after going to look at a Capri. It was a bodged up 2.0lt auto and sliced my hand up removing the transmission on the hacked apart tunnel. I drove it all of 10m from the street and up the driveway before it conked out in the drive and I couldn't revive it. The parts went into my next van which wasn't much better but it was a step in the right direction. Over the years I have owned no less than 15 Escort vans, both Mk 1 and Mk2, autos and manuals, 1600s ...

As you may have already noticed, I'm not one to hesitate when it come to taking my opportunities. I'm a total believer in fate, especially when it comes to purchasing cars. You snooze you loose and if I had taken all of those opportunities I would have had no regrets. Some of the ones I didn't take were sub-ten grand RS3100s (x2), a Twin Cam Escorts for $7000 and a Lotus Cortina cylinder head for $1500. These were a big stretch for the finances back in the day but knowing how the price of classic Fords have gone, in hindsight I should have jumped at all of these opportunities. One that I did take was a small ad in the Age newspaper back in 2002, or around-about that period. I was looking to change jobs and I bought the paper (remember them) one Saturday morning to see what was on offer. There wasn't much on the jobs front but a tiny 3 line ad in the Classic Car section had an $800 V6 Capri for sale at a wreckers (breakers) yard on the other side of town. I rang th...