Story by Jon Mikelonis with contributions from Eric Dess.

Forward
For auto manufacturers, naming a car after an animal can be a double-edged sword. On the up side, developing a marketing campaign around the vehicle is made easy since the creative people have a clear association from which to draw on. In the case of Ford Motor Company, the visual parallels used to promote certain species (Mustang, Thunderbird, and Cougar) have sometimes been communicated to consumers with images of wild horses galloping at high speed
across desert playas, long-talloned birds swooping after prey, or cunning
felines sprinting through metropolitan cityscapes. On the downside, once
associations like these are solidified in the eye of the consumer, there is
little room for the reinterpretation or reclassification of the model as the
economies of manufacturing automobiles sometimes require. A vehicle whose perceptions of design and performance are so obviously carved out from the behaviors and physical traits of the creature the car was named after, die-hard in the consumer's mind. Somehow, remarketing a car that is named something ambiguous like the Fairmont or Capri is easier for consumers like us to stomach.

Throughout history, Ford Motor Company has done a superb job making sure certain "animal" models, specifically the Mustang, honored the essence of their signature through good times and bad. Other models, like the Mercury Cougar, have not faired as well. In 1967 the Cougar was introduced to bridge the gap between Mustang's performance and Thunderbird's luxury. The end of the musclecar era had an impact on the performance facet of both the Mustang and the Cougar. However, we never saw Ford stoop so low and offer the Mustang as a four-door or a station wagon. While it is hard for an outsider to speculate exactly why, at times, the Mercury Cougar deviated so far from its origins, we can confidently say there was absolutely nothing agile or "cougar-ish" about the Cougar "Villagers" that were produced in 1977 and 1982. In fairness, when Mercury finally rebounded with a Cougar that embodied all the agility and elegance of a mountain lion in 1989, the market didn't seem to respond. Still today, the short two-year run of the supercharged Cougar XR7 is little known, even among many performance Ford enthusiasts.

Mercury Cougar Evolution
To truly appreciate how satisfying in was for dedicated Cougar fans to see a return to performance in 1989 with the XR7, it helps to understand the origins, lineage, and deviations of the Cougar. Cougar started off on the right paw when it was built on a slightly lengthened Mustang platform and incorporated the same musclecar-era drivetrains, but that only lasted until the 1972 model year. The following chart provides a good summary of how the Cougar meandered off and on its path from 1967 until the supercharged XR7 was produced for 1989..

Mercury Cougar Delineation
Model Years	Sample	Summary
1967-1973		Introduced in the heart of the musclecar era, Cougar offered the most exciting performance drivetrain packages and options during this period. Heavy breathing small blocks, Clevelands, Boss motors', FE's, 385-Series motors, and 4-speeds were available to meet the "performance and luxury" pony car niche the model was designed to fulfill. The essence of Cougar was established but faded after the 1972 model year with an impending energy crisis.
1974-1979		During this range, the Cougar lost footing when it was forced to endure tight government smog regulations and the gas crisis. The 1974-1979 Cougars were less nimble to boot since Mercury moved them on to the more hefty full-frame intermediate chassis. Lowlights included the lack of a manual transmission option for this entire period, a 220hp 460 option in 1974, and the introduction of a "Villager" station wagon in 1977.
1980-1982		A return to uni-body construction started Cougar back towards a more agile pony car personality. The "Fox chassis" was implemented. Built around the Monarch body style these Cougars were smaller and lighter that 1979 models but still boxy and very formal. By 1982 the V8 was dropped from the base Cougar and seven models were available including a four-door and a station wagon. The downgraded 120hp 4.2L V8 was optional in the XR7. Sales hit an all-time low.
1983-1988		1983-1988 indicated revival when the Cougar mimicked the new Thunderbird's "aerobird" styling while remaining on the "Fox chassis". Cougar fell only a year out of sequence with the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe when it offered a turbocharged 4-cylinder and a 5-speed in the 1984 XR7. Although the turbo XR7's only mirrored the Turbo Coupes for the 1984, 1985, and 1986 model years, Mercury saved face by making the 5.0L available in 1987 and 1988. However, the manual transmission option was gone.
1989-1997		The turbocharged XR7 wasn't available in 1987 and 1988 but Mercury made up for it by offering their equivalent to the Thunderbird Super Coupe in XR7 for 1989. No V8 was available but the Cougar essence was back in a supercharged V6 and standard 5-speed manual gearbox. Unfortunately, the supercharged XR7 was dropped after the 1990 model year. In 1991 the HO 5.0L was offered. Cougar was discontinued after 1997 and awaited a modest return in 1999.
1999-2002		Consistent with Lincoln-Mercury's announcement to move its headquarters from Detroit to a more "hip" southern California location, the all-new youth- oriented Cougar was unveiled. Likely a necessary business decision, the FWD sport-compact was more marketable for the masses. However, the deviation from true Cougar origins has left performance enthusiasts knowing the most exciting Cougars ever made were produced from 67-71, 84-86, and 89-90.