Well everyone, it finally happened.  About this time last year, I was gifted a 1967 Mercury Cougar from my aunt.  After a bunch of paperwork, wrangling, and sweat, the car now resides in my garage.

It was the best Fathers day gift this fat bald middle aged gearhead will ever get.  My son and I rented a car carrier, loaded the pickup with everthing we thought we would need, and headed north to almost the Canadian boarder where the farm is. 

When we arrived, we weren't sure what we would find, but to our surprise, it had only one flat tire, and was in the clear (plus a few berry vines and a bee hive).  With the help of the neighbor (who was kind enough to lend his compressor) we inflated the tire, and tried to pull it on the trailer.  One of the front wheels was hung up, so we had to take off the drum and release the brake shoes.  After that it was smooth sailing.

For those of you who don't know about the car, it has been in my family since it was new.  It is a true manual car with manual steering, manual brakes, and factory 4 speed.  The 289 is original, and has less than 100 grand on the dial, but I haven't run it yet.

The body is solid all the way around - no rust.  The interrior is clean, clean headliner, no rips in the seats, and no cracks in the dash.  The glass is all there and in good shape.

It was pure pleasure out in front of my house scrubbing the moss and other accumulated goo off of it.  It was like a car was emerging from a blob of crud, and when I was done, the car didn't look half bad. 

Yes - Pictures to the mag are fourth coming. 

Who?  Well, yours truley 

Where? The rain belt of Tacoma, Washington

What?  1967 Mercury Cougar complete with Motor Trend 1967 "Car of the Year" sticker in the back quarter window.

Why?    It's Bowsers first poney car.  Besides that, anything from Mercury with a factory 4 speed in it is cool.  It's also a scream that Mr. Oldsmobile has flipped over a Henry Ford.  Ugly now, but soon to change.

I was beginning to think that it wasn't going to come true, but alas - the eagle has landed. 

Bowser

Cool car. 4 speed, Thats rare for a merc. 2 or 4 barrel carb?

Its got a 2 barrel carb.  I really think the only option it had on it was a vinyl top.  The rest is straight and simple car.  I got the papers from my cousin today to go get the inspection done, then I have to hang for 3 years till I get a title.  It will be worth the wait. 

It's a true find, and I am totally pleased with it.

Bowser

I remember when I had my first car in high school, a '68 Mustang coupe with a 289 and a 4 speed, and wishing I had a '67 Cougar instead because Ive always wanted to be different and not just another guy with a Stang.  I got my car because old Mustangs were a dime a dozen back then (the 80s) and I was anxiously itching not to have to drive Moms '78 Honda Civic anymore.  I should have held out till I could find a Cougar. You are a lucky dude. 

Eventually in my quest to break from the herd and be different I went Mopar and never looked back, but I remember my Ford days with some nostalgia. The 289 was a good engine to me. Served me well. Good luck with your new project. 

So youre an Olds guy? Cool. Another off brand. My dad had one of those when I was growing up, a '70 Cutlass coupe with a 350 Rocket and 350 hydramatic that he bought brand new. No options, no A/C , but I loved to ride in that car. I was pissed when he sold it just 4 years shy of my 16th birthday.

I have to tell you the truth.  My Uncle Dan got me going into engines and cars just when I was a little duffer.  When I was real young, he had a '52 Chev, and like a 58 DelRay, but he was Ford to the core.  When he got some money under his belt we were building Ford stuff and pretty much nothing else.  That's where I got my experience with the Ford Big Block stuff like the 429, and 390.  While you can apply the knowledge accross the board, I got a real respect for the Ford power plants we were building and some of the modifications we were doing.  I have built a few big block Fords on my own - F series mostly.  I did do one 429 that still resides in the family station wagon, but the wagon is pretty much shot.  The engine isn't and will live to see yet another vehicle.

The Oldsmobile thing started through my parents.  They always drove Oldsmobile cars, and I always did the maintenance and repairs on them (from age 13 on).  By default I got to know the Olds engines pretty well, rebuilt a couple for friends and family, and have finally started doing them for my own cars in wholesale fashion. 

I have a 1968 442 that was purchased by my grandparents and handed down to me, a 1967 Cutlass Supreme that I bought on a whim off of Ebay that I am in the process making into a ground pounder, and I just purchased a 425 to go into a 1965 Starfire that I have as well.  All these cars are in pretty good shape, so putting them on the road is going to be fun more than burdon.   

I think that it's best said that I just love cars.  I can even put up with an import if it has an American V-8 in it.  I dug up the Car Craft issue that does the blow by blow of rebuiding a 289, so I will have some insight when I tear into that little mill.  I can't wait - it's going to be too much fun.

I will keep everyone posted on how it's going once all the ownership bull is out of the way.

I'm one happy dude - Bowser. 

I remember hearing something back when I had my Mustang that Ford Motorsport made a 4 bolt main 289/302 block.  On such an oversquared engine with such a tiny displacement, I thought that such and engine, if it had a forged crank and was balanced and blueprinted, would have such a high redline that you would need two needles on your tach, a smaller needle to tell you how many times the big one had been around.  I do know that a dual quad manifold was available for 289/302 as well as a GT40 cam and heads. i dreamed of such an engine, but my money management skills werent so hot back in those days, so it never happened.