Hi, I’m a new member from Texas who has been looking for THE Cougar that will fill a spot on my bucket list and I’ve joined this forum on that quest.
Based on research and what has been discussed on this forum I doubt the Cougar (the Unicorn) I’m looking for is still around in any condition, but I expect I’ll eventually end up with a high quality substitute.
It was early 1969 and I was a senior in high school. My Dad was the office manager for Whitten Bros Lincoln/Mercury in Richmond, Va. Dad often drove the land yacht convertibles and sometimes Cougars as his “demonstrator” because these were slow movers for the Whitten’s.
Before joining the Whitten’s in 1966, Dad had been a factory man. He was a DM for Rambler/AMC (and Studebaker/Packard before that). The Whitten’s were the only Rambler/AMC dealer he ever lost and Dad went to work for the Whitten’s to keep us from being transferred back to Wash., DC with AMC.
Dad knew cars—could take any car apart and but it back together—but was not a car guy. So, he did not fully appreciate what he brought home and let his high school senior son go cruising around in every weekend for eight weeks.
At first glance, especially the interior, it appeared to be an XR-7 without the badges and vinyl roof. It was a fully optioned Eliminator with stripes and the graphics on the rear quarter panels, but not on the spoiler. It was green—but, I really don’t believe it was Competition Green—with white interior. That’s not important.
But, the drive train is: This Eliminator was a Boss 302 with an automatic transmission!—something, that’s not supposed to exist according to everything I’ve read here.
To add to my teenage bonafides, I became a David Pearson/Wood Bros fan when he started driving Mercury’s. I knew my Mercury’s.
I knew what I was driving and I know what I showed all my friends when I raised the hood. I knew what I was driving as I got the tires to give a little squeal as I manually shifted through the three gears with the automatic. I knew what I was driving when a friend and I got surrounded by a group of 10 rival high school guys who were attracted by the Cougar and began starting trouble. The Cougar got me and my friend out of that after a few punches, but only after my friend’s leg was slammed between passenger door and rocker panel.
I knew what I was driving–an Eliminator Boss 302 with an automatic transmission–I just didn’t know this Cougar was not supposed to exist. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Great story. Do you have any photos of this Cougar or the Vin #? That would go a long way towards figuring out exactly what your Cougar was and where it might be.
Steven
There were none built at the factory like that. The records are complete. Didn’t happen. But there’s no reason a dealer could not swap in a C4 in an afternoon using all factory parts from a small block Mustang application. Same goes for air conditioning, or cruise control, neither of which could be had with a Boss Eliminator.
Realistically you were likely riding in a 351W Eliminator. Time warps memories.
Well, I knew I would get push back. It was a Boss 302. I knew I was driving something special–but, was actually disappointed that it was a small block. Everyone knew “Boss” at the time because of Mustang, especially Boss 429. The Whitten’s were not into high performance cars much less mods. As I said, they saw Cougars as slow sellers. Very unlikely they would authorize that and then give it to Dad to drive–and, Dad would not have been the least bit interested. But, “Boss” was a really big deal at the time and it may be possible that a customer got them to do what you suggest, didn’t close the purchase–and they “stuck” Dad with driving it (Dad and the Whitten’s were 4 door guys). I believe the next generation Whitten sons still operate the dealership. I knew them in the day. Writing this may have inspired me to make contact and see if there’s any possibility they still have records from 1969 and would be interested in locating this unicorn.
Since you know the dealer name, the color and the time frame, it would be very easy to ask Kevin Marti to do the research to find out exactly how the vehicle was equipped when it left the factory. https://www.martiauto.com/martireports.cfm
Another possibility is the Eliminator Registry. Since you know the dealer name that can be matched at the District Sales Office (DSO) level. Then you could filter for color, trim, and build date, and see if any of the cars registered match up. In some case there is additional information about the car.
Since it was a high school car, having a Marti Report would be a cool thing to have regardless of how it was built at the factory.
There have been a couple of instances I recall of people mistakenly calling a 302 (Windsor) a Boss 302. This in spite of how easily each is identified. I am not saying that this is the case with your story but what I have described has happened more than once.
As others have suggested, research and inquiry is a possible way to add verifiable facts to the story.
CSB (cool story bro), but you never told us what makes you so sure you were looking at a Boss 302 engine in the car.
Please don’t blame us for being skeptical, since the production records run counter to your recollection. You would not be the first guy to mis-remember something like that (not the last either).
It’s still a cool story.
PS - except for the Boss 302, there were no 302’s in '69/'70 Cougars
I think that’s highly unlikely too since there were no 302 low performance Cougars in 1969 Eliminator or plain or XR-7.
Hi ParsonJ, welcome to the board! Sorry for the rough welcome here so far. Hopefully we can help you figure out exactly what you had, and maybe find out if it still exists out there somewhere!
Like the others have mentioned, the best way to start is with a VIN number. With that, you can order a Marti Report (http://www.martiauto.com/martireports.cfm) for about $20. It uses Ford factory data to provide a list of components, colors, and options that the vehicle left the factory with (i.e. original factory configuration of the car).
