1970 Mercury Cougar El Gato

Take some 70 Cyclone, some 70 Torino.

Add a little 70 Cougar and Presto!

And you get a 1970 Mercury Cougar El Gato

Sporting a bold lime green paint job, El Gato (Spanish for "The Cat" ) was produced as a styling exercise for a futuristic-looking Cougar. Features of this radical Cat include chopped roof, shaved door handles and ultracool three-spoke 16" wheels with specially designed Firestone LXX radials.

Definately a Cougar nose.

While the front end merged styling from both the Cougar and the GTO, it still projected an evil stance. Note how the limited flat black striping ends inside the molded-on hood scoop. Also, the front and rear pans were rolled, a very subtle looking feature in an era of chrome bumpers.

At the rear, wall to wall taillamps were accented by an asymmetrically placed racing-style gas filler cap. The square center-exit exhaust tips lended a very unique air to the car. Are those vents on the trunk?

It is not known if the El Gato still exists but it's presumed to have been destroyed (standard Ford practice for show vehicles at the time).