Cougar Formula Ford car

[davemorganfan]

This car was a one-off, built and driven by Peter Harrington from, I think, Lincolnshire in the early 1970s. A very attractive car, with a single side radiator and painted yellow,it was thoroughly competitive and always ran at or near the front in northern FF races. I wonder what happned to the car - is it still around? And what became of Peter Harrington?

[James Murray]

It was based on a Merlyn mk11. It was last owned in Cougar form by a chap called Neil Womack who lived in the Middlesborough area. It was recently bought and converted back to Merlyn mk11 spec and raced by Oliver Smith in Hstoric Formula Ford. There is a photo of the car as a Cougar in the "Anatomy and and development of a Formula Ford" book by Steve Nickless. Hope this helps. James.

[davemorganfan]

Thanks for that James, very interesting. I didn't know the Cougar was based on a Merlyn; I think that was kept quiet at the time! Something of a pity, though, that it has been converted back to Merlyn mk11 spec - the world is hardly short of Merlyns, but there was only one Cougar!

[Graham Clayton]

Originally Posted by davemorganfan

And what became of Peter Harrington?

After racing the Cougar, Harrington raced a Ray FF2000 in 1977. He continued racing until 2002, when his son Guy started.