1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminator 351
Mercury Cougar is a nameplate applied to a diverse series of automobiles sold by the Mercury division of Ford from 1967 to 1997 and from 1999 to 2002. While the nameplate is most commonly associated with two-door coupes, at various times during its production, the Cougar was also marketed as a convertible, four-door sedan, station wagon, and hatchback.
With 2,972,784 examples produced, the Cougar is the highest-selling nameplate produced by the Mercury brand; its 34-year production is second only to the Grand Marquis in the Mercury model line (made for 36 years). During the 1970s and 1980s, the Cougar was closely tied to the marketing of the Mercury division; Mercury advertised its dealers as “The Sign of the Cat” with big cats atop Lincoln-Mercury dealer signs. In line with the Cougar, other cat-related nameplates were adopted by the division, including the Bobcat and Lynx.
This 1969 Mercury Cougar hardtop was built in Dearborn, Michigan and was factory-equipped with a 351ci Windsor V8 fitted with a four-barrel carburetor and mated to a three-speed automatic transmission.
Magnum 500–style 14″ wheels are wrapped in 215/70 front and 225/70 rear Cooper Cobra Radial G/T tires. The suspension features stiffened springs that were part of the Eliminator package, and additional options include power front disc brakes and power steering.
Climb inside the interior and take a seat in the Hi-back buckets crafted in Comfort-Weave vinyl. From here, you can see that Mercury built the Eliminator with performance in mind. Features such as full instrumentation including tachometer and elapsed-time clock, rim-blow steering wheel, and floor shifter come standard. A black crackle dashboard, custom door trim, and rear seat armrests round out additional standard features.
Just as quickly as the Eliminator pounced on the scene, it was gone. After a two year production run, Mercury pulled the plug on the Cougar Eliminator. Seems this rare cat did not have nine lives but its legacy still lives on today. One thing’s for sure. This rare cat still grabs attention when it’s seen prowling the streets looking for prey.
Remember the children’s fairy tale Cinderella? While her sisters went to all the elegant balls and fancy parties, Cinderella stayed home and was left out of all the fun and revelry. Well, the Mercury Cougar was a lot like Cinderella. While its Mustang and Cyclone siblings were out having a grand time cruising the streets and racing at the drag strip, the Cougar was left behind. And just like Cinderella was changed into something beautiful by the fairy princess, Mercury waved its magic wand and transformed the Cougar into a formidable street warrior called the Eliminator.
