YouTuber saves popular 70s sports cars from garage and states classics are hiding in UK
One of YouTube's most recognised motoring personalities has shared how he helped to recover the UK's answer to the Ford Mustang from neglect.
A popular motoring personality has shared how he helped to revive an iconic UK-built sports car from the 1970s that had been forgotten in a garage for more than 40 years.
Jonny Smith is a former Fifth Gear presenter who now runs The Late Brake Show, a YouTube channel dedicated to reviewing the latest models and finding barn find cars, classic models that have not been out on the road for decades.
In a recent video, Jonny shows viewers a stowed away Ford Capri 1600 from 1972, stating that unloved examples of valuable classic cars can still be found across the country, including the capital.
He explained: “I’ve come to London, to a backstreet where, even though the real estate in London is really, really high, there are still little pockets of semi-derelict garages. And the garage in question that I am interested in is just here.
“Because in here is a car that has been in the same family from new and we think it hasn’t been out of here since maybe the early 80s. It’s an old Ford, and the slogan on the advert was ‘The car you always promised yourself’, you might know what I’m talking about.”
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In the video, Jonny was joined by Panos Skordi, the current owner of the car which he bought from his Godmother in 1983.
He recalled that he did get behind the wheel of the car for a short while, however when Panos bought a Triumph Stag and more modern Ford Sierra, he no longer needed the aging Capri.
Lifting the garage door, showed the Capri was no longer in the best of shapes, with mattresses placed on the roof and axle stands helping to prop up the rear end.
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Removing objects from around the car, Jonny was able to work under the bonnet, but warned viewers planning to fire up a classic after years of neglect that running it on old fuel could cause expensive damage.
He advised: “I’m always a bit nervous and excited at this moment where we’ve got no idea if the engine is dead, the wiring is dead, it’s going to be seized. There are all kinds of variations to this experiment.
“I always disconnect the fuel line before I go for an initial turnover because what you desperately don’t want to do is drag old, sludgy fuel through the whole system, because once you do that you’ve opened a complete can of worms then.”
Unfortunately, after spending a long time under the bonnet, Jonny and Panos noted that they were unable to get the classic Ford going again, stating that it needed a number of new ignition components.
Nevertheless, Panos said that he intends to buy the necessary parts to get the Capri on the road once again, highlighting that a good thing about owning a classic in London is that it is tax, MOT and ULEZ exempt.
Built between 1969 and 1987, the Ford Capri was Europe’s answer to the Mustang pony car and was offered with a number of engines ranging from an economical 1.3 to a 3.1 litre V6 that could make 148bhp.
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