HERITAGE:
Capri 280TT
Original Turbo Technics car gets a new lease of life thanks to a full-on rebuild.
The Capri 2.8i was always regarded as a quick car straight off the showroom floor, but only a few lucky drivers got to experience even more power with a Garrett T3 turbo bolted to their Capri’s Cologne V6.
Turbo Technics offered that conversion in their workshops or sold the parts as a complete kit. There aren’t many Turbo Technics Capris around today, although if you think one wouldn’t necessarily make an ideal first classic car, you clearly haven’t spoken to Allan Brown…
Back in 2014 Allan decided to buy a classic Ford, “I was about to turn 50,” explains Allan, “and went to the RS Owners’ Club meet at Knockhill since I fancied an RS2000 — until I spotted a Capri 280 Brooklands in the car park. It took me back to my childhood and I immediately forgot about getting an Escort.” Soon after, Allan spotted this Capri; a 200 bhp Turbo Technics F26 model based on a 1987 Brooklands. “It looked great so I called the seller, Tristan Barratt, we chatted for over an hour and I basically bought it over the phone.”
There was one little logistics issue. “I lived near Glasgow while Tristen and his Capri were in Cornwall,” laughs Allan. It was a couple of weeks before Allan and friend, Scott Bissett were able to drive down with a trailer covering 962 of their 1162-mile round trip in the first day. “Tristan had owned the car for 10 years. I’d agreed to buy it subject to my inspection since I knew it would need work in the future, but as soon as he started the engine I decided I was having it. The icing on the cake being that the car was first registered on August 17 — my birthday.”
“The Capri looked immaculate,” continues Allan, “but I’m fussy. I took it to my friend, Steven MacGregor who had been a painter for the local Ford garage, he pointed out hairline cracks in the paint I hadn’t noticed. The car was already near show quality, although I had the alloys refurbished and the leather seats re-dyed at a specialist. I planned to do the car myself, but by early 2015 was so busy with work I started looking for a restorer.”
Allan phoned Capri Club International for advice, and club secretary, Sally Bristow suggested calling Trevor Steadman. “Trevor was then in the process of starting Steadspeed Restorations, in fact I got invoice number 0001,” remembers Allan. “He already had a great reputation so I sent the car up to Orkney for a light restoration and a tidy up…”
“THE CAPRI LOOKED IMMACULATE... BUT I’M VERY FUSSY” First impressions
Trevor recalls the Capri arriving, “I thought it looked really good at first glance,” admits Trevor, “there was a bit of a bow in one of the front wings and it needed a repaint, but in general it looked a decent car. I was expecting just to do two front wings and a respray as Allan had requested, but once I opened the bonnet I could see some previous repairs. It turned into a full restoration once I found rust in the sills, inner wings and around the headlights. It had also rotted around the rear side window and I’d never seen a Capri rust
there. I made up all the replacement sections from scratch — why buy a complete new sill and spend all day fitting it, if it only needs 8 inches replacing?”
It took some skilled metal working to add in the repair sections. “The floors had a couple of easy repairs, but I made up new pieces around the headlamp bowls, I even added all the original factory indents on the rear sides of the replacement sections.
Mechanically the Capri was good. “I rebuilt the engine with new rings, valve seats and so on,” says Trevor. “I gave the diff a service and refurbished the suspension. The interior and the glass were fine to go back in but I replaced every nut and bolt of the car as I went through it. I put a lot of pride, passion and long hours into that Capri,” admits Trevor, “and I was really pleased with the way it came out.”
Show surprise
“I knew it was a rare car when I bought it but not how rare. Because it has a single exhaust people at shows assume it’s just a 1.6 wearing badges,” laughs Allan, “but it really does go, the turbo kicks in around 2000 rpm and it just keeps pulling. A mate was following me in his 2.8i and struggled to keep up; he’d forgotten I had a turbo and was worrying there was something wrong with his car.”
“I’m certainly not frightened to put miles on. The Capri’s a comfortable long distance car and I happily do club rallies of 300 miles or more a day. I’m really pleased with it, I do quite fancy a Mk1 Capri now, but I’ve certainly no plans to get rid of my TT.”
Thanks to: absent friend Jim Gibson (a lifelong Ford enthusiast) and his widow Libby, Scott Bissett (my co-pilot down to Cornwall), Trevor Steadman at Steadspeed Restorations (see Facebook or call 07766 676379), Capri Club International (www.capriclub.co.uk), Capri Club Scotland (www.capriclubscotland.co.uk / 01555 894133) and my partner Kath for her patience and understanding.