Your cougar is outstanding Jim. I have a 64 galaxie fastback the same color as the one in your picture. That one is a 500 XL while mine is a bench seat 500, 289, 3 on the tree.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

I saw the first one ever sold. I did not know it at the time but lived next door to a school teacher in Chicago that she convinced a dealer to sell her one before they actually were available to the public. Then by the early seventies it was a rustang being rebuilt by her husband in the same garage next door. My father noticed my interest in his rebuild, and bought a 65 rustang ($200) that if I worked on it I could have a decent car when I got my license. I was like a taxi in sophomore HS only fare was help with a push start, and not complain when it was snowing and the top was still down. I always had a more than enough help getting it started. Her's was a 289 mine was an in line six.

I had a '68 Cougar my junior year in high school. 302/two barrel, C4 & air. Sand color with a black vinyl roof. 500s on it and L60 rear tires....thought I was cool...(little did I know), sure was better than the '62 Valiant that preceded it.

Like everyone else I wish i could have that one back.

Be careful about being overly nostalgic. Here in AZ there are weekly car shows and the big auctions in January. While walking around you see your automotive "high school" sweethearts. They seemingly haven't aged and you get all nostalgic. Then you remember what high maintenance beotches they were back then, and ever more so now, and why you "broke up" in the first place.

I knew a guy like that in NM. Not sure what his dad did but the kid and his sister, both quite obese, were always being lavished with expensive toys. He had the biggest bike in Jr. High - a Yamaha 250 twin street/dirt bike. Then when he was a sophomore, he got a Mustang (this in '67) with a 390. Way too fast for a punk kid.

__________________
1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

Mustang's marketing was unique--very low base price but with a Long long options list. You could get Mustang in just about any state from very mild to wild. The sexist ads of the time called the base 6 cyl hatch, " a secretary's car". The wilder versions might have been described as "hairy-chested man's car"

__________________
1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

The fast mustang I remember was a fellow who had graduated and was working. He had a poppy orange notchback with the 271 hp engine and four speed.

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Yeah, I do remember the day the first ones were introduced. I was 9. I was quite the car spotter when I was a kid.

Tv Car Commercials - 60 ' S - Ford Mustang ( 1968 ) 68 - YouTube

Not about the '64 , but this commercial still sticks in my head. The 67/68 , IMO was the best of the classic Mustangs

__________________
80 300SD (129k mi) 82 240D stick (193k mi)77 240D auto - stick to be (153k mi) 85 380SL (145k mi) 89 BMW 535i 82 Diesel Rabbit Pickup (374k mi) 91 Jetta IDI Diesel (155k mi) 81 VW Rabbit Convertible Diesel 70 Triumph Spitfire Mk III (63kmi)66 Triumph TR4a IRS (90k mi)67 Ford F-100 (??)

I rode in the 390 Mustang I mentioned once with my friend and his mother. It was an automatic IIRC. He still had his learner's permit and his parents bought him that!! This in NM, you could get a license at 15 upon completion of driver's ed.

He put his foot hard into it, my head snapped back and his mother beamed in admiration. Strange family.

__________________
1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

I respectfully disagree.


While the maintenance schedule was certainly more frequent, the incredible simplicity of the mustangs really put a low limit on how many things *could* have problems.

I drove various Mustangs as primary drivers from around 74 through the early nineties. Virtually all, but two, were small block V-8s. A fair number were sticks, the rest select shift automatic (never owned a cruiseomatic 65-66). My recollection is that these cars, once in good mechanical condition, required very little to keep running. Sure, you had to address points, plugs, and condenser every 8-12k, lube the chassis every 3k, do the brakes periodically, and of course, frequent oil and filter changes.


Every Mustang I had that was either a very nice car when I bought it, or I had brought it up good condition, rewarded me with many miles of trouble free driving. I can't even remember how many cross country trips we've taken in 10-20 year old Mustangs (in the 70's and 80's, natch). Now on the V-8s, if you could get 18mpg on the highway, you considered that pretty good.

Of course, I had some dogs in the mix as well, but most of those were pretty neglected when I rescued them.

Looking back on the the first generation, 65 - 68, there were a few I really enjoyed.

One of the oddballs was a 67 red convertible.

