Jim’s Cayenne Cougar
1969 Mercury Cougar XR7 Convertible
This Cat has a Kick!
1969 Mercury Cougar XR7 Convertible
This Cat has a Kick!
This 1969 Mercury Cougar XR7 Convertible was a vehicle that KTL Restorations found just outside of Atlanta, GA. Kurt Lawrance made the trip to the peach state, inspected the vehicle and determined it was perfect for a restomod project. So he bought it for our customer Jim. At first glance, this Cougar may look pretty stock, but looks can be deceiving! While it retains much of the original look of a ’69 Cougar, many, many modifiations were made to allow this vehicle to drive and perform like a modern vehicle.
Engine & Drivetrain
We took the original 390 FE engine and rebuilt it with Holley Performance Products Terminator X Fuel Injection, Doug’s Headers wrapped with Titanium DEI header wrap, Promaxx heads, billet valve covers and pulley system from CVF Racing, among other components. We then added a custom built radiator from Dewitts, and coupled it to an AOD transmission with adapter plate to fit the big block.
Modifications
This Cougar has had countless modifications that may look subtle in nature, but bring the iconic look of this vehicle into the 21st century! The body was completely stripped to bare metal and restored to perfection before applying a KTL Custom paint mix using Glasurit’s 55 Line. We named it “Cayenne”, thus giving this vehicle its name. One of the more significant cosmetic changes that was made was shaving and modifying the hood scoop. The bumpers were also shaved to fit the body and then re-chromed by Advanced Custom Chrome.
The interior is by King’s Auto Upholstery of Roanoke, VA and Speed & Design of Nashville, TN. Speed & Design fabricated custom seat covers using Moore & Giles Tribeca Black and Quarry leather. King’s Auto modified the vehicle and trunk floors, along with a custom convertible boot. A new convertible canvas top was provided by Kee Auto Top.
Other modifications include:
- Polished 18″ wheels from Schott Performance fitted with Mickey Thompson Tires
- Baer Brakes in “Black Ice” finish ensures the Cayenne stops as well as it goes
- All new wiring from Painless
- Tilt away steering column from IDidit with a Stallion steering wheel from Sparc Industries (wrapped in Moore & Giles leather)
- Custom gauge cluster with analog and digital upgrades by Dakota Digital
- Vintage Air
To see a complete and detailed build sheet, including all of our partners on this project, Click Here.