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1967 Mercury Cougar XR7 - Project Green Kitty

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    1967 Mercury Cougar XR7 - Project Green Kitty

    Hi folks!

    Been a while since I've had anything worthwhile to share on the Forum in terms of cars owned (unless anyone is interested in me posting my 2019 Mustang?).

    I picked up this 1967 Cougar back in September:

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    She's an XR7, Inverness Green exterior, Black Vinyl roof and saddle leather interior. She's suffering from a brutal repaint that took place sometime in the late 1980s, early 1990s.

    Powered by a 289 2bbl running through a C4 tranny. Aftermarket headers and dual exhaust added later. Engine bay is detailed.

    No AC.

    Clock works!

    Runs a bit hot (will be addressing this in the spring).

    My father-in-law and I started digging into the body last month. Found a few rust spots that we're addressing with some patches cut and shaped from a leftover aftermarket fender for a 2nd generation Trans Am (use what you got, right?).

    Cut off pounds of mud from the driver's side trouble spots with a grinder. Also had to straighten out about 2 feet of pinch welds. The passenger side had been patched with actual metal, but they had been braised instead of welded. Cut the braising out and put in welds to ensure future reliabiltiy of the repairs. Pictures below tell some of the story:

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    She's taking a break for now in storage alongside an Austin Healey (not bad company).

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    Will be finishing the bodywork as time allows over the winter, including peeling back some of the vinyl roof to inspect a few suspect issues. Debating whether or not to keep the top. Really like that slick top look but the vinyl top is class... decisions are hard sometimes!

    Will also be scraping off the ancient undercoating and painting on some rust paint for extra protection and to make the bottom look all pretty.

    Hope to have everything ready for the paint booth by late spring early summer.

    Thank you for indulging me on this dive into the money pit.
    ************************************************** ******************************
    1997 Crown Vic - Mostly rust free, moderate mileage. On the road... but far from perfect. **SOLD**
    1985 Crown Vic in 2-Tone Blue **SOLD**
    http://automophiliac.blogspot.ca/

    #2
    Beautiful!!! Wish I had the patience for body work; even if I had the facilities for doing such work.

    Comment


      #3
      Nice Cougar
      ..

      Comment


        #4
        I like the 67-69 Cougars. The XR7 is especially nice upgrade over the Mustang. Looks like a great project!
        1990 Country Squire - weekend cruiser, next project
        1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - waiting in the wings

        GMN Box Panther History
        Box Panther Horsepower and Torque Ratings
        Box Panther Production Numbers

        Comment


          #5
          Those 67-68 Cougars are hard to find. Especially the XR7. I had a 68 Cougar in the 70s. Cool cars.

          Comment


            #6
            Thanks for all the kind words, folks!

            Originally posted by Mainemantom View Post
            Those 67-68 Cougars are hard to find. Especially the XR7. I had a 68 Cougar in the 70s. Cool cars.
            I was lucky enough to find this one only about 1.5 hrs from me. It's not the best condition (it's been an Ontario car its whole life), but a real honest car for the price I got it for.

            I'm also lucky enough that my father-in-law restores cars and has done a Cougar before. So he knows all the trouble spots!

            It's a lot of work, but it will be an awesome ride when she's done-ish (nothing is ever fully finished!).
            ************************************************** ******************************
            1997 Crown Vic - Mostly rust free, moderate mileage. On the road... but far from perfect. **SOLD**
            1985 Crown Vic in 2-Tone Blue **SOLD**
            http://automophiliac.blogspot.ca/

            Comment


              #7
              One of my all time favorites
              03 Marauder DPB, HS, 6disk, Organizer Mods> LED's in & Out, M&Z rear control arms, Oil deflector, U-Haul Trans Pan, Blue Fuzzy Dice
              02 SL500 Silver Arrow
              08 TC Signature Limited, HID's Mods>235/55-17 Z rated BFG G-Force Comp-2 A/S Plus, Addco 1" rear Sway, Posi Carrier, Compustar Remote Start, floor liners, trunk organizer, Two part Sun Visors, B&M Trans drain Plug, Winter=05 Mustang GT rims, Nokian Hakkapeliitta R-2 235/55-17
              12 Escape Limited V6 AWD, 225/65R17 Vredestein Quatrac Pro, Winter 235/70-16 Conti Viking Contact7 Mods>Beamtech LED headlight bulbs, Husky floor liners

              Comment


                #8
                Cool. Looking forward to the progress. Good looking car.
                ~David~

                My 1987 Crown Victoria Coupe: The Brown Blob
                My 2004 Mercedes Benz E320:The Benz

                Originally posted by ootdega
                My life is a long series of "nevermind" and "I guess not."

