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The Mercury Cougar is a nameplate that was applied to a diverse series of automobiles sold by Mercury from 1967 to 1997, and again from 1999 to 2002. While most examples were produced as two-door coupes, at various times throughout its production life, the Cougar was also sold as a convertible, four-door sedan, station wagon, and hatchback. As was the common practice within the Mercury division, the Cougar shared its basic underpinnings with a Ford counterpart. At the time of its introduction, it was based upon the Ford Mustang. While briefly based upon the Ford Elite during the mid-1970s, the Cougar would subsequently become the Mercury counterpart of the Ford Thunderbird for the rest of the 1970s into the late 1990s. After its initial discontinuation, the Cougar emerged as a sports coupe counterpart of the Ford Contour "world car"; as such, it was sold outside of North America as the Ford Cougar. For many years, the Cougar was important to the image of the Mercury division; advertising often identified its dealers as being "at the sign of the cat." Female models holding big cats on leashes were used as part of Cougar advertising in the early 1970s.〔(TCCN II - Feature Articles > Cougar Ad Gallery )〕 In production for 34 years, the Cougar is second only to the Grand Marquis in longevity. The car was assembled at the Dearborn Assembly Plant (DAP)—one of six plants within the Ford Rouge Center—in Dearborn, Michigan from 1967 to 1973, at the San Jose Assembly Plant in Milpitas, California from 1968 into early 1969, at the Lorain Assembly Plant (LAP) in Lorain, Ohio from 1974 to 1997, and at the Flat Rock, Michigan Assembly Plant from 1999 to 2002. ==First generation (1967–1970)== The introduction of the Cougar finally gave Mercury its own "pony car". Slotted between the Ford Mustang and the Ford Thunderbird, the Cougar would be the performance icon and eventually the icon for the Mercury name for several decades. The Cougar was available in two models (base and XR-7) and only came in one body style (a two-door hardtop). Engine choices ranged from the 289 in3 two-barrel V8 to the 390 in3 four-barrel V8. A notable performance package called the GT was available on both the base and XR-7 Cougars. This included the 390 in3 V8, as well as a performance handling package and other performance enhancements. The 1967 Cougar, with the internal code T-7, went on sale September 30, 1966. It was based on the 1967 refaced first-generation Mustang, but with a 3-inch-longer (76 mm) wheelbase and new sheet metal. A full-width divided grille with hidden headlamps and vertical bars defined the front fascia—it was sometimes called the electric shaver grille. At the rear, a similar treatment saw the license plate surrounded on both sides with vertically slatted grillework concealing taillights (with sequential turn signals), a styling touch taken from the Thunderbird. A deliberate effort was made to give the car a more "European" flavor than the Mustang, at least to American buyers' eyes. Aside from the base model and the luxurious XR-7, only one performance package was available for either model: the sporty GT. The XR-7 model brought a simulated wood-grained dashboard with a full set of black-faced competition instruments and toggle switches, an overhead console, a T-type center automatic transmission shifter (if equipped with the optional Merc-O-Matic transmission), and leather/vinyl upholstery. This was the only generation with covered headlights. In 1967 and 1968, they were deployed using a vacuum canister system that opened and closed the headlamp doors. For 1969 and 1970, a redesigned vacuum system kept the doors down when a vacuum condition existed in the lines, provided by the engine when it was running. If a loss of vacuum occurred, the doors would retract up so that the headlights were visible if the system should fail. The GT package, meanwhile, supplied a much larger engine, Ford's 390-in3 (6.4 L) FE-series big block to replace the small-block 289-in3 (4.7 L) standard powerplant. Along with this came an upgraded suspension to handle the extra weight of the big engine and give better handling, more powerful brakes, better tires and a low-restriction exhaust system. Introduced with the music of Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass' ''The Work Song'', the Cougar was a sales success from its introduction and helped the Lincoln-Mercury Division's 1967 sales figures substantially. The Cougar was ''Motor Trend'' magazine's Car of the Year for 1967. The Cougar continued to be a Mustang twin for seven years, and could be optioned as a genuine muscle car. Nevertheless, it gradually tended to shift away from performance and toward luxury, evolving into something new in the market — a plush pony car. The signs were becoming clear as early as 1970, when special options styled by fashion designer Pauline Trigère appeared, a houndstooth pattern vinyl roof and matching upholstery, available together or separately. A reskinning in 1971 saw the hidden headlights vanish for good, although hidden wipers were adopted. Between 1969 and 1973, Cougar convertibles were offered. Not much changed for the Cougar in its second year. The addition of federally mandated side marker lights and front outboard shoulder belts were among the minor changes, but the biggest changes were under the hood and in performance for the XR-7 model. A 302-in3, two-barrel V8 was the base engine on all XR-7s and early standard Cougars. Three new engines were added to the option list this year: the 302-in3, four-barrel