This is not mine and Phil states is a new addition to the database.
Listed on Craigslist in AZ, https://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/d/fountain-hills-1969-mercury-cougar-xr7/7344978338.html
Strangely optioned and needs a restoration.
Just a few blocks from my old house. Never saw it when I lived there.
In the ad it reads “can be restored by us” so assuming maybe it’s owned by a shop, maybe they picked up to flip or restore.
I cannot tell if the caps are the real deal or not. https://secure.cougarpartscatalog.com/c8gy-1130-d.html?sessionthemeid=26
Hello Don, From the photo set, IMO, the Mercury Head Caps look authentic. The Marti gives no indication of wheels and/or wheel trim that would have been original to the Cougar at build. With E78 Blackwalls… could have been XR7 hubcaps, But, since the Cougar was ordered with 4-spd and posi rear…
I would be inclined to believe that the car would have been dressed up with a sport wheel option. Perhaps Kevin’s “Eminger Report” would reveal more info as to how this Cougar was delivered to the Pacific Lincoln Mercury Dealership.
They were an over the counter dress up item, only a few cyclones got them from the factory in 68
Gary,
I believe that it should have the “standard” 1969 XR7 hubcap since optional wheels are not called out. I believe that what are currently on it are not the rims/caps that it left the factory with. Also notice that it has no power steering and no power brakes.
Yes, what Dave says is correct. The car would have body color rims and dog dish hubcaps originally. It was common to order the cheapest wheel / tire option back then if you planned to get aftermarket wheels and / or tires as soon as you took delivery.
Yes, there is a small restoration shop in Fountain Hills, AZ. The owner is an older guy (seems nice enough). They helped fix a California 1967 390 yellow car for an owner over the last several years (had a sunroof installed in it from a GM car). I sold them several Cougar parts over that time. Looks like they dug up another project Cougar somewhere.
Not to down play the owner, but he knows zero about Cougars and if you did have them do work, I know first hand it would not be fast…
If someone is serious about the car, contact me and I can do a formal inspection. Yes, the 4 speed adds value (around 50 made if I remember correctly), but I think this is more like a $10K type of car, as it will need EVERYTHING.
thanks, Scott
Full wheel covers came standard on the xr7. Could you delete them and get a credit back?
Interesting feedback info on the wheels guys… Thanks Dave, Royce, & Don.
If you did it would show up on the Marti Report.
Even though a rare car will require at least 50K to restore unless you are a body man, chrome shop, and have a Cougar restoration parts business. A good example to write one check- buy a nice one done!
I totally disagree with that statement.
You realize no one has that kind of cash laying around these days and for someone to buy a car like this and build it with your 2 bare hands is more gratifying then writing out a check for one done. I have had my 70 since 1989 and tore it apart 5 times and built it, but this time its about to be its last. I could have bought 1 but the sentimental value is more to me then buying 1 done. The memories building a car and taking it on a cruise after or during the build is priceless.
thanks
pat
I agree with you - times have changed in my opinion. We bought our '69 XR7 M code convertible, near rust-free #'s matching for $450 in 2002. It needed a lot of parts that had gone missing when someone took it apart years before, so we picked up a few parts cars along the way. Nice dash pad from this car, nice door panels and console from another, etc. Never spent more than $1k on a parts car and always had a lot left over to sell or trade. Try doing that now! This car is already 27x what we paid for ours, and if you piecemeal each part you need on eBay, $50k would add up really fast. I think somewhere you’d cross the line between sentimental and into frustrating on this one. If it was a rare big block or something of that order, it may indeed be a different story. But getting parts and finding good local vendors (paint, engine, transmission, upholstery) is just not as easy as it used to be.