Why was the last Mercury Cougar car made?
Bringing either of those into production would have made this car a lot more interesting. The Cougar was discontinued in 2002 due to just not having a donor platform, since the Contour was discontinued two years earlier. The eighth-generation Cougar is a good example of a weird car that wasn’t necessarily bad but was just out of its element.
When did the Mercury Cougar convertible get a facelift?
A facelift in 1971 did away with the hidden headlights and hidden wipers were adopted. Between 1969 and 1973, Cougar convertibles were offered. The 1968 model year included federally mandated side marker lights and front outboard shoulder belts (sash belt, shoulder harness) among some minor changes.
When did the Ford Cougar replace the mercury probe?
In 1998, Ford launched the Cougar at the 1998 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Without the Mercury brand in Europe and Australia, Ford marketed the Cougar as the Ford Cougar through Ford of Europe and Ford of Australia from 1999 to 2002. Replacing the Ford Probe in European markets,…
Is the Cougar a rebadged version of the Mustang?
Initially developed as a rebadged version of the Mustang, the 1967 Cougar received its own body design from the ground up, though the popular “long-hood, short-deck” proportions of the Mustang remained. The model line was marketed as having “European” style and features.
Who are the drivers of the Mercury Cougar?
Lincoln-Mercury hired stock car racer Bud Moore to run it, with drivers Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, Dave Pearson, Ed Leslie, and Peter Revson. Beebe and Zimmerman made no secret of their intention to use Trans Am as a way to aggressively market the Cougar. Racing legend Dan Gurney, seen here at the Nürburgring in 1965.
What was the sales of the Mercury Cougar in 1967?
Total sales for the first-generation 1967–70 Cougar came in at 437,000, which would seem like a huge success, and it was—especially considering that Mercury never made a Sportsroof variant for the Cougar and convertibles didn’t enter production in 1969. Those impressive numbers were overshadowed by the Mustang, however.
When did the Mercury Cougar Mustang come out?
After the surprise success of the Mustang, launched in April 1964, Ford had its hands full producing the popular pony car. As competitors in this hot new market planned rival models, Ford countered with one of its own. Mercury unveiled the Cougar just four days after Chevrolet debuted the Camaro on September 26, 1966.
What was the fourth generation of the Mercury Cougar?
Initially the counterpart of the Ford (Gran Torino) Elite, the fourth generation was split into two model lines, replacing the Montego as the Mercury intermediate (alongside the Ford LTD II), with the Cougar XR7 becoming the counterpart of the Ford Thunderbird. For its fifth and sixth generations, the Cougar adopted the compact Fox platform.