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Cougars are great for doing taillight modifications. No matter what year Cougar you have between 1983 and 1988, there's always something that can be done.
But first we have to dispel some rumors. Smoked taillight covers don't exist for these cars. Never have, probably never will. There are a number of reasons why, but most of all because the cars are so old now. Besides, the 1985-86 cars had factory smoked taillights. Do not expect to ever find smoked covers unless somebody has made a set out of their garage. We've tried before and it's not easy to do because of the compound curved surfaces.
Also, it is not possible to swap 1983-86 taillights for 1987-88, and vice versa. And you cannot use Thunderbird lights in your Cougar. Nothing between all of these lights is common besides the light socket mounting points. The shapes, angles and mounting points all vary between cars and body styles. The only way to get any of these to work would be to do some major welding and bodywork.
1983-84
Well, these taillights got the short end of the deal as far as customizing goes. They do look sort of trick as they are. Still, if you want to be different, there's not a whole lot you can do besides tinting them (see 1987-88 section below). You can also paint the cat head in the backing light a different color, as well as the stripes between the tiers. Wax and grease remover will take off the chrome from those areas quite nicely, leaving a clean look. Unfortunately, short of swapping in 1985-86 taillights, there's not much else that can be done. By the way, we did swap those over once. You really have to cut up your taillight mounting panel something fierce to get them to mount correctly. Plus you have to reroute and splice in some wiring. Don't let anyone tell you that it can't be done because it can...it's just not pretty in the process.
1985-86
These taillights are much better for customizing because of their flat face. If you're looking for something other than a straight blacked-out look (see 1987-88 section below), here are some cool tricks.
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1987-88 THUNDERBIRD SIMULATION
How about some cool 1987-88 Thunderbird-style round taillights for your Cougar? All you need to do is create a mask that's sandwiched between the outer lens and the housing. To remove the lens simply pull on it gently; take your time because you can easily crack the lens if you're too rough or impatient. Once the lens is off, cut some material to use as the mask. Thin black foam found at craft stores works great because it's water resistant and easy to cut. Find the center of each square in the housing, then mark that center on the foam. Believe it or not, all you need to use to cut the circles is tracing around a roll of masking tape or similar sized object. After the mask is completed, simply use black electrical tape to attach it to the lens, then put the lens back on the housing. Can't be simpler, and the effect is so similar to the cool round T-Bird taillights that people will do a double take. Imagine this effect with sequential turn signals. |
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CUSTOM PAINTED LENSES
This is about as tricked out as we've seen for 1985-86 lenses. They were retrofitted into a 1984 GS, then painted with the early 1990s Mercury signature "laser stripe" motif. Essentially this gave the lenses a retro look, similar to the original Cougars in the 1960s. In addition, the backup light area was painted with the Cougar logo, resembling 1987-88 Cougar taillights. Then the nomenclature was removed from the bottom reflectors, their indents filled in, and the reflectors painted body color. Custom lettering then was airbrushed onto the trunklid. Everything was then clearcoated with automotive urethane clear for a nice, bright finish and durability. Now you don't have to be a master of an airbrush to emulate this...the basic striping can be done with vinyl, which also makes removal a possibility if you don't like them anymore. A body shop could help with the taillight reflectors and clearcoating. The possibilities are endless...use your imagination.
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1987-88
With the new body style came new taillights, and these are pretty cool to modify.
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CLEAR RED LENSES
Ever jealous of 1996-up Mustang owners because of their clear red taillight lenses with clear bulbs? Well, envy no more because you can emulate this look very easily on your 1987-88 Cougar. Best of all, this trick is free of charge. All you need to do is remove the factory reflector inside each lens. This is okay because there will still be a reflector around the backing light when finished, so you will stay legal. At left is the stock taillamp. |
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Start by gently pulling on the lens until it comes off, leaving the housing on the car. |
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Here is the lens off the car. You'll notice that the whitish-colored reflector is attached to the lens. It's not glued on but rather attached at several points with heat, which melted the two parts together. The "welds" are strong enough for daily driving, but gentle enough to allow the lens to come off. Firmly pull the reflector off, one weld at a time, using constant pressure. |
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When the lens pops completely off, this is what you'll end up with. You might want to do this on a warm day, when the plastic is more pliable. I recommend saving the reflectors in case you ever need to reinstall them. |
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Lo and behold, upon reassembly you have a clear red lens, just like the newer Mustangs. |
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This is a before-and-after shot. The left lens has had the reflector removed; the right one is still stock. During the daytime there isn't a dramatic difference from a distance but you will notice it up close. At night, the stock clear bulbs are really, really, REALLY bright without the reflector in there. You may want to consider using red-colored bulbs or doing something to tone down the light a bit, so that you don't have any, uh, unwanted law-enforcement attention. |
BLACKED-OUT LENSES
By far this is one of the most requested taillight mods for any Cougar. Before you start, consider that a blacked-out lens is illegal in some places. This is because of reduced light transmission and a general dark lighting situation. Do this mod at your own risk.
The usual product used to create this effect is called Niteshades. You can find it at your local parts stores or online. It's a brownish-colored liquid that you spray onto the outside of the lens for a permanent smoked look. It will take about 5-7 thin coats per lens to get the desired effect.
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Start by removing the lenses. Wipe the lenses down with rubbing alcohol or wax/grease remover and let air dry. Then run a tack cloth over the surface to get any debris off. You're now ready to spray away. This stuff is pretty tricky because if you put too thick of a coat on, or if the previous coat hasn't dried enough, it will sort of push the previous stuff away and generally look nasty. Or it can run down and make a real mess. Take your time and put thin coats on. When finished, they should look similar to the car at left. |
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Here's the same car with the lights on at dusk. In this photo they look pretty red. But photos on the Internet lie a lot. In reality these are darker, and in the full darkness of night they will appeared smoked. |
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