1972 Mercury Cougar

1972 Mercury Cougar XR-7 Convertible It's tempting to say the Cougar was declawed in 1972, as stiffer emissions laws doomed the big powerful engines. Sales were 53,702 units, divided into 23,731 base hardtops and 26,802 XR-7 models. Base convertible sales skidded to 1,240 units but XR-7 Convertible sales actually increased by 200 sales to 1,929. Sticker prices dropped. The base hardtop started at $3,061, while the XR-7 cost $3,323. Base convertible began at $3,370 and the ZR-7 was $3,547. Hagerty.com  For consignment, a 1972 Mercury XR-7 convertible showing 3,336 miles, but the true miles are unknown due to a title exemption. An astounding 25 exterior colors were offered in 1972 with the potential of twelve interior colors, six vinyl top colors, and three convertible top colors including Ford blue. Exterior Can we first take note of how the grille that surrounds the headlights continues on to embrace the corner marker lights with seamless horizontal strakes? That's a pretty cool feature that you might miss as your attention is drawn to the upright center grille, vertical this time, with the XR-7 badge front and center. This car, bathed in White, has a long hood, a steeply raked windshield, and a relatively long overhang in back, all held up by 15-inch Cragar SS wheels and letters out 70 series tires. In back, the tail lights exist in a drooping position within the low, chrome bumper and below the sizable decklid, a really unique configuration that's capped here by two exhaust tips protruding in unison. With that raked windshield, the canvas top takes on a low, streamlined profile and this one presents in very good condition. Imperfection on the body include edge chips, dark inclusions in the paint, various chips and scratches throughout, crazing of the trunk lid paint, paint run in several places, minor blistering on a fender, and evidence of filler.  Interior Black vinyl contours make up the door panels adorned with electric window switches and a stately black vinyl insert with a cougar emblem and both doors show some light wear but remain fully intact and generally clean. Grain vinyl covers the tall bucket seats in front presenting in good condition, as are the rear seats with some looseness to the vinyl over the tunnel hump. A wood rimmed sport steering wheel fronts four coved gauges in woodgrain trim of the instrument cluster that continues right to include two smaller gauges, an interior light, an AM/FM radio, A/C panel, and finally, a clock at the top of the center console where it abuts a standard Ford T-shifter. Black loop carpet is below and appears clean while the trunk is lined with a plaid mat over a clean painted stamped steel floor.  Drivetrain Under the hood is a 351ci Cleveland V8 with an Edelbrock intake manifold and Edelbrock 4-barrel carburetor. A FMX 3-speed automatic transmission is behind it and power is routed to the rear 9 with 2.75 gears. The car is equipped with power steering, power brakes, and air conditioning.  Undercarriage We'll call it clean driver quality underneath with some typical surface rust, oxidation, and residual oil on the pan. The front wheels get power disc brakes while the rears get power drums and dual exhaust runs through FlowMaster mufflers on its way to the aforementioned exhaust tips. Suspension is standard here with coil springs in front and leaf springs in back.   Drive-Ability Hello Cleveland! We put the V8 to work and it delivers a smooth idle and adequate power for the test loop. The ride is comfortable and one peers over the long hood to direct the car's direction. We note the clock and reverse lights not working but all other functions on this Cougar work as intended. While Classic Auto Mall represents that these functions were working at the time of our test drive, we cannot guarantee these functions will be working at the time of your purchase.  Less than 2,000 Cougar XR-7 convertibles were produced in 1972 making this a relatively