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Sure, most people would love to have a Bugatti Veyron; sadly, at over a million bucks a pop we're talking a vehicle that's slightly out of reach for most consumers. Thankfully, one man and eBay have rectified this issue with something we'll call a Cougatti (or Bougar).
Based on a 112,000-mile 2002 Mercury Cougar with a V6 and automatic transmission, this one-of-one Cougatti has a starting bid of $89,000 and no takers as of this writing. Potential buyers get all the body work, 20-inch wheels, angel eye HID headlights, LED tails, two gas caps (one functional), and power windows/mirrors.
2010 Mercury Mountaineer Premier Sport Utility Vehicle Review * 4,009 cc 4.0 liters V 6 front engine with 100.4 mm bore, 84.4 mm stroke, 9.7 compression ratio, overhead cam and two valves per cylinder 99E * 2010 Mercury Mountaineer Premier SUV Unleaded fuel 87 and petrol * Fuel consumption: EPA 08 city (mpg): 14, highway (mpg): 20, combined (mpg): 16, 578 and 359 * Multi-point injection fuel system 2010 Mercury Mountaineer Premier SUV * 22.5 gallon main unleaded fuel tank 18.7 * Power: 157 kW , 210 HP SAE @ 5,100 rpm; 254 ft lb , 344 Nm @ 3,700 rpm
From 2003 to 2004, Ford produced the Marauder as a "high-performance" version of the Mercury Grand Marquis sedan.
The 2003 Mercury Marauder was based on the Ford Panther platform which utilizes a hydroformed steel frame, front rack and pinion steering, in addition to totally revised front and rear suspension with monotube shock absorbers, the Marauder also had a naturally aspirated 4.6 L DOHC V8 with 302 hp and 318 ft·lbf torque. 2004 was the last year for this Marauder mostly due to lackluster sales, blamed by some on bland styling and an incorrect target audience. Originally, they were produced in "any color the customer desired, so long as it was black." Eventually, the Marauder was offered in silver, blue, and red but in limited quantities.
After the Marauder was discontinued, the Ford Crown Victoria LX Sport remains and bears a similar appearance to the Marauder but is powered by the lesser 4.6 L 2-valve SOHC V8 engine rated at 239 hp. The LX Sport still offers the same exterior and interior colors of the Marauder, however it uses wood grain trim on the dashboard and doors, unlike the Marauder, which used aluminum.
From 2003 to 2004, Ford produced the Marauder as a "high-performance" version of the Mercury Grand Marquis sedan. The 2003 Mercury Marauder was based on the Ford Panther platform which utilizes a hydroformed steel frame, front rack and pinion steering, in addition to totally revised front and rear suspension with monotube shock absorbers, the Marauder also had a naturally aspirated 4.6 L DOHC V8 with 302 hp and 318 ft·lbf torque. 2004 was the last year for this Marauder mostly due to lackluster sales, blamed by some on bland styling and an incorrect target audience. Originally, they were produced in "any color the customer desired, so long as it was black." Eventually, the Marauder was offered in silver, blue, and red but in limited quantities.
After the Marauder was discontinued, the Ford Crown Victoria LX Sport remains and bears a similar appearance to the Marauder but is powered by the lesser 4.6 L 2-valve SOHC V8 engine rated at 239 hp. The LX Sport still offers the same exterior and interior colors of the Marauder, however it uses wood grain trim on the dashboard and doors, unlike the Marauder, which used aluminum.
Total production for the 2003 - 2004 Mercury Marauder was 11,052: * 2003 - Total: 7839 (328 Blue, 417 Silver, 7094 Black) * 2004 - Total: 3213 (980 Dark Toreador Red, 997 Silver, 1236 Black)
The decline of personal luxury cars downsized the Cougar to return as a sports car after 25 years as a personal luxury car. Of the three names that had constituted Ford's personal luxury lineup, Mark, Thunderbird, and Cougar, the Cougar returned first. This time, it is based on the CDW-27 platform, the same platform that serves as the basis for the Ford Mondeo (Ford Contour & Mercury Mystique in the United States and Canada).
This generation of Cougar had a far more contemporary package, with modern DOHC 4-valve engines, a fully independent multilink suspension, and front-wheel drive. This was also the first hatchback Cougar, and the first to have its own body, unshared by any Ford. The body design used a philosophy Ford dubbed "New Edge" design: a combination of organic upper body lines with sharp, concave creases in the lower areas. The Cougar's body, and the New Edge idea in general, was introduced as a concept called the Mercury MC2 in 1997.
