I like the electric Ford Capri – but I’m not sure I love it

Introduction

Having only just recently driven the Ford Explorer, I was keen to try the Blue Oval’s other resurrected marque – despite the controversy of using the revered Capri moniker for something so, er, nothing of the sort. Name aside, this is a very decent electric saloon-cum-SUV, with plenty of appeal for those wanting lots of interior space.

The levels of personality emanating from this car are rather less plentiful. It’s a little bland, both inside and out. Some have suggested it looks like a Polestar from certain angles, while others have labelled it (rather harshly, in my view) gopping. Given it does everything you’d expect of an electric car, does the poor old Ford Capri need some love?

Maybe, but I’m not sure even I love it enough to spend the sort of money that Ford is asking. The Capri Premium AWD model driven here has a base price of £56,175, but with options – including a heat pump that’s all but mandatory for the changeable northern European market – that climbs to £60,325. I guess that’s not an unreasonable figure alongside the likes of the, ahem, Polestar 2 or the Kia EV6, and it feels like a lot for a car once you’re behind the wheel.

The styling

People really have been getting hot and othered about the design of the new Capri, which I get. Ford folks are passionate about their classics, and the original Capri is exactly that. The new one is nothing of the sort, and rather generic. I can see a lot of the Polestar 2 in it from certain angles. I like that car, but did we really need another variation on the theme?

There are good points though, with a smoothed-off front end that’s a little bit reminiscent of the Ford Explorer without being an exact duplicate. I liked the illuminated door handles which, alongside Capri puddle lights, did a nice job of guiding me to the car on dreary winter evenings. Around the back, the angular rear end is perfectly serviceable – though again, it’s a little bit innocuous. I found it a bit surprising that the 21in alloys on this car were a £1,000 option, because to my mind they’re not very attractive; weirdly, they look more like push-on wheel trims to me.

Unfortunately it’s a similar story on the inside, with an interior that’s more by-numbers than packed with personality. I was impressed by the overall space though, with ample legroom both in the front and the back. The seats are really nice too, with electric adjustment in the front and, seemingly, built-in heating that’s on by default. I couldn’t seem to switch it off after going through all the menus, save for pressing the button on the central column.

There’s a respectable boot space too, with a handy lift-up floor that hides the charging cable and a 12V socket. Fine, unless you want to plug in a dash cam, as I did, and subsequently had to run a cable all the way to the front. Oh well.

The drive

I might’ve found it hard to get excited about the Capri’s looks, but the driving experience was a lot more interesting. That’s always good news when you’re talking about an EV, because so many of them lack much in the way of excitement. Sure, electric cars get away at the lights well enough, but there’s not often much to offer after that. I don’t know if it was because my test car was all-wheel drive, but it felt great on a variety of different roads.

The Capri, like the Explorer, is based around the Volkswagen Group’s MEB architecture. That comes up as you engage the twist ‘n’ go drive selector in front of the steering wheel. Yup, in many ways I felt like I could have been sitting in a Volkswagen ID5, but I like that anyway so no great shakes. Ford’s distinctive typefaces on the digital dash and over on the infotainment screen remove the generic vibes somewhat though.

Most of the time I drove the Capri in its default Normal mode, but there is a Sport option, as well as Range and Individual. Sport adds some vim to proceedings if it’s needed but I also usually clicked the shifter button to B, which offered up some regenerative braking on the go. It’s not adjustable mind, just on or off.

Nevertheless, the range on my AWD 77kWh big battery car was good, with up to 390 miles on tap in an ideal world. Taking it as easy as I did, I think that’s probably not far off although cold winter nights took their toll. On that note, the heat pump was an option costing over a grand. Charging at home was a bit of a slog, but the Ford Capri can handle speeds up to 185kW for the four-wheel drive model, which was fine when I was out on longer runs.

The technology

While the Ford Capri features plenty of components from the VW group platform, including daft switchgear like the two-in-one front/rear window buttons, things are more of a success story with the infotainment screen. It’s similar to the one found in the Ford Explorer and sits upright at the centre of the dash, with some core control buttons immediately underneath. I really like the resolution and layout of this, which is further complimented by the instrument screen in front of the steering wheel.

My test car came with a ten speaker B&O audio system too, which felt like it had plenty to give, and the bottom end vibes were particularly impressive due perhaps to the boxiness of the body panels housing the speakers, maybe.

As mentioned earlier, I’m not hugely keen on 12V power sockets being in the boot. It’s fine if you’re parked up for a picnic and want to use a heated travel mug or something, but it adds another level of faff if you’re plugging in a dash cam, as I did.

Ford Capri verdict

I got the occasional odd look while I was driving the Capri, presumably from Ford fans who aren’t keen on the badge being used on an all-electric creation like this. That’s a shame because there’s a lot to like about the car, even if it isn’t the most exciting thing in the world. It’s comfortable and decent to drive with an impressive range too.

There are rivals I’d probably choose first, like the Kia EV6 for example, but if you’re a Ford fan and can overcome the ‘it isn’t a proper Capri’ stigma, it’s well worth a look.

Ford Capri technical specifications