1968 Cougar Build Ideas-OT

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J

jeeper

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Hello,

I haven't been real active on the site for a year or two. I unfortunately traded off my 74 Dart Sport with a 440 shortly after getting it going. Wasn't thinking straight and I could have been enjoying it the last few summers. Anyways.....I have wondered what happened to it. It went to Portland in the summer of 2010 I think or 2011.

Back on topic:

I would like another A body, but for right now I have picked up this 68 Cougar. It is a one owner that was sporadically driven until 2010. A school got ahold of it and removed the engine, and basically left it in pieces-the engine only-the car is fine. The car is stock at this point and actually has some nice options, without AC etc. which is good. The did install either a new or nearly new 302 out of an 86.

My plans are EFI, get close to 20 MPG and have it be reliable while being as fast as possible.


I want to do it in stages, and do reliability upgrades to the engine, transmission and then an 8.8 swap.

What are your thoughts / ideas on the build? Turbo-looking into that. Other tips/tricks etc.? I used to be a Ford guy many years ago, but all that was really old-tech.

I would like to do it stages, and eventually end up with something useable that is both efficient and fast.
 
I would put a shotgun hemi in that bad boy.:burnout:
 
You don't see a lot of cougars except in the bars!
Let's see pictures!!!!!
 
If it weren't a Cougar, it would be a pretty valuable car. It is being built with my students at work. I think I am going to do a sequential build on it.

Start with the engine:

Good oil pump, oil pump drive, and timing components as well as headgaskets in prep for boost.

Drivetrain:

c4, rebuilt with a good convertor -2500ish

8.8 Explorer rear with 3.73's for now, and then 3.27's when I turbo it.

Subframe connectors and suspension work on the back as well as moving the battery to the trunk.

The idea being that I can build it every year and use it every summer.

Something like year one:

Carbed, but with the above work done-this would be next summer.

Year two:

EFI and nice tank etc.

Year three:

Turbo etc.

Here are some pics. It will be fun. The kids are chomping to get on it, but we are currently finishing the Yota in the pics at the bottom.
 

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It needs a sock motor.
 
We got the toyota geared and so forth. With 5.29's and lockers front and rear. Ready to hit the deep snow, if only we had any!

On the Cougar front, we took it to work and got started on it. It turns out that it is almost all free from rust, and all that. Very good condition overall.

The seats and so forth are nasty. But the engine is a roller 5.0 that I don't think has been ran before. Gathering parts for that and str12-340 from here generously donated a fuel pump etc.

The engine is going to stay stock other than intake and exhaust for this year due to funds$$$ but that it ok.

As I have said elsewhere, better to have a slower car and drive it, than fast "garage art".

I will occasionally post up on the progress here. Student interest is very high. Much more so than I figured. I guess to them it is an antique. Of course I wasn't even born when these were made so maybe it is an old car!
 
I loved my '68 Cougar, be careful, the back end is light and easy for the car to get away from you, also very sloppy steering when the front end parts are worn out.
 
1979, Dieters 1970 Cougar




Dieter's 1970 Cougar Eliminator (former NHRA Super Stock car) with a modified Boss 351C motor, (very rare), street racing an all out 1969 Camaro drag car in 1979. Old school street racing where it all began and the way it was back then. NO juice in those days, and healthy small blocks were making about 425 HP


[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Fsw5Jfravg"]Street racing in 1979, Dieters 1970 Cougar - YouTube[/ame]
 
I prefer the 69' with a N/A carb engine, so I'm out.......just kidding :D. With a three year plan, it looks like your committed to it. They are a nice alternative to the cookie cutter Stang, and lighter then most think also. Good Luck with this endeavor, and just remember not to get too much tied up in it. That "A" body you want might just pop up when you least expect it...
 
SOCK motor. Jes sayin.
 

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The car does grow on you. I ended up with it via a co-worker and all that. I need to do right by the car and get it going and operational. I don't see it being a show car, just a fun driver with enough patina to be cool.

The enthusiasm is making it fun. After being in the mopar world for so long, the Ford end is different.

The thing that I have most enjoyed about Mopars, and this site in general is the bucks-down pragmatic nature of most mopar guys. I am not seeing that yet in the Ford world. My value system and practical nature will not allow any TCI suspension here.

And yes, a SOHC engine would be great. But I'd like to stay married and keep my house!
 
A common sense post. Mileage ,and a turbo? Easy. Find a 87-91 fuel injected 5.0 Mustang. The 8.8 comes with the car ,that way. 87-91 5.0's : E.F.I,forged factory pistons,a tunable ecm,and a useable base. Kind of like the Mopar Magnums. A T-5 isn't a drag race transmission, will hold up with mild abuse. Normally, I like carbs.The 5.0 crowd,has done all this already.Search the 5.0 forums, TXStang,is a good member here.Might send him,a P.M. FWIW, A 69 Cougar my 1st car. Fords can be done,do your research. Nice start,b.t.w..
 
The truth is that if I were building a car from scratch I would start with a different car. The deal is that I couldn't turn this one down. I didn't even own a car (I am a truck / 4x4 guy mainly) when this came along.

It will likely end up being a 5.0 basically under the skin by the time it is done. EFI is in the future as well as the 8.8.

For now, it is just a driver. Hoping to pick up a few HP and have some fun. Watching the kids is as much fun as building it.

I really want it on the road by this spring.
 
Theres a huge aftermarket of parts for that 5.0. Try http://www.corral.net they have huge classified section where you can get a lot of used speed parts for cheap. Mustangs Plus is fairly close to you and they offer all types of parts for suspension rebuild, upgrade, etc. I've been kicking around the idea of building a 67 cougar myself.
 
Nice find there. I was actively interested in buying a '67~'68 cougar at one point, but never pulled the trigger. I wanted a factory 390 version. I've always loved the XR-7 dashboard! At any rate, yeah....they are very cheap, compared to 'stangs from those years, my gawd.

I can see building a cheap, fast Ford......a friend of mine building a '65 ranchero is doing exactly that, via Craigslist and the local hot rod swap meets. He's scored tons of parts, engine, trans, teardrop hood, shifter etc etc......because so much interchanges with mustang. Might wanna consider screwing together a 347 for it.
 
5.0? yuck. Have some imagination. Gag on a 5.0. An FE motor like a hot 390 would be more like it. And although not "correct" a Cleveland would be stomp ***. Nobody expects to see that.
 
What about a 351 Windsor motor? Allot of 5.0 stuff like heads and transmission should bolt together with it right? If you want bigger later, you could stroke it to 408. Should offer the best of all worlds.!?
 
A few things to keep in mind. Number one, the process of resurrection and getting it going it is most important. It is a teacher / student project. Secondly, my checkbook is small at the moment for this. The project kinda snuck up on me.

If I had my way, I would have a 351W in it and EFI with a turbo. I may end up there, I may not, but for now I want it on the road to enjoy. That or a 460. I like BB's.

I do realize that the 5.0 scene is pretty overdone. However, it is hard to turn down a good 5.0 that you own in the car already.

Ideally I would like to have some fun and get upper teens for MPG. That is the idea at least.
 
My apologies, Jeeper.Missed the post,about the gradual build up,and the shop class gig. I live five minutes, from the Pismo Dunes. Toyota's like yours,are rampant around here.
 
greymouser7 said:
What about a 351 Windsor motor? Allot of 5.0 stuff like heads and transmission should bolt together with it right? If you want bigger later, you could stroke it to 408. Should offer the best of all worlds.!?
Click to expand...

Same lack of imagination as the 5.0. It's a 5.0 in a little bigger package.

A 300 straight 6 truck motor. Jes sayin. lol
 
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