Factory specifications, fluid capacities, torque values, EPA fuel economy and the federal safety record for the 1976 Cougar.
The 1976 Mercury Cougar enters the reference record as a model year whose standing in the nameplate's documented complaint history sits outside the tracked window of 1990 to 2002, the period during which owner feedback for the line was formally captured. Within that tracked span, the model's reliability profile is sharply uneven, ranging from a peak of 521 complaints in 1999 to a single logged report in 1998 — a swing that frames the Cougar as a line whose real-world dependability shifted meaningfully from year to year rather than following a steady arc. For a researcher evaluating the 1976 Cougar specifically, the practical implication is that any assessment of this earlier model must rely on the standards of its own production era, since the complaint data that anchors later model years does not extend back to cover it directly.
Engine, drivetrain, dimensions and economy.
| Overall length | 214.6 in |
| Overall width | 76 in |
| Overall height | 52.8 in |
| Wheelbase | 114.2 in |
| Curb weight | 4374 lb |
Owner-reported issues, recalls, investigations and service bulletins on record with NHTSA — an unfiltered look at what owners actually experience.
Showing 1 of 1 campaigns on record for this vehicle.
Remedy:
The most common OBD-II codes for this vehicle's emissions system. These are standardized SAE J2012 definitions, not vehicle-specific fault reports.
Decode factory build data for a specific vehicle by VIN.
Cross-vehicle references for the kinds of data on this page.
NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign(s) for this model year. Check your specific vehicle by VIN.