Cheap Turbo: 1993 Mercury Capri XR2 Convertible
The 1993 Mercury Capri XR2 Convertible is a car that has always intrigued me. It was a car that was designed and built by Ford Australia specifically for the American market. However, it made it onto Australian roads a full 2-years before the first one graced a Mercury showroom. That is just one of the many oddities about these little cars, and the fact that they didn’t sell in anywhere near the quantities that the Marketing Department expected means that finding a good one today can be a battle. This 1993 Capri XR2 looks like a pretty decent example. There are a few cosmetic flaws, but it seems to be mechanically sound. It is looking for a new home, so the owner has listed it for sale here on Facebook. It is located in Pine City, Minnesota, and you could park this little classic in your driveway for a mere $2,100. I have to say a big thank you to Barn Finder Mitchell G for spotting the Capri for us.
As someone who grew up in Australia, I do have a certain soft spot for the Capri. However, it is a car that poses a few questions. The first and most obvious of these surrounds why it was developed in the first place. Ford gave the project the green light at roughly the same time that the “go” button was pressed on the development of Mazda’s MX5 Miata. That might not seem odd, but Ford held a 25% stake in Mazda at that stage. So you would think that collaborating on a single model would have made sound economic sense. However, Ford chose to go it alone, and it was a decision that they regretted. This wasn’t because it was an awful car, but because potential buyers chose the MX5 over the Capri by a considerable margin. You have to wonder whether the sales margins would have been closer if Ford had decided to market a badge-engineered MX5 as the Capri. This little Mercury is finished in Everglade Green, and it generally presents reasonably well. A couple of dings and marks are visible, but they could be repaired as time and circumstances allow. It looks like the paint on the bumpers has begun to fade, but this could be addressed when the dings are fixed. There is no evidence of rust, although this generally wasn’t an issue with the Capri anyway. The Black convertible top looks very respectable, so does the glass. The original rear spoiler is present, and the alloy wheels show no evidence of damage or stains.
There are no engine photos supplied by the seller, but being an XR2, we know that it is fitted with a turbocharged 1,597cc 4-cylinder engine that sends its power to the front wheels via a 5-speed manual transmission. And that’s where we find the second issue that plagued the Capri when compared to the MX5. Potential buyers perceived the rear-wheel-drive Mazda as having greater sporting cred than the FWD Capri. The Capri was a sure-footed little car, but buyers saw the MX5 as a car that embraced a classic sports car’s true essence. There was also the issue of the price, which further hurt the Mercury. If you walked into a Mazda dealership in 1993, you could drive away in an MX5 for as little as $15,300. Walk into your Mercury dealership to purchase a Capri XR2, and you would need $17,250. It wasn’t as if you were getting a massive performance boost for your money. The MX5 would cover the ¼ mile in 16.7 seconds, while the XR2 would complete the same journey in 16.3 seconds. This Capri seems to be in sound mechanical health. The owner has recently treated it to a new battery and new belts. It is worth noting that Mazda developed the mechanical underpinnings for the car, so if it has been correctly maintained, it should be close to mechanically bulletproof. It also means that parts are readily available.
The owner also doesn’t supply any interior photos, and this as close as we get to a peek inside the Mercury. It features a fair amount of 1990s plastic, but this might not be a bad thing when you consider where the Capri was developed. Australia has some of the harshest climatic conditions on the planet, with UV readings that are well above average. If you think about what that sort of light can do to plastic, you will begin to appreciate that Ford Australia, along with the other local manufacturers at that time, was at the forefront of developing UV-resistant plastic trim. That technology will have found its way onto the Capri, so don’t be surprised if the interior is in above-average condition for a vehicle from this era. There is also leather on the seats, along with air conditioning, power windows, and cruise. This is an interior that would seem to be nicely equipped.
Ford Australia’s decision to proceed with the development and production of the Mercury Capri was a flawed one that financially hurt the company. Simultaneously, the company was dealing with significant quality control issues with its newly-introduced volume-selling Falcon range. That forced them to lose focus on the Capri, meaning that early examples of these also suffered similar problems that damaged their reputation. By the time this Capri hit the market, these issues had been addressed. Adding to Ford’s pain, the buying public looked at the Capri and the competing Mazda MX5, and most of them chose to park an MX5 in their driveway. For Ford Australia, the Capri project would only have made financial sense if they could sell 25,000 cars per year between the US and domestic markets. At no point did they come close to that target, so production ceased in 1994 after a mere 66,279 vehicles had rolled off the production line. Only 55,932 of these little classics found their way onto US shores between 1991 and 1994. Finding a good one today is becoming difficult, and finding an XR2 version is doubly so. This one isn’t perfect, but it is a presentable classic that is mechanically sound and would seem only to need some minor cosmetic work. Can you think of a turbocharged convertible that you could buy for less? If you can’t, maybe this is one that would be worth pursuing further.