                Originally posted by DerekTheGreat
                But, that's just coming from me, this site's biggest pessimist. Best of luck

                Originally posted by gadget73
                my car starts and it has AC. Yours doesn't start and it has no AC. Seems obvious to me.




                Comment


                  #9
                  Sorry for lack of posts. I have been working on things. Mostly continuing to strip down the car and fix any uncovered rust issues.

                  So far most of the work has been focused on repairing the front fenders... lots of welding and grinding! The rest of my time has been on disassembly. So far the front and rear body panels and trim (basically anything that bolts on) is off the car except the tail lights and front grille / headlights... bumpers, corners, fenders and fascia are all off. Hopefully this makes prep and paint a bit easier.

                  Also, have made the decision to do a vinyl roof delete. It's just a matter of welding up a few trim holes. I know, I also enjoy the look of the vinyl roof, but ultimately prefer the look of the slick top. And since the old one had to come off to facilitate some repair around the rear window, I've decided to commit to the slick top conversion.

                  I took a few more pics, but will post those later (soon!).
                  ************************************************** ******************************
                  1997 Crown Vic - Mostly rust free, moderate mileage. On the road... but far from perfect. **SOLD**
                  1985 Crown Vic in 2-Tone Blue **SOLD**
                  http://automophiliac.blogspot.ca/

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Definitely worth the hard work, especially if you can afford it - helps you both are doing all the labor! They go for a decent amount of money, when fixed, so you have a valuable asset.
                    What I Own: 1993 Mercury Grand Marquis GS
                    What I Help Maintain: 1996 CV / 1988 CV / 1988 Tempo

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by friskyfrankie View Post
                      Definitely worth the hard work, especially if you can afford it - helps you both are doing all the labor! They go for a decent amount of money, when fixed, so you have a valuable asset.
                      100% agree! Just thinking of all the time spent so far just on welding and grinding... have saved $100s if not $1000s already!

                      Here's some pics:

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                      ************************************************** ******************************
                      1997 Crown Vic - Mostly rust free, moderate mileage. On the road... but far from perfect. **SOLD**
                      1985 Crown Vic in 2-Tone Blue **SOLD**
                      http://automophiliac.blogspot.ca/

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Savings plus the fun and learning experiences are priceless.
                        What I Own: 1993 Mercury Grand Marquis GS
                        What I Help Maintain: 1996 CV / 1988 CV / 1988 Tempo

                        Comment


                          #13
                          **UPDATE**

                          Vinyl roof and associated trim is now all completely removed from the car.

                          Currently working away at getting as much of the adhesive off as possible. After trying a few techniques, the current strategy is to give it a liberal washing with lacquer thinner and then scrape with a razer blade. Time consuming, but lots of time to get lost in thought and it's very satisfying to get a good run of old adhesive off... like peeling an orange in one go. Once the bulk of the adhesive is off, the next step will be to sand everything down and then prime it.

                          Surprisingly, other than the small amount of swiss cheese around the rear window, there was no rust on the roof at all except three tiny (smaller than a dime) surface spots. Very minor and superficial. Very pleased with this car so far!

                          Will post a few more pics soon.
                          ************************************************** ******************************
                          1997 Crown Vic - Mostly rust free, moderate mileage. On the road... but far from perfect. **SOLD**
                          1985 Crown Vic in 2-Tone Blue **SOLD**
                          http://automophiliac.blogspot.ca/

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Usually prefer to post my pics in forum... but haven't had a chance to get to my desktop in a while. Just made a post on my IG though if you're interested in what it takes to get the XR7 emblem off of the c-pillar. https://www.instagram.com/p/CZ1YJbpL...dium=copy_link
                            ************************************************** ******************************
                            1997 Crown Vic - Mostly rust free, moderate mileage. On the road... but far from perfect. **SOLD**
                            1985 Crown Vic in 2-Tone Blue **SOLD**
                            http://automophiliac.blogspot.ca/

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Great time to clean everything under and behind the seat. Find any treasure?
                              1990 Country Squire - weekend cruiser, next project
                              1988 Crown Vic LTD Wagon - waiting in the wings

                              GMN Box Panther History
                              Box Panther Horsepower and Torque Ratings
                              Box Panther Production Numbers

                              Comment

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