Hello everyone.I have been lurking on the site trying to gain as much insight and information as possible and decided to make my own post.With that said I would just like to welcome you all to my slow 1968 cougar build . Slow because I want to make sure I do things right the first time and do it right. I have always wanted to have a cougar every since I was a kid so I am super excited to have this car to build. In the end, I just want to have a nice cruiser that handles well, looks good and runs good. The car itself I picked up in April 2017 and is a 1968 base with the 302 motor and a bench seat. New owner painted the car white, but it was originally sea foam green, has a vinyl top and the thing most of us hate the most RUST. The car has rust, but the floor pans and trunk are still good and there are actually no leaks. Right now I am saving up to get the rust attended to. In the mean time I am driving the car little by little just to keep it going, cleaning it up some, trying to get the sequential turn signal to work and to fix the brackets on the windows. Overall,I have a lot to do, thats why I say it will be slow. To date I have had the original motor rebuilt as the motor was no good when I first got the car. I did this first because I didn’t want to have to tow the car every time I wanted to get work done or quotes for the body work. In a perfect world, I would be able to see the body work being done and actually help in some ways during the process. I want it done right, but would also like to learn. Please feel free to chime in good, bad , what ever. Thank you for taking the time to read my post.
Looks like a good project and you will have your work cut out for you thats for sure! Minus the rust it looks like a pretty solid car. Interior is in good shape too!
Best of luck on your project! The bench seat is cool. I would guess that your vinyl top is not original, since the trim around the bottom isn’t correct. So I wouldn’t feel too bad about ditching it if I were you, once the rust repairs are done.
I haven’t peeled off the vinyl yet, I hope I’m saying it right, but in this case the C-pillars are bad and just one part of the top. The rest of the top feels solid.Im waiting to see if I can find a donor car close, but if not maybe road trip time up to west coast cougars. Ive watched that video about 10x. I wish I had the confidence to do something like that,yours came out great. I do like the vinyl top but kind of torn on if I want to ditch it or not.
One step at a time is all you can do. The plus side is you have it running which makes it much easier to move around. That has helped me alot with my project. Just being able to drive it on and off a trailer or in and out of the garage without having to push it makes life alot easier!
Im jealous of the interior not being all rotted but not jealous of the rust!
Thanks! It was kinda scary, I probably wouldn’t have attempted it if I hadn’t been surrounded by help & knowledge the whole time. The only bad part is, here I am 6 years later and still not done with the car but that’s another story…
Yeah, it’s hard to finish those car projects when your vacation takes you all over Europe (lol).
What I have seen so far is looking pretty darn nice Andrew. Keep at it and it will be finished before you are my present age (at least I hope so).
Thanks Big Nuge,before going to bed last night your thread was the last one I read.Very cool and meaningful project you have there. I wish this one was a xr-7, but I’m happy with it. My dad had a cougar when I was young and I fell in love with it. On this one, the interior is not bad but I will have it re-done, when I got the motor rebuilt the guy said the floor pans, frame and trunk were in good condition so the big pain is this rust. I am going to get a rough estimate on the body work this week so ill have an idea on what to do next. Best wishes on the project.
OH man brother, that things looks beautiful. That was the original color of my car and the color I want to go back to when I get the body work done and the car repainted.Once I got my cougar I joined this forum to learn more about the car, but to learn and get insight from others. Would definitely be cool to learn with someone else. Like so many others, you car gives me so much motivation.
That’s what I have on one of our cats and they fit well. 225/60 R15 are the same height as the stock 70 and 78 series tires that were originally on 67 and 68 Cougars from the factory.
Hello everyone I am back after a short hiatus. I still have the cougar, just had to throw it in storage for a few years while my girlfriend and I moved forward with our life. Its nice to see the boards still moving and that some of you have made very good progress. Fast forward, I have gotten married and we were able to find a nice house with a garage so I am not able to have to cougar with me The “bad” I have to deal with so far is:
*rust
*leak near oil pan
*wiring is a mess
*turn signal and sequential lights not working
*window hinges need some adjusting
Overall, to me its not that bad. One step at a time. I look forward to making progress with my cougar as well as seeing the progress you all make.
Unless something has been modified significantly your car does not have either a rack nor a pinion in the steering system. It has a worm and ball type steering box that is not power. If you have a power steering leak (guessing?) it is in the steering power assist system. Often the hoses are in need of replacement. Not too expensive but a difficult, dirty job.
You are absolutely right Royce. Thank you for clarifying that for me. I did a real quick look and half google search and ended up finding myself with the wrong information, sorry about that. Yes the car has power steering. I really need to put the car on jack stands, take my time and really get a good look at those lines. Does look to be a pretty messy job, but good to know it shouldn’t be too expensive. Im seeing I have a whole lot to continue to learn.
It has been a while, but this is what she looks like now:
I can’t tell you how many headaches I’ve been through but it is all definitely worth it. The hardest part was trying to find a decent mechanic. I’ve basically restored everything.
Disc brake conversion
H-pipe dual exhaust
Edelbrock performer intake, 4 barrel carb, and water pump
Dual electric fan system
Electronic distributor
Led lighting
Solid-state turning signal relays
Refurbished transmission
New pulleys
Upgraded alternator
All 4 window regulators and weather stripping
I got fed up with the power steering leaks, so I gave in and upgraded to the Borgeson power steering system. So if you have any questions, let me know! I can save you time, money and headache.
but that’s another story…
The “bad” I have to deal with so far is:
