Disclosure: This site may receive compensation when you click on some links and make purchases.

The Sign Of The Cat: 1968 Mercury Cougar

c1

This “upscale” pony car was the result of a search when I saw a ’68 Cougar on a TV show the other night and really liked it. I was wondering how expensive they were compared to similar Mustangs. If this one is any indication, Cougars are bargains! It’s located in South Amboy, New Jersey, and is for sale here on eBay where bidding is just over $800 and surprisingly there’s no reserve.

606e2dd6c84533af704d245f76cb7630

In their 1968 advertising for the Cougar, Mercury tried to tie in the “European” looks of the car with the “luxury engineering” of the Lincoln-Mercury Division. The big cat on the hood got a lot of attention as well. Note how perspective was used to make the car look as low and wide as possible!

c3

This particular Cougar actually looks a little high in the side views. Frankly, I’d like to get some more information than the owner has provided, but they do tell us it’s actually a Southern car. This probably accounts for the lack of too much visible corrosion, although given the blurry pictures, who really knows?

c4

We can tell that one of the bumper guards is damaged and it looks like the trunk lock may be missing. The good news is that the vulnerable valences both appear straight and so do the bumpers themselves. The seller states in the ad that there’s a little rust here and there. Why is it so hard to list some details and take some closeups! Aaaaaarrrrggggh! They do tell us that it’s a 302 V8 and it’s attached to an automatic, and the car runs and drives although something’s going on with the fuel tank or lines. The car even has front disc brakes, so although I’d rather see a manual transmission that’s pretty good news.

c2

The missing door panels are included, although I wonder why they were taken off in the first place. The seats actually don’t look too bad and the seller says the dash pad is good. Sure, it’s an ambitious project, but it’s not going for very much this early in the auction either! Who knows, maybe it will stay low and a Barn Finds reader will take it home? What do you think?

Comments

  1. Avatar Donnie

    the rear looks a little high probably had fat tiers with air shocks at some time

    Like 0
  2. Avatar piper62j

    Added notes from buyer says it has AC.. Compressor and lines are gone. Also states there are creases on the roof and top of both quarter panels.. Pushed in nose piece????? Holes behind rear window… The more he comments, the less desirable this car becomes. This body class is the same as the Mustang coup and most rotted out behind the rear glass where water and debris accumulated under the molding. I’m not so sure I would invest much into this car, although if you have the knowledge behind these and the Mustangs, it could be a good deal.

    Good find.. Nice car.

    Like 0
    • Avatar CATHOUSE

      Pushed in nose piece refers to the body colored piece that is located between the left and right grille sections. It is quite common for this piece to be damaged in such a manner. This part sticks out a little farther than the grille sections so if a driver hits something in the front that is higher than the bumper this part gets pushed back. This type of hit often times will also damage the front fender extensions as well. And if the hit is a little too hard the risk of breaking off the mounting tabs on the pot metal grille go up. I have had quite a few Cougars with this type of damage over the years.

      Like 0
  3. Avatar JW

    Mustangs and Cougars did rust often around the rear window channel but so did the 66 / 67 GTO’s because of the design of the rear windows. one of my 67 GTO’s had to have most of the rear window channel replaced. Part of owning and restoring a classic car of 40 years old. I like this car and it deserves to be restored even if only as a driver which the seller must be thinking with his comment on a Maaco paint job. Good find IMO.

    Like 0
  4. Avatar krash

    JW….I was thinking the same thing when I read…:

    On Jan-30-16 at 06:52:13 PST, seller added the following information:
    needs maaco paint job

    I understand the seller’s intentions by making that statement but I can’t think of any classic that deserves that abuse…..

    Like 0
  5. Avatar Jason Houston

    Ever notice how 67-68 Cougars, 63-65 Rivieras, 69-71 Mark IIIs and similar cars still have soft prices after all these years? It’s only because they didn’t offer a convertible.

    Like 0
  6. Avatar Keith

    This has been on our local CL here in Jersey for quite some time many better project Cougars available…..always suspicious of cars that conveniently have the gas tank disconnected so that you can’t hear it fire up. 63065 Rivs have soft prices? Guess it depends on one’s definition of soft….those cars usually aren’t cheap unless they’re junk (I’ve had a few that weren’t junk and they sold quite well).

    Like 0
  7. Avatar MountainMan

    Looks rough but for the right price I would take it on

    Like 0

Leave a Reply to Keith Cancel reply

RULES: No profanity, politics, or personal attacks.

Become a member to add images to your comments.

*

Get new comment updates via email. Or subscribe without commenting.