Ford Cougar

Not to be confused with Ford Kuga.

Ford Cougar (Europe)
File:Ford Cougar front 20080111.jpg
Overview
Manufacturer	Ford Europe
Also called	Mercury Cougar
Production	1998–2002
Assembly	Flat Rock, Michigan, United States/Köln, Germany
Body and chassis
Class	Sport compact car
Body style	2-door coupé
Related	Ford Mondeo
Powertrain
Engine	2.0 L Zetec 2.5 L Duratec V6
Transmission	5-speed manual 4-speed automatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,704 mm (106.5 in)
Length	4,699 mm (185.0 in)
Width	1,769 mm (69.6 in)
Height	1,308 mm (51.5 in)
Chronology
Predecessor	Ford Probe

The Ford Cougar was a large coupé car, that was produced between 1998–2002, and sold in the United States from 1999–2002, as the Mercury Cougar. The car was originally intended to be the third generation Probe, but after a rationalisation of the three coupés available in the United States, the Probe name was dropped in favour of the Cougar.

History

The Cougar was Ford's second attempt to reintroduce a sports coupé in Europe, in the same vein as the successful but long-absent Capri – the first attempt having been the Mazda MX-6-based Probe. Just as the Capri had been based on the Cortina, the Cougar was based on the large family car available at the time, the Mondeo.

It premièred in December 1998 to mixed reviews, partly due to the then-new and controversial New Edge styling: a crisp style which was subsequently applied to most of the Ford range. Unlike its famous forebearer, the Capri, Cougar sales were never brisk, despite good reports of the model as a "driver's car".

Like its (indirect) predecessor, the Ford Probe, the 1998 Cougar was sold and built in the United States. Cars destined to be sold in Europe and the United Kingdom were finished in Ford's Köln plant in Germany, where the cars had European specification lighting installed, Ford badges applied (and in the case of United Kingdom and Australian cars, converted to RHD); in the United States it had different branding, in this case being branded as the Mercury Cougar, while in Europe and Australia it was known as the Ford Cougar.

In the United Kingdom, Ford unveiled the car in July 1998, at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone. The television advertisements featured the silver model driven by Dennis Hopper due to his appearance in the film Easy Rider. At the same time Steppenwolf's 1968 hit "Born To Be Wild" played, as this was featured in the film and the same scene the advertisement re-created.

The Cougar was retired from the European market in August 2002. After the first two years of production, it was reported that only 12,000 units had been sold in the United Kingdom. In Australia, the Cougar would continue well into 2003.

Technical

Mechanical

The Cougar came equipped with the 2.0-litre 16-valve 2.0 L Zetec or 2.5-litre 24-valve Duratec V6 engines with two specification levels, largely equivalent to a Mondeo Ghia (standard) and Ghia X (simply X). Manual and automatic transmissions were available. All variants came with 16-in alloy wheels as standard.

File:Ford Cougar rear 20081201.jpg

Ford Cougar rear three-quarter view

The 2.0-litre version had 130 PS (96 kW; 128 hp) as standard, while the 2.5 was rated at 170 PS (125 kW; 168 hp).

Specifications

	2.0 16V	2.5-L 24-V	2.5-L 24-V (Automatic)
Engine	Zetec	Duratec
Cylinders/Valves	R4/16	V6/24
Displacement	1988 cc	2544 cc (from 06.2000 = 2495 cc)
Max. power	96 kW (131 PS; 129 hp) @ 5600 rpm	125 kW (170 PS; 168 hp) @ 6250 rpm
Max torque	178 N·m (131 lb·ft) @ 4000 rpm	220 N·m (160 lb·ft) @ 4250 rpm
Drive	Front wheel drive
0–100 km/h	10,3 s	8,6 s	10,4 s
Top speed	209 km/h (130 mph)	225 km/h (140 mph)	206 km/h (128 mph)
Weight EU norm	1,315 kg (2,899 lb)	1,390 kg (3,064 lb)	1,410 kg (3,109 lb)
CO2 Emission	202 g/km	228 g/km	240 g/km
Years	1998–2002	1998–2002	1998–2002

Handling

The car has been described by critics as "[putting] its power down effectively and [tackling] twisty roads with confidence." The standard wheels had 215 mm-width tyres which greatly contributed to its cornering abilities.

Extras

An "X pack" was available on the larger engine; this included leather upholstered and heated front seats with six-way electric adjustment for the driver's seat and a Ford RDS6000 six-speaker radio with six-CD autochanger.

Available at an extra cost and not included in the "X pack" were heated windscreen, electric tilt, slide sunroof, and metallic paint.

Safety and security

The standard safety kit includes driver, passenger, and side airbags, plus ABS brakes and seat belts that reduce chest injuries. The Cougar is well-protected against theft and break-in due to an engine immobiliser, remote-control central and double locking systems, and an alarm.

See also

Opel Calibra: a similar large sports coupé produced by Opel

References

Type

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2020s

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City car

Ka I

Ka II

Ka III

Supermini

Fiesta I

Fiesta II

Fiesta IV

Fiesta V

Fiesta III

Fiesta VI

Fiesta VII

Small family car

Escort III/Orion I

Escort IV/Orion II

Escort V/Orion III

Escort Vb

Escort VI

Focus I

Focus II

Focus III

Focus IV

Large family car

Taunus III/Cortina V

Sierra I

Sierra II

Mondeo I

Mondeo II

Mondeo III

Mondeo IV

Executive car

Granada II

Scorpio I/Granada III

Scorpio II

Sports car

Puma

Capri

Probe

Cougar

Mustang VI

RS200

GT

GT

Small SUV

EcoSport

Puma

Mustang Mach-E

Medium SUV

Maverick I

Maverick II

Kuga I

Kuga II

Kuga III

Large SUV

Edge

Explorer

Explorer PHEV

Mini MPV

Fusion

B-MAX

Compact MPV

C-MAX I

C-MAX II

Large MPV

S-MAX I

S-MAX II

Galaxy I

Galaxy II

Galaxy III

LCV/LAV

Courier III

Courier IV

Transit Courier

Transit Connect I

Transit Connect II

Transit Connect III

Van

Transit Custom

Transit II

Transit III

Transit IV

Transit V

Transit VI

Pick-up

Ranger I

Ranger II

Ranger III

Notes

Only models sold in Continental Europe and the British Isles are shown, overseas territories often have different offerings.