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1966 How's this for ballsy? Mercury was heavily promoting the soon-to-be-released Cougar with items such as Cougar burgers and Cougar wine. But the best advertising gimmick had to be when Ford snuck a spotlight (complete with the Cougar logo overlay) and projected it on the GM building in Detroit! 1967-70 The first generation Cougar was designed to be a luxury Euro-style coupe. It also has been known ever since as "the Mustang's bigger cousin", since it rode on a stretched Mustang chassis. While true, it never really gave the Cougar the chance to shine in its own right. But for those in the know (namely Mercury fans) the Cougar was exactly the right car at exactly the right time. In 1967, the Cougar sold over 150,000 cars and was named Motor Trend Car of the Year. The 1967-68 body styles are similar, and the 1969-70 cars are slightly tweaked more. The most popular thing was its affordability, and they sold like wildfire. Any colors and options that you wanted could be had, especially when the convertible debuted in 1969. All Cougars of this era featured the very cool sequential turn signals and hidden headlamps that opened with the switch. Models included the ever-popular XR7, GT-E, XR7-G, Dan Gurney, and the bad boy, the Eliminator (of which some had the Boss 302). The Cougar did extremely well in the Trans-Am racing of that time period. Cougars came with a standard V8, from the 289 V8 to the monster 429 Cobra Jet. Some early Cougars even had the same "rare" engines as the Mustangs. There are plenty of other sites out there with tons more info on these cars than seen here (check the Links page for more information). 1971-73 The Cat grew bigger in 1971 and continued that way until 1973, with a softer rounding of the edges and fixed headlamps. Mercury had now begun to move the Cougar away from its performance heritage towards a more luxury image. Basically, the only engine was the 351 V8. It was a decent car but with the impending energy crisis on the horizon, Ford didn't really dump a whole lot of cash into this car. Sales steadily declined each year. 1974-76 Due to the energy crisis and increasing government emissions laws, the Cougars from these years barely had enough power to get themselves going, even with the huge 460 cubic inch motor. These Cats used the LTD II /Mercury Montego platform, and were virtual clones of those cars, save for the front ends. Detroit iron was now at a crossroads: the styling of the day demanded big cars, but with the energy crisis, Americans needed smaller cars. Downsizing of the Cougar, however, would take a few more model years. 1977-79 The box years---not a curve anywhere. Now on the Thunderbird chassis, the Cougar enjoyed its best-ever sales year in 1978, with over 213,000 sold. Still available with the 302 and 351 V8's, too. Interesting to note was the 3-tier taillights and the humped trunklid; those same cues would be used on the 1983 model. 1980-82 The Cougar was really not a Cougar during this era---more like a Zephyr with a Cougar badge. The new Fox chassis was implemented from the Fairmont/Zephyr, with MacPherson struts and more rigid unibody construction. But anyone at Ford will tell you that the Cougars and Thunderbirds lost their direction for these 3 years. The Cougars were shorter and lighter than the previous Cats, but had very little sense of style. These cars also offered the very first 4-cylinder and V6 motors in Cougar history. The 2-door XR7's were literally Thunderbird twins, and the other models were taken directly from other Ford cars and rebadged a "Cougar" when in reality, they were Zephyrs. In 1981 a 4-door Cougar appeared, and there was even--yes, it's true-- a Cougar station wagon in 1982, replete with optional fake woodgrain. As expected, sales hit an all-time low and it would take nothing short of a major miracle to breathe new life into the Cougar name. 1983-86 And what a breath of fresh air it was! Still on the Fox platform but slightly shorter, the Cougar was now a style leader. Known as the "aero" Cat, Ford designers penned an instant winner, with soft, rounded corners and the aforementioned styling cues to tie in to Cougar history. Sales shot up instantly, with sales in 1986 at over 135,000. Also, Cougar XR7 was reborn with a potent turbocharged 4-cylinder. 1987-88 Ford wished to continue the style leadership it virtually owned in the mid-'80's, so it freshened up the Cat in 1987 with flush glass and headlamps, while still retaining the same basic shape. Initially this car was to debut in 1986, but Ford wanted to milk one more year out of the hot-selling Cougar, so the new "aero Cat" was pushed back until 1987. This started Ford's new tradition of 2-year cycles (more or less) for the Cougar. Since the all-new Cougar was due in 1989, these 2 model years--while short--gave the Cougar a memorable impression on the buying public. For its 20th anniversary, Mercury made roughly 5,000 20th Anniversary Edition Cougars that all sold before the car was even made! Unfortunately, sales would never equal those of this era again. 