1977 Mercury Cougar Brougham 4-door

That was an X-R7 option. How did it end up on a 4-door, if it wasn't a do-it-yourself upgrade?

 

Right, I understand that--Babe has it with her GT package. I was merely pointing out the passenger side applique didn't look like it was matching the driver's side.

 

Reading the brochure, I saw no indication that the 'Sports Instrumentation Group' was just confined to the XR-7. Somewhat curiously, I didn't see any limitations on the buxket seats / floor shift console option, either. (There was a 'base model' (non XR-7) Cougar 2-door that at least could be ordered that way....)

Brochures:
(My research references the first one. Didn't take time to look at the second...)
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/mercury/77cu/77cu.html
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/mercury/q77/q77.html

 

The brochure is a little confusing. First, they show the instrument package together with a floor shift. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. But, a potential customer might think he'd have to order the buckets seats, along with it. Nowhere does it state that bucket seats, floor console and brushed aluminum instrument panel trim can be ordered on the wagon- or sedan versions. Which would be unfortunate, if it wasn't an availability.
Secondly, a clear distinction between wagon, 4-door sedan and XR-7 coupe' are not precisely defined, giving one the impression that an XR-7 wagon and XR-7 4-door can be had.
Thirdly, the opera window is obviously an XR-7 option of which could only be ordered on the coupe'.

 

I've heard of all sorts of unusual factory option variations from the 1970s. Just because something was not in the brochure did not necessarily mean it was impossible.

 

1977 Cougar brochure: Sport Instrumentation was optional on all models.

 

The instrument trim shouldn't have been an option that one had to look for in a brochure. They could have added the brush aluminum instrument panel trim with custom wheel to the tilt steering wheel photo and then print out the description accordingly. Nobody has to see photographs of air conditioning compressors or power steering, to know what they are. If they had not visually hidden the trim option, I'm sure that they would have sold many more of them.
It's also unfortunate that FoMoCo set it up so that a buyer could only have had bucket seats and floorshift dealer-installed, on non-XR-7 models. Even though, it wouldn't have been any more trouble to do this on the assembly line. They could have had a leading edge on their competitors, on this issue, if they had wanted. Then again, they were number two. No wonder

 

The 1977 brochure shows buckets and floor shift factory optional on all two-door models.

 

And don't forget that the base model Cougar 2 door (non XR7)had a really plain jane LTD II roofline.....

 

Now up to $3900 reserve not met with just under two days to go.

What's a reasonable price for this very rare Cat for which there is not much demand?

 

As of this moment, the bid is up $4049.99 with the reserve not met. I would say that a reasonable price for this car is what the bidding is at now. The Old Cars Price Guide, as one data point, puts the value of a '77 Cougar four-door in showroom condition at between $3500 and $4000. The bidding has already exceeded this.

We say it over and over. Condition alone does not determine value. Rarity alone does not determine value. The car also has to be desirable. And the third is not the result of the first two. Just because a car is rare and in good condition doesn't automatically make it desirable. It has to be on people's want lists if it's going to garner a high value. Late '70s Mercury Cougar four-doors are not high on people's want lists. Four-door cars in general are not high on people's want lists. I think this auction is being very helpful to him in showing what the car is worth. He might think it's worth $10K, but that's wishful thinking. If he doesn't want to see it in his driveway a year from now, he will eventually see the light and take the $4K people are offering.

 

It's funny to note that four-door cars are desired when you have a family...big, small, parents just want that convenience. But when those cars age, for the most part, they're not desireable anymore. Wagons are a minor exception in that, but are not as desireable as a two-door.

 

All excellent points. Now if it were a '77 Cougar Villager wagon similarly loaded......well, now a bit higher on the desirability scale...

 

Here's the equivalent XR-7 2-door. Overpriced? Most likely.

https://omaha.craigslist.org/cto/d/classic-1977-mercury-xr7/6443337133.html

 

That's a pretty car. The two-door-ness of it just makes for a whole different look.

I'm struck by how similar the front end design is to the '77-'78 Toronados. Not exactly the same, of course, but side-by-side rectangular headlights, protruding center grille with primarily vertical bars, slight forward bulge at the center of the bumper, and the vertical rubber bumpers on the lower part of the bumper. Put them next to each other, and you notice the similarities more than the differences.






As far as value, the Old Cars Price Guide lists the value of a '77 XR7 in showroom condition at about $5,000. Not a lot of demand for these (just like my car!), so his asking price of $8,000 might be a bit strong. But you don't know. It's in great shape, it's a Cougar, and maybe a fan of the Cougars, of which I'd assume there's more than a few, would pay in the, say, $5,000 to $7,000 range for one of these, especially for a low-mileage example like this one.

He says the car is "valued at" $15,000. I'd like to know by who. I like how he says "I don't want no where near that" like he's doing us a big favor. What he really means is that he knows that $15,000 for this car is nonsense. After all, who wouldn't take $15,000 instead of $8,000 if offered the option?