V8; the 428-in3, four-barrel V8; and the 427-in3, four-barrel V8. In addition, the 289-in3 engine was made standard on base cars without the interior decor group midway through the model year. There were many comfort and performance options available for the Cougar. For 1967-69, a unique "Tilt-Away" steering wheel that swung up and out of the way when the driver's door was opened (and the ignition was off) was offered, and from 1971, a power driver's seat. The most unique option of all appeared in 1968: Ford's first factory installed electric sunroof. It was available on any hardtop Cougar, but rarely ordered on early cars. Mercury was serious about the Cougar being the performance icon for the company. The XR7-G, named for Mercury road racer Dan Gurney, came with all sorts of performance add-ons, including a hood scoop, Lucas fog lamps, and hood pins. Engine selection was limited only to the 302, 390, and 428 V8. A total of 619 XR7-Gs were produced, and only 14 Gs were produced with the 428 CJ. The 7.0-L GT-E package was available on both the standard and XR-7 Cougars and came with the 427 V8. The 428 Cobra Jet Ram Air was available in limited numbers on the GT-E beginning 1 April 1968.〔''Guide to Muscle Cars'' Magazine, 6/87, p.79.〕 Conservatively rated at , the 428 Cobra Jet could produce much more () from the factory. A total of 394 GT-Es were produced, 357 with the 427 and 37 with the 428. The GT-E came with power front disc brakes as standard. File:Classic Mercury Cougar logo.jpg|Classic "walking cougar" logo found on first generation Cougars File:'69 Mercury Cougar Convertible (Centropolis Laval '10).jpg|1969 Mercury Cougar File:Mercury Cougar (Orange Julep).JPG|1970 Mercury Cougar The third year of production, 1969, brought several new additions to the Cougar lineup. A convertible model was now available in either standard and XR-7 trim. These highly anticipated soft tops proved quite popular and today are considered, by many, among the most desirable of the '67-'70 production run. On the exterior, the grille switched from vertical bars to horizontal bars. Taillights still spanned the entire rear of the car and retained vertical chrome dividers, but were now concave rather than convex. Body sides now featured a prominent line that swept downward from the nose to just ahead of the rear wheel wells. A new performance package appeared and several disappeared. The GT, XR-7G and the 7.0-L GT-E disappeared, but the 390 and 428 V8s remained. 302 engines were dropped, except for the "Boss" version, available only with the Eliminator package. The new standard Cougar engine was a 250-horsepower 351 Windsor. A 351 Windsor V8 was also added to the engine lineup. The Eliminator performance package appeared for the first time. A 351-in3 four-barrel Windsor V8 was standard under the hood, with the 390 four-barrel V8, the 428CJ and the Boss 302 available as options. The Eliminator also featured a blacked-out grille, special side stripes, front and rear spoilers, an optional Ram Air induction system, a full gauge package including tachometer, upgraded "Decor" interior trim, special high-back bucket seats, rally wheels, raised white letter tires and a performance-tuned suspension and handling package. It also came in a variety of vibrant colors, such as White, Bright Blue Metallic, Competition Orange, and Bright Yellow. Only two Cougars were produced with the Boss 429 V8, making them the rarest Cougars ever built. Both were factory drag cars, built for "Fast Eddie" Schartman and "Dyno" Don Nicholson. A little known 1969-only model was the Cougar Sports Special. The Sports Special package included unique pin striping, "turbine" style wheel covers and rocker panel moldings with simulated side scoops. Décor interior and performance suspension were available for the Sports Special, as were any of the optional Cougar engines, other than the Boss 302. Somewhat oddly, no badges or decals denoted the Sports Special option on either the interior or exterior. For 1970, the Cougar appearance was similar to the 1969 model, but numerous changes were made inside and out. It now sported a new front end which featured a pronounced center hood extension and electric shaver grille similar to the 1967 and 1968 Cougars. Federally mandated locking steering columns appeared inside, and high-back bucket seats, similar to those included in the '69 Eliminator package, became standard across the board. The aforementioned new nose along with revised taillight bezels, new front bumper and front fender extensions, and larger, recessed side markers updated the look on the outside. The 351 "Cleveland" V8 was now available for the first time, though both the Cleveland and Windsor engines were available, if the buyer selected the base model two-barrel motor. The 390 FE engine was now dropped, and the Boss 302 and 428CJ soldiered on. The Eliminator continued with new striping, revised colors, and the four-barrel 351 Cleveland replacing the four-barrel 351 Windsor as the standard Eliminator engine. The upgraded "Décor" interior and styled steel wheels, standard '69 Eliminator equipment, were moved to the options list for the 1970 Eliminator. No Eliminator convertibles were factory produced in either 1969 or 1970. Unusual options for the 1970 Cougar were interior upholstery and vinyl top in bold houndstooth check patterns. Total production: 1967: 150,893 1968: 113,720 1969: 100,069 1970: 72,343 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mercury Cougar」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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