What does Thunderbird-Cougar mean to you?

The_Ghost

Registered User
Ok,

question is pretty straightforward-- forgive me for sounding like a marketing studygroup.

What does THUNDERBIRD - COUGAR mean to you?

For example, Power, Luxury, Style, Comfort... things like that.

What images does the name evoke for you?

For Example, what do you imagine of the car, where can you picture it being? a high-class restaurant in beverly hills, a deserted dragstrip in central iowa, the lone car on an abandoned section of US 66 in the desert?

What do you feel when you drive the car?

For example, does driving the car excite you, does it scare you, does it bore you, how do you

To you, what word best describes the MN12? What does it feel like?

I know its a little bit introspective, but Im trying to define what the core essence of THUNDERBIRD-COUGAR is.
(By the way, Cougar guys-- Ive got a fair amount of Tbirds but no Cougars yet for my vid... if youve got clips, send em to me via email as listed below...)

What IS Thunderbird-Cougar?

Thanks!

-Ghost
 
name

Well.........I'm old school.

Early Thunderbird - luxury, power, comfort, distinctive style and built for family highway travel.

MN-12 - power, sporty, handles well, sleek and nimble.

Early Cougar - personal luxury, fast, sporty, distintive style and fun.

MN-12 same as T-Bird.

I've had a 1980 T - Bird, a 72' Cougar base coupe and a 75' Cougar XR/7 and now a 92' Super Coupe. Both my Sons drive 94' - 95' 4.6 LX T - Birds.
 
To me Thunderbird has always been a 'personal' car...something that reflects the outwardly-obvious lifestyle of the driver: Not really a 'sports' car, but something that embodies the spirit of a sporty car. Crisp handling, taut suspension, ample power, comfortable appointments and a style that subtly stands a little 'outside' the average sedan. A T-Bird should always be the car that turns a head in a crowd...one that elicits the desire of others to have the ability to own such a car.
It doesn't seem like much more than a standard 2-door sedan upon inspection, but the experience is a cut above...its the details that make the remarkable difference.
Each in thier own way, I feel every T-bird has embodied that spirit. Well, almost every T-bird: I absolutely think the 80-82 'Birds were a bastardized travesty of all the T-Bird stood for. To me, that model was more representative of what a rival car-company would have come up with in an attempt to rip-off the T-Bird...almost a caricature of itself.

Now, the Cougar was always a little different to me. While the Mustang was the true sporty car in the Ford camp, it was decidely an 'American car', with everything that entails.
The Cougar was an attempt to create a little European-styled influence into that formula. An attempt to put a little international cache into a strictly ameri-centric design.
I think the Cougar got lost over the years, simply because it was at the mercy of whatever chassis was avialable to support it's existance. It didn't have the sales volume to warrant a unique platform of its own.
The MN-12 Cougars were only so-so to me. Not a bad car, just that it already existed as the 'Bird. Minor trim differences aside, there really was no difference between the Bird and the Cougar.
I feel giving the Cougar the supercharged drivetrain was a huge mistake. Not only did it water down the impact of the drivetrain in its 'star', the T-Bird...but it seemed that in the Cougar it was just another attempt to screw together a few more cars to sell. Nothing overly uniwue about it.

I always felt the Cougar namplate would have been well-served if it was marketed somewhere in-between the Thunderbird and the Mark series cars from Lincoln. More luxurious and with more avaialable equipment than a T-Bird, but not quite as complete a car as the Mark series.

For the Fox-body cars, the Cougar would have been a great car had it been a clone of the Mark VII LSC, minus some of the Lincoln stuff like maybe the air suspension, the 4 wheel discs/anti-lock and maybe a little less complete elctronics info system. But it still should have had the 5.0 HO. That would have put it squarely above the best 'sport' T-Bird available at the time, but not as equipped (or expensive!) as a Mark VII. And it probably would have sold better too.

Oh well, what do I know? I'm just a part of the stupid buying public that obviously doens't know what I want.
 
Kit I disagree one of my many T-birds was a 1982 Town Landau I warmed the 5.0 over and ran dual exhaust. Quick, comfortable, good looks and 26 MPG. I consider that car a Mini Lincoln I loved that car as much as I do my 94. Both cars embody what Tbirds are all about Luxury, Power and Comfort.
 
The total package. It's not overly indulgent in one area more than the rest, but has a little bit of it all.
 
A Thunderbird is civilized. It doesn't do anything particularly outstanding nor does it grab unneccessary attention but the people who own them have a relationship with them. I think that is kind of universal for T-bird's regardless of year.

