The Reborn Ford Capri EV is Here to Remind You Nothing is Sacred
It's not even the name of this coupe-over EV that has us scratching our heads most.
It's been almost four years since Ford debuted the Mustang Mach-E and people still freak out about the name. Evidently, the Blue Oval thought the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed was a great chance to do it all over again, as Ford of Europe rolled out a Capri. You know, the name once attached to a two-door, rear-drive coupe powered by all manner of gas-powered engines, even spawning a wild, championship-winning race car. So of course we now find those same five letters on the back of an all-electric, four-door psuedo-crossover-thing.
Honestly, that's not even the weirdest part of this reborn Capri—and before we get too far into it, thank you for not calling it Capr-E, Ford. No, the biggest mysteries are its styling and market placement. Let's start with the first one.
Uh, is that a Polestar?
Look, I don't like the "x car looks like y car" discourse either. It's often way too broad-strokes, overlooking detail differences and the necessities of particular car segments. But look at that comparison image.
Complicating matters, the Capri is practically the same size as the Polestar 2. At 182.44 inches (4,634 millimeters) in length, it is just 1.1 inches (28 mm) longer than the Swede. Ditto the wheelbase. The width difference is even smaller, though height (64.0 inches / 1,626 mm) is remarkably almost half a foot taller.
At least the ends are different. I got hands-on with the Capri at Goodwood and its front and rear styling does detract from that copied-homework profile. The taillights are a refreshing take on the all-too-familiar full-width treatment. Meanwhile the black-out panel between the headlights does a decent job splitting the latest Ford out from the rest of the EV pack. If anything, the rectangular headlights remind me more of the early-'90s Escort, the one of Cosworth fame. Surely that would've been a great badge to bring back, huh Ford?
Nobody will mistake the cabin for that of a Polestar. While both models pare down physical controls to a minimum, the Ford features a large, 14.6-inch touchscreen that can fold out of the way for additional storage. There is good headroom, the squircle steering wheel feels good in the hands, and the B&O sound bar gives the cabin a lounge-like vibe.
Did I mention I was at Goodwood as a Polestar guest? Yeah, that was an interesting dinner conversation Wednesday night.
The Mustang connection
It's important to point out the Capri, like the all-electric Explorer with which it shares its platform, is not destined for these shores. Both are borne from Ford's EV partnership with Volkswagen, sitting on the MEB platform and utilizing the same battery and motor layouts. A single-motor setup produces 286 horsepower, with a 77.0-kilowatt-hour battery pack and a WLTP-quoted range of 389 miles (627 kilometers). Buyers wanting all-wheel drive get 340 hp, a 79.0-kWh pack, and a slightly lower range of 368 miles (592 km).
Ford already offers an electric vehicle in this class though: the Mach-E. In the UK, the bog-standard, £43,330 Mustang Mach-E currently undercuts the £48,075 entry-level Capri Select RWD. The latter benefits from more power and range, while the former benefits from Ford UK putting £7,500 on the hood. Match Premium trim to Premium trim (both still RWD), and it ends up being £51,880 (Mach-E) and £52,175 (Capri). In that case, the older EV offers slightly more range and power.
All of this is moot for us North American scum anyway: as mentioned above, the new Capri is a Europe-only affair. Nonetheless, it's the latest proof that the Blue Oval as a whole is unafraid to reimagine storied names, be it Mustang, Lightning, or Capri. If region-specific revivals are truly a thing, then I look forward to the next Taurus—but maybe not the Tempo.
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Kyle began his automotive obsession before he even started school, courtesy of a remote control Porsche and various LEGO sets. He later studied advertising and graphic design at Humber College, which led him to writing about cars (both real and digital). He is now a proud member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), where he was the Journalist of the Year runner-up for 2021.
More by Kyle Patrick
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As a former 74 Capri owner, I am not impressed to see the name used on this. The mid 90's Capri in the US was also a terrible looking car. I have seen some great looking artist concepts on the Capri theme.. not like there are not options. Oh well.
This atrocity is of course no Capri, no matter what Ford intends us to believe. Again Ford did another nonsense like with the Mach-e and puts Capri badges to a boring SUV which is a cheap copy of a Polestar 2.