I BOUGHT A CHEAP, Rare, Tiny, Turbo, CONVERTIBLE *Mercury Capri XR2*

Just in time for hot girl summer, I found a cheap turbo convertible a couple hours down the road! This 1992 Mercury Capri XR2 was only $2,500 so I had to pick it up immediately. It was built by Ford in Australia, based on the Mazda 323, designed in Italy, then imported to the United States. The Capri XR2 is way more fun to drive than you would expect, and reminds you of driving an NA Miata. The headlights go up too so it's the whole package!

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Common Questions:

What motorcycle do I ride? A few. Ducati 1198, Honda Goldwing, Honda Grom, Honda Ruckus

What do I do for a living? Make YouTube videos.

Can you wheelie? No, I suck.

Are you fast? Sort of. I suck mostly though.

Where can I keep up with you off the bike?

Instagram: WatchJRGo

Facebook: WatchJRGo (or JRGo, FB hates my branding)

Do you go to school? College, for 2 classes.

Why do you ride so dangerously? What do mean? I was doing 25.

Do you go to the track? Of course, hopefully there will be videos in the future.

Do you play video games? No, but I might stream N64 Goldeneye at some point. Twitch: WatchJRGo

Are you afraid the police will watch your videos and arrest you? Something something evidence something something warrants and due process of law

#AustralianCar #MercuryCapriXR2 #CheapCar

[brandonbman]

Park it out in the sun with the top “up” for a few hours. That vinyl will soften up and then you can latch it and let it take a set.

[BentonHart]

I remember these things. Used to see them all the time in the 90s/00s. Someone offered to sell me one back when I turned 16, but I passed on that and got an '87 RX-7 instead.

[pppaybackkk]

"Steering wheel out of the Fox body Mustang" Yeah, and ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING else Ford made in the 90s that had an air bag.

[_RiseAgainst]

As my grandpa would say, the only thing rarer than that car is a guy with the money to buy it.

[matthewmeaux]

I sold those new is 1991 and 1992. It was quick and fun to drive.

[PercentJake]

Every NA Miata guy is gonna be beating your door down for that valve cover

[ondrejhybler]

Greetings from Australia. Great content as always. Thanks for bringing an Aussie made car to the world. Cheers mate

[ufirex]

I remember when they debuted the Capri at the Ford plant in Geelong during the annual family Christmas party.

[greatreset]

Check out a German made Ford Merkur XR4ti from the mid to late 80's. Even cooler w/turbo 4cyl. 🚘

[bgoins]

Keep it, these little dudes are getting hard to find in good shape. They are fun and overly criticized.

[shanesimmons]

You need to get a ford probe gt dude !!!

[tholtan]

Such a cool car. I’ve almost bought one on a couple of different occasions. Oddly, the motor mounts were scary bad on every one I looked at. It’s still on the “I’d like one of those” list.

[repetey]

I'd do the timing service if there's no record of it.

[scootermann]

That sqaure, generic Ford Airbag wheel looks almost as out of place here as in the 90s aston Martins

[scottgosnell]

Wow! I had one of those in the 90s. Weird fun little car. I drove the wheels off mine.... literally. Always fun when your back wheel flys off on the highway after buying new tires.

[Thee_Dr_Evil]

that's some zoom-zoom engineering, it's a solid power train.

[robertobuenrostro]

JR grab thee Avalon King. 👨‍🔧
And bring thee Golden wrachet. 🇦🇺🔧

[declanmcquay]

I remember going to the Australian Ford factory at the time seeing those being built alongside Falcon utes. I think they were unfairly judged, still see them around Australian roads.

[spuwho]

Back when Mercury was still trying to be the "European Brand" under Ford. You can thank Edsel Ford III for this particular one. But I will be honest, the Ford product planners absolutely hated it. Just like they hated the Merkur XR4Ti and Scorpio. Not designed in the US, not engineered in the US, not made in the US. It got the same corporate treatment that the Pontiac GTO/Chevy SS/Saturn Astra got. The dealers didn't want to deal with it (lower margins), the service managers didn't like it (too many unique parts), and the resale went into the dumpster after Ford US recalled all the parts back from the dealers. While I am at it, Ford has some serious problems in their product planning department that has been going on since the 90's. Calling your new EV that is based loosely on a 4 door Mazda 3 a Mustang tells you just how dysfunctional that department has been. Overall a good catch for JR.

[bjgamertv]

I own a white 91 Capri non-turbo stick. Very fun car, but nowhere near as quick as the turbo. to address some issues you mentioned. Yes, the temp gauge sits high all the time. Sometimes cleaning the grounds near the drivers side firewall helps with this, and the oil pressure gauge. The top can be forced down with the latches. You need to loosen the nuts on the grab hooks on the windshield, and force the top down. Then you can slowly tighten the nuts until the top sits right. That being said, the top will leak. That's just how that works in these cars. The shifter, if it feels vague, can have bushing replaced to help. Two useful resources for this car are Team Capri, the forum, and Tech Capri, which is the shop manuals for this car. Enjoy the XR2