It’s time for another Shitbox Showdown! We’ve managed to make it this far this week without a single automatic transmission, so we’ll keep that up today with a couple of five-speeds from eastern Colorado. But before we do that, let’s see what you made of our hatchbacks from yesterday:
Toyota beats Nissan? Two doors beats four? Two hundred bucks price difference? I’m not sure it matters. These cars are pretty much interchangeable. Either one would do just fine for general car stuff.
As we found out yesterday from Thomas, stickshifts are back! Of course, we all know they never went anywhere, and to prove it, we’ve got a couple of unusual cars to check out that are both good old-fashioned three-pedal manuals, or as they were once called, standards. As in, what you got if you didn’t choose the automatic option. Let’s check them out.
1991 Mercury Capri – $3,850
Engine/drivetrain: 1.6 liter dual overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD
Location: Windsor, CO
Odometer reading: 160,000 miles
Runs/drives? Yep
This car gets no respect at all. We’re fans of it around here; I even defended in our rebuttal to Motor Trend’s “Worst Cars Of The ’90s” list. Really, the worst charge that can be leveled against it is that it’s not a Miata, and you can say that about any non-Miata. So let’s stop worrying about what it isn’t, and consider it for what it is: a little convertible based on a decent proven economy car platform.
The Capri isn’t really a Mercury; it’s mostly Mazda under the skin, derived from the Mazda 323 platform, and built in Australia. It’s powered by a 1.6 liter Mazda B6 twin-cam engine, the same basic engine as in the early Miata, only turned sideways and driving the front wheels. The Capri is a four-seater on paper, but you wouldn’t want to actually make a person sit in back. I bet dogs love it, though.
This Capri runs and drives great, but it does appear to have a bit of a rust problem. This is the danger of driving a car like this year-round in snow country, I suppose. The seller seems to think it’s solid enough to put some recent work into, and trusts it enough for road trips. Think of the rust as an excuse to learn to weld.
The soft top is in perfect shape, but it also includes the removable hard top, and a nifty rolling cart to store it on. Just like those fancy folks with the Mercedes SLs, but for a fraction of the cost! And yeah, it’s not as small a fraction as you might like, but have you seen what early Miatas are going for these days?
1995 Dodge Dakota Sport – $2,250
Engine/drivetrain: 2.5 liter overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, RWD
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Odometer reading: 130,000 miles
Runs/drives? I think so; might need an ignition switch? Ad isn’t clear
Small truck too small for you? Big truck too big? Has Dodge got the answer for you! The Dodge Dakota was marketed as a “mid-sized” truck, something no one else was selling at the time. In long bed configuration, it could hold a 4×8 sheet of plywood in the bed (a standard measure of truck usefuless back when they were used as, you know, trucks), but its overall dimensions were a lot smaller than standard full-size trucks so it was easier to manage.
Most Dakotas were powered by a 3.9 liter V6 or a 5.2 liter V8, but the base engine was Chrysler’s K-car engine, here displacing 2.5 liters. It doesn’t seem like much engine for a truck, but in a standard-cab short-bed truck like this it’s fine. The little four-cylinder takes up a hilariously small portion of the available space under the Dakota’s big hood; see that brown spot in the photo above next to the engine? That’s the pavement below the truck. That’s how much extra room there is in there.
Being a base model, this Dakota has not only the four, but also a manual, and that most wonderful of all base-model truck equipment: a bench seat. It’s all in very nice shape, except for a dent in the rear bumper; apparently someone bumped into it during a recent snowstorm. It also needs something called an “ignition actuator pin.” If I remember right, this is the doodad that connects the ignition lock cylinder to the actual ignition switch, buried inside the steering column. The seller isn’t clear whether or not you can actually start the thing in its current condition.
It also comes with a fiberglass tonneau cover, handy for keeping smaller cargo secure and dry, but a pain if you need to move big stuff.
Comparing these two is a bit like comparing apples and oranges, but if you’re shopping for cheap wheels, sometimes the body style doesn’t matter much. Either of these could be a good economical runabout; it just depends what style you prefer.