From a utility standpoint there are many other cars that do everything a T-bird does and many do it better. This is actually a good thing because it means that the person who would buy a new Tbird or spend a lot of money fixing one up is the type of person who wants to spend money on their car. People who buy the best "value for the dollar" car do not look at a Tbird. A Tbird is never the best value for your dollar. A Tbird shows that the owner is willing to spend money to be different and personalized.
 
Kit I disagree one of my many T-birds was a 1982 Town Landau I warmed the 5.0 over and ran dual exhaust. Quick, comfortable, good looks and 26 MPG. I consider that car a Mini Lincoln I loved that car as much as I do my 94. Both cars embody what Tbirds are all about Luxury, Power and Comfort.

Well, I was talking about the car as delivered from Ford. Just about any car becomes instantly more likeable with an injection of power...there is n o doubt about that.
The whole aspect of the car being a mini-Lincoln is exactly why I don't like that model. It's just a rip-off of a Lincoln! Doesn't really set any new trends of its own.
I also really dislike the dash set-up in those cars, as well as the dash in the LTD and the Mark series those years. Just abominable to me. Plus, not only is that hard-plastic 4-spoker the ugliest steering wheel I've ever seen (2nd only to a 68 Mustang wheel) the way the steering wheel tilts at the base of the wheel instaed of further up(down?) the column is also annoying.
I just really don't care for that body style at all.

Now, please don't take it personally. I have seen many of that year that look good. I can appreciate any car that is well-kept.

Now, I'm sure there is some 'owner-itis' at play also: There are many cars that I thought were about the ugliest cars I had ever seen when they debuted.
The new 79 Trans Am really disgusted me with that gigantic shnoz added on. I hated it! Now, its one of my favorite body styles!
I absolutely hated the Mark Vs when they came out in 77. All that slab-sided sheet metal was hideous. I could'nt imagine the idiots who thought they looked good. Now I love them, and have owned three.

The one I hated the most? The 83 T-Bird! I was absolutely flabbergasted that Ford would put such a stupid loking car out there, and pretend that they thought it looked good. It was about the most stupendously ugly car I had ever seen upon its introduction.
Bit...now I love them. I've had several over the years.

Now my latest love-affair in the making is with the MN-12 Bird. I am a recent first-time owner with the 35th anniversary I bought back in November.
The car always looked almost right to me. But something about it just seemed 'off'. The wheelbase seems a bit to long visually, and the roof line is a bit long-ish above the rear window...not a 'fast' enough fast-back, I guess I'm saying.
The real goofy look to me is the wheel/tire package. The tires seem just way too skinny to me, even with the 225s they put on the SC. On that car, there needs to be some aggresive looking rubber, and these just seem weak.
All I have to do is look at a BMW 635 CSi, and it all becomes clear why Ford was so inspired by this design. But when they made it a 'Ford', something seems to have gotten lost in the translation, appearance-wise.
The real reason I bought this car was because it was cheap...$450. It only needed some TLC, and it was good to go. Original (but crappy) paint, no body damage or rust, and all the toys. How could it not be a deal for $450 with only 70K on it?
Then, in December, some doofus backed into the 1/4 at the bank, and his insurance company paid well...so with a few dollars from me (about $500 out of pocket), I have a brand-new and beautiful paint job.
But the problem is...I just haven't fallen in love with the car yet. With all the effort put into the paint job, I kinda' feel like I just got engaged to a girl I don't really want to marry!
But...I am having the anniversary wheels redone at a wheel-refinishing place, and when they get back I'll put some bigger tires on it.
I'm thinking 235/60s or maybe even 255/55s.
I'm confident that once the wheel wells look like they have a little 'stability' there the whole deal will look better.
 
Kit that is what is great about this hobby, we all have an opinion and we are all correct in what we like. I am the kinda guy if Ford made a 2 door Lincoln Town Car with a fuel injected 460 I would be first in line.But then I found out they made a supercharged V6 in a Thunderbird and I fell in love:D
 
Kit that is what is great about this hobby, we all have an opinion and we are all correct in what we like. I am the kinda guy if Ford made a 2 door Lincoln Town Car with a fuel injected 460 I would be first in line.But then I found out they made a supercharged V6 in a Thunderbird and I fell in love:D


Well, they did make a 2-door "Town Coupe" with a 460, but alas it was only carb'd.

The "Town Coupe" was an attempt to get a little more rear-seat room and utility in a 2-door package than what the 'Mark series' offered. The Marks were overly-styled, but where woefully short on useable passenger space for such a bloated car.

Not too many Town coupes were made or sold, but they basically were just a Town car with 2 doors.
 
I happened on my car by accident, I was looking for a Grand National. Always being a Ford fan I really liked the car. It just kind of went from there. I like it because its differant. I like drag racing so it just kind of took off from there. Last time I was at the strip last fall I hit my goal of 12.985. Someone in the stands told my wife "Man that is one fast thunderbird". I just love working on it. It will never be finished and thats ok too. More than the car its all the great people I have gotten to know over years that is much more important to me.
 
