1971-1973 Mercury Cougar

The second of nine lives.

"Sports car"? Uh no, despite the mysterious hyphen.

Just like the second generation Mustang that it was based on, the Cougar grew in size and also in luxury, with a wheelbase stretched 5 inches. The convertible was still available but you couldn't get an Eliminator or any of the fabulous Boss motors.

Base MSRP was $3,289 ($3,877 for an XR-7) and weight went up several hundred pounds.

In 1972, the GT model was dropped and power from the 2-barrel V-8 was a miserable 164 hp (SAE net). Fortunately, you could still order up a tastier 4-barrel that pushed out 266 hp or even a 429 ohv with 370 hp (SAE gross).

Buyers weren't pleased and sales dropped. Something had to be done, but it didn't until the next generation.

Our pick would be completely dependent on where the car lived most of its life; dry, we'd shoot for a rather rare convertible or wet, we'd definitely go for a hardtop...either one as 1971 models with the mambo motor.

While these are comparatively much lower on the collectible list, these are fantastic buys for the muscle car enthusiast that wants what these cars are, a more luxurious second-gen Mustang. Keep an eye open for a very rare Bronze Age Edition (cosmetic changes only) that was available only in 1973, though we'd still pass one up for a nice '71.

Average retail NADA for a 1971 XR-7 429 hardtop with a/c is currently under $9K, $12K for a drop-top. A quick gander online at Hemmings and eBay make me think that those prices are possible for a car that needs a little TLC as you drive it. That sounds like an amazing deal to me!

In the film The Thief Who Came to Dinner, Ryan O'Neal's character drives a 1971 Cougar. I couldn't embed the neat clip of the movie that's on YT, so here's the theme song, which is perfect for cruising in a car like this.