Cougar Convertibles

Cougar Community Classic Cougar Community Discussion
1

Is any information available on the last Cougar convertible built?

Does anyone know where it might be? What it came equipped with?

As a member how might one investigate certain models like this?

Thanks,

Jamie

2

Yeah, there’s a nice page on it in the Cougar Big Book, which is available from West Coast Classic Cougar. Not sure any more is known about its whereabouts other than “private midwestern collection,” but it was, of course, a '73; it was nicely optioned, a Q-Code 351 I believe.

3

I wrote an article about the last Cougar convertible for Legendary Cougar Magazine. It is currently owned by the Schmidt family that also owns NPD. It is in incredible original condition.with only 471 miles on it. It was ordered with every option available. The coolest thing about it is that it is one of the only documented cases ever of a car that came with an optional item that was not on the window sticker, or included in the Marti report. The car has the horizontal rub strip on the front bumper and we know it came that way because it is pictured sitting at the exit door from the factory with the rub strip in place.

4

R.B. & Bill thank you very much. Would love to see some pics of that fine example of a Cougar.

Appreciate your input!

Thanks

5

Does the Cougar Big Book have any mention of the first convertible?

6

This can be a nightmare for some concours’ restorations. I’m sure it happened a lot more than people think.

7

Absolutely. Consider the case of the Mystery G code Boss 302 Cougar. The entire Eliminator option was missing from the factory invoice as well as the Marti report. We do know that that was in fact built as an Eliminator because the build sheet included a special note to that effect.

I believe that the first Cougar Convertibles were all built as special show cars. They would have a July 4th 1968 build date, but that was really just a marker and had no real bearing on the actual build. I have not spoken with Kevin Marti about this but the next time we talk I will see if he has any information.

8

I knew a guy that had a pilot plant 1969 Cougar convertible. Very early VIN 9S94_5000xx. I don’t remember the engine code. Pilot Plant is code S.

9

It’s an “S” code

VIN is 9S94S500009

10

That’s it. If you know this information, what is the deal with the 20 questions?

You writing a book? You might get more information if you were more forth coming with your motive.

11

There was only 1 question?

Does the Cougar Big Book have any mention of the first convertible?

Was just curious.

12

CougarCJ,

Thanks for the attitude.

What are you getting all pissy about? Suggesting that I’ve asked 20 questions or was less that forthright.

I asked 4 very simple questions; 1. Is any information available on the last Cougar convertible built?

  1. Does anyone know where it might be? What it came equipped with?

  2. As a member how might one investigate certain models like this?

  3. Does the Cougar Big Book have any mention of the first convertible?


    Your response was incomplete and I filled in the blanks you didn’t know. That’s it.

Attitude/responses like yours is what pushes people with legitimate questions away from this site.

13

Oh, I did know the VIN. Didn’t want to make it public for privacy reasons.

14

Historic Cat, There is a back story that I am sure you are probably unaware of. Many years ago there was a huge Cougar site called the Classic Cougar Network. It contained probably the most complete collection of Cougar information ever assembled. It was a paid membership site, $12 a year. The content was actually created by a relatively small group of highly dedicated people. Ultimately, the two owners of the site burned out and and became disenchanted. In part what they didn’t like was people taking material from the site and then sharing it with non members. This resentment grew over time. Today the site and most of the content is gone. It is a huge loss to the community. All that remains to day is a German site that consists primarily of content stolen from the TCCN.

Then we have Kevin Marti’s book Cougar by the numbers. He has data on every Ford vehicle built since 1967. But there are only two books. There will never be another one, because all of the data he spent moths extracting compiling and organizing is now readily available for free on the internet. The books hardly sell at all. Kevin is basically okay with that, but he will never do another book because he knows how the story ends.

We have a very good Cougar registry. Phil Parcells has been working on this for years with the help of many others, including Scott Behncke. Scott has probably submitted more cars to the registry than any other individual. Part of what makes the registry possible is that the information is held confidentially, and handled very carefully. I would like to have a public registry, but that was not the basis the current one was created under. Phil will bend over backwards to try to help with research and historical study, but only to the degree that he can honor the obligation he has made to the individuals that own the cars. So individual VIN numbers are something that are treated with care, in particularly where the owners request that. I do not know about the individual in question.

15

Historic Cougar, I am not trying to give you a lecture, just to get you and others that come along later, a feel for the room.

You may have noticed that this site is free of any sort of advertising. That is because the members and myself donate money and time to keep it that way. If you use the search function you can find an incredible amount of the accumulated knowledge of the Cougar Community. We don’t “prune” threads or delete or archive old content. We just add more server space. Some day we will be forced to archive but it won’t happen until the server just can’t handle the size of the database, but even then the content will still be available. The point is that this in not your average forum.

If you go the main site, you will also find things like the complete set of Cougar XR-7G blue prints that you can down load for free. I bought most of those and then paid to have them scanned. Others were very kindly donated to the site. You will also find other documents that have been shared with the community by Royce Peterson, Jim Pinkerton and many others. All just for the benefit of the community.

There is only so much that can be done for free. This is where Legendary Cougar Magazine comes in. If you want more in-depth Cougar coverage that is what the magazine is all about. You asked about the last convertible, well, I interviewed the owners twice, had the car removed from storage and photographed and then got the complete history including a copy of a letter from Ford confirming that it was indeed the last Cougar. The subscribers paid for that content to be created so you can understand that it is not going to appear here for free.

Cougar enthusiasts don’t buy Cougars for investment potential, (although they are doing fine right now), they have a genuine affinity for the cars. Pretty much everyone on the site makes a contribution, a few with $, but mostly sharing their knowledge and experience, and always their encouragement and support for what others are working on.

So now you know where we are coming from. Where are you coming from? Are you working on a book? Do you want to buy one of the first Cougars? You are absolutely welcome here, help us help you.

16

Oh and about the Big Book, I don’t recall any specific mention of the first Cougar in the book. The Big Book is the most complete collection of Cougar information in one place available today. Maybe you can research the first convertibles and make that your contribution to the community?

17

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