One problem related to brake disc has been reported for the 1997 Mercury Cougar. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Noticed pulsation in steering wheel when braking. Asked dealer to replace defective parts which turned out to be all 4 rotors. Dealer said we cut the rotors for this problem. This removes useable service life at my expense. I feel this is a designe flaw of rotor warping probably due to heat. Sevice invoice states that all four rotors were turned due to warping. This appears to be a common problem with late year model Ford cars. I personally know of four Ford owners with the identical problem.