Twin Cats: 1973 Mercury Cougar XR-7 Convertibles
A few days ago, we featured a couple of ultra low mileage 1978 Cadillac Eldorado twins here on Barn Finds. While it would have been ideal for those two cars that were bought by its original owner to stay together, I don’t think they did. Here are two cars, just like two kittens from the same litter, that have been together since new with its original owner. Both were sold to the current owner’s father, and now this owner will only part with both of them together, no separate sales. There were only 3,165 1973 Cougar XR-7 convertibles made, and you can have two of them. Here are two 1973 Mercury Cougar XR-7 convertibles for sale here on Craigslist in Jacksonville, Florida. You may click here for the archived ad. Thanks as always to Barn Finds reader and car spotter Ikey H. for finding these two and bringing to our attention.
These cars have always been garaged and are rust free. The two cars, however, are in two different states of condition. The red one pictured above had 26,660 miles put on the car by the original owner. It was then placed in dry storage for over 35 years. The seller’s father acquired it and made repairs to bring it up to modern safety standards. It was left in as original condition as possible. All optional equipment still works. The car runs perfectly.
Inside we find a white leather bucket seat interior in good condition. Factory air conditioning and heater, as well as radio, are working. The odometer is currently showing 37,732 miles. There are no rips on the seats and the dash appears to be in good condition.
The red car has a 351 cubic inch engine with 2 barrel carburetor with C6 automatic transmission. Parts that have been replaced include brake master cylinder, front brake calipers, rear wheel cylinders, gas tank and sending unit, fuel pump, radiator, heater core, AC compressor and condenser, AC dryer, starter, and battery. The car runs perfectly.
For some reason, the seller did not provide any pictures of the blue Cougar XR-7 convertible. However, they did provide a short video of the car. The car also has a white interior and white convertible top. Its condition is described as early restoration deconstruction. You will find that a lot of parts have been removed from the car. The hood is off, trim has been removed, and door panels are off, but new panels are included to be installed. All or most of the parts are there to be re-installed. The best I can tell, the paint is not perfect. The blue car has 85,382 miles.
Remember, the seller will not part the set. It would be a shame to separate them anyway. So if you’re interested, you’ll have one to drive now and one to get back in shape. The seller is asking $19,500 for the pair. Who’s ready to add a couple of cats to their family?
Auctions Ending Soon
1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1Bid Now3 hours$7,100
2003 Porsche Boxster SBid Now4 hours$6,500
1966 Lincoln ContinentalBid Now6 hours$500
2000 Jaguar XJ8LBid Now4 days$1,250
1977 Datsun 280ZBid Now5 days$275
Comments
I have always thought that these vehicles were sharp and well executed design wise. I don’t really like the 1973 Mustang, and I.do enjoy the 1973 Cougar. I thought it was a better idea, and with a litte improvement in the motor and exhaust, fast as well. The lines seem more understated and refined. This seems like a decent deal for one car to drive and one to sell . My Father sold Ford’s for a few years around this time. Farah Fawcett was working for Lincoln/Mercury , they showed her chasing the cougar around the set and then being chased by said cougar. Expletives flew around the set and my.parents said it was pretty funny. Mercury was still.a brand then,
I didn’t see any pictures of the light blue car.
There is a link in the ad. There are 2 videos of the car, no pictures. One video is 2 seconds long, the other is a little over a minute:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/zzgksmxirac049z/AAA9w-tc_vvdKhhk3z7BC3yga/Blue%20Cougar/Blue%20Cougar%20Pics%20and%20Videos?dl=0&subfolder_nav_tracking=1
I had a 71 Cougar that was red with a white vinyl top and a white interior. I loved that car. I’ve always wanted to get another one (but convertible). This is very tempting, so I’m gonna pretend like I didn’t see it. I don’t need to spend the money right now with taxes right around the corner.
My Dad bought me a 72 red convertible, white top and white interior in 1986 (his first car was a 1964 Ford Galaxy convertible red). He forgot to have it inspected. Brakes went out first day I drove it. Went through a barbed wire fence, spun around and rear bumper was touching top of a pond. Got that fixed, was a fun, not fast car.
I guess seller wants to kill two birds with one stone by requiring that they be sold as a pair – he might want to be a little more flexible.
I question the ‘Survivor’ status on these. The baby blue car has no front fender bolts visible or signs that it was every bolted down.
Well restored, for the most part. But hardly original survivors. And you can get ample repair clearance by simply removing the hood springs and propping it wide open, without the added hassel of realigning it. Been there!
This is a awesome deal for someone. I would, but can’t. I hope whomever buys these brings the blue one up to standards. I know and little about these, my friend has one, and worships it.
Why would it be ashamed to separate them? They’re a couple of cars. They’re not going to miss each other. I don’t get it.
Considering the build date (June 20, 1973), Mercury would have already been gearing up for what came after in 1974 (yuck). While the price is quite good for this pair of cats, I see no value in absolutely keeping them together? Will anyone be celebrating their production anniversary in 2023? Possibly. Notice the premium put on these two together is that they have the same owner on the titles. Hell, I could say that about THREE of my MGs.
In 74, they were based on the Montego/Torino platform, no more “pony” aspirations. To me it lost all of its personality in the process. No M500 wheels, chrome trim or opera windows can make this 74 look muscular. They fixed it somewhat in the next iteration using the Thunderbird platform. Mom had one of those and loved it.