General Information:
The 1999-2002 Mercury Cougars are of 7th generation of cars with that particular name; in Europe, they are being sold under the parent company Ford Motor Company's name, thus Ford Cougars. From a business perspective, it was Ford/Mercury's attempt at establishing another model in the sport compact market. They were first revealed in the United Kingdom at the British Grand Prix at the Silverstone Circuit in 1998, and the concept car Mercury MC2 was completed in 1997. The design was based on the Ford CDW27 platform (also shared by the Ford Contour, Ford Mondeo, and Mercury Mystique). Production began in 1998 at Flat Rock, Michigan, United States. The available configurations were as follows:
| Engine | 2.5-liter dual overhead cam (DOHC), 24-valve, 6-cylinder (V6) Duratec with 170 crank horsepower
or
2.0-liter 4-cylinder (I4) Zetec with 130 crank horsepower |
| Transaxle | 5-speed Ford MTX-75 manual
or
4-speed Ford CD4E automatic |
| Layout | Front-engine, front-wheel drive |
| Suspension | Fully independent multilink |
| Brakes | 4-wheel vented disc brakes (V6 only) |
| Top Speed | ~150 mph or ~240 km/h with manual transaxle, V6 engine, and without electronic speed limiter
or
~115 mph or ~185 km/h with electronic speed limiter |
| Wheelbase | 106.4 in or 270 cm |
| Length | 185 in or 470 cm |
| Width | 69.6 in or 177 cm |
| Height | 52.2 in or 133 cm |
| Curb Weight | 2,892 lb or 1,312 kg |
The Mercury/Ford Cougar was canceled in 2002 after 4 years of production. The reason was largely attributed to lackluster sales figures, which some blamed on ineffective marketing while others blamed on the relatively high production cost (which translated to a relatively high sticker price for the target market).
Exterior Colors
The available exterior colors for the 1999-2000 Mercury/Ford Cougar vehicles are as follows.
| | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |
|---|
| Ash Gold Clearcoat Metallic |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
| Black Clearcoat |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Citrus Gold Clearcoat Metallic |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Dark Shadow Grey Clearcoat Metallic |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
| Dark Tourmaline Clearcoat Metallic |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Grabber Green Clearcoat Metallic |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
| Laser Red Tinted Clearcoat |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Light Parchment Gold Clearcoat Metallic | No |
No |
No |
Yes |
| Light Sapphire Clearcoat Metallic |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Melina Blue Clearcoat Metallic |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
| Rio Red Clearcoat |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Silver Frost Clearcoat Metallic |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Spruce Green Clearcoat Metallic |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Sunburst Gold Clearcoat Metallic |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
| Tropic Green Clearcoat Metallic |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
| Vibrant White Clearcoat |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Zinc Yellow Clearcoat |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
Changes Across Model Years
Changes from 1999 to 2000:
- In the 2000 Cougar, the driver side door map storage pockets was removed.
- Ash trays and cigerette lighters were no longer standard features.
- A glow-in-the-dark emergency release handle was added to the interior of the trunk.
Changes from 2000 to 2001:
- New standard features found on 2001 Cougar: New front grill, new headlights, new instrument panel, new steering wheel
- New options: aluminum pedals (with the V6 Sport Group only), in-dash 6-disc CD changer
Changes from 2001 to 2002:
- 2002 Cougar now offers the 35th Anniversary Edition package as an option, which included unique emblems, hood scoop, chrome 17-inch wheels, and in-dash 6-disc CD changer.
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