Mercury Cougar VIII (1998–2002)

Mercury Cougar at a glance

The Cougar name had been on Mercury cars since 1967, first on a pony car based on the Ford Mustang and later on large personal-luxury coupés. The 1999 car was a complete break: a compact sports hatchback with front-wheel drive, unveiled at the 1998 Los Angeles Auto Show for North America. Ford had first shown the same car in Britain in July 1998 at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, and European sales began in December 1998.

Ford originally developed the car as the next Probe. When it reduced its range of coupés in the US, Ford handed the project to Mercury and the Cougar name instead. It shared its platform with the Ford Mondeo and the North American Contour and Mystique saloons; the European side of that family is covered in the Ford Mondeo page.

Engines and performance

Two engines were offered. The 2.0-litre Zetec four-cylinder is rated at 93 kW (125 hp) in the US and 96 kW (130 PS) in Europe, with 178 Nm at 4,000 rpm. The 2.5-litre Duratec V6 is rated at 127 kW (170 hp) in the US and 125 kW (170 PS) in Europe, with 220 Nm at 4,250 rpm. The V6 had 2,544 cc at first and 2,495 cc from June 2000.

The manual gearbox is Ford's five-speed MTX-75, and the automatic is the four-speed CD4E. On our power-to-weight calculation, the European V6 manual carries about 11.1 kg per kW and the 2.0 about 13.7 kg per kW, which explains the 1.7-second gap to 100 km/h; try other cars in the power-to-weight calculator. In the US buyers could combine the automatic with either engine, but so few chose the four-cylinder automatic that only about 500 are believed to exist. Mercury showed a more powerful Cougar S, and the press discussed it, but it never reached production.

Mondeo underpinnings and handling

The Cougar uses MacPherson struts at the front and the Mondeo's multi-link Quadralink rear suspension. Ford tuned it with firmer springs and dampers than the Mondeo, and road testers praised the way it put its power down and handled twisting roads. The V6 Sport package in the US added four-wheel vented disc brakes taken from the Ford Contour SVT, 16-inch alloy wheels, fog lamps and a higher speed limiter. Car and Driver was less happy with the driver's seat on long journeys.

Cabin, space and equipment

Inside, the Cougar has four seats and a large rear hatch, which makes it more practical than most coupés: the boot is big enough for a family's weekly shopping or holiday luggage. The dashboard follows the curved New Edge theme of the exterior, with round air vents. European cars came in two trim levels, roughly equal to the Mondeo Ghia and Ghia X. Standard equipment included 16-inch alloy wheels, driver, passenger and side airbags, anti-lock brakes, remote central locking and an alarm. The X-Pack for the V6 added leather, heated front seats, a six-way electric driver's seat and a six-disc CD changer.

US cars had fewer standard items but could be ordered with air conditioning, cruise control and leather. European cars often had dual-zone climate control and headlamp levelling.

Special editions and model-year changes

For the 2001 model year the Cougar received new headlamps, revised front and rear bumpers and updated cabin trim. Mercury used a series of colour-themed editions to keep interest high as sales fell.

Production, sales and why it ended

The Cougar started strongly in the US, with 88,288 cars built for the 1999 model year, but production fell to 18,321 by 2002. In Britain, about 12,000 were sold in the first two years, far fewer than the Ford Capri had managed in its prime, and Ford withdrew the car from the UK in February 2001. European sales ended in August 2002, and the last car was built on 9 August 2002. Australian sales, which used only the V6, continued until March 2004.

The main reason for the end was the platform. The Contour and Mystique saloons had stopped in 2000, so the Cougar was the last North American car on the Mondeo base. Ford did not replace it, and Mercury itself was closed in 2011.

Crash ratings and age-related checks

The IIHS did not crash-test the 1999–2002 Cougar; its related Contour and Mystique saloons were rated poor in the frontal offset test. Euro NCAP did not publish a Cougar result. Mechanically, the Duratec V6 and the Zetec are simple, well-known Ford engines, but the cars are now more than 20 years old. Check for rust on the rear arches and sills, compare the car's figures with others in the specifications section, worn suspension bushes, the condition of the automatic gearbox and the state of the cooling system on the V6.

Coupés it competed with

When new, the Cougar competed with other front-wheel-drive coupés such as the Honda Prelude, the Toyota Celica and the Honda Civic Si in the US, and the Peugeot 406 Coupé, the Alfa Romeo GTV and, until 1997, the Opel Calibra in Europe. It was larger and more practical than most of them, though not as sharp to drive as the best Japanese coupés. To see how it compares with other coupés of the period, use the 1cars comparison tool.