I've been to many car shows and I think the TBird and SC owners are the most welcoming tightest knit group of them all. Mustang and Camaro guys are all cocky and always trying to out do one another. With the SC we all respect each others cars and there is some friendly competition but SC owners will tell you what they've done. Other groups they keep stuff secret (gears, cam specs, etc..)

To me the car is just an all around good performer. It doesn't do one thing exceptionally well but it does many things and is a versatile car. It handles well, accelerates well, has room for 4 adults, trunk space, decent on gas, looks good.

It could stop better and accelerate faster and that's what I'm working on.

I was actually looking for a Grand National but then my friend was selling a black sc 5-speed, and it was close enough in looks and had good performance, so I snatched it up. Had it since I was 16 years old. First car I bought with my own money. Probably will never give it up. I've wanted to at times but I just can't do it. I don't need the money that bad and when I get it running I enjoy it. Finally soon I'll be able to fix it up right and then it will be a summer toy.
 
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well some people think the sc does not do any one thing exceptionally, i dis agree. the sc seats with the bolsters are the most comfortable seats ive ever sat in. hurt your back at work, on the way home sitting in sc seats, and the back pain goes away. just one example of the exceptional values of the seats. also the ride quality with the independent rear. just awsome. and the sleeper style of the car. most every one around here looks at the car as a grandpas grocery getter till there left in the dust and say "whats in that bird a big block". lol:D
 
thunderbird

to me it means everything
i barley noticed that my familly owned thunderbirds growing up
in the 90's my mom had a 1986 bird
and it was roomie
and my dad got a supercoupe that we drove to FL when i was 13 and it was amazing
now i own 2 birds a LX and a 89 coupe
my nxt car is going to be a turbo coupe
i plan on collecting t-birds

ill be the crazy guy on the block with like 5 tbirds
 
...Mustang and Camaro guys are all cocky and always trying to out do one another. With the SC we all respect each others cars...SC owners will tell you what they've done. Other groups they keep stuff secret (gears, cam specs, etc..)

I have to chime in here. I have been a Mustang owner for 37 years now, and have had more than 15 various 'classic' Mustangs over the years(65-73).
Right now I have four.
I go to plenty of shows with my 'pride and joy', my 1971 429 Cobra Jet Mach 1. I am the original owner and have personally put over 300K on this car, so there is very little that I don't know about this car.
I find that most owners of classic Mustangs (and even Camaros) are decent, respectable and sharing people. Just like the SC owners you describe. I also have a 1979 Z-28 that I show, as well as a 1979 Trans-Am( 'Bandit' striping).
However...when it comes to those who drive late-model Mustangs and Camaros (around 87 and up, or so) I find what you say to be very true: Its mostly just an exercise in who can have the loudest exhaust, thumpiest sound system, or wildest salami-slicer attached to the rear deck.
Its a whole lotta' bench-racing with those guys...all talk and bragadocio about how this mod added 30 horses, or that one netted 50 more. And it is usually capped off with a claim that it is a 10 or 11 second car.
There are some real 10/11 second cars out there...but not near as many as these...'youngsters' would like to believe.
Whenever I've had enough of thier fantasies, I'll challenge them to race, and show them my car afterwards. (sometimes you aren't near your own car when the oral-defacation begins). Nearly always its something like "Well, my marzel-vane solenoid isn't nangling right now, but if it was I would kick your butt!", or some such BS.
Those guys are obnoxious and I stay away mostly. Usually, I just sit and relax and answer most people's questions about my car and don't volunteeer too much else. It leaves them with thier own fantasies, and the mystery of it all keeps 'em intrigued anyway!
 
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I did not mean classic car owners, most of them are the friendliest people you''ll meet and they love to talk about their cars.

I'm talking about 3rd and 4th Gen F-body owners and Fox Body/SN95/S-197 owners. They are the ones out street racing and want to keep everything a secret. I think it's because the cars are more popular, there are more racing classes for them at the track and they need to stay competitive so everythings a secret.

On the street I saw a guy punch another guy and almost knock him out because he walked up and said "hey how's that new nitrous kit working on your Camaro" and this was in front of a crowd of people who the guy was trying to set up a race with and this guy blew his cover. Chicago street racers don't play. It's all about money to them.
 
The fact that it's a Thunderbird doesn't really mean much of anything to me...I just love the body style of the 89-93 SCs. The car still turns heads and I think it will continue to do so for many more years. I also think that SC/XR7 people are some of the nicest most passionate car people you will ever meet.

David
 
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