Miss ya, buddies

"Rock Bottom" (rockbottom81) 07/12/2017 at 13:13 • Filed to: None

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Never forget that IMSA Merkurs happened. These (and the IMSA Mercury Capris before them) are the sound of my childhood.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 13:20

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YES! CAPRI RACE CARS!

Did someone say Capri Race Car? Just put my numbers on:

lone_liberal > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 13:23

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An IMSA Capri with Lyn St. James at the wheel. That’s good racin’!

Rock Bottom > lone_liberal 07/12/2017 at 13:26

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She was no Tom Gloy!

Rock Bottom > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner 07/12/2017 at 13:27

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The world needs more bubble-window racers!

RallyWrench > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 13:38

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Hell yes, I loved these things. Great racing in that era, with a crazy variety of cars.

Grindintosecond > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 14:09

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Battling the Corvettes who had better handling, but the Mekur always powered away with more RPMs and boost.....

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 14:50

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Unfortunately mine isn’t a bubble. It’s 1 year pre-bubble back. I’m a big fan of the bubble and the bubble hatch should actually be lighter because it’s basically made with plexi-glass instead of real glass.

I’d swap one but I’d need the 2nd gen fox capri tail lights and rear bumper.

Big benefit for me to get a 79-82 model was the front bumper is higher off the ground on the RS, my intention is to RallyX race it so better ground clearance is a big win.

Rock Bottom > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner 07/12/2017 at 15:56

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It’s a gorgeously aggressive machine, even without the bubble. Take care of that beauty!

Rock Bottom > Grindintosecond 07/12/2017 at 15:57

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Soooooo good!

Rock Bottom > RallyWrench 07/12/2017 at 16:00

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That’s the best part of the best age of IMSA. The sheer variety of approaches, and the fact that they were all fast in different ways! Such exciting racing! And the sounds! I mean, the rumble of a V8, the shriek of a Wankel, the howl of a V6, the scream of the turbo 4s! So good!

RallyWrench > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 16:16

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And the Audi turbo fives! And stuff like this:

Just nuts, right? I miss those days. We have some great racing now, but the boxes cars had to fit in back then were much bigger, there was some crazy stuff on track.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Rock Bottom 07/12/2017 at 16:56

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Probably won’t take too good of care of it lol

It’s becoming a Rally car. The Capri was a calculated decision though. Besides my love of Mercury, it makes a better rally car than a Mustang. Bigger fenders allow for more tire, front bumper is higher up than the Mustang GT of the age. Hatch was required so I can load a second set of tires/wheels/tools/jack in the back.

Rock Bottom > RallyWrench 07/13/2017 at 09:27

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Hell yeah, the Mustang GTP! My old man worked on these at Roush. Apparently the three-way Ford/Zakspeed/Roush feud was pretty entertaining from a worker-bee perspective!

Rock Bottom > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner 07/13/2017 at 09:28

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This is an acceptable form of Capri abuse. She will either be covered in glory or die a good death!

RallyWrench > Rock Bottom 07/13/2017 at 09:55

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No kidding!? That’s amazing! My boss used to chief Porsches in the early days of IMSA, there are loads of crazy stories. I’m sure your dad has a few! Those Zakspeed Capris are among my favorite cars of the era.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Rock Bottom 07/13/2017 at 10:18

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I’m sure hoping for the first one LOL

Rock Bottom > RallyWrench 07/13/2017 at 10:46

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He loves telling war stories from racing in the 80s and 90s. I really need to document some of this, for posterity. Once he flew my uncle (his little brother) down to Daytona in the middle of the 24 hours because he needed him to bring a set of valve springs down for a mid-race repair. Turns out that was the fastest way to get them from Detroit!

RallyWrench > Rock Bottom 07/13/2017 at 12:10

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My boss is the same way, always spinning yarns about the 70's and 80's, Le Mans, Daytona, etc. Funny you mention using your uncle as a courier. We did that at the last test I was at with the Super Trofeo squad I work for sometimes, flew a guy out to COTA from the shop with parts in his carry on. Faster than driving 24 hours round trip or shipping!