Advertising:

This is a fantastic car. I hate to sell it, but economic realities force it.

Here's the second line that will make most people stop reading: The transmission is toast. It will need rebuilding or replacing.

If you're still reading, stay with me. Yes, it would make a good parts car, or the good ol' Ford V8 could be repurposed for just about anything. But it's really better than that. It's a straight, solid, rust-free, Southern car, and the engine is still good and strong after 200K+ miles. The only high-dollar problem is the transmission -- every other problem the car has, (and they're not many) is nickel-and-dime stuff that is easily tackled bit by bit as you go. If you're looking for a good starter project for a father/son restoration, or have a 2WD ExploRangIneer transmission that needs a home, (Explorer/Ranger/Mountaineer -- they all have the same driveline,) or know just how good these cars are when they're sorted, this is the car for you -- you'll be getting a lot of hardware for a very good price.

You may be asking why don't I fix it myself, and that's a very good question. The truth is, the economy has hit my family very hard, and I just don't have the money it takes to repair the transmission. It makes more economic sense for me to sell it as-is, and re-invest in a smaller car. My loss, your gain.

It will need to be towed to haul it -- she won't move under her own power yet.

There are 45 pictures at my Photobucket link, click here to go to it, so you can get a good look at things, and they're annotated as to just what needs to be fixed.

There's nothing expensive or insurmountable for the shade-tree mechanic: gas struts for the hatch, a power-locking solenoid, a tensioning spring for an exterior handle; stuff like that. If you're slightly more advanced, mechanical items like axle bearings and ball joints are a piece of inexpensive cake. The A/C clutch is broken and the compressor has been bypassed, but the system is still airtight and in place. An A/C tech should replace the compressor and receiver-drier, but on this car it's an easy (read: inexpensive) fix. I have the compressor, receiver-drier, and o-rings for the job: if you want them, I can add my cost for them to the final price.

The reserve? I know that a transmission is a pricey item, so it's low enough that the reserve plus the price of a transmission rebuild is still comfortably below the market value of a '99 Mountaineer. Not as easy as just buying one that's all sorted to begin with, but a considerably better value if you can turn a wrench!

Auto Services in North Carolina

Wheel Works ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Parts & Supplies, Tire Dealers

Address: 6300 Robertson Pond Rd, Raleigh

Phone: (919) 365-5500

Vintage & Modern European Service ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service

Address: 2809 Indiana Ave Ext, Aberdeen

Phone: (910) 944-1023

Victory Lane Quick Oil Change ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Auto Oil & Lube, Automobile Inspection Stations & Services

Address: 131 Wakelon St, Wendell

Phone: (919) 269-5205

Valvoline Instant Oil Change ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Auto Oil & Lube, Automotive Tune Up Service

Address: 4417 S 17th St, Leland

Phone: (910) 392-7279

University Ford North ★★★★★

New Car Dealers, Used Car Dealers, Automobile Leasing

Address: 5331 N Roxboro Rd, Rougemont

Phone: (919) 536-3673

University Auto Imports Inc ★★★★★

Used Car Dealers

Address: 601 W Franklin St, Rtp

Phone: (919) 240-4612

Auto blog

Petrolicious shows Mercedes 280SL as architecture in motion

Wed, Jun 17 2015

While still an absolute beauty today, the design of the pagoda-roof W113 Mercedes-Benz SL was revolutionary when it debuted. Moving away from the soft curves of the previous SL models, the all-new generation brought an upright, angular shape that was as much architectural as automotive. In the latest video from Petrolicious, owner and architect Daniel Monti expounds on the inspiration that he gets from his 1969 280SL's fantastic styling. The roof is the most famous design feature of this generation of SL. Look at the top from the front or back, and you can see a gentle, downward arc that evokes the look of a pagoda. That one styling element is also a fabulous counterpoint to a vehicle that is largely more angular than curvaceous. Petrolicious wonderfully illustrates how some of the SL's form-follows-function design aesthetic can be found in the architect's work in this video's heaping helping of mid-century modern goodness.

Kit Cat: Mercury Cougar makes perfect Bugatti Veyron substitute

Thu, 24 Feb 2011

Bugatti Veyron kit car - Click above for high-res image gallery
If you've got a pulse in your wrist and a snapping brain cell in your head, chances are you wouldn't mind parking a Bugatti Veyron in your garage. But for most mere mortals, scrounging up the cash for a physics-bending piece of 16-cylinder glory would require all sorts of unpalatable tasks. Fortunately for those who want to look the part without having to participate in human trafficking, the kit car universe has stepped in to save the day. All you need is a 1999-2002 Mercury Cougar, a boat load of fiberglass and a little patience.
Oh, and $89,000.

Junkyard Gem: 1977 Mercury Bobcat

Tue, Sep 4 2018

Cultural memory of the Ford Pinto, 38 years after the last new ones were sold, boils down to one thing today: the notorious "exploding Pinto" stories of the late 1970s. Yes, many Pinto jokes were told, the resale value of Pintos crashed, and few paid any attention to the fact that most of the cars sold with the fuel tank between the rear axle and the bumper — that is, just about every Detroit car made during the era Â— suffered from the same weakness. The Mercury version of the Pinto was badged as the Bobcat, but nobody told Bobcat jokes. Here's a '77 Mercury Bobcat 3-Door in vivid Medium Jade paint, spotted in a Denver self-service yard. The Pinto with glass rear hatch was known as the Pinto Runabout in 1977, while Mercury called this car the " Bobcat 3-door with Glass Third Door." When a car sits for years or decades in High Plains Colorado, rodents tend to nest in it. This Bobcat's air cleaner made a cozy home for our Hantavirus-carrying friends. The 1970s were the last gasp for eye-searingly green vinyl car interiors. Since the Bobcat was a luxed-up Pinto, the door panels have shinier trim than what you'd have had in a proletariat-grade Pinto. Pinto/Bobcat transmission choices boiled down to two: a four-speed manual or a three-speed automatic. Unusually for a Malaise Era Mercury, this one has the manual. Most Pintos and Bobcats came with four-cylinder engines, ranging from the 1.6-liter pushrod Kent to the 2.3-liter engine that lived on for many post-Pinto years in Ford Rangers. This car has the 2.3, rated at 89 horsepower, but the same 2.8-liter Cologne V6 that powered the Capri was available as an option in the Bobcat. That engine made a mighty 93 horsepower. These cars were not too miserable to drive by econobox standards of their time, at least when they had three pedals. You'd blow the doors off a '77 Corolla with a 4-speed Bobcat in a drag race, though the Corolla got better fuel economy. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Gives you hundreds of pounds more car than most small imports and includes standard self-adjusting rear brakes! Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery Junked 1979 Mercury Bobcat View 15 Photos Auto News Mercury Automotive History ford pinto bobcat

1999 Mercury Mountaineer V8 5.0l -- Great Shape That Needs Transmission Work on 2040-cars

Mercury Mountaineer for Sale