Cougar Support Group - A New Start

daexpert

I think $21K is a bit too optimistic and doubtful just because I know people will be willing to pay just a bit more the "special" edition. But we'll see, if they go for 21K, would any of you guys trade in your current kitties for it? What do you guys think?

malibu

I just talked to my salesman and my car is still not here! He says it should be out of "prep" today and shipped by Wed. Can anyone tell me what the "Prep" means. Do they detail it or inspect it down in Los Angeles? I thought they would detail it at the dealers place. I have been very patient, but I'm getting tired of driving the dually around town, parking sucks. I commute 60 miles round trip to work everyday and I want my Cougar. Sorry to vent, just getting impatient. Any info on the "prep" would be helpful. Thanks.

fish8

That sucks!!!!

I would think that all the prep would be done at the dealer itself. If it is not, your cat will just get dirty while it is being transported. Maybe they do 2 preps. I really don't know. Why not ask you dealer(salesman)?

jayhawk5

Yeah, maybe 21k is too optimistic, but I wouldn't personally pay any more than that for 30hp and a little better suspension. The sticker could be 23.5k- as long as I could get it for 21k I'd be tempted to trade my kitty in. Any more than that and it wouldn't be worth it to me. Just my 2 cents.
Malibu- hang in there!! The end is in sight.

daexpert

Good point....I"ll admit to that one = ). But if people really want this car, some will pay a lot more than what they should, well, at least I think so.

lmigliore

I wouldn't trade my V6 for an S at $21,000. I would probably have preferred it for $3,000 over what I got, but I certainly won't go through the expense of trading to get a little more go.

The Cougar is not slow with 170 HP. It just looks like it should be a rocketship. I'd want at least 250 HP to match the car's looks; 200 ain't enough to do it.

bman1

i'm getting my kitty this friday...soooo excited!

2000 V6 w/ MTX
cd/cassette
everything except the moonroof (need headroom)

i got it for $17700 after all taxes, etc + the free dvd player deal going on. not too bad! it ended up being under invoice (before taxes) with the $1K rebate. yippee!!!

i'm driving a '94 ATX escort right now, so this will be quite the improvement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

badulah

Bman1:
Congrats and good luck!

All:
I'm currently doing a lot of Cougar-S research. I have come up with some interesting facts. I will post them when I finish up.

giddeup_50

Usually done at the assembly plant (Flat Rock, MI) just prior to wrap and shipping. This is where they review and verify documentation and do a once over of the vehicle. The dealer does his own prep as well, by removing all the wrap stuff and washing, etc...

malibu

Congratulations...they tell me mine will be here by then also. I'm having a hard time concentrating this week, I'm sure you will too. Just think we get to start our summer with new kitty's. My husband felt sorry for me having to wait another week for my car, he let me drive the GTO to work today...what a car!!!
Happy Tuesday all!

fish8

Where is MWS0520? He has not stopped by in awhile? Has he left us????

I hope not!!!!!

stageleft

I don't think he's left us, he's one of us! :^)

badulah

I'm sure he is around somewhere, lurking in the shadows.

MWS0520, Come out Come Out Where ever you are!!!

jimbo_g

I'm back!..... I apologize for my unannounced "disappearing act". Some things came up, beyond my control, that needed to be taken care of. Unfortunately, I had to put my CSG activities on hold. Life sux that way, y'know?? :-)

On a similar note: Those of you that know, i had surgery on both of my shoulders (in Dec '99 and March '00) Well i'm healed pretty well now (i'd sy 85%) and i've returned to work!! So now that I have income again it's back to my goal of getting my own Cougar;-)

Talk to ya soon1
Jimbo_G

P.S. Where's Amber??

fish8

Glad to hear your doing well!!! Welcome back.