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
I like those Capris too but that price seems way high for one, especially with that much rust. I’ll take the Dakota.
The Dakota with a 2.4L engine swap from a PT Cruiser turbo. That would be pretty sweet.
Learned to drive stick on a dakota just a few years older than this, but still short bed 4 cylinder. It was awful, smelled so bad like smoke, and I loved every minute of the week I borrowed it from my grandpa. Had to go for that even though I would much rather have a convertible than a truck.
I wasn’t aware that Capris came in manual. I thought the knock on them was the slushbox and, of course, the FWD layout. Good to know. Anyway, I have a neighbor (who looks to be in his 30s) who has TWO of them and he’s often out wrenching on them on weekends. I have a lot of questions but he’s the opposite of sociable so I doubt I’ll ever have them answered. Oh well, I hope he lets his freak flag fly for eternity. Keep doing your Capri thing you glorious grouch.
Anyway, the fact that Miatas aren’t cheap anymore is a real bummer. It wasn’t that long ago that you could find a presentable NA or NB for around 4-5 grand. Now they’re all hovering at 10-15. It sucks…4-5 grand is firmly in the “f**k it” range for me but 15 grand is another ballgame entirely. For me RWD and a stick are non negotiables when it comes to the small roadster genre.
I actually keep an eye on this market because I am an unapologetic Miata fanboy and the wife has conceded that she likes the idea of a weekend roadster. Right now in my area I actually think the best buys are an NC Miata or Saturn Sky Redline/Solstice GXP. The NC is the ugly duckling of the Miata family to a lot of enthusiasts but I actually like the look of them and you can get nice ones around 10-15k all day.
And for that price you can get the turbo version of the Solstice/Sky twins. The base engine in them is underwhelming and the platform isn’t good enough to make up for it, but the turbo ones have like 250 horsepower and aren’t all that hard to maintain…not to mention they’ll keep up with a Boxster from that era. IIRC they hit 60 in the mid/low 5s. If you can find a manual one (as these were marketed towards the Corvette type crowd sadly slushers abound) I think they’re an amazing buy that no one talks about.
All else being equal, I’d rather own the 323/Escort based Capri, but once the rear quarters start rotting through on a unibody, I’m out.
I guess that makes me a reluctant 4 cyl Dakota owner.
Voted for the truck on condition and price/value. Both wouldn’t be a bad fleet.
I can buy a better Capri for less money locally. For some odd reason, there’s plenty of them in southcentral ND.
Now that truck, it’s pretty clean and reasonably-priced. And it’s got that AMC 2.5 is a gem. It reminds me of an eager little tractor engine. To get an idea of it you really have to drive something with it. To top it all off, the first gen Dakota is actually a pretty comfortable place to be. The hard tonneau cover makes it a little less useful, but a lot more cool, but that’s more subjective.
Dakota.
This Dakota is pretty much ripe for a TII conversion if you want more power. Who doesn’t want more power? Or if you’re feeling spicy, drop in a Dakota V8 setup. But this one’s just insanely nice as-is. Nicest one I’ve ever seen, honestly.
Just be aware that the ignition cylinder pin repair? Make goddamn sure that the key works in the cylinder and the cylinder at least will turn. If it doesn’t turn? You have to drill the cylinder, key side. It’s a nightmare 2+ hour job requiring multiple special bits.
Pin failure is usually shear which means the cylinder will turn. If it turns? You simply order 4778122 from your local dealer. New PTL TR cylinder WITH two keys included. About a 1 hour driveway job. Dealer can ‘code’ it out of the car too, as it’s a non-SKIM.
And for the curious – yes. I did a fair number of these jobs. If you can rotate the TR with the key, it’s all good. Pin shear’s a common problem. As long as the key can rotate the internals, you can manipulate it enough to disengage the locks and remove it.
