Cougars in France... pics and video!

Cougar Community Classic Cougar Community Discussion
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Hi everyone, or should I say Bonjour? I just got back from a 5-week trip to Europe, and it was amazing. My first stop was Paris, and it just so happens that there are a couple guys with '67 Cougars over there. I got in touch with them a few months in advance and arranged to meet up and do a photo shoot. When the day came, it was an unforgettable experience.

We met at the Château de Vincennes just outside Paris. I can’t pretend to know about the historical significance of this place, but it’s a cool castle. Google it.

The white car in the back belongs to Jean, who I think is a member on the forum. The yellow one in front with the vinyl top belongs to Claude. Both guys were super nice, but didn’t speak any English (and my French isn’t great either, to be honest) so Claude brought along his son Pierre, who speaks English well enough to translate. That helped a lot! We set up the cars in front of one of the castle gates and took a few pictures there.

From there, we decided it would be fun to drive around to some of the major Parisian monuments and take a variety of pictures. Cruise around Paris with 2 classic Cougars? Okay, if you insist.

Next stop was the Hôtel des Invalides. A very impressive building / complex containing a massive military museum, and under the golden dome is Napoleon’s tomb, which is a pretty amazing piece of art and architecture. Unfortunately, it started to rain at this point, but we soldiered on.

Group shot. From left to right: Jean, Anthony (my cousin who I was traveling with), me, Pierre, and Claude.

Closer shot. Claude switched with his friend Gil (bunny ears), who came along for the ride.

Our drive continued, and so did the rain.

Of course we had to get some pictures with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Thanks to their local knowledge, we got a great view from atop the Trocadéro Gardens.

(Yes, I edited this one to try to make the sky look a little more blue…)

(pics from Claude’s camera are a little sharper than my compact camera, despite my higher resolution)

Anyway, from there we made our way over to the Arc de Triomphe.

Then we made our way down the Champs-Élysées to the Place de la Concorde.

Bet you never thought you’d see two Cougars parked in front of an ancient Egyptian obelisk…

So, that pretty much sums up the day. It was pretty amazing. We were are a little disappointed about the rain, but as you can see, it didn’t stop us. Thanks again to Jean and Claude and Pierre for a great day.

See, even some French people can’t help but admire the Cougar’s curves.

Oh yeah, I put together a short video as well with some footage driving around Paris. Check it out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn2HUsx4E-c

Stay tuned for my next post, where I meet up with a guy in Toulouse with a bright yellow '67 S-code GT.

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So, I made my way southward through France and eventually met up with Anthony, who is a member on this forum. He’s a 21 year old with a 1967 390 GT Cougar, that was originally exported to France when new. It’s always been in the vicinity of Toulouse, and the previous owner painted it bright yellow. Anthony hopes to return it to its original Burgundy color someday when he restores the whole car. I had a brief but wonderful visit with him and his family, and they were kind enough to let me & my cousin stay with them and eat all their cheese. They are a car crazy family and have some cool rides, including a WWII Jeep (restored), a Corvette, a Renault 4 that they turned into a rally car, and a Peugeot 205 that I got to test drive. Fun stuff!

We spent a day cruising around in the Cougar taking pictures in various locations. Luckily, the weather was much better this time.

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Here’s Anthony and his girlfriend Anais. She hung around with us all weekend, despite not being particularly interested in cars. But she’s interested in Anthony, so everyone’s happy. :beerchug:

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Then it was my turn.

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Next location…

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This seems like a fairly normal picture, until you notice the château in the background…

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Check out the old Michelin sign on this building. Cool.

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He even let me drive! It was pretty cool to drive a Cougar in France. Strange, in a way… the car felt so familiar, but the outside world was totally different. Didn’t have to go on too many narrow roads, luckily. It was fun.

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This is interesting. Original KPH speedometer.

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Also, an interesting tag on the fender apron.

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Livin’ the dream…

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As if that wasn’t enough, Anthony called up his buddy who lives on the other side of town and has, get this, another S-code 1967 Cougar! What are the odds??

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Group shot. Unfortunately I can’t remember the name of the guy who owns the green car. But he was a nice guy, and his Cougar was equally nice.

