I
n the beginning, Mustang’s parallel model on the Mercury side
was Cougar, a step-up model built on the same basic platform,
using the same (for the most part) engines and drivelines,
but with a bit more content, upscale appointments, and its own
exterior look.
In 1970, Lincoln-Mercury began importing a German-built
compact, introducing the Capri name to a new generation that
probably wouldn’t remember it was used on Lincolns of the
’50s. In 1974, the Mustang got radically smaller as a redesigned
subcompact, while Cougar expanded into a pony-car–styled
intermediate, now matching the Torino. The Mustang/Cougar
partnership was over. Through the ’70s, the auto industry struggled
with changing markets, increasing government regulations, more
competitive imports, and uncertain gasoline supplies. Designs
were shifted in search of their core identity.
By 1979, the Pinto-based Mustang wa 2F