This 1989 Mercury Cougar LS Cost More Than $2 Billion to Develop, and it Didn't Pay Off for Ford

00:00 Start 00:04 Driving at Dawn 00:16 Startup - Cluster 00:36 Unsettling cat circling around 01:02 Intro to review - weather, Sebring, cats eat toddler? 03:23 Start of car review 11:34 Year in review (quick) 1989 13:53 Back to the car 17:09 Trunk 18:37 Underhood 21:18 Getting inside - interior 27:32 - Test drive This 7th generation Cougar was not a small thing for Ford - it rode on the MN12 platform, something they spent more than $2 billion to develop, right at the precise moment when Americans decided they no longer wanted coupes. Well, it wasn't quite that bad, but not far off. The MN 12 was much more substantial than at first look - it was a RWD platform, with 4-wheel independent suspension - and absolute rarity at e time with the exception of much higher-end European cars. It shared the platform with the Ford Thunderbird, which had been a sibling of the Cougar for many years, and also a variant of the MN12 rode underneath the Lincoln Mark VIII - but that was it. $2 Billion to make just three cars, two of which competed against each other - it's hard to imagine Ford didn't have bigger plans for a return on their investment. This is a review of a very well kept and original 1989 Mercury Cougar LS The review is by Bill of Curious Cars, and the car is for sale at Autohaus of Naples - on the web at www.AutoausNapls.com, or by phone at (239) 263-8500.

Added 13 May 2026