If you don’t remember your VIN, you might try finding some old insurance documents, or sales info on the car, or any of the original paperwork. Also, as mentioned, you might be able to submit a research request to Marti Auto with the dealer, time frame, and known colors / options, in order for him to turn up a matching vehicle.
Also, if you have a VIN you can submit a request through the Cougar Club of America, and they will check thier registered database of VIN to see if your car is recorded. They MIGHT also be able to help if you have the dealership, time frame, and known colors / options as well.
Ok, lets look at the problem from a more positive perspective: instead of telling you what is “wrong” with your car, lets gather some more information about the car itself…
Was the dash panel wood grain? or black?
Did it have black faced guages or did they have little silver disks?
Was there a passenger side clock in the dash?
Was the shifter a knob, or a Hurst T-handle?
If it was a knob, was it black or brown?
Were there switches in the top-center of the dash?
Power steering? Power brakes? AC? Power Windows?
Was it a leather interior? vinyl / simulated leather? or was it a woven vinyl / comfort weave?
Did the door panels have pull handles, or just arm-rests?
Did the door panels have any wood-grain?
Were there speakers in the doors?
Was it an AM, AM/FM, or AM/8-Track radio?
Was there a center console?
Was the green paint a metallic? Was it dark dark green? A medium “emerald” green? Or a “lime gold” green (like you often see on the '67 Shelby’s)?
Was there a hood scoop? If so, what color was it?
Was there a front spoiler?
Were the stripes black, or white?
Did the stripes run the entire length of the car, or did they end at the rear wheel?
Did it have trim around the wheel openings?
Did it have a “fang” on the front of the hood that you would whack your head on when working on the engine?
Also, are you sure about the “Early '69” time frame? or could it have been “Late '69”?
Ok, I know there are a lot of questions there. Hope to hear back from you soon, and we’ll go from there!
Great job Mike! 
Yes, obviously.
I really appreciate all the responses. This is great stuff and encouragement to get to the bottom of something I’ve wanted to work on for a long time. The engine had a Boss 302 badge on the air filter I am fairly certain. It was obvious when you lifted the hood. I lifted the hood and showed it more times than you can count. The color that I recall was a more medium dark metallic green. Stripes were black and “Eliminator” didn’t jump out at you. You had to look for it on the rear quarters. I remember pointing those out. As I said, the interior was more XR-7ish than Eliminator. Full console I’m sure, much more detail than that is stretching the memory too much. Believe I would have remembered a Hurst shift handle. Especially an automatic? Truth is, I remember the whole setup looking pretty wimpy (too refined) for an Eliminator. I rode in/drove quite a few XR-7’s and my impression of the interior on this Eliminator was that it was not much different. Need to make it clear that this was the dealer’s car–my Dad’s demonstrator. We didn’t take title to it but I had the pleasure of cruising in it for eight weeks. It would have been March-May 1969 time frame. I have old pix of the Marquis Brougham Convertible I drove in Richmond Thanksgiving Day parade and the Marquis the Whittens let me take on our honeymoon, but, darn it, not this Eliminator. Will continue research and report back. I also look forward to your help as I zero in on a 69/70 Eliminator or XR-7 Vert to replace the 2011 Shelby Mustang I recently sold. The Shelby was supposed to get this Eliminator out of my system. Close but not quite. 
You should think about joining our Lone Star Cougar Club. We have monthly club meetings in the DFW area. Tonight some of us may cruise to a drive in in Dallas named Keller’s. The place is a very hot cruise every Saturday when it isn’t raining. You can see dozens of muscle cars from the 60’s and 70’s tonight, along with hot rods, hot bikes, and a pretty decent chili cheese burger too if you are hungry. There are a number of Eliminators and all other varieties of Cougar in the club. Not sure which ones will be there.
Hello there Parsonj - my name is Phillip Payne and I’m the President of the Delmarva (Delaware, Maryland & Virginia) Cougar Club and I live in Richmond Virginia.
The Whitten’s are still around and own several car dealerships. In fact, I just recently bought a new Mazda 6 from them.
If you could give me some contact info like the name of one of the brothers you were friends with and your father’s name, I could do some sleuthing here.
Oops! I was thinking of manual shifters when I was typing my questions. D’oh!
Hmm… as far as color, it sounds a lot like Dark Ivy Green Metallic (aka Black Jade).
I know it might be a long shot but have you tried old insurance information for a vin # ? I know you said it was owned by the dealership but maybe your father had a rider policy covering him or you while it was being driven. Just a thought.
Steven
PS. Mike that dark ivy metallic is an awesome color.
Propylene, I sent you a PM
Meant propayne spell check got me
Mike B you nailed it! With a scoop, spoiler, black stripes and Eliminator on rear Quarters
Royce, thanks for the invite! Look forward to meeting you and the Lone Star Club. Will be in touch soon!