Ford has revived its famous Capri nameplate after a 38-year absence. This time, however, far from the low-slung two-door coupé that was a favourite of footballers and TV shows, the revived version is a bulky five-door SUV crossover.
Up front, instead of the humming petrol engine, is an electric motor. Derived from the larger all-electric Explorer SUV, the new Capri will start production in the coming weeks.
Bearing some similarities in its styling to the Polestar 2, the new car measures 4.6m in length, more than 2m wide and more than 1.6m in height, while weighing more than 2 tonnes. Rivals for the new car include EVs such as the VW ID.5, Skoda Enyaq and Kia EV6.
Comparison to the VW Group models is appropriate, for this new Capri is built on Volkswagen Group’s MEB architecture and will be offered with either a 282 single motor, or 335bhp twin-motor set-up.
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The former will have a battery pack with 77kW of usable power and a range of up to 627km. The AWD version has a slightly larger 79kW battery pack with a range of up to 592km.
Inside, the new Capri resembles the Explorer model, with a 14.6in central touchscreen and multiple storage bins, but with sports seats and a tidy square steering wheel that hints at the name’s sportier past.
Ford has teased multiple Capri branded concepts over the last decade, but the lure of the SUV market was always expected to override any desire to return to the sleek and sporty coupé market from which the original derived its fame.
Ford’s strategy of tapping into its history for names may be driven by a desire to highlight the brand’s heritage in the face of fleets of newly arrived Asian brands, all with EV crossovers in their ranges.
However, Ford’s European fans are likely to be upset at the firm’s decision to attach the Capri nameplate to a two-tonne crossover that bears little or no relationship with the original coupé.
Pricing has yet to be announced, but is expected to be slightly higher than the Explorer EV, which starts at €43,591.
