1969 Mercury Cougar Base 5.8l on 2040-cars

1969 Cougar standard 351w 2v FMX automatic with De’ core interior. Very nice driving Cougar. You can cruise down the interstate at 75 mph with the AC on.        

Full history: The Cougar was sold new at Adrian Ford mercury dealership in Adrian Michigan which is still in business (Dave Knapp Ford-Lincoln). The original buyer owned the local funeral home and purchased a new car every year. Kay worked at the dealership and fell in love with the Cougar when it was unloaded from the transporter. Knowing it would be traded in next year she made arrangements with her boss to start taking money out of her pay check to purchase the Cougar when it came back to the dealer the next year. In 1970 the Cougar was traded in and Kay completed the purchase. After purchasing the Cougar she made a trip to the local Discount tire store and had Cragar GT wheels with BFGoodrich tires installed. The same wheels she purchased are still on the Cougar. That same year she and her husband moved to southern Colorado taking the Cougar with them. Over time the Cougar went from a second car daily driver to a weekend pleasure car. She made several trips from Colorado to Michigan in the Cougar visiting family. In 2009 Kay moved back to Michigan to take care of her mother bring the Cougar with her. After the Cougar sitting idle for two years and she no long had the resources to take care of it. She decided to sell it to me in 2011. Kay kept a detailed log book on the Cougar documenting the original 68,686 miles when I purchased the Cougar. It currently has 71,692 miles.

Interior:  White DE ‘core with corinthian vinyl and white levant pattern. Seats re-upholstered in the 90’s. Dash, carpet, console headline door panels all original and nice condition. Three spoke rim blow steering wheel is  original and works. Realistic cassette stereo.

Exterior:  Original medium gold metallic paint was faded and repaint lavender in the 90’s. Paint quality about a 7 with 10 being show quality. Good weekend show driver condition. A couple of paint bubbles on the driver- side quarter wheel lip and a dent in the passenger-side upper front door. Some stone chips on the front and a scratch on the p-side upper rear quarter panel. Original white vinyl top in excellent condition. No signs of soft spots or rust under the vinyl top. Chrome bumpers and trim in very nice condition.

Mechanical: Engine runs good never removed or taken apart and doesn’t smoke. A little hesitation taking off when engine is cold. Could use a carb/choke kit installed. Installed valve cover gaskets in 20011 and a new water pump  this year. FMX automatic transmission  shifts correctly with no issues. 9” Ford rear end (open 3:00 ratio) no issues. Suspension nice and tight. Installed new KYB gas shocks and new tires in 2012. Power front disc brakes no issues. Power steering no issues. Installed one new power steering hose in 2013. Factory air conditioning with R-12 functions correctly and blows cold air. Heater and defrost system works correctly with no issues. Cowl vent is nice and doesn’t leak.  All Lights and headlight doors function correctly with no issues. Sequential tail lights function correctly. Sometimes the dash lights come on and off.

What it needs: The complete exhaust system needs replaced. The current system was pieced together by a Shop when Kay owned it. The mufflers are mis-matched and the system has a couple of leaks. I left it as is for the new own to install a system to their liking. At some point an automatic choke and carb kit should be install. Currently runs good the way it is, but a little hesitation when the engine is cold.