scratch3

Due to the fact that I will be soon relocating from Indianapolis to the UK I am sadly forced to part with the Cougar I have purchased just a few weeks ago ! It has done 908 miles.
If anyone is interested or knows anyone who is interested in buying this kitty please post. I am sick - this car has not even out in the rain yet!
The cost of the vehicle was $19448 with tax and delivery and has the following options
Vibrant White exterior
Charcoal leather interior
V6 manual transmission
Sport group
Convenience Group
CD with cassette/FM-AM
16 inch polished aluminum wheels
ABS
Traction control
side air bags

I will entertain sensible offers, thanks

rickel

Ahh...don't sell it! Just take it with you! The looks you get will be worth the hassle of being on the wrong side of the car--NOT! But maybe somebody out there can change it to right hand drive?

As an aside, I once had to drive big, heavy deuce-and-half's in England, and let me tell you--that was work, and not a fun experience. Wrong side of the vehicle, and you can even SEE the oncoming traffic. Good thing they stayed out of my way.

Cougar in Brighty...ah...too bad it won't be so. I hope you find a good home for your kitty!

Rick

gustafsc

Gonna go Cougaring through the wilds of Wisconsin to Door Co. Friday through Tues., and return to work 1st Monday in June.

Amber, I'll wave as I pass through Milwaukee about 9:00AM.

See ya'll later, and I expect to spend the first couple of hours back getting caught up on all the posts.

Skip G.

fish8

Have fun and drive safely.

stageleft

I second that thought ... Enjoy your trip, Skip!

badulah

Skip:
Have a great time, and stay safe!!!

giddeup_50

Saw a Chrome Yellow Cougar on a car carrier coming from Flat Rock. I like yellow, but it gives the car an appearance of a lemon because of its shape and that's never good! I see the zx2 spoert also is showing off the yellow.

fish8

I just read in the newspaper that 945 people are being layed off at the Flat Rock plant. This is due to slow sales of the Cougar and 626. I never understood why the Cougar didn't meet expectations. The 626 on the other hand is not as good as their competition (IMHO).

daexpert

Does the Cougar sell better in some areas than others? I'm asking this because I see lots of kitties riding around nowdays and if you go to a dealer they seem to be selling quite a few of them. Is Ford almost selling them at cost or maybe I just have the wrong perception about the Cougar selling pretty well?

I think the Cougar is a pretty damn good car now for its price. I have plenty of doubts with my other car (as you guys well know), but with this one, no problems so far, you can't ask much more for a car at that price I think.

fish8

I agree!!

badulah

The Cougar didn't meet expectations because Ford didn't allow it to. Their advertising for this car is non-existent. I know you have all heard me rant about lack of promotions and advertisement, but I truly believe FMC is the reason for poor sales.

You can't make a product, not promote it, and expect it to sell well.

(this is assuming all of these rumors are true)

fish8

It seems like Ford has given into Toyota and Mitsubishi with respect to advertising. I see tons of commercials for the Celica and Eclipse and only 1 (in the past year) for the Cougar.

Come on Ford, fight back!!!!!

badulah

My latest review is about this problem. I will have it posted on the CSG site early next week. I was waiting to post it because I want to ad a few pics to it, but my home PC is on the fritz again, so I mightj ust post it without them.

halo_1

To get more info on the Flat Rock layoffs, go to www.CNNfn.com, and type Ford in the search box. Apparently, Cougar sales are way off percentage wise. Maybe this is the reason why they held off making the "S". No one is interested in the Cougar except us. Or, is it that FMC dropped the ball big time on this one. Preferred to move the Focus instead of the Cougar. Well, if they discontinue the car at least we will have a rare, nice looking car with a bad resale value since no one will know what it is. Maybe we can fool them to think it is a special edition Jag or something like that...

stageleft

Yikes. I remember reading something a little while back about FMC cutting production of the Cougar back 1/3, but didn't know it was going to be at the expense of it's workers. That bites, but I guess it's the industry. It's a way around having to produce a car that's not selling up to its expectations. I'm really sorry to hear this, because ultimately, I think it will scare FMC off from trying to change the design realm of new cars for years to come. Goodbye exciting, new styles, hello boring! :^(

It's especially dismal thinking that Toyota is going to sell mass amounts of an essentially ripped-off design, too. Personally, I think they took the new-edge styling when FMC introduced it, but apparently people are more willing to buy a grossly overpriced, and overrated car compared to the one we all fell in love with. I wonder if it does have something to do with the lack of advertising? Hmmm. We may never know.

mws0520

Thanks for the concern. I have been monitoring the site.