1989-90 Since Ford made a good buck off the previous-generation Cougar, it decided to take a gamble and stretch out the Cat in 1989. The new MN-12 platform also was home to the Thunderbird and eventually the 1993-1998 Mark VIII. An all-new independent rear suspension, SLA front suspension, and a very rigid chassis provided a great platform, truly one of the best on the planet. Styling was more slab-sided, and the cowl was greatly lowered. The big news was that the XR7 had a brand-new supercharged 3.8 V6, which could be ordered with the very rare 5-speed. The base LS Cougar had the stadard V6. These 2 years were the only in rear-drive Cougar history that a V8 engine was not offered, because the standard 5.0 V8 intake would not fit under this dramatically lowered hoodline. But Ford engineers were promising that the 5.0 was on the way, and none too soon: it was very evident early on that this Cat was a little overweight. 1991-92 The HO 5.0 was finally here, and the 200 hp it delivered was just enough to get this big 3,500 lb. Kitty moving. The exterior was freshened up with a new trapezoidal grille, cat's-eye headlamps, pierced bumpers, and revised trim. The XR7 lost the supercharged V6 but gained the HO 5.0 standard. The V8 was optional in LS models. Also in 1992, a 25th Anniversary model was made, painted in a dark green color (which was fairly controversial with Cougar owners at the time), and special interior and wheels. As with the 1987 Anniversary cars, only about 5000 were made. 1993 This was sort of the in-between year for the MN-12 cars. In a cost-cutting move (aka "one-price shopping"), the LS model was dropped, and all Cougars became XR7's; however, they all weren't the performance-oriented XR7's from years past. Styling was still the same as the 1991-1992 models, save for body-colored door handles, mirrors, roof trim, and new wheels. Sales also began to rise due to the one-price strategy and dealer incentives. This would be the final year for a pushrod V8 motor in a Mercury Cougar. 1994-95 The big news was that the 5.0 was replaced with the new technically-sophisticated 4.6 SOHC motor. An all-new electronically controlled overdrive transmission (4R70W) also debuted with the new engine. And finally, the Cougar gained a new wraparound interior, which is one for the history books---absolutely beautiful in execution. A new grille, taillights and trim also helped differentiate these Cougars, which are arguably the best looking of the newer body style Cats. Styling was dead on the mark, and future desire for these Cougars (especially the 4.6 cars) should be strong. 1996-97 In an effort to try to modernize the Cougar it had neglected for 7 years, Ford ordered up a new shortened front end for the Cougar with "jewel-look" composite headlamps. Inside the Cat gained paisley cloth seat patterns. The powertrains continued right up until the end, with some minor power tweaking in 1996. Also added was the 1997 Sport Model with a factory rear spoiler. Ford did make a 30th Anniversary model, partially to continue tradition, and partly to make a limited edition car before the rear drive model was cancelled. Demand was so strong that a second run of 30th models had to be produced. However, nostalgia was not nearly enough to save the Cougar, Thunderbird and Mark VIII from extinction. The rapid rise of SUV's, the shrinking rear drive coupe market, and the general direction of Ford Motor Company sealed the fate of the big Cat. However, rumors of a front-drive incarnation of the Cougar were growing. 1999-2000 Unveiled at the 1998 Detroit International Auto Show, the 1999 Cougar coupe was built on the solid front-drive Contour/ Mystique/ Mondeo CDW27 platform, fresh from Europe. Base engine was a Zetec 2.0 liter/120hp 4-banger, with the 2.5 Duratec V6 with 170hp optional. The 5-speed was back, too. Ford definitely put some effort into this car, with new generation air bags, side-impact air bags, and anti-lock brakes. The Ford Division did not get its own U.S. version--it was a Mercury-only car (although in Europe it was known as the Ford Cougar). The Cat was carried over mostly the same for the 2000 model year. 2001-02 The 2001 model year brought a minor freshening of the Cougar, with new front headlamps, new bumpers, new spoiler, more wheel options and an updated interior. The long rumored, performance-oriented Cougar S model was set to debut in the spring of 2001, but very early in the model year Ford canned it. Instead they offered two varations midway through the year: the Zn (Zinc), appropriately painted yellow, and the C2. Both models had upgraded wheels and interiors but no added horsepower. For 2002, the Zn model was eliminated, but the C2 model remained. A new model, the XR, also debuted in limited-edition run (3000 produced). Surprisingly, there was a 35th Anniversary Cougar model, even though technically there was not a 1998 Cougar. Strictly limited to just 3000 units, and available in black, red or silver, this special edition had unique 17" wheels, unique 35th badges, custom embroidery on the seats and floormats, and a Roush-style hood scoop. Once again, Ford Motor Company has pulled the plug on Cougar production, as 2002 was its last year. Slumping sales, a changing market, more competition, and not enough fresh models are all reasons why Ford has shelved the Cat again. It is unclear if Mercury will ever get another Cougar model; currently there are no plans for one (that anyone is admitting to, anyway). There is always hope that a new Cougar model will eventually surface, preferably in homage to its rich rear-drive heritage. Only time will tell.