The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

D2 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, March 28, 2001 B e s t W h e e l s O a k v i l l e Don't let potholes get you down Goodyear engineers say it's doubly important to keep your tires properly inflated this time of year, lest a pothole threatens to take a bite out of your tires. Severe cold followed by a warming spell has cultivated a new patch of potholes or chuckholes, according to Bill Egan, chief engineer of advanced tire technology for Goodyear. In Montreal, a car had to be pushed out of a pothole by four burly men. Wheel alignment shops and tire stores bent on repairing damaged wheels and flat tires are reporting brisk busi ness. Some precautions to take if you're driving on a pothole-filled road include: Slow down, and try to avoid hitting the craters. If a pothole can't be avoided, keep the steering wheel straight and avoid braking. Allow the tire to roll through the pothole. Braking transfers more load onto the front tires, which could cause more damage. If the tire loses air, stop to the side of the road. The tire should be inspected internally by tire professionals for damage, and the rim should be evaluated for repair or replacement. Most importantly, keep your tires properly inflated. M ercury's newfeline, fluctuated between frisky and ferocious By Malcolm Gunn SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER FINE LINES 3 1 9 6 7 -7 0 Mercury P How many reasons do you need to become a volunteer? We cangive you 60,000 children - The number of Canadian reported m is s in g each year. Help bring them home. O N T A R I O Helping to keep kids safer in our community for 16 years. Call 1-800-447-6047 Or visit www.ontario.childfind.ca ISH'S P r o f e s s io n a l A o t o m o t iv e S e r v ic e s NO "Gimmicks" NO "U.S." For all your automotive needs 1129 Speers Rd. #3 (on west side of High Class Car Wash at Rear) Open Monday to Friday 9-6 ity the poor MercuryLincoln dealers back in the mid-1960s. Flush with acres of Continentals, Park Lanes and Montclairs, not to mention a few assorted econobox Comets, these folks could only stare in hopeless exasperation as eager prospects flocked down the road to the near est Ford store. Why? The new Mustangs had arri ved. The birth of Lee Iacocca's baby had resulted in a severe case of mass automotive hysteria and ushered in an era of Ponycar mad ness. Suddenly, every North American manufacturer was chomping at the bit to cash in on this latest car craze. But Ford's long-suffering Mercury retailers would have to wait nearly two-and-a-half years after the Mustang's ground-breaking introduction before they could add some sporty car spice to their meat-and-potatoes lineup. When the Mercury Cougar finally arrived in the fall of 1966, it was one of several ftesh entries into the ponycar field, including the Chevrolet Camaro, Pontiac Firebird and Plymouth's cleansheet second-generation Barracuda. Mercury took a decidedly dif ferent approach with the Cougar. Early advertising touted its luxury car leanings with the tag line, `The Fine Car Touch inspired by the Continental'. Also promoted was the Cougar's comfortable ride and equally plush bucket seats. The new `Cat' was built using a Mustang chassis and various underpinnings. But its wheelbase had been increased to 111 inches compared to the 'Stang's 108-inch length. The extra room between the front and rear hubs created a far more hospitable environment for rear-seat passengers and added to the car's passenger-friendly ride. Visually, the Cougar was a pleasant piece to look at. Along with its must-have long-hood, short-deck styling, the car featured unique hidden headlights that remained cloistered behind the front grille until pressed into ser vice. But the real knockout feature was the car's sequential rear signal lights that strobed in the appropri ate direction whenever the stalk indicator was flicked up or down. These lights became a source of great awe and wonders for anyone watching from behind and added to the Cougar's general above-thecrowd allure. Unlike the Mustang, the Cougar was available only with V8 power. The base engine was a 200-horse 289-cubic-inch unit, while a 225-horsepower four-barrel-carb version was available as an option. If this wasn't enough, the optional GT package featured a more muscular 390 cubic-inch V8 stuffed between the Cougar's