• Year of manufacture 
    1972
  • Car type 
    Coupé
  • Chassis number 
    GAECLJ19997
  • Competition car 
    Yes
  • Drive 
    LHD
  • Condition 
    Restored
  • Interior colour 
    Black
  • Number of doors 
    2
  • Number of seats 
    2
  • Location
    France
  • Exterior colour 
    Blue
  • Gearbox 
    Manual
  • Drivetrain 
    2wd
  • Fuel type 
    Petrol

Description

The Capri was launched in 1969 as the European counterpart to the wildly popular Mustang in the USA. Ford had been using motor racing as their main marketing tool throughout the sixties and it came as no surprise that Jochen Neerpasch, head of the Motorsport Department in Cologne, was delegated to turn the Capri into a race winning car.
The RS2600 was the initial Group 2 offering, homologated on the fastest Capri sold in Germany, this was good enough for class wins in the European Touring Car Championship but Ford wanted the main prize.

This 1972 Ford Capri RS2600 - wearing chassis number GAECLJ19997 - is one of three RS2600s that were built in the Cologne, Germany factory to be raced and maintained by Ford Motor Company in the 1972 season. After clinching the 1972 European Touring Car Championship, this Capri RS2600 was modified and raced in the 1973 season; where it stayed competitive until it was sold to a buyer in the United States of America in 1974. Once it reached the United States, the Capri RS2600 saw the track twice between 1974 and 1975 before being sold to another individual in 1976. It was then raced five more times over the course of the next several years, until it was stored in a trailer in 1981.
This Capri GAECLJ19997 is the only works Capri that was entered in Le MANS 24H race twice, once in 1972 and then again in 1973 with BIRRELL/VINATIER n°53.

1971-1974 owned by Ford Germany works car
1974-1975 owned by Harry Theodoracopulos Horst Kwech
12 weeks in 1975 owned by unidentified Ford Ex. In US (broker)
1975-2016 owned by Carl Von Walhlausen
2016 to present actual owner. and restored

The Capri RS2600 was located in August of 2016 and began its restoration process at RM Motorsports the following December. This historic touring car retains all the factory homologation from 1973, as well as 95% of the original sheet metal and the correct Weslake motor - restored by Roush Industries - as raced in the 1973 season.

Technical Data
Engine
• Type: Front six-cylinder, four-stroke, V-engine (60°), light metal cylinder heads, valve cover, valve timing cover, water pump cover. Special crankshaft and conrods
• Engine mounting: Magnesium three-point, rubber supported
• Displacement: 2995cc
• Bore/stroke: 95.8/69.0mm
• Compression ratio: 11:1
• Engine performance: 320/7,600 rpm (DIN-HP)
• Output per liter: 107(DIN-HP/1)
• Max. Torque: 33/5,550 rpm (DIN-mkg)
• Valve arrangement: OHV, inlet 48.2 mm, outlet 38.0 mm
• Valve Operation: Via valve tappets, push rods, rocker arms. Camshaft located in crankshaft housing, cog-wheel drive
• Fuel injection: Kugelfischer fuel injection with mechanical six-piston pump driven via toothed belt, electrical high-pressure fuel pump
• Fuel: Premium
• Crankshaft bearings: Four three-metal bearings
• Connecting rod bearings: Three-metal bearings
• Lubrication system: Dry sump
• Oil filter: Full flow type
• Oil system capacity: ca. 10 l
• Cooling System: Closed water circulation, pump, oil cooler
• Battery: 12 Volt/38 Ah
• Alternator: 14 Volt/75 Ah
Drivetrain
• Clutch: Two dry plates, diameter 213 mm, light metal bellhousing
• Transmission: Fully synchronized five-speed transmission, floor-mounted shift
• Drive shaft: Two-part type
• Body: Unitized all steel, with plastic doors, hood, boot lid, wing extensions
Chassis
• Front axle: Independent, McPherson struts, coilsprings and double-acting pressurized shock absorbers, stabilizer bar, negative wheel camber 1° 40', castor 2° 22', magnesium stub axle housing, adjustable TCA's (track control arms) and compression struts with ball joints, forged light allow front hubs
• Rear axle: Rigid, special plastic single leaf spring with additional coil spring, double acting pressurized shock absorbers, four trailing arms, Watts linkage, oil cooler possible
• Brakes: Four-wheel disc brakes ventilated, dual braking fluid circuit, mechanical rear wheel emergency brake, light metal calipers ATE
• Disc brake diameter: 302 mm front; 292 mm rear
• Steering system: Rack and pinion steering, safety steering column, sport-type leather covered steering wheel
• Tire Size: Front: 575/290-15; Rear: 575/340-15
• Rims: Front: 12 x 15; Rear: 14 x 15
General Data
• Wheelbase: 2559 mm
• Tread: Front: 1462 mm; Rear: 1362 mm
• Ground clearance: 102 mm
• Overall length: 4221 mm
• Overall width: 1755 mm (including bulging wheelhouses)
• Overall height: 1248 mm
• Turning circle: 13.5 m
• Curbweight: 930 kg (without fuel)
Performance
• Maximum speed: 270 km/h
• Acceleration: 4.6 seconds (0 to 100 km/h)

The perfect entrant in any Le Mans race collection or the perfect car for next HTC by Peter Auto or next Le Mans Classic 2020....!