The year was 1974. I was living in Columbus, Ohio and already had two cars, one a Mustang. I saw this car advertised and went to take a look.
It was a red convertible with a white top and a black std interior. Had around a 90k on it, which was considered pretty done for a car in those days. Some rust in the rear quarters, top is shot, and paint is worn. But..... it has a rebuilt engine. Car was a test subject at a local tech school and had a rebuilt engine installed. The ragtop was advertised as a six cylinder manual trans car. The bait for me was the price. $200. So I head over to look at the car. With just the visual, I was ready to buy, story jibed, etc. Wanna take it for a test drive? Sure. Sound of keys getting tossed. OK, now I'm in the car. Fires right up, runs great, gages all good, so let's go.

Slip the clutch, and slip the clutch, and, slip the clutch. OK, now she's running, but what was up with that? This thing got a 2. something rear end? Other than that, car runs great, once moving. I like the car. I like it a lot. The lightweight six with no power accessories really enlivens the handling. So, now I decide to turn back and return the car, I'm so tickled with it I'm not even going to argue the price. So, I come to a stop and back up. At least I try to backup. Where the heck is reverse? I go to the left of second, nope, that's not it. Try up along first. Nope, that gets me going forward, too.

Crap, something wrong with the transmission. Now, the price isn't looking as good.

As I continue to search for reverse, I slowly come to the realization that I'm not moving into another gate the left of 1st. So, I try going to the right. Maybe this linkage is different from the V-8s I'm used to....

What! I found reverse! Well then, what's that gear to the left and forward I assumed was reverse?

Hot Damn! This car's got a Dagenheim 4 speed in it!

Ended up fixing the cosmetics ($100 top, new tires, paint, etc.) and refreshed the mechanicals. This was also the car that demonstrated to me the advantages of radial tires.

Eventually, my younger brother ended up with the car, and his contribution was a set of 3 into one 1 headers and tri power Clifford intake. Boy, did that car sound mean after that. I'll bet between my brother and I, we put well north of 100K on that car.

Lost track of the car after he sold it, it may still be in Tucson.....


Jim

__________________
14 E250 BlueTEC black. 45k miles
95 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 66k miles
94 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 152k miles
85 300TD 4 spd man, euro bumpers and lights, 15" Pentas dark blue 274k miles

Dad's younger brother bought it in 1958.
Eventually it went to one of Dad's older brothers.

Now my cousin owns the 40.
He's recently had it restored to 100 point condition, and this past fall it ran away with all the awards at the LCOC convention.

I rode in it last November, and what a magnificent car. The level of detail in the restoration is incredible. I doubt it was that perfect when new....
Here's a link to what she looks like now...

https://www.google.com/search?site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1600&bih=796&q=eric+freeh+lincoln&oq=eric+freeh+lincoln&gs_l=img.12...2309.12899.0.17206.22.10.3.9.11.0.142.1360.0j10.10.0....0...1ac.1.41.img..11.11.1356.u LpgmnMAtS4#facrc=_&imgrc=BdD9T0gP8VhAyM%253A%3BAdrZwMrF04LAXM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.santafeconcorso.com%252Farchive% 252F2012%252Fimages%252F1940Lincoln-6847.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.santafeconcorso.com%252Farchive%252F2012%252F1940_Lincoln.html%3B7 50%3B500

http://www.lcoc.org/PhotoAlbum/PhotoDetail.asp?ID_Meet=157&index=12#X0


http://www.lcoc.org/PhotoAlbum/PhotoDetail.asp?ID_Meet=157&index=10#X0

http://www.lcoc.org/PhotoAlbum/PhotoDetail.asp?ID_Meet=157&index=30#X0

http://www.lcoc.org/PhotoAlbum/PhotoDetail.asp?ID_Meet=157&index=34#X0


Many, many memories of that Lincoln, we used to get a ride on Saturday for ice cream when we finished our chores.

I currently own a 55 Ford Sunliner (used it as our wedding car in 79) that my mother's oldest brother bought new, so that's actually been in the family longer.. Doesn't get any more nostalgic than that.
Kinda wish I'd kept my honeymoon 67 Mustang ragtop, but you can't have everything.

Jim

__________________
14 E250 BlueTEC black. 45k miles
95 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 66k miles
94 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 152k miles
85 300TD 4 spd man, euro bumpers and lights, 15" Pentas dark blue 274k miles