shock towers. Mid-way into the 1967 model year, Mercury intro duced the Cougar XR-7, complete with full gauges, woodgrain interi or trim, leather seats and other fancy bits. First-year sales of more than 150,000 Cougars proved the pub lic was hungry for a Ponycar with a little more flair and substance than the rest of the field. For 1968, the Cougar received the new 302 cubic-inch V8, as well as the horsepower-abundant 428 and racing-oriented 427 cubic-inch V8 options that cranked out 335 and 390 horse power, respectively. That year also saw the creation of one of the rarest of Cougar models, the XR7-G. The `G' stood for racing legend Dan Gumey. This model included a special non functioning fiberglass hood scoop, fog lamps, special alloy wheels and interior trim. Only 619 XR7Gs were shipped from the factory, and of those, slightly less than 200 went to Hertz to be used as rental units. x In 1969, the mildly restyled Cougar family grew to include both a base and XR-7 convertible. You could still order the big-block 428 motor, but the raunchier 427 was trimmed from the order sheet. A new 351 cubic-inch engine series became available that year, with output ranging from 250-300 horsepower. The hot setup that year became the Eliminator, with its wilder colours, look-at-me decals and striping plus a rear-deck spoiler. All of these items might have worked on any other pony car, but the Eliminator package only served to make the sleek, sophisti cated Cougar look decidedly undignified. The Cougar remain basically unchanged through 1970, although the 390 V8 had finally disappeared from sight. Sales, however, dipped dramatically as Ponycar buyers shifted to more high-performance offerings that were being heavily marketed by the competition. This seemed to be the signal for Mercury's product planners to turn the Cougar into a true boulevard cruiser. Although the 1971 version continued to used the Mustang's platform, the car became signifi cantly bigger, stouter and pricier, with more luxury touches included as part of its standard features. But for four solid years, the Cougar represented a softer, more eloquent interpretation of the Ponycar revolution and gave its proud owners a taste of how future `personal luxury' cars would evolve. These days, the Cougar is rapidly gaining in popularity among collectors who consider its unique and tasteful styling and plenty of on-tap power to be a cut above the Mustangs, Challengers and Camaros of that era. It's funny, but those are the exact same reasons the original Cougar became such a sales suc cess in the first place. M alcolm Gunn is Wheelbase C om m unications'c h ie f road tester a n d historic writer. W heelbase is a w orld-wide supplier o f autom obile news, reviews and features. LOCKWOOD'S "W £ b s s r THE ALL NEW Dodge ^ D ifferent 2001 DODGE CARAVAN #1 SELLING VEHICLE IN CANADA 2001 CHRYSLER X T 1 7 0 X T A SOPHISTICATED AND SPIRITED PERFORMER o O Nicely equipped 28C: · All new 3.3L V6 engine - 180hp · 4-speed automatic transmission · Multi stage dual front air bags · Dual sliding doors · Air cond. · AM/FM radio cassette · 7 passenger seating · Cargo net · Front & rear floor mats · Roof rack · Windshield wiper de-icer · Child seat anchor system · 5 yr/1 0 0 ,0 0 0 k m t powertraincoverage plus 5 yr/100,000kmt roadside assistance N o Charge options valued at $2,000 (MSRP) » Sunscreen glass · Speed control · Tilt steering · Power heated mirrors · Power windows & quarter vents · Power door locks Purchase for 22D Package also includes: · 2.0L engine · 4-wheel fully independent suspen sion · Air conditioning · Tilt steering · Sentry-Key® theft deterrent system · Full length centre console · Child seat tether anchors · Next Generation dual air bags · Complimentary tank of fuel · 5 yr/100,000kmt powertraincoverage plus 5 yr/100,000kmt roadside assistance 23,988r $ 298 a m onth for 36 months. Plus $3,807 downpayi m ent or equivalent trade, $350 security deposit and $940 freight Purchase / O Financing 48 or 60 months Purchase Financing 36m th 48mth 60mth 0.8% 2.8% 4.8% LOCKWOOD H R Y S L E R 1 11 J 5yr/100,000kmt roadside assistance on every 2001 D odge F IV E S T A R 175 W y e c ro ft R oa d, Oakville's 2000 · 2001 Five Star O a kville (between Kerr & Dorval) ^ Certified Dealership w w w .lo c k w o o d ch ry s le r.co m f f ffT J Introducing 5yr/100,000kmf pow ertrain coverage togethe r with 8 4 5 -6 6 5 3