It's a 67 S-code XR-7 GT. A previous owner pulled the 390 and put in a 428 out of a Torino. Also has the full Global West suspension. It's being shipped to me now, I should have it in a couple of weeks. You can see some pics at my web site: http://red428cat.tripod.com The Cougar weighs about 800 lbs less than my Mach 1 so I'm pretty excited about the performance possibilities.
The car is an XR-7 GT. So it has the XR-7 luxury options and the GT performance options (orginally had the 390 Marauder engine). Extremely rare combination, we'll see what the Marty report says. Has the leather interior. You couldn't get a factory sunroof on a 67 and in 68 it only came on the G-model. My only complaint is the automatic transmission; it's a C-6 in great condition but I really wanted a four-speed. I got a pretty good price on the car and can probably afford to put in a four-speed next winter. The plan is to fix the car up somewhere slightly beyond restomod, but not pro-street. Indeed, the FE rules. I've been looking for a big-block 67-68 Cougar for several months. This car was the best all around value and I don't mind that it has a non-original 428 engine at all. I have a pair of 428 Cobra Jet heads in my basement but I might sell or trade those for a pair of the Edelbrock aluminum heads. Lotsa things I plan to do to make the front end lighter such as aluminum water pump, intake, radiator. Am considering fiberglass fenders and hood since they're fairly cheap and I plan to paint the car anyway. I'll post pics on my web site as the project progresses. You can't spell FEAR without FE!!!!
Well let's not doubt that the 460 engines have incredible potential, they were short changed by never getting a chance in a high performance Mustang, nevertheless the 385 series engines were designed to replace the aging FE...they have better valvetrains, lighter internals, bigger ports, larger bore to stroke ratio and better oiling. Even in the Lincoln Continentals the (68-71) 460s packed 365 horses 485 ft-lbs of torque...that's ~40 more ft-lbs of torque than a 428CJ and it was making those numbers in a luxury application. Big inch FEs are no pushover by any stretch of the imagination and even with their older design are extremely strong and even more so when modded! Nice Purchase 71Hoss! looking forward to the pics!
Thanks! Actually, I'd LOVE to have a 385 block car in my life. I keep looking for a '71 Mustang vert with a 429-460. It's a fairly common conversion but I'll prolly end up doing it myself. In the meantime, this Cougar is my fourth FE-powered car so at least I'm kinda getting the hang of them...
