The Malaise Generation Mercury Cougar XR7

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  • Опубликовано: 24 янв 2025

Комментарии •

  • @TheMINIac
    @TheMINIac  4 месяца назад +1

    Since it needs to be said. The comments I made in this video regarding this 1976 Mercury Cougar were done to be funny. The owner and I were joking around about the car.
    I think it’s a cool car but we had to have humor about a 4,000 plus pound 140 horsepower car the length of a small bus.
    Stop taking yourselves so seriously about these cars and learn to laugh about them.
    So Jeremy Clarkson and team can poke fun at it on Top Gear or The Grand Tour but I, a small RUclipsr, can’t say anything negative about it?
    Seems a bit hypocritical.

  • @johnfila6480
    @johnfila6480 Год назад +3

    I BOUGHT A 1975 COUGAR XR7 AMD I CAN TELL YOU THE GIRLS LOVED IT.

  • @gened7756
    @gened7756 4 года назад +7

    On april 29th 1976, I bought a brand new Mercury Cougar, five weeks later I got married, 45 years later, I still have the car and still have the wife! As of now the car has 86,000 miles. It has the 351 windsor v8. The car is in nice shape. The car is light aqua with a white vinyl landau roof. It has the factory mag wheels with the HR78--14" tires on. The only things changed, tires, belts, hoses, oil changes etc. I never had any problems with the car. The 351 was about 150 horse power, still handled the car quite nicely. I have a 2013 Mustang convertible for summer fun, that has a 3.7 v6, that puts out 305 horses, my how times have changed.

    • @beast1624
      @beast1624 8 месяцев назад +1

      Amazing! I bought mine April 13th 1976 brand new. Mine was Black with a White landau vinyl top and white interior. Wish I still had it!

  • @francoa.9646
    @francoa.9646 4 года назад +8

    This was my first car, in 1982. A friend of my mother was selling it at a good price and it was like new.
    Yes, the hp was terrible but it was such a nice riding car, very Lincoln-like. It was baby blue with a white leather interior. Wish cars rode like that today!

  • @whereisthedollar
    @whereisthedollar 2 месяца назад +2

    Ah nice to see my first new car I brought in 1976. XR7 White with the white interior. She road great. Had luxury and good suspension too. Kept her until 83', traded her in for a new Supra.

  • @1aikane
    @1aikane 6 месяцев назад +2

    Beautiful car. They were built very solidly.

  • @HowardJrFord
    @HowardJrFord Год назад +4

    This car isn't very big by 70's standards , it was a midsize . It has the 351M engine .

    • @HowardJrFord
      @HowardJrFord Год назад

      @@TheMINIac lol . I have a 78 new yorker , which is 232 inches long with a 127 inch wheelbase .

  • @sandracollier7746
    @sandracollier7746 8 месяцев назад +1

    I have a black 1976 XR7 in my driveway that I drive on the weekends. Love my car!

  • @928Porscheman
    @928Porscheman 4 года назад +4

    I love the big land yachts of the 70s. I also like the music of the 70s too like Chicago, Santana and Foghat. I had a 70 Dodge Charger as my first car in HS and my grandfather's 75 Chrysler Newport in the 90s. I would love to own a car like that for Car Shows and Cars and Coffee.

  • @stevemccrory9130
    @stevemccrory9130 4 года назад +3

    40+ years old.....and looks amazing. A beaautiful example of a classic.

  • @averyyounts8515
    @averyyounts8515 3 года назад +3

    NOT a 351 Windsor,, but a Cleveland or a 351M . I had triple Black example , loved that car

    • @johnb5402
      @johnb5402 11 месяцев назад

      I did also

  • @JSAFIXIT
    @JSAFIXIT 4 года назад +1

    One of these was my first car. I loved it.

  • @tallest519
    @tallest519 4 года назад +5

    You guys know nothing! This car cam from the factory with a fuel sipping 2 barrel carb at 165hp. This car has been upgraded with a four barrel intake, and a double pumper four barrel carb, add the dual exhaust and my bet is 275 to 300 ho as she sits. Your Mini is a disposable car in comparison.

