Thursday 6th October 2022

Ford Cougar V6 | Spotted

Most classic Ford coupes are out of reach now, right? Well, not all of them...

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Even before the current mayhem, classic fast Ford values had shot up. Capris, Cortinas and Cossies of every stripe have been big money for a while now, the powerful combination of nostalgia and the usual decimation of survivors sending asking prices into the stratosphere. Then appreciation started to get to the more modern fast Fords, then the less notable - then seemingly every car ever made with a Blue Oval on the front and a spoiler on the back. 

Today we live in the world of the £30k Granada V6, £70k Capri and £150k Escort Cossie. Regardless of how much you loved being taken on holiday in the back of dad’s Ghia X or watching the WRC on telly, that’s madness. And let’s not forget what happened with Diana’s RS Turbo, a hammer price so obscene we’ll not repeat it for fear of causing offence.

Point being that, while great fast Fords like the Focus RS and Racing Puma will always deservedly attract attention, there are plenty of ordinary cars out there with chunky asking prices purely on account of a badge and comparative (sometimes merely supposed) rarity. Which ought to mean that this Cougar V6 costs about £40k; there were never that many in the first place, it’s in great condition and it hails from that New Edge era - think Ka, Puma, Focus - that’s now prime modern classic territory. When they’re not total rust buckets.

But no - this 74,000-mile, one-owner Cougar is just £3,995. You’d pay more for a comparable Mondeo with the same engine. It seems that the Cougar’s unpopularity when new (it’s believed that just 12,000 were sold in the UK) has continued into its secondhand life and accompanies it now all the way to near-obscurity. Which, you know what, seems a bit unfair. 

Okay, there weren’t many fans of the styling when new, and it would probably be fair to say this is not one of the timeless New Edge greats in the way that both Focus and Ka are. On the other hand, it now looks so perfectly of its time (and the 1990s are fashionable again) that to solely hold design against the Cougar seems unfair. You’re certainly going to look twice in 2022 purely on account of how (genuinely) rare it is. Furthermore, the Cougar could never quite rival the smaller Puma as a coupe to really grab by the scruff of the neck and drive - but that was always going to be a very lop-sided comparison, pitched as it was against one of the greatest front-wheel drive chassis ever. By all accounts the Cougar wasn’t bad (it was Mondeo-based after all, and everyone loved that), it just lacked the traditional rear-drive appeal of a Capri or the sheer brilliance of a Puma.

Now, almost 25 years after launch and with this one already past 20, perhaps it’s time to reassess the Cougar. Or at least cut it some slack. It’ll never be the best-looking or best driving Ford ever, but, as we've covered, that hasn’t stopped plenty of others from commanding big bucks. Nowadays it’s a rare and interesting retro cruiser, a throwback to the days when coupes weren’t SUV based and a big V6 with a manual gearbox was a desirable flagship. This one even has the X Pack, for full top-of-the-range bragging rights. It’ll be the perfect thing for a Ford festival, safe in the knowledge you haven’t had to spend £20k for something eligible.

The MOT on this one has recently expired, which is a pity, though there’s nothing too scary in the recent history to suggest a new ticket should be hard to get. Something to factor into an offer, perhaps. More than anything it seems like the old bruiser just needs driving; it got through 70,000 miles in 2015 yet, is now being sold with less than 75k seven years later. So maybe the car is going to need a bit of money spent to bring it back to its best, but so will most cars from 2001 by now. As a rare and interesting bit of fast(ish) Ford history, it isn’t hard to see the charm in this old Cougar. Give it another 21 years and it might be worth as much as all the others…

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SPECIFICATION | FORD COUGAR V6

Engine: 2,544cc, V6
Transmission: 5-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Power (hp): 170@6,250rpm
Torque (lb ft): 162@4,250rpm
MPG: 29.4
CO2: 228g/km
Year registered: 2001
Recorded mileage: 75,000
Price new: N/A
Yours for: £3,995

See the original advert here

 

[mersontheperson]

I prefer my Cougars about 15 years older

[Evercross]

mersontheperson said:

I prefer my Cougars about 15 years older.

LOL

Very reasonable money for this. If I had mountains of disposable income I'd get this and transplant the three litre engine from a Jag X-Type into it.

[munk]

I remember a reader's cars post a good decade ago about a chap who was gifted one for free. Even then that seemed too much. No thanks.

[cerb4.5lee]

I test drove one of these back in 2001 with the leather interior/V6 engine in black and I really liked it. I ended up in a black V6 Mondeo ST24 instead and I still regret it even now.

I found the ST24 so boring to drive at the time(2001) after my Sierra XR4x4, and I still wish that I'd gone for one of these instead.

I really like this example, and it certainly isn't daft money in comparison to most older Ford's for sure.

[junglie]

munk said:

I remember a reader's cars post a good decade ago about a chap who was gifted one for free. Even then that seemed too much. No thanks.

That would be me!

I had almost forgotten we owned one as a stop gap car.

Seem to recall we bought it for less than £1000 so it shows how ridiculous pricing has become.

Good, reliable car for £600 or so but not something for almost £4000!

