1 of 2 vin 1s from 1969 for sale

Hi guys and gals, this is a bit of a sad day for me but also a hopeful one! I have come to the realization that the car I have loved for the last 22 years needs to find a loving home that can continue to work on her and love her the way I did. With a young family I can no longer give her the time, money and attention she deserves.

That said, I have listed the first 1969 cougar produced from the San Jose plant for sale on kijiji and I am reaching out to you folks as I am hoping that I have reduced the cost enough to allow the new owner (hopefully a cougar fan from the group who will care for her) to do any necessary repairs.

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-view-details.html?adId=1510917886

Please respond on kijiji if any of you are interested or might have a suggestion on another way to find a loving home. I have owned her more years of my life then not and really don’t want to see her driven to death or parted out :frowning: .

Thanks again

Rob

VIN #1 from the San Jose Plant, and a 4th of July car…

And it was a Western Canada car.

It’s a fairly nice looking Cougar with the Spinner hubcaps

And Red Decor interior.

I would love to see the Marti Report on this one
But this add needs more and better pictures. Good luck with the sale.

Thanks for the assist Neil!

What would you like to see for pictures Neil? I am using a very good camera? I have put up as many pictures as are allowed on kijiji :frowning:.

I am not sure what the Marti report will show you, please explain? Please note that I have the original bill of sale in a box somewhere and the rarest thing about this vehicle is that it is vin 1 from San Jose to my knowledge.

The body tag decodes as 2dr hardtop, pastel grey, red vinyl, july 4th as mentioned, ontario canada, 2.75:1, auto FMX
The vin decodes as 1969, San Jose, cougar standard, 351W 2bbl, production sequence # one

I am happy to help anyone who is serious about the car with answering questions and providing details / pictures, etc… I am not eager to go out and buy a Marti report though as I am not sure I see the value in this situation? Unless someone can explain otherwise?

Thanks all!

Marti Report is a good way to determine how the car left the factory. Some may not care how complete/original it is but a lot of people would prefer as close as possible (unless they want to make a resto-mod out of it). This is especially true if it has something special (i.e. sport or eliminator in 69 and any with a big block) and priced to match.

It has been years since I looked at the bill of sale but shouldn’t a lot of the details you are referring to be on there? I guess I need to go find those docs sooner rather then later…

based on who I bought the car from I do not believe that much work or many changes were done too it in it’s first 30 years, the lady who owned it (she bought it new) didn’t drive it much and it clearly had not run in a long while when I picked it up (my father and I got it to turn over and run on the driveway but had to tow it home at that point (I was 18)).

I have kept all the original parts I have replaced and the car is numbers matching if that helps.

I also have several boxes of parts from the original owner who bought it new (she had planned on restoring it herself prior to passing) for example I have 3 tail light sequencers and an extra steering wheel as well as a bunch of extra cougar script body decals, etc.

I had the car painted 10+ years ago
Interior:
I replaced the centre console arm rest, headliner and dash, then redyed a lot of the interior parts to factory original match as they were fading, I replaced the factory stereo and speakers but retained the original one and purchased reproduction trim pieces to cut and place around the aftermarket deck.
Mechanical:
Motor was sent to machine shop for rebuild with high compression pistons, comp extreme energy cam and rollers. I replaced the intake with an edelbrock performer rpm and 4bbl edelbrock carb but the original manifold is on my shelf (first reliability improvement I made, the rebuilt auto lights are constantly failing at the accelerator fuel pump). I replaced the air cleaner housing wiht K&N but the original housing is on my shelf. I replaced the exhaust manifolds with full length headers and ran these to high flow mufflers but the original manifolds are on my shelf.
I have replaced the mechanical fuel pump with an in tank performance electric one (reliability improvement). I replaced the factory points with the pertronix magnet system as it looks almost 100% stock, supplies a slight performance improvement and a huge reliability improvement.
I have replaced the power stearing pump, starter, battery is new, power steering ram, windshield wiper spray pump, starter relay selenoid… I am sure I am forgetting a few things…
Oh I also added an overflow reservoir for the radiator as it ran hot initially after the motor was rebuilt.

I have changed a few things but made sure that I retained any important parts so that the car could easily go back to stock. and most of the changes have been with the aim of making her more reliable.

I hope that helps, let me know if I can provide any further details, etc.

The Marti report I saw didn’t seem to supply much beyond what can be found by decoding the vin and door plate on the CCOA web site does it? What other details would you find on there?

Rob,
I am not in the market for another Cougar, but More is always better when trying to sell. As this is such a low VIN number the Marti report will most likely show this as a Show unit, as far as I have seen all July 4th build date were show units. Making it somewhat more interesting. It will also show that it was not painted Black, rather Maroon from the factory,Color Code B. Black was code A.
I think you have a great Cougar and would love to see you get top dollar from it.

