My names Dan, and i'm an addict. The £400 Ford Cougar
Discussion
So.. My names Dan and i cant help but really really like Ford Cougars.. i dont know why...
My two most searched things on eBay are Volvo 340 and Ford Cougar.. that itself should have alarm bells ringing, however i came across a Cougar in Bath for a reasonable amount of money, made an offer and picked it up early this morning for no other reason than it was cheap.. i didnt need it or really want it that much.
I've previously owned 3 Ford Cougars, the first being a baby 2.0 Zetec in Silver that was tatty when i got it and i sorted a few bits on it and sold it on for a healthy profit.
The second was a Blue V6 with xPack leathers etc, this was my Fathers car, he had it for 8 years and decided it was time to move on and sold it to me cheap, however that was short lived as it had so many problems, an oil leak that couldn't be found, a slowly seeping headgasket, a crap battery/alternator among other little niggles, it wasn't worth saving which was a shame.. however it gave me the love of the V6.
Which brings me on to the third and by far the best Cougar i owned, it was a 2001 Facelift 2.5 V6 in Dark green, Had around 70K Miles on it and it was lovely! Still miss it now, i had it for almost a year and gave it to my old man as he missed his old blue one, he had it for almost a year also before deciding it was time he got an auto and i sold it on for him to a chap who i'd hope is still running about in it now.
Then after two years Cougar-less car ownership i came across this cheap 2.0 Zetec very local and ended up buying it less than 24 hours later, it has no history and according to the advert no problems, which isn't true, so far ive noticed the brakes need replacing among a few other little bits but in all honesty it drives nice and has no major issues.
So what does £400 of late 90's ford look like?
And what am i doing with another Cougar i dont need? I'm not sure yet.. MOT Runs out in December so i think im going to drive it until then and see what it takes to get it through, if it goes through easy with relatively little work/money i will consider spending a bit more getting it up to par and using it daily. OR i may end up sorting the few issues out and sell it on, i dont think there's much profit in it though so i may end up just running it into the ground, im undecided really. It's not what i'd want idealy as id love another V6 Facelift but they're rare on the ground and to be perfectly honest other than sound and a tiny bit of pace there's not a great deal between the Zetec and the V6 Duratec.
The other route im tempted by is finding another cheap daily and taking this blue one of the road and attempting to turn the heavy front ended not so great handling lump into a track car.. The advantages i see is the 2.0 Zetec is a much more common engine than the V6 so parts are about, i beleive chucking a turbo on it isnt out of the realms of possibility
Who knows what'll happen, all i know for sure is i need to stop buying Ford Cougars and Volvo 340's.. it's becoming an issue. But cmon.. £400 for a big lump of Ford.. who can resist?
My two most searched things on eBay are Volvo 340 and Ford Cougar.. that itself should have alarm bells ringing, however i came across a Cougar in Bath for a reasonable amount of money, made an offer and picked it up early this morning for no other reason than it was cheap.. i didnt need it or really want it that much.
I've previously owned 3 Ford Cougars, the first being a baby 2.0 Zetec in Silver that was tatty when i got it and i sorted a few bits on it and sold it on for a healthy profit.
The second was a Blue V6 with xPack leathers etc, this was my Fathers car, he had it for 8 years and decided it was time to move on and sold it to me cheap, however that was short lived as it had so many problems, an oil leak that couldn't be found, a slowly seeping headgasket, a crap battery/alternator among other little niggles, it wasn't worth saving which was a shame.. however it gave me the love of the V6.
Which brings me on to the third and by far the best Cougar i owned, it was a 2001 Facelift 2.5 V6 in Dark green, Had around 70K Miles on it and it was lovely! Still miss it now, i had it for almost a year and gave it to my old man as he missed his old blue one, he had it for almost a year also before deciding it was time he got an auto and i sold it on for him to a chap who i'd hope is still running about in it now.
Then after two years Cougar-less car ownership i came across this cheap 2.0 Zetec very local and ended up buying it less than 24 hours later, it has no history and according to the advert no problems, which isn't true, so far ive noticed the brakes need replacing among a few other little bits but in all honesty it drives nice and has no major issues.
So what does £400 of late 90's ford look like?
And what am i doing with another Cougar i dont need? I'm not sure yet.. MOT Runs out in December so i think im going to drive it until then and see what it takes to get it through, if it goes through easy with relatively little work/money i will consider spending a bit more getting it up to par and using it daily. OR i may end up sorting the few issues out and sell it on, i dont think there's much profit in it though so i may end up just running it into the ground, im undecided really. It's not what i'd want idealy as id love another V6 Facelift but they're rare on the ground and to be perfectly honest other than sound and a tiny bit of pace there's not a great deal between the Zetec and the V6 Duratec.
The other route im tempted by is finding another cheap daily and taking this blue one of the road and attempting to turn the heavy front ended not so great handling lump into a track car.. The advantages i see is the 2.0 Zetec is a much more common engine than the V6 so parts are about, i beleive chucking a turbo on it isnt out of the realms of possibility
Who knows what'll happen, all i know for sure is i need to stop buying Ford Cougars and Volvo 340's.. it's becoming an issue. But cmon.. £400 for a big lump of Ford.. who can resist?
Edited by Harding91 on Saturday 31st October 15:51
Theophany said:
My condolences Dan, I hope you manage to overcome this crippling affliction 
Just one more, it's what i tell myself every time!mybrainhurts said:
BoRED S2upid said:
So this is where they all end up.
If i had the bank balance every one left in existance would probably spend a short spell in Wiltshire.Pentoman said:
Good addiction. Far more interesting than most.
Haha thanks, we all like our own things i guess, if everyone liked the same we'd be a boring bunch.skyrover said:
Nothing wrong with the cougar other than FWD
Very underrated car and the V6 is a great engine
It does what it was designed to do very well really, it's comfy and smooth to drive, huge boot space and generally very reliable, not fast or a car that will set blistering lap times but it wasnt made for that Very underrated car and the V6 is a great engine
Need another for the collection Dan ?
One up for auction up my way (SW Scotland).
https://daautoparts.salvagemarket.co.uk/vehicle-li...
One up for auction up my way (SW Scotland).
https://daautoparts.salvagemarket.co.uk/vehicle-li...
dumfriesdave said:
Need another for the collection Dan ?
One up for auction up my way (SW Scotland).
https://daautoparts.salvagemarket.co.uk/vehicle-li...
I only currently own one Dave One up for auction up my way (SW Scotland).
https://daautoparts.salvagemarket.co.uk/vehicle-li...
The rest ive owned previously. But that's too far im afraid! I'm in Wiltshire.C.A.R. said:
Is it true that these are heavier, worse-handling and less practical than the Mondeo they're based on?
You must really like them if so!
Debatable. The boots larger than the Mondeo of the same era but the back seats are sYou must really like them if so!
t useless, the engine and under the shell is the same and neither are meant to be good handling cars. I dont know about weight but i doubt there's much in it.Or are you thinking of the X-Type Jag.
Turns out when you buy a car for £400 the locking wheel nut isn't included. bit of a pain as id planned to get the brakes done this weekend ready for it to be insured/taxed. Oh well at least its only a minor set back, might scour the scrapyard on Saturday if i have time if not im sure ebay will find me one.
had one of these before my mx5, around 5 years back now... got it for 1100 quid and it was pretty faultless for the 20k or so miles i put on it.
My only complaint would be how woefully slow the 2.0 zetec felt, was also a big lump to parallel park. lovely interesting looking car though.
My only complaint would be how woefully slow the 2.0 zetec felt, was also a big lump to parallel park. lovely interesting looking car though.
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff