RE: Shed Of The Week: Ford Cougar V6
Discussion
BILL PAYER said:
njw1 said:
Three pages in and no-ones compared it to a Calibra yet....
Calibra was equally unloved 
Brilliant SOTW write up, had me laughing out loud.
Can't say I would want a Cougar though, just doesn't look that good to me.
I would take a Calibra over it, mate's old man had the V6 one and it was a great car once you got over the badge snobbery.
As much as I known the Cougar would be more reliable, I would take a budget Alfa GTV or Fiat Coupe over this and take my chances.
Can't say I would want a Cougar though, just doesn't look that good to me.
I would take a Calibra over it, mate's old man had the V6 one and it was a great car once you got over the badge snobbery.
As much as I known the Cougar would be more reliable, I would take a budget Alfa GTV or Fiat Coupe over this and take my chances.
My Dad bought a demonstrator from our local Ford garage in 2000. It wasn't super fast but I liked it cos it was different, sounded good and was a rather plush place to be (compared to his previous motors) with heated leather etc. I still think it's a slight head turner now.
The FWD doesn't bother me, this isn't a performance car, nor is it pretending to be, I t's a cruiser with a nice V6 growl, nothing more imo
The FWD doesn't bother me, this isn't a performance car, nor is it pretending to be, I t's a cruiser with a nice V6 growl, nothing more imo
The Probe was based on a Mazda platform and used Mazda engines and drivetrain.prodigy2015 said:
I had three of these and they were great fun, and a little bit different to look at the time, they where badged as Mecury Cougars in the US and seemed quite polular out there, tempted but probably for nostalic reasons rather than anything else.
They were in fact sold under the Mercury badge in the US. Previously, the Cougar had been a slightly tweaked and rebadged Ford Thunderbird. This version didn't have any corollary in the Ford line up. I don't even remember the last time I saw one on the road in the US, and I was pretty shocked to see them in the UK when I lived there. It was probably the only thing Ford had that could be easily transformed into RHD.365daytonafan said:
Strawman said:
I thought the cougar was a rebranding/face list exercise after Ford got sick of people laughing at their Probe, or was this a totally new car, the Probe was the rebirth of the Crapi surely?
Cougar replaced the Probe but is was an all new car. Probe was based on Mazda MX6 while the Cougar was based on the Mondeo.They were developed when Ford had a first attempt at a 'global platform' where the Mondeo was sold worldwide. In the US it was known as a 'Ford Contour' and 'Mercury Mystique' and was not a huge success. The larger 'Ford Taurus' was a proper american car and arguably the more successful product in the US.
You have to remember, the US car company were awash with cash in the late nineties. SUVs, little more than pickup trucks with extra seats, were selling at huge premiums by the 100,000. Gas was a dollar a gallon and no-one cared about fuel consumption.
Happy days.
Loved these, shame it never had a decent fire breathing engine. That was the biggest problem with this and the Probe. It had nothing better than the Mondeo, so didn't really warrant getting these over a Mondeo. Maybe if they were packing around 250bhp+ back then it would have sold more.
I drive one identical to this. They're good cars! The only light that I understand comes up with regards to brakes are the pad wear sensors. New pads are peanuts - as most parts are since they're basically Mondeo parts.
They drive nicely, are reasonably easy to look after and an old one dodges the big tax fees and can be a nice V6 experience. Certainly a car for someone who wants a raw experience with a faster-than-average car, rather than a new turbo 4-cylinder hatchback.
A lot of fun to be had for a grand.
They drive nicely, are reasonably easy to look after and an old one dodges the big tax fees and can be a nice V6 experience. Certainly a car for someone who wants a raw experience with a faster-than-average car, rather than a new turbo 4-cylinder hatchback.
A lot of fun to be had for a grand.
Escort Si-130 said:
Loved these, shame it never had a decent fire breathing engine. That was the biggest problem with this and the Probe. It had nothing better than the Mondeo, so didn't really warrant getting these over a Mondeo. Maybe if they were packing around 250bhp+ back then it would have sold more.
Bear in mind these are naturally-aspirated. You're hard pressed to get much more out of them. A ported ST200 engine, ST200 bits and pieces and some uprated parts will have the Cougar V6 chucking out 220bhp after a re-map thoughjamieduff1981 said:
Possibly so, but it is a good owners' club.
If the idea of a few forum members offering to come round to your house some weekend to help you change an engine because you can't afford a garage bill in exchange for bacon rolls, a few beers and a space on the living room floor to crash on is somehow worthy of ridicule then it's nobody's loss really. They're happy enough
I second this. They always go out of their way to help another member - be it parts or advice.If the idea of a few forum members offering to come round to your house some weekend to help you change an engine because you can't afford a garage bill in exchange for bacon rolls, a few beers and a space on the living room floor to crash on is somehow worthy of ridicule then it's nobody's loss really. They're happy enough
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