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We had a blast, and the 2 days I spent in Toulouse seemed much too short. There is a video of me driving the Cougar, I will upload it soon. Thanks again to Anthony and his entourage. Great people and great memories.

That’s all for now! I’m back in the USA after a wonderful trip, and ready to get back to work on the Snowball. À bientôt!

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Five weeks in Europe ? I soooooooo hate you :laughing: Thanks for the story and posting the pic’s, never get tired of looking at classic cats :smoke:

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Great photos as usual Andrew. It sounds like an amazing tip. Thanks for sharing the details.
Steven

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Nice post… but you Lucky, my wife being from France I go there often and never saw only one single Cougar!

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Nice photo essay!
I was in Paris in 1988 on vacation, and managed to go to the top of the Arc de Triomphe. It is in the center of a round-about with 7 or 8 roads coming in and out of the circle. It was fascinating just to watch the cars maneuver through that interchange without traffic lights or cops.

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Nice trip and report you are writing for us :slight_smile:
Yeah its like winning the lottery coming across 2 GTs that Close in an European country :slight_smile:

I Guess this is the Rides of the month for you :slight_smile: maybe it should be a sticky in the Ride Of The Month forum :wink:

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Wow, very cool trip your on!!

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This must be in Legendary Cougar Magazine!

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Awesome pictures! I love France, I can’t imagine why some Americans don’t. Thanks for sharing that.

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Man, I would love to take my Cougar around the world and meet all the Cougar people like this. Sort of like Ewan and Charley’s Long Way Around trip, but with a classic cat instead of new BMW motos.

Great photography, btw.

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Sounds and looks like a great trip was had.

Nice job.

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C’est genial. J’aime les photos!

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Hey Andrew!

Those are awesome pictures you took!
We definitely enjoyed having you and Anthony at home, it’s been a blast! if you ever want to come around feel free to do so!
Of course my home is open to any Cougar enthusiast, if any member feels that he can suvive a wine and cheese festival!

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Great pics and great trip!

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Thanks for the comments and compliments guys! I have been late in replying because I wanted to be able to share the video of Anthony’s Cougar, which I just finished. See bottom of post.

Yeah, I get that reaction a lot. I definitely recommend it, if seeing new places interests you :slight_smile:

Well, based on the French women I saw and met, I think congratulations are in order, sir. :thumbup:

Yep it’s still pretty much just a giant roundabout free-for-all. I didn’t make it to the top of the Arc but it was cool to see nonetheless. So much history there.

Pretty much! It’s weird for me because I see Cougars every day working at WCCC, but to see four '67’s in France, and two GT’s in the same place, was pretty mind-boggling.

Sounds good to me :smiley:

Agreed. It was probably my favorite part of the trip, with Italy being a very close second. Hard to choose. I think some of us Americans expect things to be like in the US and don’t even remotely try to adapt or learn any of the language. This might rub the locals the wrong way. Overall I found most French people to be friendly. They are a proud people, and take pride in what they do, and I think that’s cool. It shows.

Yes. That needs to happen. I’m thinking maybe next time I’ll hit Germany, there are lots of Cougars there…

It’s true, he almost killed my cousin with massive quantities of 1664 (French beer) which resulted in said cousin nearly missing his train the next morning. :laughing: Thanks again Anthony, we had a great time!

Speaking of which, here’s an attempt at showing you all the fun day we had driving in & around Toulouse. (watch on YouTube)

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I couldn’t agree more with Bill, the photos and story certainly needs to make it into Legendary Cougar Magazing.

The attached photo is a 428CJ 1968 1/2 is the only 68-CJ known to be in France, it would be neat if your connections could track down its owner and send some current photos…
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Hey!

Do you have a good quality picture of this cougar? i have some contacts in administration, they might be able to get me the actual owner

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Awesome rundown, Andrew! I am so jealous. Good on you for taking this time in your life to do something like this, and cheers to Don who knew you should do it and let you go, haha…!

I can’t help but be haunted by the white and yellow Cats there…sheesh, like seeing ghosts :wink: But very very nice…

And that bright yellow is spectacular!

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