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Comments
Hey, that’s fantastic Adam! I can check this out for anyone who may be serious about it, it’s an hour away.
Jeez Scotty…..a vert and row your own gears…..for two grand you should just go and buy it! :) I would. Then have a ceremony pounding those wheels into oblivion w.ith a sledge
Mountain wooden, remind me to never ever go camping with you.
Excellent write-up Adam on this mostly forgotten Capri. A good explanation on why it was not a success. Here’s a decent example for a trivial amount of money. You for sure won’t see yourself coming and going. If you would enjoy having a small sporty convertible to tool around in, go for it.
The only person I knew that bought one new was a drop dead gorgeous French teacher in the middle school I attended at the time. It was the same color as this one and whenever I see one of these I picture her. I don’t think I could own one because that’s what I associate the car with. These bombed much like the Buick Reatta unfortunately.
Always thought these oddities looked like a Metro on low-dose growth hormones. But – at this price how can you go rowng.
Awesome 1990s colors. GAWD i miss cars in actual colors. In all, the sexiest mazda GLC Ever made! Were these reliable?
Listed 21 weeks ago for $2100 and hasn’t sold? There’s something fishy going on here.
I remember a road test on the Capri when it was new, Car and Driver I think. Anyway, while road testing the car, screws actually fell out from the dash area onto the floor mats. So, build quality not so good. And these are about the ugliest wheels on the planet…
I think the wheels bring the “Totaly 90’s” factor up by 800%
Fun Car, My Wife had one here in NZ when the kids were little and she couldn’t use her Motorcycle much. Kids thought they were royalty sitting in the back in their car seats waving to everybody when the top was down.
There is one in the city I live in just outside CLT. Saw it earlier this week. Pristine 1 owner w/ about 43K miles. Waited for owner get out of her car in parking lot. I complimented the condition and she said she’s had it since new.
It’s a turbo convert for $2k and it runs. Someone needs to buy this. Needs different rims though. The Probe-esque wheels are not a good look.
I saw one of these today,as part of an estate sale.
It’s basicly a “make an offer” deal.
I passed.
Ford didn’t “go it alone” on this gen Capri. It’s based on a Mazda 323 FWD platform of that era..
And they drive exactly how you’d expect a 323 with it’s roof cut off to drive. Scuttle shake and rattles like a Cavalier Convertible and nowhere near the handling of an MX5.
You would need to drive this with a match satiny aqua windbreaker track suit combo and a head band….
I leased a new 1993 non turbo in this color. I am 6’2″ and I fit in a Capri, but not a Miata. Leases were highly subsidized. A Capri was $3000 or so cheaper than a Dodge Shadow convertible.
I bought the car at lease end and kept it for 4 more years. Two mechanical failures; an inside door handle and a shift linkage rod. Both covered under warranty.
This top is in good condition, most are shrunken along the sides. I always wondered how much shipping was on a low production Australian car. The refresh in 1994 was an improvement, but sales really tanked.
The Capri suffered from several problems. One, it took the name of the sport coupe from Ford of Europe, rear wheel drive and selection of engines over the years that gave it, except of the 1600cc Kent four-cylinder, a good to better degree of punch.
Next, it wasn’t “a real sports car,” not with front wheel drive, or at least that was the general opinion. The Miata was real wheel drive, reminiscent of the British sports cars except without the leaks. That was the Miata’s intent. It was a roadster. The Capri was a convertible. Huge difference there.
Other front-wheel drive would-be sports cars were hurt by their FWD. Would that the Reatta had been rear-wheel drive. It would be a classic now, instead of a “special interest” car. Again, it was a convertible. Remember the FWD Lotus Elan? The Lotus faithful do, and cringe.
And quality control? The Aussies must have been out tying their kangaroo down, sport, because they didn’t tie things down very well on the Capri. Lucky for C/D that they only lost dashboard screws. My press loan car got to steering funky, so I looked underneath to see that a tie rod had come adrift. Odd to steer with only one wheel. My one week sojourn didn’t last but a few days, and the Capri went home on a flatbed.
That said, if this Capri isn’t hiding any evil secrets, sure, for $2,100, drive it to a couple cars and coffees, then sell it on to someone else who wants to experience the ’90’s all over again, or who knows, maybe for the first time.