Below are t Craigslist add that show more pictures then the 7 you have on Kijiji, Look them over and see if you think you can add more like they have.
1968 Cougar on Craigslist;
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/cto/d/puyallup-1968-mercury-cougar/7156403359.html

1969 Mach 1 on Craigslist;
https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/ctd/d/portland-1969-ford-mustang-mach-1/7153115026.html

Again; bets of luck with selling your baby.

This is the Deluxe report for my 1970 428 CJ Cougar.

There is one report lower then this that only shows the basic information the can be deciphered off the door tag. You should get this one, not the lower level. You also do not need the Elite report.
Also note where this one states “Order type Stock” Yours most likely would say Order type Show Unit"

Thanks Neal!
The major thing that I have not included in provided details from that report would be as follows:
-Sold at Southridge Mercury, Calgary Alberta
-central dash speaker with AM radio
-no air
-manual windows and locks
-upgraded centre console

I thought the paint code “D” decoded as pastel Gray?

Show units typically had leaded in seams and a lot of extra attention to details. Some even got special paint jobs that were show quality costing thousands even back in the day. You really need that Marti Report. Not having it really reduces the value of the low number.

It looks like a “B” to me, but I am looking at a picture.

By comparing the “D” in the trim of 2D the Color Code looked to me to be a “B”. But you are there and have the car to look at. A Pastel Gray car with a Red Interior would also be a sharp looking combination.
Looking in my copy of “Cougar, by the Numbers” I see that if the color is “B” with the 2D interior there were 444 built in this color combination, if the color is “D” then 236 were built. But if this had been a Black car,Code “A” from the factory there would have been 94 built.

To be fair it is hard to read here in the day light at this point! I just did a pencil rubbing to be sure! it is D and 2D. The car was white when I got it (apparently she was a trooper fan) so I have no idea about leaded in seems or anything

Get the Marti. It will be the best money you’ve ever spent.

While the Marti report will decode the door data plate just as you have done on the CCOA website it will go a step farther and also show an itemized list of the options that the car was ordered with. Unless you have the original window sticker or perhaps some other original selling dealer paperwork a Marti report is the only way to get that list of options. Potential buyers will then be able to look at the Marti report and compare it to the car to see what is, and what is not, original. For some buyers being 100% original is very important, others not so much. I agree with what others have said here, having a Marti report will greatly increase your chances of selling the car. Good luck with the sale.

Randy Goodling
CCOA #95

Add redone on kijiji.ca to move it back up to the top. Deluxe Marti report ordered. I will keep you guys posted!

Neal how many basic cougars had the upgraded interior? 3 rib centre consol, full-length centre console, full wood door inserts, clock in gauges and rim blow steering wheel. How many cougars had the ultra compact inflatable spare tire that shrinks down to the rim when not in use?

There were 3 interior trim levels, Base, Decor(yours is Decor) and XR-7. Your number will be on the Marti Report. With Color code D and 2D interior there were 236 built
27451 Standard Cougar hardtops got a Console, usually a standard Cougar go a flat top on the console.No idea why yours has the nicer looking one.
The wood grain trim on the door trim is part of the decor group interior.
The Clock is a nice added option that 8482 Standard Cougar hardtops got.
Rim Blow steering wheel was part of the Decor Group interior.
The compact spare is a fairly rare option that 322 Standard Cougar hardtops got.

In all I think you have a interesting Cougar. You may find the selling dealer may have added r removed an option to make the sale. Your having the original sales paperwork is a great thing to have.

Thanks so much again Neal!

Was hoping it would say show car, but it says stock :frowning:
only 236 with these paint/trim codes though
-courtesy lights
-electric clock
-wide oval white sidewall tires
-console
-power front disk brakes
-power steering
-am radio
-decor group
-deluxe belts/warning light
-remote control left mirror
-heavy duty battery
-door edge guards
-deluxe wheel covers
-front bumper guards

The car was originaly pastel grey paint, ford #3303-A and dark red vinyl decor with bucket seats as you guys mentioned!

Still a very nice car.

Not sure if you sold it yet, and others on this community may give you alternate sites to help sell your car, but I sold my 70 XR7 thru ClassicCars.com. Took a while (almost a year) and cost $99 to place the ad, but I had a price in mind & I did not mind enjoying it in the meantime. May get a more serious group of buyers there vs some other sites…

Any of the Cougar Clubs may also be useful, you would at least (hopefully) get Cougar lovers there, but I have not tried them for selling/buying a car. Would usually be looking for show dates or similar info, so not sure how much interest might get shown.

Just so we are all on the same page, I am asking 18k CAD, that is currently just under 13.5k USD!