1993 Mercury Capri Convertible 1.6 non-turbo

Summary:

Sporty commuter with room for kids

Faults:

Shifter broke loose and fell through the floorboards. Ongoing problem last solved with epoxy.

Soft top leaks around the driver's side door.

Clueless local mechanic didn't know it was a twin-cam (they all are).

Starting to become hard to find body parts.

General Comments:

Wish it had more power, but a lot of fun, especially with the top down. Compared with the Del Sol and the Miata, it has about the same performance. But you can't throw two toddlers into the back of the Honda or Mazda.

Hard top a definite plus - makes it a four-season car. Looks were a little dated in the '90s, but for some reason seem cleaner now.

Do-it-yourselfers beware: it takes a lot of scraped knuckles to change the timing belt and water pump.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 29th August, 2000

9th May 2001, 18:28

I also have the shifter problem. I found that an air conditioning duct zip strap worked real well. I drilled two holes, on each side of the shifter, through the metal plate in the floorboard under the shifter. Then ran the strap through the holes, but not around the shifter bar that goes to the tranny. Over the shifter bar and under the metal platform that holds the rubber piece that is supposed to hold the shifter up. I then tightened it up, and put all the console back together. I have driven it about 10,000 miles and haven't had a problem yet.

My dad is an ASE certified mechanic and he said "their should be no problem with that".

1993 Mercury Capri Convertible Dual cam, 4 cyl., 16 valve

Faults:

Convertible (soft) top leaks, molding coming off.

Hood vibrates and makes a noise when car is stopped.

Light switch (to turn headlights on & off) broken.

General Comments:

Cute car, fun to drive.

Convertible top is a big problem.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 7th June, 1998

8th Jan 2001, 11:11

We bought this cute car for my daughter 1 & 1/2 years ago... We have already had to replace the top once, and it is ripped again due to a design flaw that causes the hinges to rip the top.

Also, the hard plastic moulded part of the top has been a problem on both tops that we have had.

At the present time, the car is out in my garage TRYING to be repaired. My husband bought a new fuel pump for the car because it went out. After taking out the whole back seat to get to the area where the fuel pump is located, he is now trying to find other parts that need to be replaced, but are not located where the manuals say they should be.

Had we been aware of all these problems with this car, we would have chosen to purchase another car that was more reliable for my daughter to drive.

2nd Mar 2002, 19:00

I too have had a rip in my new top due to a design problem. My top leaks also and is very annoying. I am having problems finding a shop manual for the car to replace the passengers side c-v joint that has gone bad. Any suggestions email to John @ smoochie77@hotmail.com.

2nd Mar 2002, 19:03

My 93 Mercury Capri has a back bumper that the paint has peeled on. Is this a recall?? If not it should be. The whole car exterior looks great except that back bumper. Any others with that problem???