Park a 1968 and ’69 Cougar side by side and there’s not much difference on top, but Mercury revised the straight side body lines the car had worn since it was introduced and made them progressively slope downward for the ’69 model. I’ve always liked the body styling of all the first-generation Cougars, which were produced from 1967-70, and am not sure I really have a preference in the appearance department, but may have come to the conclusion that I think the angles from the first 2 years maybe look a little meaner and the last 2 perhaps a bit cleaner. This 1969 Mercury Cougar here on eBay is an XR7 model and it’s a real beauty, so if you’ve been looking for a late-sixties example this one might be worth checking out. The car is located in Macomb, Michigan, not very far up from Detroit, with bidding at $15,600 so far but still short of reserve.
The story here is that the Mercury is originally a California car but at some point made a northeastward journey, and although we aren’t told when it left The Golden State it may have spent a while there or some other friendly climate, as all of the sheet metal is stated to be original and there’s said to have never been any patchwork. The car has undergone one respray in the factory color of Medium Lime Poly and we’re not told when that was done either, but the finish still presents quite well all the way around, so I’d probably call the condition of this Cougar a really nice driver as the seller is upfront in saying it’s not perfect.
The car began life with a 351 engine under the hood and a 2-Barrel on top, but the motor has undergone a rebuild, and an aluminum intake with a Brawler 4-Barrel carb was added, along with headers and a Flowmaster exhaust system. There’s also a video among the pictures where we get to hear the car running and it’s got a nice strong sound. Outback is a positraction rear end with 3.55 gears, and the seller expresses his confidence that the Cougar is dependable enough to be driven anywhere.
Open the doors and you’ll find an interior that’s said to have been completely redone with the owner describing its condition as amazing, some pretty strong words there but I’d have to agree that most everything inside seems to live up to this claim. A few pictures from the undercarriage are also included, with everything down below appearing to be solid, and I’m finding very little anywhere not to like about this 1969 Mercury Cougar. What are your thoughts on this one?
Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee( taking breath) eeautiful. Say what you will, while it may be a gussied up Mustang to some, to me, it practically is no relation. While there was nothing to gripe about the ’69 Mustang, the Cougar added a bit of class, like all Mercs. The XR7 said something about who you were. Didn’t see many XR7s, best I can figure, is the L-M owners kid had one, or the guy YOU worked for, his kid drove one, as they were pricey. I read, a decked out ’69 XR7, like this, was almost $4grand, ($3800) almost $300 bucks more than a Boss 302 and almost a grand more than a regular Cougar($2999). Unlike the Boss, the XR7 was for a more subtle person, not shear guts, but nothing to mess with either, if need be. I see in ’69, they redesigned the dash. While I liked the earlier ones, an obvious European look, I never understood why they stuck the oil pressure gauge in front of the passenger, like an afterthought. “Oh, crap, Louie, we forgot the OP gauge. Oh, there’s room way over there”. It was replaced with a clock shown here. Few cars, for me, have that “wow” factor, the ’69 XR7 is one of them. I doubt many will disagree there.
Naturally, I feel the motor is a bit much for today, heck, I’d love to just cruise with a 6 banger, okay, okay, a small DOCILE V8, remember the 221? I thought that was a great motor. after all, it IS an XR7. It’s the car that will endure in the future,, not high performance motors. Sorry, Summit, your days are numbered too. Very cool car.
All Cougars had V8s in the 60s and 70s to make them more “upscale” than it’s Mustang cousin. The XR7 was a luxury package back then, but like Buick, Mercury let you choose to add the luxury options to the higher performance cars. The Eliminator Cougars being an exception. Any Eliminator XR7s are fabricated.
Accidentally hit “Report Comment”. Didn’t mean too, had no intention to. Not sure if it matters to anyone
The oil pressure gauge is always in the main cluster for the ’69 & ’70 Cougars. It is in the right-hand pod out of the 4 pods on the driver’s side.
The Rally Clock is normally mounted on the passengers side dash.
The sign of the cat,indeed..
Something about Cougars of that vintage have a mystique about them.
Those cars definitely say”You have arrived!”
Like Howard says, this Cougar XR-7 just oozes style and class. The medium lime paint, black vinyl roof, and styled wheels on white letter tires make it look great. The well-styled and well-appointed interior looks great too. Plenty of power to cruise in style. To me it has the “wow” factor in spades.
These are fabulous cars. I drove a dark green 70 XR7 for years until sadly rust took its toll. My car was a 351 4v with a 4 speed. The car had the Guage package, ac. disc brakes, rim blow wheel with tilt. Mine had the same or simular type wheels. The car also had the eye thing on the fender for the headlights. You cannot go wrong with this car. I miss driving mine as I was the second owner.
🎶 If I had money, tell you what I’d do..
I’d go downtown and buy a Mercury or two…I’m crazy about a Mercury ..
.I’m crazy about a Mercury …I’m going to buy me a Mercury and cruise it up and down the road 🎸 😎 🎵
Yes, for sure. If we were the types to actually buy a car on-line, we’d seriously consider this one.
I’d take this over a ’69 Mustang any old day!
I LIKE this 69, but LOVE my 68 xr7!!
Why on earth would a designer gently redo the exterior (which was done tastefully), upscale the interior but leave that ugly as sin shifter they have used since 1964!
Because it’s Ford. I swear I have the same shifter in my 1991 Mustang. Over twenty years apart.
Mine was the exact same car in looks, but mine had a 4 speed / w 351. If this was close to home, I would rush over to look and maybe buy.
Very nice car. I like the color. If the reserve is under 25-26k very good deal
I’m going to have to sell my Chevy Pickup because I see some nice cars like this come on here now, so if my Chevy was gone I would be all over this. By the time I got it here to Australia it would owe me near $40,000 but still nice to have a cool ride in nice condition like this one.
I really have to smile to myself when I see people say if only it was closer, just fly there and drive it home.
And yet nobody is talking about the cyclone y? in my opinion, the cyclones was better than the cougar.
In what way??
So it is awesome seeing this car ! They ran great and if anyone was into mileage back then I could squeeze 17 mpg outta mine. IF I kept my foot outta it.
Love this car, wish I could run over and buy it. My dad would be impressed. After all his car at the time was my first car. Just like this one ! Oh, I would love to have it so bad. I lost my wife 2 1/2 years ago and she would be all in on this deal with me.
Mercury of course was the finer line of Ford. You could expect more comfort than the mustang. Like Pontiac vs GM. It’s it to late to hit the lotto ?
Nice car. Love the 68-70 Cougars. Just something special to offer in the pony car wars. Again, if I had the money and the room, I’d be on it like a duck on a June bug.
Don’t miss this one