The Ford Capri was supposed to be the European equivalent of a pony car, so that part of this redesign is right. However, the part where it skipped brands and headed over to the Dodge stable was not included in the plan.
Considering the U.S. already had the original in the Mustang, it's understandable why the Capri had limited success over here. Besides, the 5-mph bumper rule meant that the design of imported vehicles from that era was mercilessly slaughtered by the addition of hideously large and unappealing bumpers. In most cases, those ended up looking exactly as you would expect—like the afterthought that they were.
Over in Europe, though, the Capri was the coolest Ford you could buy. People would buy a Cortina, but they would dream about owning a Capri. And if you look at it, particularly the 1971 RS 2600 model chosen here in this mustardy yellow color, you can understand why.
It has the same coupe/fastback aspect as a Mustang, but it was somewhat smaller since it was designed for the European market. It had a long hood with the cabin tucked away at the back, giving it a sporty yet elegant silhouette. Still, one of the key features of its design, at least as far as this 1971 model is concerned, was the shape of that front bumper—or rather the fact that it virtually lacked one.
And that's our main issue with Marouane Bembli's modern reinterpretation of this classic Ford model. Yes, that's not a very contemporary look, but if you're not going to give it a complete redesign anyway, what's the point in messing with its most defining feature? Take that away, and you might as well have a generic '70s fastback that looks good but particularly special.
Well, at least you have that drop in the grille between the two headlight blocks—except you don't because the artist decided to remove that as well. Actually, the only thing left that might tell you this was once a Capri (though you'd have to be a pretty keen connoisseur of the model) is that dipping shoulder line.
In the end, even Marouane admits it kind of looks like a Dodge Challenger, and while that's never a bad thing from an aesthetic point of view, it's not exactly the description you'd want to use for a Ford model. It's not a bad-looking car, but it misses the character of the original. It's a little too American, something Ford—and Philip T. Clark, the man who penned the original Capri—tried to avoid when they came up with the coupe back in 1968.
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