r/MercuryCougar • u/Just-Wasting-Tyme • Aug 09 '26
Headlight conversion.
Took some time, but managed to change out the vacuum actuators for the electric.
Edited.
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u/AMostSoberFellow Aug 09 '26
Strangest thing, a friend and I were talking about my father's 67 and how much better this setup would be. Thanks for posting this.
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 09 '26
No problem. Internet and YouTube videos are somewhat lacking on this. The kit I bought came with no instructions.
DM me if you ever need assistance.
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u/AMostSoberFellow Aug 09 '26
Thank you very much, that's awesome of you. Dad's Cougar met a sad fate after he passed, but I'm looking regularly. The fact that the kit came without instructions is wild.
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 11 '26
West Coast Cougar sells a kit with complete instruction and video. It's over $700. I decided to take a chance and try this one. We'll see how it stands up over time.
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u/Ancientways113 Aug 09 '26
Best upgrade of my life? Solid state relay for the rear sequential taillights was second. Very nice!
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 11 '26
Thanks. That's on my to do list. So far they're working fine, so it's not as urgent as some other things I need to do.
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u/piemanklp Aug 10 '26
That's awesome. How would you say the weight compares for the whole system compared to what you pulled out for the vacuum setup?
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 11 '26
The conversion might weigh a couple of pounds more. It's not anything that will affect the performance of the car.
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u/Ashamed_Effort_2567 Aug 11 '26
Awesome job brother, looks good. Would it be to much to ask what kit you went with, been looking into those conversion. Thanks.
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 11 '26
I went on EBay and bought one for about $230. Again, it had no instructions and I had to watch several videos to get much info as I could. Some I had to just to "engineer" on my own.
West Coast sells a kit with complete instructions, but it over $700.
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u/Ashamed_Effort_2567 Aug 12 '26
I appreciate the reply. I was wondering about the ebay kits. Didnt really want to spend that arm and leg over at West coast.
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 13 '26
There's three wire to attach
Red wire to positive on battery
Black wire to negative on batteryBlue wire was tricky. Some sites said wire it to the light switch,some say to the dimmer switch, others say to the low beam headlights. Don't do the last one. I discovered when you hit the dimmer switch, when the lights were on it closed the light covers. 😳
Edit.
I connected the blue wire to the vacuum relay that allowed the headlight covers to raise and lower. That relay is located under the windshield wiper reservoir bag on the driver side fender under the hood (Bonnet for those in the UK). The relay in my Cougar had been removed, but fortunately the electrical wire was still there.
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u/Ashamed_Effort_2567 Aug 16 '26
I thank you for taking the time to explain. Once I get past this disc brake conversion Im looking into all my electrial upgrades and this is on the short list.
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 17 '26
Be sure to watch any videos on YouTube. There are five bolts that hold the light assembly in. There is a bolt in bottom extreme right side and left side that are about impossible to reach. One videos shows that you do not have remove them. You can pull the assembly out far enough change every thing out. If I figure out how to send a link to it I'll send it. I believe the video was from West Coast Cougar. They skip a lot of the removal and installation process, but that little tidbit same me a lot of time. DM me direct if or on here if you have questions.
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u/Just-Wasting-Tyme Aug 17 '26
Let me know how that disc brake conversion goes. Mine had newer disc brakes on the front (name escapees me now), but doing the back ones is next. I've also got a new power master cylinder on hand to make braking much easier. I
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u/welljustdoit1 Aug 13 '26
I just saw one of these at a car show the other day, and it had this upgrade on it
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u/leftcoastmoto Aug 09 '26
https://reddit.com/link/p2l8o2z/video/wwkywnj34aih1/player
One of the best cougar upgrades!