Like the rude awakenings that often follow love at first sight, the visual fantasy of an automobile doesn’t always square with the physical realities of living with it. Our long-term Mercury Cougar V-6 is a case in point. We were seduced the first time we saw it as the MC2 concept (C/D, September 1997), and we freely admitted we’d been “smitten by its distinctive elegance.” And throughout an extraordinarily long time with us — 18 months–we never tired of its daring good looks. Nor, for that matter, did passersby. Although the Cougar was no longer a novelty when the odometer finally ticked past 40,000 miles, from beginning to end the logbook was full of notes reporting covetous stares, particularly from young women. Darrell Behmer’s radical design is wearing well. This is arguably the coolest ride to wear Mercury badges since the division was established back in 1938, and its CDW27 underpinnings (the Ford Mondeo and Contour and the Mercury Mystique) help to give it a level of agility that’s commensurate with its aggressive good looks.

This is a true period, acid-dipped T/A participant. Chassis was lightened by dipping and then strengthened with a well-planned roll cage installation. The same trick was used by Smokey Yunick on the Sonoco Camaros. The car was originally campaigned in 1967 by an employee of the Burien Mercury dealer in Seattle, Wa.
1967 Mercury Cougar Trans Am Race Car Rear

Pop-off gas fillers through the trunk and big Goodyears on American mags were the norm in the early T/A series. This shot was taken at the top of the Corkscrew at Laguna Seca. This car has run the Monterey Historics several times, and is guaranteed a spot at any of the Historic Trans-Am events.

The XR-7 shared the T-Bird’s new-for-’83 “aero” styling — save for a more formal roofline — firm suspension, four-cylinder turbocharged engine, and standard five-speed manual gearbox.

A three-speed automatic was optional through ‘86, after which all Cougars (and T-Birds) were heavily facelifted to be even more aerodynamic, and the XR-7 parted company by switching to the T-Bird/Cougar/Mustang 5.0-liter V-8, recently updated with fuel injection and teamed with a mandatory four-speed automatic.

They were all nice cars, with sportier interiors, more aggressive looks, and tauter handling than other concurrent Cougars, but we’d have the V-8 over the turbo-four any day. It may ultimately be less collectible than the T-Bird TC regardless of engine, and was replaced for 1988 by a new-generation XR-7 with 3.8-liter supercharged V-6, a cousin to that year’s new Thunderbird Super Coupe.

A friend of Kevin’s knew someone who was a Cougar enthusiast, who just so happened to have a ‘70 XR-7 for sale. The two went to look at the car in February. In the snow and cold they were led to a garage where the Cougar awaited, carefully stored under heavy blankets. As soon as the blankets were lifted, Kevin knew the car would be his. The 351 Cleveland engine fired right up on that cold day, and with its 11.5:1 compression ratio, there was plenty of rumble to cinch the deal even further. The money changed hands, but many weeks went by as Kevin waited for the weather to improve. At last, the day came when he was able to drive the car home.

Kevin is happy to have another cat in his collection, and although this Cougar is in excellent condition, it’s not a trailer queen. He likes the Eliminator extras because they look great, but he’s the first to tell you the car is an Eliminator clone, looking just the way he likes it. He drives the Cougar in good weather and goes to lots of summer car shows near Maryland. Most of the Cougar aficionados we know will tell you that once you’ve had a Mercury Cougar, you’ll always want to have one in your garage. Certainly Kevin is a good example of this Ford, er, Mercury phenomenon.

All that work got the Swedish company a new client. The as-yet unnamed customer went to the firm with plans to build a very powerful replica 1968 Mercury Cougar. It may just be us, but we think the designers were bang on target with this classic muscle car. With a big front bumper integrated into that long front-end, and new lower side body work make this car look excellent. Its new grille and front headlight covers almost makes the car look like something out of Death Race 2000.

Originally, the Cougar could be bought as a GT that came with a 6.4-liter Ford FE V8. The 390 cu in engine produced 265 hp.

Well, “the client” is definitely going a step further. They plan to put in a car rated for NASCAR races. That means it will be smaller, and definitely more powerful than the Ford engines originally supplied. A true NASCAR engine usually produces between 700 and 800 hp. The engine will be mated to a six-speed transmission. It will be lower to the ground, and ride on 9.5 x 17 Hoosier drag tires. A roll cage will also be built in.

Changes under the hood for 1970 included the deletion of the 390 Hi-Po engine from the option sheet. Ford’s new 351 cubic-inch V-8, known as the Cleveland, replaced both the 390 and the four-barrel 351 Windsor. More powerful than the Windsor, the large-port Cleveland generated 300 horsepower with four-barrel carburetion. Ram Air induction was an option. Transmission choices with the high-tech 351 included a standard three-speed manual, optional four-speed with Hurst shifter, or C-6 Cruise-O-Matic.

