1999 Mercury Cougar from North America - Comments

I bought a 1999 Cougar 5 months ago. It ran amazing; three mechanics said the engine was sound and it was going to last me a long time. That was absolutely wrong.

I drove this car everywhere with no problem. It was running great, but on Xmas Eve the car decided to not go into gear. Now I've never had a problem like that before, it just now doesn't want to go into gear, then it does and then it didn't, and now it won't go into gear anymore.

The trans went is what I'm told. All in one day, poof, I had a trans problem.

I took it to 2 mechanics and they all want more than I paid for the car, so lucky me, I'm screwed cause Mercury didn't recall this thing like they should have. Thank you Mercury! You know where you can put this car!

I just got a 1999 Mercury Cougar a week ago. $10000.00 financed through a local dealer. I love the look of my red baby!!! When I test drove it, it was just what I was looking for! Exactly what I have always wanted! (I'm only 22).

I went in on Feb 9 to look around and fell in love with it!

After signing the deal, $13500 in all, I went home very excitingly!

Not even an hour had passed by, when I went back out to take a five minute trip to the convenience store in my beautiful car, it wouldn't start. Took it the next day to get it checked out, and it was the alternator. 2 days in shop. 1 day missed from work since I had no way to get there!

When I picked it up Wednesday, everything was fine. Later that evening, my hubby went to take it for a drive, and it made a screechy noise. We left it like that noting that I couldn't miss another day of work. So Friday, check engine light came on. being a mile away from the dealer where we got it, I took it in, the mechanic reset the code and I told him about the screeching noise it would make all of a sudden.

He said it was probably the starter and would need it there another 2 days. So I took it in today, and it's actually the flywheel that is missing teeth! The flywheel is located between the motor and transmission, so hopefully I'll get my car back Wednesday!

As I'm typing this, I just called the service shop, noting it has a 1 month warranty, and told him some minor problems which are the speedometer stopped working all of a sudden, (it worked fine after being tapped on that glass), the driver window has difficulty going up, and the remote or button inside of car will not release the trunk. I have to open it with the key, and hold it open with one hand while I load stuff with the other.

Hopefully that will all be fixed by Tuesday evening... so I can at least enjoy my beauty on Wednesday since I got an extra sick day off just in case... good luck to me as I have not even owned it for more than a week!

Let me know your problems and if it's a good idea to keep this car or not!! msilva8609@yahoo.com

So you spent $13500 for a 10 year old car? My compliments to the dealer!

I agree with this guy. I paid 3200 for mine used with 69000 miles on it. I say dump it now because the problems are just starting. new trans, 3300. and that's the 100k/3 year warranty, which you want, trust me. haven't had it a full year yet, new alternator, 206, and trans, 3300, speed sensor, 54, new tie rods... the list goes on.

I'd say take it back.

TOO MUCH for such an old car and it's an unreliable design.

This model is for enthusiasts that love the style and can fix/upgrade almost everything themselves.

Return it for a full refund if you still can. Look at the new Civic SI Coupe, it's got more power, better fuel efficiency, 100x times more reliable and looks awesome too. You can get a new one of those for a couple of thousand more.

I wanted it myself but didn't want a car payment + higher insurance.

My second choice was the Cougar, and after researching all options for 10 days on Craigslist, I bought a 2000 Cougar V6, 5 Speed, 83k for 3200$ from a small dealer in MA.

Dealer are struggling to sell now, so take advantage and buy a new Honda, please. I really feel bad for your situation and hope that all turns out well.

On the other hand, if you absolutely want a Cougar. Go on Craigslist and look at all Cougars for sale, try getting the best condition possible (they haven't made them since 2002).

I too have a 99 cougar 2.5L V6 have had it for 2 years, check engine light on for all two of them. replaced fuel pump twice and now have recently been stalling out while driving on highway, streets or wherever. have taken it to 3 different mechanics and they all tell me my car is in top shape. can annyone help because im afraid during one of these stall outs I am going to get hit and possibly die!

The cougar/contour/mystique tend to have a wiring harness problem. The insulation on the wires gets brittle over time and causes shorts that are hard to track down. My best guess is that you have such a problem.

So, I too have `99 Cougar. This car and I have been to hell and back.

Recently my ignition is sticking when I remove the key. Also, sometimes clicks when trying to start, a quick jump and she's running again. I just had a tune up about 2 months ago.

She had her check engine light on since I got her 3 years ago. A good tune up took care of the light, for 2 months, it's back on again.

Oh, she had a fuse problem that caused it to not read on any computer that ran a diagnostic, that was fun...

Hey, I have a 99 Cougar that stopped running last fall. I was driving home from work when I noticed it was making a slapping noise, and when I was about 3 miles from home it was a lot louder. As I went to turn down my street, the car died right when I hit the brakes, so I coasted half way in my driveway. I got it to start once more, and pulled the rest of the way in. I shut it off and now it won't start. It cranks over, but nothing happens. So if anyone has any idea what it is, email me at alpine169@hotmail.com

For those of you who have a "Check Engine Light" on and ignore and expect the car to last are mistaken.

The light is there for a reason, although the code may throw some other code, it can be something similar or something before that part causing that part to "malfunction".

The cars overall seem to be very good cars, keep up your maintenance as any car. Brakes, tires, batteries, rotors and WINDOW MOTORS are common in any car, not just the Cougar, so stop complaining.

Thanks.

I am buying a 1999 Cougar today. I fully expect to sink about 2-3 thousand in her over this year. I am paying 2 for her so I don't mind. I paid 27 thousand for a brand new, fully loaded luxury SUV that I have had for 6 years now. In the last 3 years I have sunk another 8 thousand in her just to keep her moving! She is my daughter's problem now.