Now you got me thinking as to what 90s vehicles I’ve owned. And so far I come up with a 97 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo, 4×4, 4.0 and descent vehicle; a 97? or 98? Pontiac Transport 3.4? if I recall and also a good vehicle, but my wife who I bought it for said it was too big for her so got rid of it. I think that is it for 90s vehicles except for the 90 Mustang which I currently own, but I still consider it more of an 80s muscle car.
I had a friend who owned a Transport. He called it his personal Disney Monorail.
As I type this my daughter is driving to her final semester in college in a 1991 Capri XR2. It is my third Capri. In addition, I have a 1991 Miata Special Edition and a 94 Miata R Edition.
The Capri is a reliable car mechanically as it is based on the Mazda 323 engine, the turbo version was shared with the Mazda 323 GTX in all-wheel-drive trim.
The quality issues with these cars are known and have long been addressed by now. There is a strong and active Facebook group that is eager to help with parts and advice.
My Miatas are better sports cars but the Capri with its bigger trunk and backseat (parcel shelf) is the better touring car.
Most likely the Miata outsold this Aussie Crap-ee is because the Mazda looked like a sports car while this one looked like a Geo Metro wannabe.
Or the geo is a Capri wannabe, either way they’re both ugly as dog doo doo.
Still, for 2 grand for a little vert in decent condition, perhaps you might be on top.
God bless America
These were a great little fun car, I sold them new back then and had a non turbo 1600 and a turbo version for Demo’s. Back then we had to have the oldest car on the lot as a demo. They were based on the Laser/ Mazda frame and an interesting thing here the Ford Laser turbo actually won the 12 hour race at Bathurst but Ford did hardly any advertising to sell off that about the success of the Turbo Laser. ( The Laser is marketed under a different name in the U.S. ) I also had one of those for a demonstrator and can tell you the 4 wheel drive Laser went like crazy. I raced a V8 Holden Commodore through a good road test from Kingaroy to Toowoomba which is basically along the edge of the Great Dividing Range and the V8 couldn’t came anywhere near me. I talked with the same guy a few days later and he said he was trying alright to keep up once I passed him. So don’t underestimate one of these for just being a cool car for the wife to go shopping in. The biggest problem with the Turbo Capri I found was when you gave it curry off the line and then had to brake hard the Vacuum for the power brakes wasn’t there, but if you drove them normally there wasn’t a problem. What a great little cheap car for an enthusiasts wife to drive.
I worked in Ford dealerships here in Australia when these were released constant trouble with leaking roofs and noisey engine lash adjusters on start up used the same motor as the Mazda 323, although when the hardtop came out it fixed the problem but the damage had been done, Ford tried to revive it with the release of a XR3 Club sport package which are now quite sort after by collectors because of the limited numbers built, my sister has had one for years and loves it
Did someone mention the marketing strategy of selling these cars through the Lincoln / Mercury dealer network? Brilliant! Like Buick/Opel, and well, the Lincoln/Mercury/ ’70-’75 European Capri.
Awesome looking car. It’s a damn shame that it wasn’t on the US market for very long before being discontinued. It’s as if it wasn’t meant to be on the US market to begin with. If that were the case, why it was ever sold here in the first place is beyond me.
I remember mine in white with the optional hardtop. It was a fun, fast little runaround car until the timing belt gave out and blew up the entire engine. I recall paying $3500 to replace that turbo engine. So be sure to check that timing belt!
I bought a 93 in 97. Just like this car except mine was red. I also had the removable hardtop. I drove it for two years and enjoyed it. Never had one issue with this car. Did it have some cowl shake and a bit of turbo lag? Yup. But not so bad as to spoil the drive. The best part of these cars is that the top goes down. I sold it to a friend who enjoyed it as much as I did.
I had a new one of these in 1991. I drove it to 150.000 miles or so then sold to a friend. The only can that I have owned that never needed a repair other than the battery and plug wires.
I have a 1994 XR2 that I leased in December 1993. I leased for the first two years on the condition that I could trade it in for a new one if I liked it. In February 1994 I received a letter from Ford stating the Capri production had ended. So much for the “new car” idea in two years. It ended up that I liked the car so much, I decided to go ahead and purchase the car and continued to drive it daily putting more than 108,000 amazing trouble-free miles on it before parking it in 2004 with a coolant leak. I still own it today. One day I hope to get it back on the road again. The 1994 XR2 only had 366 units produced worldwide and it is likely that less than 10% still exist today.
That’s a nice little story @1994 XR2. I didn’t realize how rare the 94’s were. I’ll bet it wouldn’t take much to get it back on the road and relive the glory days.