Photo: Classic Cars
Following the financial crisis of the late 2000s, many car brands have fallen victim to the reorganization of the auto industry. One of them was Ford’s Mercury, a decades-old carmaker we wouldn’t mind still having around.
For most of its life, Mercury was in charge of making entry-level premium automobiles for the Blue Oval, a sort of bridge between the Fords for the masses and the Lincolns for the elite. And the cars it made were at times spectacular.
Probably Mercury’s most famous nameplate was the Cougar. Born at the time when the battle in the muscle car segment was at its peak, it quickly rose to become the best selling Mercury in history.
The initial generation of the Cougar was of course the brand’s version of the Ford Mustang, but in its later years it got diluted to something less exciting. This is why today, the most appreciated Cougars are still those of the first and second generations.
The one pictured in the gallery above is part of the first-gen of the model. It sits on a specialized sales website, offering much more than a bit of Mercury history: the car is unique, or close to, in more ways than one.
First off, we’re talking about a Cougar wearing the XR7 package. It is powered by a 289ci (4.7-liters) V8 linked to a 3-speed automatic transmission, developing 225 hp. The engine has over 80,000 miles on it.
But Cougars with this package and the said engine are not uncommon. What is uncommon is the color combination chosen for this one.
According to the posting on a specialized car sales website, this here Cougar is one in four made in Tiffany Blue exterior with the Polar White roof, and one in three that comes with blue leather bucket seats. It is also said to be the only one to have been fitted with a tinted windshield.
There is no price mentioned in the said posting.
Probably Mercury’s most famous nameplate was the Cougar. Born at the time when the battle in the muscle car segment was at its peak, it quickly rose to become the best selling Mercury in history.
The initial generation of the Cougar was of course the brand’s version of the Ford Mustang, but in its later years it got diluted to something less exciting. This is why today, the most appreciated Cougars are still those of the first and second generations.
The one pictured in the gallery above is part of the first-gen of the model. It sits on a specialized sales website, offering much more than a bit of Mercury history: the car is unique, or close to, in more ways than one.
First off, we’re talking about a Cougar wearing the XR7 package. It is powered by a 289ci (4.7-liters) V8 linked to a 3-speed automatic transmission, developing 225 hp. The engine has over 80,000 miles on it.
But Cougars with this package and the said engine are not uncommon. What is uncommon is the color combination chosen for this one.
According to the posting on a specialized car sales website, this here Cougar is one in four made in Tiffany Blue exterior with the Polar White roof, and one in three that comes with blue leather bucket seats. It is also said to be the only one to have been fitted with a tinted windshield.
There is no price mentioned in the said posting.
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