  • @kameronstout4847
    @kameronstout4847 4 года назад +2

    Man that exhaust sounds great!

  • @bjb51
    @bjb51 3 года назад +1

    I owned on just like that but different color. Loved it, great riding car. Wish I still had it

  • @Str8sixfan
    @Str8sixfan 4 года назад +1

    I'd rock that all over the place. Well done Zach! Tuck the bumpers and it really would be pretty sharp. After the head swap on the Fairmont, I doubt I'm gonna push more than 180hp, so totally understand where he's starting from. My 302 is rated 139hp from factory. The coffee can is a charcoal canister. Very Ford thing to do. My 95 F-150 still had one

  • @phillipblackwell1250
    @phillipblackwell1250 4 года назад +2

    I use to have a mercury cougar XR7 with 351 winsor motor built big!!!! I could be running 35 stomp the gas and smoke the tire, it would leave black marks running 40 miles an hour it was a super blocker car.

  • @patmccarthy8060
    @patmccarthy8060 3 года назад +1

    My first car! '74 351, white with white interior. Doors were crazy big/heavy. Funny that you noticed the car float over that railroad track. My bother drove it over the somewhat high hump over a country road railroad track and tore the oil pan off. D'oh!

    • @1tNotforU
      @1tNotforU 2 года назад

      Mine too! White with blue top/interior. I did the same thing with a raised manhole cover on a new road!

  • @johnb5402
    @johnb5402 11 месяцев назад +1

    I had a 1976 merc cougar xr7, loved it.Had a 351 in it wasn't super fast but a heck of a ride. $6,000.00 out the door.

  • @atomicorang
    @atomicorang Год назад

    Very good video. That Cougar is my generation. Thanks for the memories. My Grandpa had the Galaxy500 4 door. It had the 400 I think.❤

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  Год назад

      They aren’t where my expertise is at but thank you for the compliment. 🙏 Glad you enjoyed the video.

  • @DeanWhite-v4p
    @DeanWhite-v4p 4 месяца назад

    Beautiful car. I was around 21 years old and in college. These large personal luxury coupes were very common in college dorm parking lots. Since I was a Ford guy back then I'm very familiar with the Mercury Cougar. Actually I had a new Cougar in 1979. With the smaller 302 V8 power was a little low but acceptable. Back then we were used to low horsepower cars in the 130 to 150 range for most small block V8 engines. The Windsor family of V8 engines was a group of smaller block engines in several sizes. Ok this particular car had the 351 M V8. As you mentioned the M stood for modified. Actually this engine was usually referred to as the 351M/400 engine. This engine was a large block engine and commonly fitted in the Ford and Mercury mid-size cars in the 1970's. But this engine is not a 351 Windsor. The 351 W as it was called was a small block engine that produced less power than the 351M/400. Ford Motor Company also made a 351 Cleveland, a different large block V8 made in Cleveland, Ohio. All of the various displacements of the Ford Windsor small block 8 cylinder engines were made in Windsor, Ontario Canada.

  • @kathyguinto4585
    @kathyguinto4585 6 месяцев назад +1

    Life is too short to drive a boring car!.I totally agree with you on that!.John M Guinto

  • @minimafia7616
    @minimafia7616 4 года назад +2

    Interesting car . Typical American classic slow and heavy. Yes nice car yes great video and yes again you are right it’s something about it you cannot walking by and don’t stop and take good look then you recognize how lucky you are because you know you driving Mini Cooper !!!!!! I was surprised you mixed your Mini channel and don’t using this video on your another car channel. I things this video don’t fit into your Mini Cooper channel. Again good video 👍

  • @zanej3825
    @zanej3825 4 года назад +2

    I have the 1974 inverted version of his car and I drive it all the time lol

  • @leadcounsel4869
    @leadcounsel4869 4 года назад +3

    Horsepower numbers were purposefully under-reported in that era, and have been inflated for modern cars, also.

