Minneapolis Street Sightings: Mercury Capri RS

Normally, I don't shoot cars this ratty, but I made an exception here. I realize Fox body Mustangs are not all that rare, even though they are beginning to die out. But, take a closer look. This isn't a Mustang. What we have here in a Mercury Capri RS. Like the GT trimline of the Mustang, the RS was the sporty version of the ill-fated Mercury Capri.
The exterior is in pretty poor shape, as the photos prove, and the paint looks horrible; at least there aren't any big chunk of metal that have fallen off due to rust. Yet. What once was a vibrant red with factory orange RS badging and striping has become faded, dry-rot almost a faded orangeish color all around.
The interior seemed to fare the same, though I didn't get to peek inside for fear of being watched by other members of the passing-by public.
When this sporting ponycar was new, back 1980-1985, these crappy Wal*Mart/Autozone/cheapie hubcaps shod on cheapie tires would have been non-existent; the rolling stock when new was a set of oft-replaced Michelin TRX-4 tires with 14" wheels. Unlike later Mustangs, this era of Mustang and Capri had metric measured tires in odd widths which made getting replacement tires a hassle, so finding a set of good Michelin TRX-4 and even the wheels alone is quite a feat in itself.
Overall I'm pleased with this sighting, however I do wish it was in better condition. But, being a rust-heavy state, I'm just glad I saw a Capri of this vintage that isn't in the junkyard by now. (Who knows, maybe this one is in the junkyard, or has been crushed already. I shot this in April of 2009, so there is a good chance this poor thing is dead by now.)