The 1999–2002 Cougars were available with two engine options, the 2.0 L Zetec 4-cylinder engine with 130 horsepower, and the 2.5 L Duratec V6 with 170 horsepower. Also, two transaxle options were available: the manual Ford MTX-75 transmission (the only available option with the 4-cylinder Zetec engine), or the automatic Ford CD4E transmission (available in the U.S. with either engine, although the I4/Automatic combo was extremely rare; supposedly only 500 Cougars were built with the I4/Auto combination). "Sport Package" models with the V6 featured 4-wheel vented disc brakes (from the Contour SVT), and had no speed governor installed.
Interestingly, Ford also sold this generation of Cougar in Europe and Australia as the Ford Cougar, but was not a sales success—surprising given that the Mondeo sold well in many countries outside North America.
This generation never sold well. Admittedly, demand for all coupes continued to dwindle, but the sedan versions also languished in North America, suggesting that the Mondeo platform was simply not well suited there—though there is a theory that Ford did not market the Contour and its Mercury Mystique twin properly while the market for the similarly sized BMW 3 Series grew. A high-performance Cougar S (not to be confused with the concept) was discussed in the press, which was essentially a Contour SVT with a Cougar body; however, this version never made it into production. In order to help create excitement for the Cougar, Mercury created several paint and trim packages: * C2 (2001-2002 model years) available in either French Blue, Silver Frost, or Vibrant White, along with special blue interior accents * Zn (2000-2001 model years) available with special Zinc Yellow paint, special Visteon hood scoop and spoiler * XR (2002 model year) available in either Black or Laser Red, with special black and red seats and interior trim
The decline of personal luxury cars downsized the Cougar to return as a sports car after 25 years as a personal luxury car. Of the three names that had constituted Ford's personal luxury lineup, Mark, Thunderbird, and Cougar, the Cougar returned first. This time, it is based on the CDW-27 platform, the same platform that serves as the basis for the Ford Mondeo (Ford Contour & Mercury Mystique in the United States and Canada).
This generation of Cougar had a far more contemporary package, with modern DOHC 4-valve engines, a fully independent multilink suspension, and front-wheel drive. This was also the first hatchback Cougar, and the first to have its own body, unshared by any Ford. The body design used a philosophy Ford dubbed "New Edge" design: a combination of organic upper body lines with sharp, concave creases in the lower areas. The Cougar's body, and the New Edge idea in general, was introduced as a concept called the Mercury MC2 in 1997.
The 1999–2002 Cougars were available with two engine options, the 2.0 L Zetec 4-cylinder engine with 130 horsepower, and the 2.5 L Duratec V6 with 170 horsepower. Also, two transaxle options were available: the manual Ford MTX-75 transmission (the only available option with the 4-cylinder Zetec engine), or the automatic Ford CD4E transmission (available in the U.S. with either engine, although the I4/Automatic combo was extremely rare; supposedly only 500 Cougars were built with the I4/Auto combination). "Sport Package" models with the V6 featured 4-wheel vented disc brakes (from the Contour SVT), and had no speed governor installed.
Ford also prepared two high performance concept-only versions dubbed the "Eliminator", which was a supercharged version built with aftermarket available parts, and the "Cougar S", which featured new body work, all-wheel drive and a 3.0 L Duratec engine.
Interestingly, Ford also sold this generation of Cougar in Europe and Australia as the Ford Cougar, but was not a sales success—surprising given that the Mondeo sold well in many countries outside North America.
This generation never sold well. Admittedly, demand for all coupes continued to dwindle, but the sedan versions also languished in North America, suggesting that the Mondeo platform was simply not well suited there—though there is a theory that Ford did not market the Contour and its Mercury Mystique twin properly while the market for the similarly sized BMW 3 Series grew. A high-performance Cougar S (not to be confused with the concept) was discussed in the press, which was essentially a Contour SVT with a Cougar body; however, this version never made it into production. In order to help create excitement for the Cougar, Mercury created several paint and trim packages:
C2 (2001-2002 model years) available in either French Blue, Silver Frost, or Vibrant White, along with special blue interior accents
Zn (2000-2001 model years) available with special Zinc Yellow paint, special Visteon hood scoop and spoiler
XR (2002 model year) available in either Black or Laser Red, with special black and red seats and interior trim
For the 2001 model year, the Cougar was "updated" with new headlights, front and rear facsias, and updated interior trim.
In an unusual announcement today, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) voiced concerns that millions of Ford vehicles previously recalled for a faulty cruise control system may have not been repaired, despite FoMoCo's notification efforts.
