Well, if you look closely at the rear-end picture of the 80s Capri you linked to, it clearly has a Mercury badge on the back of the hatchback. My neighbor used to have one just like it. It was a twin of the early 80s Mustang and you could get 'em with a 4-cylinder engine.
Strange, Ford’s US policy seemed to be to take European cars, change the innards and then beat them with an ugly stick before selling them in the US and Asia 
That’s the version I immediately thought of when I read Pushkin’s post. I knew there were earlier ones than the one I found, but I didn’t feel like searching too long.
Don’t forget theMerkur , Fords last attempt to import European Fords. Not a terrible car, but they tried to position it as an alternative to a BMW.
IIRC, the 1978-80 Fiesta was brought in to battle Toyota and Datsun since the pathetic Pinto couldn’t do it. Unfortunately, it costs more than the Pinto even though it was about the same size. The Escort was the replacement for the Pinto.
The 90’s Capri convertible came from Australia.
US carmakers are bad about reusing names. The current Chevy Impala has nothing in common with it’s 60s & 70s predecessors other than the name.
I know that there are '60s and '70s Austin/BMC Minis available in the U.S, but I haven’t seen any newer than about 1975. What would it take to get a 2000 Rover Mini? Are there import restrictions that affect cars newer than 25 or 30 years old?
Yeah, the one I was thinking of. Minus the Federal bumpers (fenders?) and the lights on the radiator grill its the European model I recognise. The Merkur/Granada wasn’t a bad car unless put up against a Beemer, seems a bit of a stretch alright.
The Fords I would really fancy are those available in South Africa, European models with American engines. A Ford Sierra with a whopping V8 under the bonnet is a nice idea 
As an aside, what are those orange lights on the radiator grill? Are they indicators, parking lights or parklights that also work as indicators?
My (tinfoil hat) theory on Ford is that Ford in North America is just lazy. They can bang together any old POS, put a Mustang badge on it, and sell loads of them. They may be good in a straight line, but a Cossie would leave it for dead on a track.
Bumpers. Fenders are what you would call ‘wings’, I think.
The amber lights are directional indicators (or ‘turn signals’). They are ‘parking lights’ whose primary purpose is as indicators.