Second-Hand: Mercury Cougar

Mark Toljagic

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

AskMen.com unveiled its Top 10 "girlie" cars recently, and it included some obvious picks (the Dodge Neon, VW Eos, Mini Cooper Cabriolet) as well as some head-scratchers (Chevrolet Suburban, BMW X3).

I'd swap the Suburban for the 1999-2002 Mercury Cougar, a compact, front-drive 2+2 hatchback that was intended to shred Mercury's dowdy image.

Ford made the car's styling its first priority, signalling the intended audience: female buyers.

Vastly different from the rear-driven, sabre-toothed Cougars of eras past, the new-generation car owed much to the Ford Contour and Mercury Mystique sedans, themselves spinoffs of Ford of Europe's Mondeo.

Unfortunately, time has not been kind to the troublesome Contour/Mystique twins, and it soon became evident the Cougar would suffer many of the same maladies.

But to those who abide by the sentiment that it is better to look good than to feel good, this two-door always looked marvellous.

CONFIGURATION

The Cougar's geometric planes and creases were artfully stretched over the same wheelbase, track and suspension points as the Contour, rendering the Mercury a quick study.

Just two years in development, it bowed for model year 1999.

While the Cougar shared about 70 per cent of the sedan's parts, a lower ride height, thicker anti-roll bars and stiffer spring rates underlined the hatchback's mission as a driver's car – and a decidedly European one at that.

Cougars were motivated by the same two contemporary DOHC engines found in the Contour:

the 2.0 L Zetec four-cylinder making 125 hp and 130 lb.-ft. of torque;

the 2.5 L Duratec V6, good for 170 hp and 165 lb.-ft. of torque.

The base four-banger was available only with a five-speed manual transmission, while the six was offered with either a stick or four-speed automatic.

The car's "New Edge" styling precept continued inside. The instrument panel was arranged tightly around the driver, though a few owners noted the cowl was too high, especially in relation to the low-slung seats.

The seats themselves were nicely bolstered and finished in a grippy cloth. Rear-seat passengers got individual buckets as well, although they were mounted very close to the floor to provide some semblance of headroom.

"Don't have anyone over 5-foot-7 sit in the back seats," implored one owner on the Web.

At least the rear seats folded individually, which, along with the Cougar's big tailgate, provided generous cargo capacity.

Despite the fact that Canadian Mercury dealers started closing up shop in late 1999 when the brand exited the Great White North, the Michigan-built Cougar continued to be sold in Ford stores (in fact, it was marketed as a Ford in Europe).

The front-driver received some styling tweaks for 2001, including a revised front fascia, grille and headlights. Inside, drivers got to look at new instruments and grip a nicer steering wheel.

The Cougar was put to sleep at the end of the 2002 model year.

ON THE ROAD

As sporting as this Mercury appeared, it wasn't much of a goer.

The quickest setup (V6 mated to the manual shifter) yielded 0-to-96 km/h in 8 seconds – no quicker than a four-cylinder Honda Accord. Add a second for the automatic and two for the four-banger.

The steering response was kitty-quick but somewhat uncommunicative. The car generated 0.79 g of grip on a circular skid pad, just shy of sports-car territory. In day-to-day driving, it felt competent and athletic, if not a little stiff.

Braking was lacklustre, requiring 60 metres to haul down from a speed of 112 km/h.

Some owners expressed disappointment with the Cougar's thirsty disposition – both engines lapped up more fuel than their diminutive displacements might suggest – and a few noted that its low-profile tires disliked snowy weather. "This cat's a dog, but I love it anyway," summed up the driver of a 2001 model.

WHAT OWNERS REPORTED

Owners cite the Buck Rogers styling, decent handling, hatchback utility and relative scarcity – they relish being asked what kind of car it is – as benefits of driving a Cougar.

The abundance of happy owners out there is fitting, since Mercury is one of the few domestic brands that consistently scores better than average in J.D. Power and Associates' dependability surveys.

But the Internet carries complaints by other Cougar owners whose ownership experience has been less than "purrfect."

The most repeated gripes reveal three weaknesses on some cars: short-lived alternators, fuel pumps and battery cables susceptible to melting (the subject of a recall).

"I just smoked my third alternator," blogged a distressed owner of a 2000 model. "I have had a lot of wiring problems; my dash lights have gone out and won't come back on."

Other electrical bugaboos can include failed sensors, batteries and starters. Flywheels that engage with the starters can be problematic.

Pricey concerns like broken automatic transmissions, air conditioners, catalytic converters and sunroofs are not unknown.

Like its namesake in the wild, the sleek Cougar can be temperamental.

We would like to know about your ownership experience with these models: Toyota Highlander, BMW 5 Series

and Cadillac CTS. Email: toljagic@ca.

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