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.....Nikki And His Capri...
As you all know, we've got a bit of a soft spot here for the Capri, a spot the size of Devon. So when we started catching up with Nikki Edwards at a few shows and he told us of his X-Pack 3.1, we knew at some stage we'd be wending our way to the South-east. So Nikki, why classic Fords?
"I get it from my dad, who's always had bikes and cars, including a V4 Corsair and a Mkl Capri." After working his way up through the ranks with a Mkl Fiesta and a couple of Capri Lasers, Nikki heard about this 3.1 X-Pack that was owned by Andy at specialist Tickover. "It was exactly how I wanted to build a Capri, right down to the S-stripes and Turbo tail."
Having now changed the colour-coded grille, bumpers and headlight surrounds over to black with a Mkll grille, Nikki has also dropped the suspension by a pretty healthy amount.
When you consider that he spends his working days selling brand-new Volkswagens, you would think he'd be the ideal credit and a new reg, sir.
"The best bit about owning the Capri is going sideways and the sound of the V6 through the custom exhaust. Also standing out from the usual Novas, Saxos, RSTs and XRSis." Ah, so classics it is then.
"They have character. They're easy to work on and get parts for. As nice as the cars I sell are, they don't go sideways quite like a 3-litre Capri in the wet with a bag of cement in the boot. I like to see where I'm going out of the side window."
Talking to Nikki you get the distinct impression that he knows what he's doing, but with his dream Capri parked here under the neon light and young and old admiring it, what could possibly replace it given the choice?
"I could go for early Escorts or Cortinas, maybe even an Anglia, but Cossie Anglias are becoming popular and I prefer V6s."
Fair enough. The attention the Capri is drawing while we talk is no surprise. Long, low and muscular like a resting pitbull -.....
Captions -
Top-Left - "The Fester's holding its own against the fast-gathering throng of winged wonders"
Top-Right - Dan bought this Fiesta because it was, er, cheap. Since then he's kept the mods subtle to emphasise the shape.
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