Mk3 Capri Mk4 Escort
Homebuilt Hero: Chris Hillman “I bought the Capri as a bit of a wreck to do up, enjoy for a while then move on,” says Chris. “Two years later I still have it and I am slowly putting it back to standard but slightly modified. It’s a 1979 Ghia and not long after buying it, realised pretty much most moving parts were worn out so I started to replace the leaf springs, front dampers, top mounts and springs, rebuilt the carb and rear gearbox seal.”
“I’ve also swapped the desirable Recaros for a Chocolate Brown Ghia interior), rewired the dash, fitted the original bumpers to the smoothed off front and back valences and installed new brake lines and callipers. There’s still a way to go yet and I’m aiming for a standard but lowered look with banded Steels when I can afford it. I’m also getting the itch to do an ST170 conversion...
“My other car is 1985 Ford Escort 1.1. I’ve owned this for eight years and mechanically it has been great but, in the same way as the Capri, after buying it I found out it was full of holes! But I had the Escort I originally wanted as a teenager and this is probably where the keeping it standard thing started. I felt that I really wanted to preserve what is a rare Base model car.
“Now eight years later, I’ve just came back from racing it around Goodwood for the Retro Rides Weekender, and I’m starting to think this could do with a decent engine swap (that little 1100cc is getting a bit tired). I’ve started to become more confident that if you put your mind to it, you can build whatever you want. Even without a garage.”