The safety agency noted that Ford Motor Company "has been diligent in contacting owners of the affected vehicles, including sending re-notification letters to owners in many cases."
Styling trends come and go, but if there's one thing that has remained relatively unchanged in the past 105 years of personal motoring: the steering wheel.
Although plastics have replaced iron and wood and airbags (1970s) and radio controls (1990s) have been added, the basic design remains the same: a circular ring with spokes connected to a central hub.
Some cars had horns in a ring circling the hub (Mercedes-Benz 300SL), others had oblong steering wheels (Austin Allegro) and a few had only one spoke (Citroen DS). At the end of the day though, they all had some sort of steering wheel... except this car.
At Mercury, engineer Bob Rumm produced this one-off 1965 Mercury Park Lane convertible with so-called "wrist-twist" steering controls. The standard steering wheel has been replaced by two 5-inch, wrist-operated dials, that the promo claims frees up knee room, improves visibility and makes parking easier. Now take a moment to consider why Mr. Rumm is an "ex-"missile engineer at the height of the Cold War.
The promo also cheerfully informs us that the wrist-twist can be used by, "a driver who promises to be about as non-technical as they come," by which they mean a woman. Carscoop is reliably informed they can vote now [...].
I suppose we should be thankful that a lot of these concepts, including the wrist-twist, never left Ford's Dearborn proving grounds.
It's the sort of thing that could only have been made in the 1960s, the decade that gave us the laser, manned spaceflight and Astroturf. Like everything else, cars were becoming more futuristic, and by futuristic we mean daft. And by daft we mean Modern Mechanix of the 1930s daft.
It's also the sort of thing the Ford Motor Company was coming up at the time. Just for fun, type 'Ford Nucleon' into Google, and see what other disastrous innovations motorists of the 1960s were spared.
Styling trends come and go, but if there's one thing that has remained relatively unchanged in the past 105 years of personal motoring: the steering wheel.
Although plastics have replaced iron and wood and airbags (1970s) and radio controls (1990s) have been added, the basic design remains the same: a circular ring with spokes connected to a central hub.
Alan Mulally, President and CEO of FoMoCo, told an audience of business leaders at the Confederation of British Industry in London today that Ford is looking to downsize its current lineup to 20-25 models in an attempt to "simplify" and build better cars.
It seems to make sense; instead of spreading yourself too thin and trying to be everything to everyone at the cost of quality, spend more of your resources on fewer models to ensure a well put-together product.
2009 Mercury Sable Base Sedan Vehicle Performance Review
* 3,496 cc 3.5 liters V 6 front engine with 92.5 mm bore, 86.7 mm stroke, 10.3 compression ratio, double overhead cam, variable valve timing/camshaft and four valves per cylinder 99W * Unleaded fuel 87 and petrol * Multi-point injection fuel system * 20.5 gallon main unleaded fuel tank 17.1 * Power: 196 kW , 263 HP SAE @ 6,250 rpm; 249 ft lb , 338 Nm @ 4,500 rpm
On September 7, 2006 Ford delivered a special "Presidential Edition" Mercury Mariner Hybrid to former President Bill Clinton. Its custom features include: LED lighting A 110-volt outlet Rear bucket seats Center console & rear seat fold-out writing desks Personal DVD players for each seat Refrigerator Increased rear seat legroom There have also been several undisclosed security modifications made to the vehicle.
2010 Mercury Grand Marquis LS 2010 Mercury Grand Marquis LS 2010 Mercury Grand Marquis LS 2010 Mercury Grand Marquis LS
2010 Grand Marquis LS Sedan Vehicle Performance Review
* 4,606 cc 4.6 liters V 8 front engine with 90.2 mm bore, 90.0 mm stroke, 9.4 compression ratio, overhead cam and two valves per cylinder 99V * E85 fuel with additional unleaded alcohol * Multi-point injection fuel system * 19.0 gallon main E85 fuel tank 15.8 * Power: 167 kW , 224 HP SAE @ 4,800 rpm; 275 ft lb , 373 Nm @ 4,000 rpm * Secondary fuel economy: US std - highway - mpg 24 and US std - city - mpg 16 ; 19.
Based on a 112,000-mile 2002 Mercury Cougar with a V6 and automatic transmission, this one-of-one Cougatti has a starting bid of $89,000 and no takers as of this writing. Potential buyers get all the body work, 20-inch wheels, angel eye HID headlights, LED tails, two gas caps (one functional), and power windows/mirrors.
