Road Tested by Hugh Maguire.
Ford fans went crazy on the internet when they heard that Ford were going to revive the famous Capri name and that it was going to be adorning of all things an EV!
As many will know the original Capri was a two door coupe which became iconic. However Ford went ahead and we so have the 3rd EV in the Ford line up and its a big EV!
So to the new Capri EV. The Capri is built on the same platform as the VW ID 5 and basically shares pretty much everything with it. So is this then a rebadged VW ID 5. Well in many ways yes but with a bit of Ford character injected.
First Impressions
Ford have managed to make the Capri a stylish and attractive looking car. The front boasts a big Ford oval badge with no grille obviously as its not needed in an EV but yet that managed to avoid that stereotypical EV’ Look” and give this car some personality.
Behind The Wheel
Jump inside and you are greeted by a very welcoming well finished cabin. Sure you don’t have to look too hard to find some hard scratchy plastics but on the whole it all looks and feels pretty good.
The model I am road testing is not the base model but the Premium version which adds nice extras such as heated steering wheel, heated and massage front seats, panoramic glass roof, and lovely ambient lighting to name but a few.
The driving position is perfect though I was not a fan of some of the controls for the wipers (flick switches rather than the more common stalk controls) and the fact that the front window switches double for rear window switches via a “rear” button. It all smacks of cost saving. The haptic touch sensitive buttons on the steering wheel are not great either as operating the trip menu constantly results in turning on the heated steering wheel. VW owners will also notice the shared switchgear. There is plenty of storage space including a neat secure area behind the tilting portrait central touchscreen. Overall this cabin is a nice place in which to travel. It feels well put together and looks rather nice too.
Accomadation is good both front and rear and the boot offers 572 litres of space as well as an underfloor storage area.
What’s under the bonnet?
Two batteries are offered a 52kWh battery or a 77kWh battery with either a single motor 286 bhp or a dual motor 340 bhp power outputs. Ford claim a range of 620km for the single motor version or 595 km for the dual motor. Unfortunately as with all EV’s this was not attainable. I started my test with 90% charge and a predicted range of 460km. Driving in a very sedate manner on a mixture of national routes and motorway I achieved a real range of 405km leaving 45 km range in reserve as I then needed to recharge.The motorway driving really kills the predicted range so in real world terms plan for a range of about 450km.
How does it drive?
Very well actually. It rides and handles better than most EV’s out there proving surefooted no matter what the road conditions but also the suspension is very well sorted soaking up the road imperfections with ease. There is a bit more tyre noise than I expected but otherwise this new Capri is quiet and refined.
Hugh’s Verdict.
Prices start at €45,798 for the Select model after grants. The Premium version starts at €50,990. Overall then the new Ford Capri is in my opinion one of the better EV’s on the market offering an attractive style, good specification and a decent EV driving experience.