[parabolica]

Always liked these; test drove a few in the mid 2000s when I was looking to move to a more grown up car after a few years of low-powered hatchbacks. One V6 was running rough and very tatty, the other was modded beyond any reasonable taste; the 2.0 was pristine but felt slow, even coming from a 1.4 Clio. Ended up with an early 9-3 Aero instead which is still in the family today.

This plus the Puma were both high on the list of cars I really wanted to get at some point but that time has passed for the Cougar I think; I would still get a decent condition Puma for sts and giggles, but not the Cougar.

[cerb4.5lee]

munk said:

I remember a reader's cars post a good decade ago about a chap who was gifted one for free. Even then that seemed too much. No thanks.

All my mates rolled around laughing when I mentioned that I wanted one, and they weren't well liked at all for some reason.

[jameswills]

I never liked these much to look at, but really liked the engine. I’m sure it drove very well as did most Fords of that era.

[Dombilano]

Not bad, but for similar money you could get the 190hp celica if you had a late 90s itch to scratch

[MickyveloceClassic]

I wouldn’t want one, and would never buy one, yet to see one on road would make me smile.
It was the last vestige of the Blue Oval Coupe really.

[pb8g09]

One of my teachers had one when I was a lad at school. Had to walk past it daily and every angle seemed to produce something round and chubby.

[cologne2792]

Had it been rear wheel drive then surviving Capri drivers would likely have bought them by the truckload.

But It wasn't and they didn't.

A bit of a shame really.

[Baldchap]

I remember this and something else coupe-y on 5th Gear years ago where they raced them down to a roundabout and back against a target time set by a boggo 2.0 Vectra.

The Vectra won and IIRC the Ford actually blew up a little bit.

Fairly crap when new, time hasn't done them any favours.

[wpa1975]

I have had 3, all V6 X packs (S, V and a W reg), really enjoyed them but could have done with a bit more grunt and very juicy mpg wise, all mine were sub £2k, it is a crazy world at the moment and with so few around £4k does not seem too badly priced.

These were built in Michigan and cars destined to be sold in Europe and the United Kingdom were finished in Ford's Köln plant in Germany, where the cars had European specification lighting installed, Ford badges applied (and in the case of the United Kingdom and Australian cars, converted to RHD); in the United States, it had different branding, in this case being branded as the Mercury Cougar, while in Europe and Australia, it was known as the Ford Cougar.

It was a car sadly doomed to failure from the very start, after the Probe people were still looking for the a new Capri this was not it.

[stuartmmcfc]

mersontheperson said:

I prefer my Cougars about 15 years older

Mines 52,
oh, I see what you mean

[sutoka]

I remember really liking these when they came out, but I was only 11.

There was one in the next road, same guy owned a Probe so make of that what you will.

[austinsmirk]

pb8g09 said:

One of my teachers had one when I was a lad at school. Had to walk past it daily and every angle seemed to produce something round and chubby.

That PE teacher certainly had a strange effect on you.

[Bennet]

Cars like this are such an easy target for contempt and disparagement which is a massive shame because objectively, they are probably very good. The mk2 Mondeo was excellent to drive and as far as I can tell, these are the same car with a different body. Comfortable to tool around in, competent on a motorway or a b-road or trundling around town, reasonably reliable, affordable to buy and run, and unlike most cars from the last 20+ years they actually have steering feel.

Edited by Bennet on Thursday 6th October 08:51

[Pughmacher]

cerb4.5lee said:

I test drove one of these back in 2001 with the leather interior/V6 engine in black and I really liked it. I ended up in a black V6 Mondeo ST24 instead and I still regret it even now.

I found the ST24 so boring to drive at the time(2001) after my Sierra XR4x4, and I still wish that I'd gone for one of these instead.

I really like this example, and it certainly isn't daft money in comparison to most older Ford's for sure.

I worked for a Ford dealer when these were new. I got chance to drive a few and a host of ST24’s the younger me preferred the mondeo at the time. I think these suffered the fate of not being RWD which is understandable until reason kicks in. Ford were not doing a bespoke chassis for this. Shame. The Puma really did put it in the shade.

[Turbobanana]

I bought mine almost by accident.

My SAAB 9000 needed a gearbox rebuild so was sold at a small loss. I had a day to find a replacement, and only £1000 to spend, so I hit eBay.

Amazingly, 15 miles from where I lived, a chap was selling his son's Cougar. OK, it was only a 2.0, but it was silver, manual, low mileage with full main dealer history and the cam belt had just been changed. And he only wanted £1100 for it.

I went for a look, loved it, and offered £800 cash, on the spot. He rang his son, but got no answer, so we agreed on £900. I later discovered the son had 3 more prospective buyers lined up, but I got out of bed early that day.

I spirited the car away immediately and kept it for 2 years and 20,000 miles, encompassing a house move, birth of my first child and change in career direction. The only problem was the electric windows - the regulators fail and are expensive to fix, so I propped the windows up with wood and used the (perfectly functioning) air conditioning instead.

It was brilliant: fun to drive, quick enough, very economical and with a surprisingly large boot. I grew to love the looks of it, especially the rear 3/4 which reminds me of the contemporary Mercedes CL Coupe.

Once established in the new job and location, I sold it for £1200. I'd have another as a cheap runaround: the "Spotted" car is a bit too nice really, but is probably worth the £asking to someone.