  • @shadowtheguarddog
    @shadowtheguarddog 10 месяцев назад

    I had a 1974 XR7 with the 351 Cleveland…. I loved that car & I miss it. Hard to hear some of the comments. It has been 50 since mine was built.

  • @buzzbomb67
    @buzzbomb67 Год назад +1

    My first car was a 1978 LTD II, the Ford variation of that same car, 2 years later, with an even bigger and heavier, less-curvaceous body. It had the 351 M, like this Cougar. When I first got it, I thought it was a monster and didnt like it, but I quickly grew to love it, and see the potential.
    You can call a 351 Windsor a modified, if you modify it, but that engine IS a 351 Modified … Ford modified the 351 Cleveland block with a 10” deck height, and in 1971, created the 400, then for 1975, less than one year after Ford dropped the Cleveland, the 400 was destroked, using the 351 Windsor crank, to create the 351 Modified.
    Why they didnt just bring back the Cleveland, who knows? But the modified was good for 162hp, an extra 18hp over the Windsor’s 144hp. The 400 was 173hp.
    Sad days, but the good thing is, its relatively easy to fix the lack of power in those 70s engines, and bump that power up to double or even triple the power, with the right choice of parts, and without TOO much effort or financial output. Much more than that takes significant modification. Once that’s done, nearly all complaints about those wimpy 70s cars disappear, pretty quickly.
    Ideally, after rebuilding the engine with 400+ hp, you’d make it a restomod, and upgrade those brakes (forcing larger wheels as well), upgrade the steering and suspension, add more modern seats with more lateral support, upgrade the exhaust, put in a better stereo, more efficient AC, more ergonomic controls, etc.

  • @justflem1
    @justflem1 3 года назад

    I loved my royal blue ‘76 Cougar. It was quick, easy to handle and so reliable. Wish I never totaled it.

    • @TheREALOC1972
      @TheREALOC1972 2 года назад

      I have a Royal Blue 74 Cougar...... white landau top and white interior?

  • @2tone70
    @2tone70 3 года назад +6

    I really dislike you putting down everything about this Cougar, makes my blood boil. Cougars were and are still GREAT cars.

    • @2tone70
      @2tone70 3 года назад

      @@TheMINIac Maybe you weren't, but that's the way you came across in my opinion.

    • @Cave_Monkeys
      @Cave_Monkeys 4 месяца назад

      ​@2tone70 we only watched it for the cougar. We're not here for the small penus mini Cooper

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  4 месяца назад

      ⁠@@Cave_Monkeysyou’re accusing a MINI Cooper owner of overcompensating?
      You must drive a massive pickup truck.

    • @Cave_Monkeys
      @Cave_Monkeys 4 месяца назад

      @TheMINIac you can say whatever you want about that cougar but I bet you all the money in your bank account that it'll sell for more money than your mini cooper at auction

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  4 месяца назад

      @@Cave_Monkeys I checked. It won’t.

  • @rodneybetz3886
    @rodneybetz3886 4 года назад

    My 1st brand new car that I bought was a 1988 Cougar XR7. Loved that car.

  • @MichaelRoe-y5u
    @MichaelRoe-y5u 8 месяцев назад

    I had the ford version the Elite. Loved that car!

  • @barneygoogles5186
    @barneygoogles5186 Год назад

    I had a 76 with a 460 v8 it was a beast!!

  • @RealUncleLJ
    @RealUncleLJ 4 года назад +3

    The bean can thing is the computer that controls the engine's efficiency

    • @RealUncleLJ
      @RealUncleLJ 4 года назад

      Yeah all 70s fullsize cars had a old computer that would control the amount of performance so it could get better fuel economy

    • @RealUncleLJ
      @RealUncleLJ 4 года назад

      Eh it depends

    • @RealUncleLJ
      @RealUncleLJ 4 года назад

      Usually it's in a sort of battery shaped box

    • @70sleftover
      @70sleftover 3 года назад

      @@RealUncleLJ I recall only "electronic ignition" mainly in '78 and later cars. I doubt the canister is anything but part of emissions. And as much as everyone talks about emissions controls being cumbersome, starting in '75 the catalytic converter became standard and that eliminated a lot of air pumps and other gizmos that really pulled down the performance. Detroit's attempts to meet tighter and tighter emissions standards made the '73s and '74s of that era real dogs - lots of hesitation and hard starting - but by '75 things improved with starting and drivability - although my family had a '78 Chevy Impala that had electronic ignition, catalytic converter, EGR valve, etc., and it hesitated and stalled as my dad pulled out of the dealer's lot and the dealer could never fix the problem!

