Cougar research

Hello:

I’m planning on joining the world of owning a Cougar. I have been researching the Hemmings website and see a 1970 cougar convertible offered by Max Motors for $31,800. It looks sweet and am wondering if this is a good value.

The Vin number is F0F92H5650910.

My question on the car is that is has the Eliminator Package which were not sold on the 1970 cougars that were convertibles.

Some input would be greatly appreciated.

Eric Swierczek

Max Motors Pittsburgh converitble

You are correct the Eliminator package was not available on convertibles or on an “H” engine code.
It has had pieces added but are the passenger camera case for example is not from an Eliminator as the rallye clock is missing.

Thay do call it a tribute in the add. I think this may be a fun car that one can(and should) do some more modifications to. It really needs better brakes, 4 wheel drums are not the most efficient. I’m not sure what to say about the price, It looks like it is a good solid example, but it needs eyes on it to make sure.

The interior is interesting, why did they do all that work and not refinish the glove box door? The seats are not done in correct materials, and I;m not so sure I like the yellowish piping. A factory red interior would also have had a Red console and the steering wheel pad would also be Black. I think the Camera case dash bezels are actually rosewood base ones that have been painted Black.

Under the hood looks decent. I don’t see any rust bubbling up in the tops of the aprons. If it were mine I would get rid of the air cleaner and use something else. I also do not care for the Braided Stainless coverings on the hoses.(personal preferences)

I like it when sellers show pictures of the underside. This looks like a unmolested underside. Surface rust can be dealt with. I don’t see evidence of shoddy floor repairs. But it may have had a full floor pan done. I see 4 plugs, I think only the rear should be there. I’ll have to go look at mine.

That said, I kind of like this one. My comments are just observations. Again, have it inspected by a qualified inspector. Money well spent.

As neal mentioned the 4 wheel drum brakes is a kind of shoddy thing. My 70 vert came with front discs and I`m converting the rears from drum to dis brakes as well. It seems they took corners on dressing the interior. All mismatched colors, the McDonald seats don’t do it for me. If you were to purchase it, I say somehow take it to a upholstery shop, get that yellow piping removed, even black piping be better suited. The console, dye it red and put a correct 3 hump console lid on it. And if you desired to keep it black around the gauges id drive it like that or go the extra mile and put the correct burlwood ones on it… Otherwise the car looks to be in great condition…

thanks
pat

The underside shot shows no front crossmember and no inspection cover on the bellhousing. I would be looking hard in the trunk for evidence of accidents and rust.

Hey Cougar Community. I’m impressed by all the good comments from my post today. Cant wait to secure a car and start being a true member of the club.

I have two thoughts about my question - Im planning on ordering a Marti Report to better determine the car’s journey before inspecting and perhaps making an offer.

Second observation is that most classic muscle cars were refurbished and the fact we know it was not an original Eliminator version is acceptable if the car checks out in other ways.

Thanks all…

One of the strut rod channel braces looks wonky. Look where it attaches to the radiator core support. One or both is not installed correctly?

Have a look at the eighth picture from the end. You can see the missing ( passenger side ) front fender brace. Also a lot of corrosion ( deep ? ) just to the left of the lower radiator support. I also noticed on the passenger side front sub-frame / lower control arm strut anchor channel ( welded to the lower rad support ), it seems to have had a piece of the metal torn away. It is shorter than the drivers side strut anchor channel, and chunks of the remains of the factory welding and metal are still there - the two sides look lopsided and uneven.
I wonder what kind of damage the car might have sustained to rip a chunk off this portion of the front of the cars sub-assembly. Looking at my 1969, that area is among the heaviest steel in the car, and although the welding isn’t very ‘pretty’ it isn’t missing any pieces, and it is the same length when comparing the LHS to the RHS. Just my observations and thoughts.

Also missing the front license plate bracket. And the plastic filler above the steering column. Not a big deal but good to know. Most likley a lot of little things that cost money to fix.

Not to be picky, but trying to show you things you might not have seen:
Front suspension looks pretty dirty and leads me to believe it is in need of some attention.
Power steering ram bellows are ripped and letting trash get to the ram which could lead to premature wear.
It has power window switches in the front, but a hand window crank on the rear quarter glass???
I agree that the strut rod mounts don’t look right, they should be a mirror image and one is shorter.
It looks like the passenger rear frame rail in front of the axle has some big rust damage.
The missing (bolt in) front crossmember is a big structural and safety concern for me.
Strange looking starter and aftermarket oil pan could be why they left the crossmember off…I’m not sure.

On the positive side, it looks like it has an aftermarket radio with a USB cord hanging down from the dash.

Personally, I wouldn’t offer over about 15k with what Everyone has pointed out that would need to be addressed.
Check for thick bondo around the doors and lower rear quarters where they tend to rust out. A magnet that barely sticks will tell you that quickly.

All that being said though, nice looking cat.

I must have needed another cup of coffee this morning. The power windows are interesting.

It has the 5 switch panel here on the drivers door(4 windows and window lock). But both rear windows have hand cranks. Note the under hood picture, it does not have the power window relay on the R/H shock tower. I had noticed the bent strut rod bracket. But that happens all the time. I did not notice that it looks like it was knocked loose and not rewelded in to the correct location. Rust is a hard thing to evaluate in pictures. It often looks worse than it is. and sometimes it looks better than it is. Thuse having a certified inspector look. All the advice I see here is good and may help. Price is the real problem to give with just looking at pictures. Dealers are usually amenable to haggling over the price. If they are not then just walk away.

I also noticed on the passengers side inner tie rod looks like it has a arch to it and the drivers side looks straight. with that lower picture of the front of the car I`d have a alignment shop or even a place that can take measurements to see if that front end was hit at 1 time. the biggest scare for me would be them lower strut bar supports as people mentioned 1 is shorter then the other and the bushings don’t look like there a match.


thanks
pat

p.s. I also noticed something else, drivers door, does not have the door edge guard BUT the pass side does. Something tells me this car was involved in a good sized accident.



This car looks like it has been hit hard in the front judging by the wonky angles of the strut bracings. Overall it is a thrown together mess and overpriced by at least double. If it were me, I would run, not walk away. So many better cars for less money.

I’m w/Joe & the others. This thing has been hammered & needs major reconstruction + time on a frame machine. Basically a parts car.

RUN!!!

It has been hit very hard in the Pass front. Start by looking at the battery apron…
Then as others have mentioned:
" it has been hit hard in the front judging by the wonky angles of the strut bracings"

Please pass on this one, anybody deserves better!