1999 Paxton Supercharged Cougar

"Aggressive" describes the '99 Mercury Cougar's styling, but its performance was only "frisky" until Paxton Automotive bolted on one of its Novi 2000 centrifugal superchargers. With its pressurized 2.5-liter DOHC V-6 pumping out two-thirds more horsepower than stock, the modified Cougar now roars 0-60 mph in 5.7 seconds-almost 2 seconds quicker than stock and damned fast for a front-driver. Several hurdles had to be cleared before this was possible.

Since the Cougar's air intake is aimed toward the transaxle of the transverse-mounted engine, the supercharger had to be an engine's length away from its drive source. Paxton solved this by running a belt from the engine pulley to a go-kart axle shaft mounted in three bearings in front of the engine. Drive is transferred via another belt to the supercharger. To make room for the blower, the stock airbox was replaced with a K&N filter. The system tops out at 8 psi at 5500 rpm, making just 6 psi by 4000 rpm. Peak drive-wheel horsepower jumped from the stock 110 to 183, according to Paxton's chassis dyno. That's an unbelievable 280 horses at the flywheel!

Controlling the spark advance in the coil-on-plug Duratec system was also a challenge. To prevent engine-damaging detonation, ignition timing must be retarded 0.75 degree per pound of boost. No off-the-shelf solution exists to do this with six separate coils. Since Paxton's competitors may still be seeking the answer, the company wouldn't reveal its solution.

We sampled the Paxton Cougar twice during its metamorphosis. Stage 1 featured no suspension changes save for Toyo Proxes TI Plus 225/40ZR18s. Despite serious wheelspin and hop off the line, the manual transmission car was a whopping 1.2 seconds quicker 0-60 mph than stock (6.4 versus 7.6). Skidpad grip jumped a notable 0.06 g, and slalom speed increased by 1.5 mph. The most significant change for Stage 2 was the addition of a Quaife limited-slip differential. This torque-sensing differential is a must for an enhanced Cougar. Firmer engine bushings from Energy Suspension help limit engine shake and wheelhop. Combined, this dropped 0-60-mph time to 5.7 seconds. Braking distance was 1 foot longer and slalom speed was identical to the "tires-only" setup, while skidpad climbed to 0.90 g.

But speed costs money: Plano (Texas) Lincoln-Mercury will sell you a duplicate for $38,000: roughly double the car's original sticker price.-Mac DeMere