    • @codyluka8355
      @codyluka8355 Год назад

      The "juice can" is a vacuum reservoir that controls the A/C and the cruise control. Vehicles that had a standard heater without the cruise control did not have the can.

  • @RiggsGarage
    @RiggsGarage 4 года назад +1

    351 wheezer lol, love this car!

  • @joethompson1898
    @joethompson1898 2 года назад

    That can is a vacuum reservoir that helps relieve AC chamber pressure. Make sure that vacuum tube stays attached or the AC housing will burst like mine… good times.

  • @203207ab
    @203207ab 4 года назад +3

    I don't usually comment and will probably delete this after. However, you don't look homeless and it takes a lot of money to operate a car that needs a lot of gas. Also one that is basically a clean looking classic. Also, homeless people would usually go around in a cheap efficient car. what sort of people ask if you are homeless and need food and water? I've never seen that happen and I'm in los angeles county here. You can tell when people are homeless because the cars are also filled with stuff in the back seat. Sometimes they are usually in suvs, vans, mini vans or winnebago or rv types. They wouldn't be in a 1970s classic car. I'd feel somewhat insulted there. This is from my point of view and what I've seen in los angeles county.

  • @dancostello6465
    @dancostello6465 3 месяца назад +1

    Cougar was hot stuff back then.

  • @928Porscheman
    @928Porscheman 4 года назад +2

    That looks like a charcoal canister for the emissions filtering.🤔

  • @OPDrags
    @OPDrags 4 года назад

    Loved the video! Thanks for reviewing it! Kinda annoyed it did a 1 wheel peel. It has posi and I have vids of it spinning both. Kinda weird

  • @marcmenton8063
    @marcmenton8063 3 дня назад +1

    Vacuum canister for cruise control

  • @montymatilda
    @montymatilda 3 года назад

    This is a very nice example of that era and a very nice one indeed. Everything was big in the '70s and this was not the biggest. If the owner means that he modified the engine, fine. But, as stated as being a Windsor Modified, it can only be modified by the owner. If it is a 351M, the M means that Ford "modified" the 400cid to get to a 351M. That's it. They are not totally Cleveland engines as they were made at Dearborn, Michigan, and the Cleveland plant. These 2 were part of the 335 Ford engine group and completely different than the 351 & 302 small block or Windsor. The 400 came first based on the 351C but also very different. Then came the 351M. The 351Cleveland was discontinued in 1974.

  • @TheREALOC1972
    @TheREALOC1972 2 года назад +1

    Welcome to the world of Luxury muscle car. it has more Cool in the left top lug nut than anew car will ever have. I have a 74 Cougar XR7 and it's one of the most fun cars I've ever had. I have only had 1 new car in my entire life, I like cars that have soul and nothing built after 1985 have a soul, they are just soulless lumps of plastic and fiberglass and throw away cars, after 150k you just throw them away and get another one. Every time I drive my car I smile, just like you did while riding in this one, I gaurantee you don't smile while driving your mini or any new car. Oh and the 76 351 had 220 HP not 170.

  • @brokejokeratv5851
    @brokejokeratv5851 2 года назад

    I had one it was green with a full white vinyl top it was awsome and it would rip tires better then this on but still wasn't fast it was a amazing car I'm jealous my wife sold mine behind my back take car of this beautiful car

  • @PatParni
    @PatParni 6 месяцев назад

    is the green one still there? saw one

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  6 месяцев назад

      @@PatParni green what??