The Cougar I can forgive, she's older, has high miles and only makes the strange idle noise. Other than that, I drove her and feel in love! Handles better than mine, and I love the look.

I am hitting 40 and in my years I have owned 8 cars. Only one wasn't a money pit, and only one was not brand new at purchase. Guess which one wasn't the pit.

When you buy used, you have to expect to replace most of what's under the hood. And every car maker has issued recalls, none are immune. I bought one car I had to return to the dealer the same week as the thing broke down after purchase. Hope I can handle the Cougar and her baggage. My husband bought a Harley off the showroom floor and has had to do almost 2 thousand in repairs in the 3 years he's had it. Why should this car be any different?

I have had the 99 Cougar since new, and have had problems as well, but overall it's a pretty good car.

New tie rod ends twice, three sets of tires, new brakes three times (though it is because of my driving).

Replacing the alternator, serpentine, and all the pulleys this weekend because of a rattle.

Have had the same check engine light on for two years, but disconnecting the battery fixes that for a while.

Pressing the units and select button and holding for ten seconds will reset the maintenance light on the overhead dummy lights.

If the button for the trunk release doesn't work, check to make sure it didn't get unplugged right behind the housing for the button. Happened to me and that was the fix.

he sunroof is a problem on almost all of the 99 Cougars because of the design of the tracking with plastic parts. Replace it with the metal ones from the 2001 Cougar or just don't use it ($1500 dollars to replace.)

Going to replace the tranny and struts and shocks later this year.

For those of you having a problem with stalling, it needs a new alternator, and replacing the belt and pulleys worked wonders on my friend's Cougar, so I am replacing mine before the problem rears its ugly head (Alternator placement is a pain in the ***, have to remove the tire and tie rod end to get to it on the 2.5L, not sure about the 2.0L).

Brake pad sensor is only on one of the front wheels, so if you think you need new pads, get it done because it is the side without the sensor that wears faster, and will keep you from having to replace the rotors.

My car has been paid for seven years now, and am going to keep it another four.

Get an owners manual and try to do the easier fixes yourself, will save you thousands over a few years. It seems scary, but I learned how to work on cars with this car, and the tight engine compartment and bad placement of things make every car you work on seem like a cake walk after this one. Hope this helps.

I bought a 99 Cougar in January and it DIED about a mile and a half from the car lot. It didn't even have enough power to put it in neutral, so I could coast off the road.

I tried to tell them it was the alternator when I looked at it, but of course they don't listen to a girl about these things. I (perhaps stupidly) still wanted the car, so the people I bought it from had it fixed at their expense.

When I got it back a few days later, it was running just fine, but all the display lights and headlights pulsated when I drove, but I thought that was probably just a wiring issue and planned to have it looked at later.

It ran just fine from about January 20th til March 17th when I was taking my mother to the hospital for surgery at 5am. It died, although not as bad as the first time. I had the battery recharged and drove it to a repair shop to discover (to my horror) that there was an oil leak dripping down, causing the alternator to short out. Firestone wanted $1202.42 to fix it. Of course didn't have the money for it, so I took it back where I bought it and they got their mechanic to fix it again, this time at my cost ($390).

When I got it back from them last week, I knew as soon as I got in it that it wasn't running right. The alternator issue was fixed, but the engine was running a LOT louder than it should have been and it didn't want to change gears at all (it's an automatic). I planned on taking it back to them the next day when I had more time. Later on that night it stalled out on me and I panicked for a minute, but it restarted just fine (after I put it back in park). It still drove, but still with those problems, when I hit the accelerator it wouldn't move for a few seconds then it LURCHED forward.

I took it to AutoZone just a few days ago and they found out there was NO transmission fluid in it, the people that fixed the alternator didn't notice this at all, and it was fine before I took it to them, so I don't know if they caused that or not. The man at AutoZone also told me the overly loud engine sounded like the exhaust was loose, and told me to take it to a muffler shop. I took it to the muffler shop today and apparently the people that fixed the alternator stripped the bolts and left it loose, so they fixed it for me, which only took 20 minutes and they only charged $5.

It has been running fantastically since then, very fun to drive. The check engine light is on, but they said it's just an O2 sensor which apparently isn't that big of a deal. I'll have it looked at when I have the money.

Some of these reviews are nightmare stories. I really hope my car doesn't give me any other unreasonable problems. I really love it despite the faults I've had to deal with. It is a 10 year old car so I expect problems, but nothing too ridiculous I hope.

Hi for the girl above me who bought her Cougar in January. I was just wondering how much did you buy it for? Because I've been offered a price for a 99 Cougar, 226000 mileage on it for $2800. And I want an opinion if that's a good deal or what?

The guy who's selling it says that he has had it for a year and has never had any problems with it, but after reading all of these comments, I'm starting to think he is really just trying to sell me this car!

I think the mileage is way too high too, but he said that it is good for a 10 year old car :S. Is it?

I have had my Cougar for almost 7 years. It is a champion when I read some of these stories. But mine also has had major problems.

My Ford Lincoln Mercury dealer changed my transmission 7 times, and had the car for 6 months after the transmission would not shift right.

My moonroof stopped working; the track went bad and the garage broke my fog lamp not once but twice, same side naturally.

Check engine light is still on; they told me O2 sensor too, but in my county I don't need emissions.

My car has always driven fine in snow, except this one time the trans gave out and it needed towed. I have numerous stories like this, but overall the car is 10 years old so I really can't complain much with the car, it's basically the garage that fixes it.

Recently I found a new garage, and the mechanics are friendly and explain in detail what is wrong with my car. Also they helped me get it running at very little cost, not like the dealer, they will rip you every time. It's Ford's way of using bold moves to put money in their pocket.