Regarding the layoffs, it is a move to balance production with reduced market demand for the Cougar AND the Mazda 626. The plant was facilitized to support substantial export volume which never materialized.

As you all know, the segment is very competitive and success is heavily dependent upon the newest and hottest products. Our competitors have launched redesigned products in the segment since our vehicle was introduced two years ago. We have several initiatives planned to re-ignite excitement for the Cougar, including special vehicle packages like our Zinc Yellow Cougar (arriving in stores now through the end of the summer) and the much anticipated Cougar S.

We still believe that we have the best vehicle in the market. The actions we take over the next few months will confirm our assumptions.

As always, thanks to you, the CSG, for your support!

stageleft

You're welcome MWS, glad to see you're still monitoring. I too, believe that you have the BEST vehicle in this segment, and wish you and your staff well in the coming model years.

And thank you, for being part of the CSG. I know all of us are happy you're a member!

fish8

Thanks for chiming in!!!

I do hope you all do more to ignite interest in the Cougar. I hope there are more plans in the works than just selling a "new" color. That alone will not draw buyers to Mercury dealers. The Cougar S might provide more exitement(I hope). The key here is ADVERTISING. Everyone: repeat after me!!!!!!!!

ADVERTISING!!!!!!!!!

badulah

ADVERTISING!!!!!!!!!

jayhawk5

I too believe that the cougar is the best car in it's segment. However, it's because I OWN ONE. How does Mercury ever expect the cougar to get off the ground without any publicity? IMHO, Ford is setting itself up to fail before they even start. You have to have advertising these days to saturate the public with what your selling. Every other commercial I see is a Toyota commercial, or a Honda commercial. It seems to me that Ford doesn't have the insight to launch a great car like the Cougar. The only way I found out about it was doing research on my own. There has been no publicity on this car whatsoever, and that makes me sad. Sad, because we all know what a great car the cougar is. Advertising is the only way to let the general public know what we already do. Don't drop the ball again Ford- I want to be able to buy a 3rd generation cougar in another 6 years!

badulah

and once again I shall say it:

ADVERTISING!!!!!!!!

catscratch

I, for one, was seriously considering the Toyota Celica before I stumbled across some info on the "new" Cougar on the net. And let me say, "Thank God I did!" I have yet to see ONE Cougar commercial. The Cat is all but non-existent in central WI. I've seen only 3 that were not on lots...

TV, RADIO, ADVERTISING, TV, RADIO, ADVERTISING....BILLBOARDS.....TV, RADIO, etc

hehe...it's the advertising song...

dasaint1

...perhaps another factor outside of lack of advertising is a reason for the disappointing sales of the Cougar.

I'm not even sure if that's true. I'm not disappointed that L-M sold over 56,000 Cougars for 1999. Actually that sounds pretty good to me(although I know that pales in comparison to sales of over 160,000 for the Mustang).

Perhaps giving it the name Cougar hurt the sales. Most people know the Cougar as that huge, gas-guzzling boat. A lot of people who've commented on my Cat usually say they can't believe how the Cougar has changed.

