Just another Cougar build..

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Hey guys, i probably won't be updating this much but wanted to kick this off after a year or two of not doing anything with it and maybe it'll motivate my dad and i to devote some time to it. "It" is a 1968 Cougar XR7 302/c4 bucket seat car. It had belonged to a friend of my dad in the 1980's who unfortunately passed away in an accident, where upon another friend bought it and drove it for awhile before storing it in a barn in central Missouri. About 3 years ago my dad would receive random emails from an unknown email address with content along the lines of "If you were to receive a classic car what would you do with it", he would answer with "Depending on the car in question and its condition either restore it to its former glory or if its beyond saving use the parts to save a few other cars." It turned out to be the friend with the cougar. They hadn't talked in a very long time, and the car had sat in the barn since the early-mid 90s. So after a few more emails and phone calls they set a date and we both met at his parents property where the car was and loaded it. It's a really cool feeling to push a car out that hadn't seen daylight since before you were born. It's currently sitting beside my dad's work while we gather parts and motivation to tear into it. It has some rust and tornado damage on the roof, along with a disgusting wasp and mice infested interior. It'll be a very intense build that we're both looking forward to.

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We got it home and let it air out a bit before diving into gutting the interior. The seats are currently being redone by a friend while we replace the rusted out floors, torque boxes, and lower rear quarters. I kinda like the black steelies and slicks in place of the rear chrome slots. We have lots of replacement interior parts sitting in the garage to be put in when the weather's nice and we can work on it outside (It still stinks...badly).

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It sat dormant throughout most of the year without much thought until a friend's brother got in a horrible accident with their 87 Foxbody and totaled it. He's very fortunate and is very lucky to be alive and even working out 2 months after it happened. He hit a light pole at around 45-50mph and went through the windshield, and back in while landing hurt and bleeding in the passenger seat. I bought the car from my friend and its donating its motor, 5spd manual, and wheels to the cougar. We're still indecisive on what our end goal is appearance-wise. Either black street car or black factory stock appearing.