Driving Impressions:

With such a bold shape, you would think the 2000 Mercury Cougar would offer head snapping acceleration. While the Cougar doesn't quite offer head snapping acceleration, this car is also no slowpoke either. The Cougar's main strength is in its excellent handling. To get the best out of this small sports coupe, you have to drive the car fast. This car was made to give somewhat mild understeer, making it extremely responsive and easy to control. The steering, particularly, has a great feel, offering very good feedback, especially when taking into consideration the previous 1989-1997 models. With its relatively sporty chassis, its ability to tackle twisty roads seems to get better the faster you go. Hills are taken well. The 5-speed manual has a relatively low 5th gear ratio, so access to this car's horsepower with the V6 engine allows for excellent hill climbing. The ride is also relatively quiet for a sporty car, and the suspension, while stiff, also is soft enough to make trips over rough surfaces comfortable.

Interior Accommodation:

The Cougar's interior isn't luxurious by any means, but it's certainly better than most of Ford's offerings of this time period. The Cougar V6 has some of the best ergonomics in its class for 2000. Racecar inspired gauges adds a sporty touch to this car's dashboard. The seats are very supportive as well, however a little more bolstering of the cloth bucket seats would have been appreciated, but as they stand they are adequately comfortable. If you need a roomy vehicle, this one isn’t for you. This 2-door coupe offers plenty of front headroom/legroom, however rear legroom/headroom is just enough for the kiddies.

Exterior Innovation:

The exterior is quite modern, even by today's standards. The 2000 Cougar is sleek design that is probably one of the most innovated for a car boasting a sticker price of less than 20,000 dollars for the 2000 model year. This car was, when introduced in 1999, and still is a big head turner! Unfortunately the aftermarket community is limited.

Pricing:

The price is very affordable. At $18,000 fully loaded "new," you get what you pay for. Decent acceleration, a 170hp powered DOHC V6, superb handling, great looks, and amenities galore! I have seen the 4-cyl models go for as low as $7,000 for the '2000 model year, but the V6 costing around $2,000 more used is the way to go if you are looking for a slightly used/good performing automobile.

From countless remarks in car chat rooms about how unreliable these cars are, I'd check the facts, using Consumer Reports.Org, or some other reliable source. I have only driven this car for a week, thanks to a good friend who owns a car dealership, so it would be wrong of me to comment on reliability, but while I had it , it was trouble free at 26,000-26,500 miles.

Other Cars to Consider:

1. Honda Accord V6 coupe
2. Toyota Celica
3. Mitsubishi Eclipse
4. Hyundai Tiburon
5. Ford Mustang
6. Ford Contour SVT
7. Chevrolet Camaro
8. Dodge Neon R/T
9. Ford Focus SVT
10. Dodge Stratus

-Happy Car Shopping

Condition: Used
Model Year: 2000
Model and Options: V6 5- speed.