For 1970, both the 3.91:1 and 4.30:1 axle ratios earned buyers a Drag Pak option that included the 428 Super Cobra Jet with 335 horses and an engine oil cooler. The Boss 302 also carried an oil cooler. Boss 302 upgrades this year included cast aluminum valve covers and revised cylinder heads for better low-end torque and emissions.

There’s a little bit of wind noise from the Cougar at highway speeds, but highway speeds for this car are in excess of those black numbers on white backgrounds you often see by the side of the road. At “normal” highway speeds there is essentially no wind noise from the car, but this is a body design that has been massaged for 15 years now, so it should be quiet.

The Cougar is a two-door coupe, which, if you haven’t been paying attention over the past 30 years, is what it has been primarily over that time. There were some flirtations with four doors and a station wagon for a short spell, but the Cougar has been a luxury coupe for most of its life. And it has a decent trunk, which you aren’t always going to find in a coupe.

Cougar has become the vehicle it has become because of its styling. It is a classy personal coupe. Thank God the reverse sloping rear window has gone, replaced by a more normal sloping rear window. That, I think, has made the styling of the Cougar even more conservative.

Rear-seat legroom is surprisingly good in the Cougar. I would have expected it to be much tighter than it was. Had the car stayed on the Mustang platform it would have been tighter. We put two passengers back there for some longish trips with no complaining. We did push the front seats forward a bit, but it wasn’t necessary.

It’s hard to believe that the Mercury Cougar is 30 years old. This former Mustang clone had a platform change in mid-life and is now a Thunderbird clone. And while it was a good car competing against the Mustang, it has become a truly elegant car living on the T’bird’s platform.

Our tester this week is the 30th Anniversary XR7, which was a shock. It seems as if I was just driving the 25th Anniversary model. And while the 25th Anniversary car had a host of stylistic modifications to it, including a specially prepared color, the 30th Anniversary version is more subtle. Sure, there are still 30th Anniversary growlers on the C-panel and growler logos on the backs of the seats and on the floor mats, but the 30th Anniversary Cougar is changed only slightly from the standard car. But still the Cougar is a very nice car.

Mercury Cougar Eliminators were that powerful. In all-out acceleration, the available 290-horsepower 302 was overmatched by the Cougar’s weight, but the 428 Cobra Jet benefited from the relatively generous wheelbase. Grip was slightly better off the line than in the shorter Mustang, and quarter-mile times were every bit as good.

Like Mustang, the Eliminator offered the 428-cid CJ with and without Ram Air, as well as in Drag Pak guise with an oil cooler and a 4.30:1 gear-ratio Detroit Locker rear axle. The Eliminator didn’t use the shaker hood; its standard scoop was functional only when Ram Air was ordered. A blacked-out grille, side stripe, and front and rear spoilers enhanced the muscular look, and Mercury offered the Eliminator in a palette of “high-impact” blue, orange, and yellow exterior colors.

More impact could be obtained over dealer parts counters, which offered not only headers and dual-quad carburetors, but such exotic hop-up components as deep-sump oil pans and quadruple Weber carburetor setups. From the factory, or with these available parts, the 1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminator was true American muscle.

Mercury had introduced its sporty coupe in 1967 as a luxury-touring alternative to the pony-car herd. It had mature styling and upscale interior appointments and was built on a Mustang chassis stretched by three inches to provide a longer, ride-enhancing wheelbase.

Mercury in these years was deeply involved in racing. It backed a variety of record-setting Comet and Cougar drag specials, as well as NASCAR-winning Cyclones. Its street image was tamer, though not for lack of trying. Cougar contributed with the ‘68 GT-E, which like the Mustang, opened the year with an available 390-horsepower 427-cid V-8, then switched to the 428 Cobra Jet. The image was still more Euro luxury touring car than American muscle, though. It wasn’t until the release of the 1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminator that Mercury was able earn a reputation for muscular Detroit iron.

Not all 1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminators were that powerful. In all-out acceleration, the available 290-horsepower 302 was overmatched by the Cougar’s weight, but the 428 Cobra Jet benefited from the relatively generous wheelbase. Grip was slightly better off the line than in the shorter Mustang, and quarter-mile times were every bit as good.

Like Mustang, the Eliminator offered the 428-cid CJ with and without Ram Air, as well as in Drag Pak guise with an oil cooler and a 4.30:1 gear-ratio Detroit Locker rear axle. The Eliminator didn’t use the shaker hood; its standard scoop was functional only when Ram Air was ordered. A blacked-out grille, side stripe, and front and rear spoilers enhanced the muscular look, and Mercury offered the Eliminator in a palette of “high-impact” blue, orange, and yellow exterior colors.

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