    • @PatParni
      @PatParni 6 месяцев назад

      @@TheMINIac the green cougar you mentioned

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  6 месяцев назад

      @@PatParni probably not since I shot this video over 3 years ago

  • @my1vice
    @my1vice 3 года назад

    Malaise is only in your mind.
    I prefer "high style years" or
    "Funk over function".

  • @Rangechick
    @Rangechick 4 года назад

    Love the car!

  • @nickgee7291
    @nickgee7291 10 месяцев назад

    the 3rd gen in all white exterior is the best !!!

  • @Rangechick
    @Rangechick 4 года назад

    Will the Mini fit on top of the hood?

  • @mark197797
    @mark197797 4 года назад +2

    This is a REAL car ! ! Such a beautiful car Not a uggly modern junk car

    • @mark197797
      @mark197797 4 года назад

      @@TheMINIac Yes some modern cars are very good. I have found a 1976 Mercury Cougar for sale. The owner want 10.000 dollar for the car. The Mercury is in a very good condition. White outdoor and dark red indoor. And he have own this Cougar for 22 years. Perhaps I am going to buy this car ? My best regards Mark

    • @mark197797
      @mark197797 4 года назад

      Much thanks for your advice. I had a Mercury Monarch 1976 with a "351"+C4 before in 2007 . And the car was not a rocket if I say so :-) Nice ride but slow. And one time I had a 1977 Lincoln Mark V with "460" 210 horsepower+C6. That car was also slow. I am seriously thinking about to buy that Mercury Cougar 1976. Have a nice day Mark

  • @michaelguerin4618
    @michaelguerin4618 2 года назад

    The 351 m is not a windser neater is a 302 they were made at the Cleveland plant and Mexico the Australian 302 is a destoked 351 Cleveland just as the 351m is a destroked 400 - the 400 is a Taller Deck higth version of the 351c with a larger main bearing crankshaft which is the same as the 351w 3in
    So they used the 351w crank in the
    400c to make the 351m

  • @kathyguinto4585
    @kathyguinto4585 6 месяцев назад

    Is this car a unibody?.John M Guinto

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  6 месяцев назад

      Good question. I want to say it’s body on frame.
      Edit: unibody.

  • @DominatorGarage
    @DominatorGarage Месяц назад

    The 351M was a 335 Series NOT A WINDSOR, the 335 Series was born from the 351Cleveland. the Modified/400 was the revision of the Cleveland block. If you did the same upgrades with the 70-71 Cleveland heads, as a 70-71 Cleveland you would have over 400-450hp easy. as a stock 351C with cam makes that much.

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  Месяц назад

      @@DominatorGarage I just went by what the owner told me.

  • @RickyLandry-hd1tw
    @RickyLandry-hd1tw 10 месяцев назад

    As a kid I remember my mom had a 76 cougar

  • @AdamTeel
    @AdamTeel 8 месяцев назад +1

    I got a 1975 murcary cuger xr7 and i can't find no other 1975

  • @87758
    @87758 4 года назад +1

    The Owner did modifications. Probably close to 200 hp now

  • @atomicorang
    @atomicorang Год назад

    Proud to be Amercan.❤

  • @Quad8track
    @Quad8track 8 месяцев назад

    YIKES! Those wheels much go! These needs the original alloy wheels. Otherwise, I love the 1974 - 1976 Cougar.
    ...and these were NOT loud cars at all!

  • @ryanmichel1893
    @ryanmichel1893 4 года назад +2

    But the cougar would still be faster than the mini. There’s no replacement for displacement

    • @montymatilda
      @montymatilda 3 года назад

      @@TheMINIac Top speed isn't faster, it is just top speed. You would need to run them together, side by side, to determine which is faster and at what speeds.

    • @montymatilda
      @montymatilda 3 года назад

      @@TheMINIac Kinda makes sense. Most new cars with 4 cylinders are faster from a stop than the older ones with big V8's, unless you go back to late 1960's and especially 1970. 1971 and '72 were pretty good as well. Unfortunately, his was during that time when emissions were way more important than power, even if he disconnected his. Disconnecting the emission parts can sometimes make it run worse. It took forever for auto makers to get back to good horse power. I will say that new cars are more efficient, safer and make good horsepower. But they don't have the cool factor of the old auto art that was the past.

