2000 Mercury Cougar Sporty handling, good passing power in a stylish coupe. By Mitch McCullough, Editor-in-Chief, New Car Test Drive .com

Mercury's Cougar combines edgy styling with sporty handling and an available V6 engine. The 1967 Cougar combined style and performance, and Mercury says it tried to achieve that same balance when designing this newest generation model with front-wheel drive.

Two engines are available. The base engine is the Zetec, a 2.0-liter double overhead-cam, 16-valve inline-4 rated at 125 horsepower and 130 foot-pounds of torque. Optional is a 2.5-liter dohc, 24-valve Duratec V6 rated at 170 horsepower and 165 foot-pounds of torque.

You can tell which engine the car has by looking at the wheels and tires: Six-spoke 16-inch wheels come with the V6 model, five-spoke 15-inch wheels come with the 4-cylinder model. A rear spoiler comes standard with the V6, but can be deleted for a $235 credit; it's a $235 option with the 4-cylinder.

Base Cougar comes with air conditioning, 15-inch aluminum wheels, power windows, power door locks, power height-adjustable seat and AM/FM/cassette stereo. The Sport V6 option includes the spoiler, 16-inch wheels, disc brakes, fog lamps, sport seats, high-level trim, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob. A convenience group adds cruise control, rear washer and the premium stereo. An automatic transmission is available only on the V6 model. Options include side airbags, ABS and traction control, a sunroof, and an in-dash CD player.