1996 Mercury Cougar XR7 4.6L from North America

Summary:

V8 says

Faults:

Plastic intake blew at 75,000 miles, it cost me $500 to fix it.

Exhaust converters went bad at 80,000 miles.

General Comments:

The 4.6L was very fast when it was stock. I have added MSD Coil-packs, and wires, K&N cone filter, Tornado, cat-less performance exhaust and had a 15 horsepower chip added. This car hauls major tail, I have no problem blowing the little rice burners out of the water.

The transmission is great except in second gear when over-drive is engaged, I recommend to turn the overdrive off when wanting to accelerate hard. I also placed a trans cooler on the car which helped in performance greatly by keeping the trans much cooler.

The car rides excellent since I replaced the original struts and shocks with monroe sensa-tracs, wonderful improvement, takes the corners better then most mustangs I have driven.

I have no complaints about this car, it has the total package, comfortable interior, smooth ride and is very fast.

It is also a great buy for a younger person like myself (20 years old) that wants a car that can be beefed up on a budget.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 12th November, 2004

5th Feb 2005, 20:41

I am 19 and I am looking to buy a 95 or a 96 mercury cougar with the V8. I have heard about the 1996 4.6L intakes breaking. The 95 had a different one which I haven't heard of any problems. Does anyone know which year is the best one to buy or any other problems.Thanks.

1996 Mercury Cougar XR7 V6 3.4 Liter from North America

Summary:

The greatest car ever made, period

Faults:

The only thing wrong with the car was the CD player. It was never used at all, until I got the car, after a year of use, the CDs would no longer play or eject consistently. (It only seemed to happen when it was hot more often then in the winter.) Other than that, it worked perfect.

General Comments:

The car handled like a dream, it was great around turns!

It had tons of power, I could floor it and make it ahead of everyone else like I was driving a stick!

The interior was beautiful, comfortable, and it was high quality leather.

The exterior, especially the paint, looked immaculate! There were no little swirls in the paint, like most other cars. (Usually the ones taken to automatic car washes have them.) It was also not white, not off-white, but pearl. I never met a person who didn't like the color.

This car was very special to me. It belonged to my grandmother. When she died, my mom gave the car to me. The first day I got my drivers license, a woman in a Ford Explorer backed into my car's passenger door! While it was in the shop, I got a rent a car. It was a Saturn. After driving the Saturn for a week and a half, I realized just how much I really loved that cougar! After that I was so glad to have it. I have a friend who has a 1999 Cougar, and for a while I thought they looked really cool, and sorta wanted one. That is, until I found out they were pieces of junk! Anyway, I got in a nasty car accident in my cougar, and they totaled it. I was devastated. Now I am in search of another one just like it, because it was such a wonderful car!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th September, 2004

8th Sep 2004, 07:43

Get one with a V8 and then you'll realize how slow that V6 really was.

7th Oct 2004, 08:41

I am not sure, a supercharged 3.8 is as good as a 4.6L v8. Definitely better then the 5.0.

I was kinda curious. I thought Ford only made supercharged V6 XR-7 cougar for 89 and 90. Is your's a normal 3.8 or a supercharged 3.8.