  • @leadcounsel4869
    @leadcounsel4869 4 года назад +4

    Ah, but in 30 years that mini will be long forgotten an recycled. Minis are garbage and ultra expensive to fix. The Mercury will still be on the road, easy to fix.

  • @dbbernspasvolsky5993
    @dbbernspasvolsky5993 2 года назад

    I had one 451 cleveland engine real fast but not the xr7

  • @928Porscheman
    @928Porscheman 4 года назад +1

    Definitely not a muscle car. It was an executives luxury America sports car for the era. Mercury was the luxury version of a Ford.

    • @OPDrags
      @OPDrags 4 года назад +1

      Wouldnt say its not a muscle car. This gen was the transition year of it going full luxury. So would you say the earlier cougar wasnt a muscle car as well? Also it put down 177hp and 276tq to the wheels on the dyno

    • @928Porscheman
      @928Porscheman 4 года назад +1

      @@OPDrags the early Cougar cars were definitely Muscle cars, especially the Cougar Eliminator with the 429 ci engine, Or the Boss 302 equipped. The 70s started the decline of the muscle and were bogged down with too much emissions plumbing. I had a 1972 Chevy Chevelle Malibu with a 350 ci engine and it had about 180 hp. It was a cool looking car but not a performance car. But in contrast I had a 1970 Dodge Charger 500 with a 440ci magnum engine, and that was a beast. I love the big 70s cars even if they are the end of the real muscle era.

  • @markchirillo5083
    @markchirillo5083 2 года назад

    we could pick these up dirt cheap,pull tje motor rebuilt it to push out more hp

  • @TraveladvRajanSRai
    @TraveladvRajanSRai Год назад

    They had 400 hp before but has torq 300 mini has no torq

  • @TraveladvRajanSRai
    @TraveladvRajanSRai Год назад

    Can easy get 240hp frm thtbasic or 300 heads

  • @jakedogg3944
    @jakedogg3944 4 года назад +2

    You call this a big car.. you should see my 74 Chrysler New Yorker

  • @leespeyrer8424
    @leespeyrer8424 4 года назад +1

    ill take the cougar

  • @hpshifter7783
    @hpshifter7783 4 года назад

    Ahhh the 12th St bridge

  • @FLStelth
    @FLStelth 2 года назад

    Fuck! I miss my 79 cougar. It was ultimately a piece of shit, as the harmonic balance came apart....but it was fun while I had it.

  • @gerrygillman9518
    @gerrygillman9518 3 месяца назад

    9:23

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  3 месяца назад

      @@gerrygillman9518 yes?

  • @blackboxter
    @blackboxter 4 месяца назад

    Its a beautifull car but seems that you cant help mocking it, i would take it instead of 2 of your minis

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  4 месяца назад

      Define mock.
      He and I were joking about the car the entire time when I wasn’t filming because, yes it looks good, but it’s so humorous how large it is and it has a very Starsky and Hutch vibe. We had to have fun with it.
      But no one else has ever criticized me for “mocking” the car. We were having fun with it.
      Go ahead, mock my MINI.

  • @michaelguerin4618
    @michaelguerin4618 2 года назад

    4100lbs

  • @jamesshagoury2322
    @jamesshagoury2322 4 года назад +3

    I had cougar xr7 just like that and I miss it 20 years ago it was not a boring car .better than your ugly cooper.please...

  • @hervavengill8734
    @hervavengill8734 Год назад +1

    " the is so old we look homeless"😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅 thats so funny. You cought me off gaurd on that one... Most people dont realize it takes more time , knowlowdge and many times more money to keep up these old cars but most people think people who have old cars cant afford new one which never makes sense to me...

    • @TheMINIac
      @TheMINIac  Год назад

      Agreed. It was a fun video to make.