If you were in the market for an inexpensive, sporty front-wheel drive, hatchback car, you're more likely to think of Saturns, Integras, or Eclipses. Changing the perception of people is hard. After all, 3 years ago, who would've thought that we'd all be buying Cougars.

jayhawk5

I've got a great idea on how to get the cougar out there. Ford should hire me to advertise the cougar. They could give me a company car (a cougar S), a huge expense account, lots of assistants (so I actually don't have to do any work), and pay me a six figure salary. And I would let them. I could make everyone else do the work and take all the credit at the end. I would guarantee to raise cougar sales, and if that doesn't work- well it wouldn't matter, I'd be rich!!!

malibu

I'll be one of your assistants..maybe then I'll get my cougar. We're down to the wire for delivery now so everytime my phone rings I jump. Waiting is hell!

gustafsc

Thanks for the good wishes gang!!

Jayhawk, you sound like a true manager, only you're not supposed to let anybody know all that. Thats managerial TOP SECRET< BURN BEFORE READING> stuff.

By for now,

Skip G.

jayhawk5

Unfortunately, I'm not a manager- just a pawn in the game of life (name that movie). All assistants would get a free cougar s type and $100,000 a year salary. You in turn could have people under you, and make them do all the work I give you. I'm sure Ford could afford us- they're not spending any money on advertising!!! Happy cougaring.

halo_1

IMHO, the Cougar was used as a guinea pig in the US, to see if the new edge design would catch on. Apparently, Ford wanted to test the waters with a brand that was known yet not as known as its FORD brands (i.e. Mustang, Taurus). Since it succeeded in building interest in the new edge design, it decided to try it on a new brand the FOCUS, and pumped all the ad money into that instead of the Cougar. That's why the FOCUS is so successful and the Cougar isn't. Maybe, it was never Ford's intention to have the Cougar succeed as a newly redesigned car. What do you all think???

jayhawk5

That's an interesting and very possible theory.
Yes- I admit it, I'm loitering in the cougar room today.

stageleft

No such thing as loitering in a club you're a member of, Jayhawk! :^)

Come to think of it, that theory with the Focus might be more accurate (whether FMC admits it or not). I remember seeing the "James Bond-esque" commercials right up until the Focus was released. Then, *poof*, they were gone.

fastback2

Unfortunately, 945 people over in Flat Rock are finding this out the hard way. If I was one of those folks, I'd be ripped knowing that I lost my job due to FMC's apparent lack of interest in selling the cougar. In today's marketplace, a company must take advantage of any available avenue of information to sell their product. In the past, people when buying a car would go directly to the car dealership to scope out what is available. However, people can now do most of their car research over the web and via magazines, and then approach dealers after they've settled upon two or three vehicles of interest. If a car company doesn't effectively advertise beyond the dealership, chances are that potential customers will never hear about their products beyond those which have been around for years. In the case of the cougar, without effective advertising people will associate the cougar name with the big luxury coupe of yore(not the kind of car the people in Ford's target market would have any interest in). If Ford wants to make a profit on the cougar, they are going to have to advertise in a way that reaches potential customers via the ways those customers get info (TV commercials, magazine ads, etc). To be fair, FMC does a great job of this when selling their trucks(ads narrated by the DJ from Northern Exposure). A similar ad campaign for the cougar would work wonders.

jayhawk5

Good point. What confuses me is this: If all of us 'get it' when it comes to advertising the cougar, why doesn't Ford? Maybe they're satisfied with their cougar sales. Who knows- it's a mystery to me.

daexpert

I'm sure Ford has a reason for their lack of advertising, and I'm sure that it is really stupid reason but there is no way they could be that ignorant or dumb. But then again, their customer service is just terrible--so you never know! = )

katlvr

This comes as a shock to me, just the other day while driving to work I noted how many Cougars there are on the roads here in T.O whereas only a few months ago the only Cougar I ever saw was mine.

nhansen

Remember what MWS said about the re-balancing of Flat Rock: Export volume never materialized.

I have been in a Great Britan Cougar, and although I love some of the content (Auto climate control, heated seats, heated windscreen, rear fog lights, etc.) I would not pay the price for one over there (Nearly 23,000 pounds or $34,000 US).

Also remember that the US has a much stronger economy right than most countries. Basically we've all got it good right here. Now go out and burn some fossil fuels this weekend!