But if you can’t? TR means ‘Tamper Resistant.’ These cylinders are chock full of the hardest fucking steel known to science, and in a VERY obnoxious arrangement. That’s why none of these things were stolen until the tumbler was worn out.
I’ll take da ‘Kota.
“a “mid-sized” truck, something no one else was selling at the time”
In 1995, you could buy a Toyota T-100 with a standard cab and an 8′ bed. Whichever engine it came with that year – 2.7 4 or 3.4 V6 – would be better than this K-car engine on its last year.
I’ll take the Capri (or the T100)
I was working at Toyota in Georgetown, KY when the T-100 was introduced into the market. My recollection was that it was peddled as a better-built full-sized truck at the time compared to the smaller T-1000 (HiLux) we were driving as staff vehicles. The T-100 was definitely better-built than the domestic makes at the time (one contractor got one as a fleet vehicle and I got to ride in it). Now it’s grown (or evolved) to a Tundra.
Went with the dodge, a $500 fix at a shop and you have a nice little truck.
That Dakota will be slow as hell but the interior is in amazing shape.
Dodge for the win!
If it wasn’t for the rust, I would’ve voted for the Capri. It’s like a Miata with a back seat 😀
For that reason, I voted for the truck. That’s a good price for a small truck in good shape. There is nothing wrong with the I4. It’s as good as any other Mopar engine lol
There’s no dishonor in voting for the Capri, but that truck is just too clean, janky ignition cylinder or not. Dodge wins.
Assuming the pine tree air freshener still smells, I’ll take the Dodge.
I would have gone Dakota had it been a 318 with a stick, but that 4 is a bore and make the truck not to truckworthy for anything above dragging home some groceries maybe.
The Capri is in good nick, but the downfall of those cars is the front drive nature. had they put that drivetrain in back like an MR2, it would be a bigger win all day every day. or even just done what Miata did. Some bean counter somewhere did not understand 2 seater sporty car is not going to be winter driven often, so don’t install handling cuffs in the form of a FWD layout,
That Capri, yeeesh!!! Here is a far better example, also red, also 5spd manual, with ~30k fewer miles for $800 less.
https://www.carsforsale.com/vehicle/details/79247432
In the meantime, where can I find an old turbo LeBaron to salvage engine parts from?
I was fully prepared to imagine myself in a Mercury, but that thing is holier than the Pope’s favorite underpants.
Other than the driver’s seat, that Capri is pretty clean inside.
I’d go with the Dakota, though. I’ve got a turbo Dodge 4-cyl looking for a home.
If the Capri was “The Sexy European” from the early seventies I’d be all over it.
Howsumevah, it ain’t so I’m not.
I’ll take that little Dodge and use my basic-but-growing mechanical skills to do what it takes to bring justice to a seasoned, slightly scarred MoPar.
I’ll hang with The Dodge Boys.
The truck would be way more useful to me so I’m voting for it. Ignition cylinders and switches are cheap, I’d bring one to the test drive to see if that is what it really is.
The 4-banger K-truck please. I could pick up some drywall and be a cars and coffee star all in one trip. A rust-free Dakota sport is a genuine unicorn here in salt country.
It looks like the ad for the Dakota has been revised:
“*Updated*
Comes with bed liner, topper.
Just bought a newer truck, not in a rush to sell.
Needs an ignition actuator pin, $90 for the part, security hex head is needed to remove the bolts that connect the actuator to the rest of the asst, electric fan is wired to a toggle switch in the cab.
During the snow someone hit the truck and left dent in the rear bumper I can send pictures
Also outside driver side door handle stopped working,
Updated pictures show the new damage.”
Good thing it has a bench seat. With the driver’s door handle inop, you can get in the passenger side and sliiiiiide across.
I have a feeling the “security hex head” tool would be available in the HF kit (https://www.harborfreight.com/security-bit-set-with-case-100-piece-68457.html)
Even with the issues, I think this is a great deal on a small truck. It gets my vote.
Capri – only if get to meet the dog.
That rust is on a David scale. Give me the truck
^^THIS^^ all day long