Mercury's GT-E launched with a 427 V8 bolted only to an automatic — the 428 Cobra Jet that replaced it mid-year was the only GT-E engine ever offered with a manual, and just 37 of the 394 GT-Es built got that combination.
Lead trim: Cougar GT-E 428 Cobra Jet V8 (335 hp) · up to 390 hp
Mercury Cougar GT-E1968–1968
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Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Mercury Cougar GT-E yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactMercury's GT-E launched with a 427 V8 bolted only to an automatic — the 428 Cobra Jet that replaced it mid-year was the only GT-E engine ever offered with a manual, and just 37 of the 394 GT-Es built got that combination.
For 1968, the GT-E was introduced above the Cougar GT, offering a racing-derived 390 hp 427 cu in (7.0 L) V8 (paired solely with a 3-speed automatic), special badging, quad exhaust, argent lower body paint delineated by chrome trim and a redesigned grille, with power front disc brakes standard. As a running change in April 1968 the 427 was replaced by a 428 Cobra Jet as an option (introduced April 1, 1968 as a 428 Cobra Jet Ram Air), officially rated at 335 hp, and with the change the 4-speed manual also became available for the GT-E. A total of 394 GT-Es were manufactured, of which 357 were equipped with the 427 and 37 with the 428CJ.
Collectors Spotted in the Mercury Cougar Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Mercury Cougar yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
2 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cougar GT-E 427 cu in V8 (390 hp) | 1968–1968 | 7.0 L V8 | 390 hp | 460 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| Cougar GT-E 428 Cobra Jet V8 (335 hp) | 1968–1968 | 7.0 L V8 | 335 hp | 440 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
This Cougar was never meant to be a Cougar — it started life as the next Ford Probe, and only got rebadged to Mercury after Ford pulled the plug on the Probe nameplate.
Redesigned for 1989, the Cougar's wheelbase grew nine inches to 113 — longer than the Mercedes-Benz 560SEC it was secretly benchmarked against.
This Cougar was a genuine milestone for Ford: the first Ford vehicle ever developed using computer-aided design, helping slash its drag coefficient from a boxy 0.50 to a sleek 0.40.
This Cougar XR-7 was so close to its Thunderbird cousin that only the grille, taillamps, trunklid and exposed headlamps told them apart.
The Cougar's signature "cat's head" emblem debuted right here in 1977 — a badge the model line would keep using for the next 25 years.
Moving upmarket for 1974, the Cougar XR-7 abandoned its unibody for a Torino-based body-on-frame chassis — the only time any Cougar was built that way.
The last Cougar convertible from this run, a light blue/white '73 XR-7, was the final convertible Ford Motor Company built for over a decade.
Want a Boss 302 in your Cougar? You had to buy the Eliminator — Mercury made the engine exclusive to that one trim.
Mercury's GT-E launched with a 427 V8 bolted only to an automatic — the 428 Cobra Jet that replaced it mid-year was the only GT-E engine ever offered with a manual, and just 37 of the 394 GT-Es built got that combination.
In its debut year, the Cougar won the 1967 Motor Trend Car of the Year award — the only time any Mercury-badged car would ever take that honor.
For 1968, Mercury handed a Cougar performance package to Carroll Shelby's own shop to build — the XR7-G, just 619 made, the only time Shelby's name touched a Mercury.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
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