Mercury Cougar experience? Found a nice beater...

[DriveHard]

any experience? I am not a "Ford guy", but this deal appears to be a darn good one. Guessing this has the modular V8 that is supposed to last forever right? Anything else?

http://desmoines.craigslist.org/cto/5687341318.html

 

[bdcardinal]

Those were good. The front upper control arms with the ball joints wear out frequently.

 

[Silverado12]

That's a nice looking car for 1500 bucks.

 

[Lolvoguy]

YEah, no real complaints anywhere on those cars.

Most seem to have age very well from long term owners' reviews

 

[MNgopher]

V8 or the 3.8 V6?

My grandmother had one, but it was V6 powered. No real issues while she had it...

 

[BrocLuno]

Nice interior, good ride, decent handling... What do you want for $1,500

 

[TheExpectorate]

Originally Posted By: MNgopher
V8 or the 3.8 V6?

My grandmother had one, but it was V6 powered. No real issues while she had it...


I believe an XR-7 was the 5.0L V8.

That car looks good.

 

[addyguy]

There were ignition fire incidents with this car, at least with the V-6. A family friend years ago got out of her car after running errands for a while, and as she walked into her building 'POOF!' the car went up like a bomb.

Also, the V-6 had severe head-gasket issues...if it has the 3.8, be ready to do them if its never been done.

 

[TheExpectorate]

Or, depending on year, the V8 might be the 4.6

That one might be a 4.6 V8, I remember XR-7 had V8 and it was a nice car.

 

[nwjones18]

I'd snap that up quick.. Nice looking car

 

[MNgopher]

In 96, they were are all XR-7's and had the 3.8 V6 as the base engine, with the 4.6 V8 as the optional. As was pointed out, if its the 3.8, they had head gasket issues. If its the 4.6, snap it up and enjoy...

 

[Kawiguy454]

4.6 in my f150 almost 200K not a single issue other than belt/idler pulleys and plugs.

 

[DriveHard]

Just confirmed it is the V6 :-(
are they that bad? Darn!

 

[skyactiv]

Originally Posted By: DriveHard
Just confirmed it is the V6 :-(
are they that bad? Darn!


Was going to say, being that the listing is 18 days old, no way in earth does it have the V8.

 

[javacontour]

Originally Posted By: DriveHard
Just confirmed it is the V6 :-(
are they that bad? Darn!


Yes!

I had a '95 T-bird with the V8 and it was a nice road trip car, but the squeaks and rattles got to me.

As others mentioned, I had to do the upper control arms during my ownership.

The engine was largely bullet proof. Perhaps some oil loss through valve guides. But nothing horrible.

Changing the oil filter on a 4.6L V8 T-Bird was a bit of a puzzle.

I think the biggest thing to watch for on the 3.8L V6 is either the intake manifold gasket or head gaskets. But it's been a while since I've played seriously in the Ford space, so I don't totally recall.

 

[LoneRanger]

I have always wanted a 1966 - 1970 Cougar convertible. I don't know if they're considered one of the desirable 60's era cars, I just like them.

Then 1971 came, they restyled, and completely ruined the clean sporty appearance they had going. Tried to make them too luxo luxxy looking.

That one on Craig's list seems a nice specimen of it's model year at a fair price.

 

[SatinSilver]

Sure beats the Cougar hatchbacks that came after the one posted. Although the hatchbacks didn't seem too bad, seemed similar to a Probe.

 

[addyguy]

Not to totally go back on my post...but that is a REALLY nice Cougar for the year and price!

After this amount of time, HG's have probably been done...if not, might be worth it still, with an eye to doing that.

If you like the car, you are unlikely to find a nicer one.

Feeling adventurous? Swap in a mild 5.0L with heads, cam, etc...and have fun!

How many rear-drive 'cruising' coupes are there left, really?

 

[sciphi]

Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Sure beats the Cougar hatchbacks that came after the one posted. Although the hatchbacks didn't seem too bad, seemed similar to a Probe.


IIRC the Probe was Mazda-based. The later Cougar was based on the European Mondeo that we had here as the Contour, IIRC.

 

[Kruse]

My kid has a '96 Thunderbird (same as the Cougar) with the 3.8 engine.
Yes, I replaced the engine in it. As far as the front suspension parts: yes, you will need to replace the front suspension. (BTW, when I replaced the front suspension on my kid's car, I found out that Moog is selling old, discontinued TRW suspension parts in the "Problem Saver" boxes, they are proud of it and won't do a thing about it when you complain about it)
My kid's car is an eye-turner and looks about as good as when it went off the assembly line. Since I do the work on the car, it's been a fairly economical car. I just pity the guy who has to pay for all the parts and labor charges of a new engine.