Our Flaming Hot Ford Capri Restomod Render Glamorizes The Mustang's Cool Cousin

This Ford Capri Hot Rod Restomod render is a fiery beast with a Demon-slaying supercharged V8.

Over the years, Ford has made some wonderful cars, but some stand out more as pure automotive sensations. The Mustang is one such car that helped Ford prosper as one of the most valuable American automakers in the world.

But while America was mesmerized by the fun factor offered by the simplified V8 muscle car, Ford created another icon across the pond.

The Ford Capri is known as the "European Mustang" and for valid reasons. It was smaller and packed a V6, which was against the core rule of being a muscle car. But the Capri came together to be a nimble and the most gorgeous-looking muscle car to be created outside of America.

This Ford Capri Restomod Render by HotCars Digital Artist Timothy Adry Emmanuel uses the most epic version of the European Stang and gives it a flaming-hot makeover.

The loud exterior modifications might fool you into thinking this Capri Hot Rod is just a show car. But there is a meaty surprise under the hood that can even make the most powerful muscle cars sweat.

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The American love for muscle cars that boomed in the 60s got much attention worldwide. There were various attempts to replicate the muscular V8 magic, but none succeeded in hitting the right chords, except one.

Across the pond, the Ford Capri turned out to be a hit. It didn't pack the magical V8 RWD muscular formula. But packed a polar opposite character with compact and mostly puny powertrain options.

The Capri's design stood out and helped Europeans connect to the American muscle car fever. The compact form factor made sense for Europe's slimmer and tight-knitted roads. The engine options ranged from a puny 1.3-Liter Kent Inline-4 to a peppy 3.1-Liter Essex V6.

But even with the V6, a stock 70s Ford Capri packed a maximum of 138 hp. For reference, during the 70s, the Ford Mustang had 120-155 hp base engines. The top-spec 1970 Mustangs equipped with the Cobra Jet and Boss V8s breach the 300-hp mark with ease.

The Euro-spec Ford Capri was more of a mundane cousin to the wild Mustang, and that became its testimony.

The Capri was received warmly worldwide, including in Australia and Japan. It was in 1970 that Ford launched the Capri in North America and South Africa. In America, it was sold under the Lincoln-Mercury badging and was called "the sexy European".

But the most exciting part happened in South Africa. There, a particular bunch of madmen were not satisfied with the puny engines that Ford packed into the Capri.

So, they took charge and squeezed in a proper V8. The guys from Basil Green Motors near Johannesburg plonked in a 302 cu-in Ford Windsor Engine. It was called the Capri Perana, and this V8 transformed the puny Mustang cousin into the best non-American muscle car.

Emmanuel has used the Perana Capri as the base to create our Exclusive Ford Capri Restomod. It gets a wild SEMA-ready treatment, and those blue flame vinyls on either side make this classic European muscle car a shiny dream.

Our Restomod is a proper Hot Rod that is slammed and widened for that perfect stance. It gets a cool set of custom and darkened LED headlamps, tail lamps, and neatly tucked away CIBIE fog lamps just above the front splitter.

The white paint job goes perfectly with its bright blue flames. This Capri Restomod also flaunts a neat rear lip spoiler, which is present for more than looks. Those shiny chrome wheels are not the 'loudest' part of our Capri Hot Rod Concept.

Also, that huge hump you see on the hood hides a supercharged secret.

Inspired by the most-powerful classic Ford Capri made, we have swapped this 1971 Capri's engine with the latest 5.0-Liter Coyote V8 from the 2024 Mustang Dark Horse.

In its stock form, it produces 500 hp. But we have crowned it with the biggest Whipple supercharger on the market. Coupling that with a custom exhaust system, an upgraded fuel system, and a few other upgrades, our Ford Capri Hot Rod Restomod pumps out 1,100 hp.

It uses the optional 10-speed automatic transmission from the 2024 Dark Horse Mustang. The suspension and brakes have also been beefed-up and stiffened to take in all of this mad V8's fury. Our Concept has enough muscle to even smoke the most powerful and fastest production muscle car today - the 1,025-hp Dodge Challenger Demon 170.

Also, being a compact muscle car, the upgrade bits elevate its driving dynamics not just on the straights but also in the curves. This is because we have upheld the impressive power-to-weight ratio that the stock car was famous for.

This Capri Hot Rod might look like 'just' a show car. But one peek under the hood will give you an idea that those blue flames can turn red in no time.

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The Capri was billed as the "European Mustang" by Ford. The main connection that the Capri had with the Mustang was the designer. Philip T. Clark was the designer of the Ford Capri.

He was involved in the design of the iconic Ford Mustang as well. The cues can very well be seen on the Mustang's tamer cousin. But mechanically, it was based on the Mk2 Ford Cortina.

The Ford Capri is one of those rare muscle cars that turned out to be a sore idea for America. The first two generations were cool and had character. But the third-gen Capri messed things up. Sadly, it was in its third-gen model when the Capri came to the U.S. with a "Ford" badge.

So today, the most sought-after Ford Capri models are the non-American ones. A classic Ford Capri sells today for an average of $28,500. Puny inline-4-equipped ones are the ones that go for this rate. If you desire the Essex V6, the rarer 5.0-Liter Windsor V8, it bleeds beyond $60,000 with ease. However, the race-spec Capri RS2600 is a whole different ball game, selling for over $200,000.

There is good news and bad news here. The good news is that Ford is reviving the Capri nameplate. This comeback is part of Ford Europe's plan to electrify its entire line-up by 2030. The transition has already started with nine all-electric models planned by 2024.

But the bad news is that it will be a four-door EV crossover.

As per a report by The Sun UK, the all-new Ford Capri will be built on a VW MEB platform. This measure comes as a joint venture to help Ford skip at least two years of development time with an all-new platform.

It also underpins the new Europe-only Ford Explorer EV SUV unveiled recently. So, while Ford is bringing back the Capri, it won't be the "best non-American muscle car" anymore.

Tijo is an engineer, mechanic, and an avid content creator. He is a grease-monkey who loves tinkering with automobiles every now and then, when not busy penning down his passion for them. He has always had a soft spot for JDM and is keen on diving deep in for anything that involves wheels and engines.