Overview & Reviews

Mercury was a division of Ford Motor Company marketed as being somewhat more upscale than Ford. Throughout the latter part of its 71-year history, Mercury's vehicles were essentially Fords with unique styling details and special features meant to enhance their desirability relative to similar Ford products.

It all started in the 1930s, when Edsel Ford, Henry Ford's son, saw an opportunity to create an additional brand within the Ford hierarchy, one that would exist between the everyman Ford Deluxes and premium Lincoln Zephyrs. To achieve this, Edsel felt the vehicles of this new brand should offer distinctive styling along with innovative features and better capabilities. He named the new division "Mercury," after the Roman mythological god. The 1939 Mercury Eight was the division's first car. It distinguished itself from similar Ford products via a 95-horsepower engine that offered 10 more horses than the Ford V8.

The Eight proved to be a hit, with more than 155,000 sold by the early 1940s. Production stopped during World War II; after the war, the brand was realigned more closely with Lincoln. The company grew from strength to strength in the '50s, establishing itself as a maker of vehicles offering style, performance and cutting-edge technology. A dash of glamour was added to the automaker's image when James Dean appeared onscreen in a Mercury in the film Rebel Without a Cause.

The 1960s saw the introduction of Mercury's Comet and Meteor vehicles. The Comet featured diminutive dimensions and luxury accoutrements, while the Meteor was a midsize family car that followed the trend toward more reasonably sized cars. Racetrack wins boosted awareness of the Comet and helped the model make a big splash in terms of sales. By the end of the decade, the iconic Mercury Cougar, a variation of the Mustang, had been rolled out, its Eliminator version taking its place in the pantheon of legendary early muscle cars.

Hit hard by that decade's oil crisis, consumers during the 1970s were hungry for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles. Mercury responded with a new, smaller Comet and the Bobcat, the former a fancier version of the Ford Maverick, the latter a fancier version of the Ford Pinto. The brand's sales grew during a decade that was filled with turbulence and uncertainty for many competing marques. Mercury further expanded its lineup in the '80s, this time including the small, Ford Escort-based Lynx. Mercury enjoyed success with the 1986 launch of the Sable, a fraternal twin to the Ford Taurus whose sleek, aerodynamic lines and futuristic "light bar" front end styling set it apart from the Ford.

Mercury's sales hit an all-time high during the 1990s that would never again be matched. Minivans and SUVs were a big reason for that as Mercury introduced its Villager minivan and Mountaineer SUV. Late that decade it introduced a new Cougar, which differed from its predecessors by being a front-drive sport compact that also holds the distinction of being the last Mercury that wasn't a rebadged Ford.

The years following the new millennium were challenging for the brand, as changing consumer tastes and a lack of differentiation between Mercury and Ford vehicles hurt sales. Pundits often proclaimed the end of Mercury was near, but Ford kept stating it would keep Mercury around despite offering no hope for any unique future vehicles from the brand. Finally in 2010, Ford pulled the plug on Mercury, putting an end to more than 70 years of car-making heritage.

User Reviews:

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  A great car - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By Ronald - January 6 - 2:26 am

  I have owned the vehicle for a little over a month and driven it over 3000 miles. The car runs great, has plenty of power, handles good and has lots of room. It is a very good car.

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  The way it should be - 2008 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Tip of Texas - January 5 - 10:50 pm

  Before I bought my MGM, I test drove the baseline models of Lexus, Infinity, Cadillac, Jaguar and tried to test drive the Mercedes C300. They all felt the same and very much looked the same. Have to look close before I can tell them appart. Because of my job, I drive into Mexico every day; I need comfortable; feeling the road is not really desirable and with all these cars you actually feel the road. Went to the Opera recently and the wows my MGM got were not been given to the CTS and the Mercedes. In my opinion there is nothing wrong with old as long as it works well and looks great. What happened to distinctive US designs? Why do critics push for oriental clones?

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  Comfort & visibility - 2009 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Darrell - January 2 - 11:53 pm

  Ive owned fast cars, sporty cars, vans & crossovers. Im impressed with the comfort and visibility of this automobile. I have no need for fast acceleration off the starting line, the fuel economy is ok, and I dont have to lean over to see out of the car. For trips longer than to town, it is great. Styling may be old to some, but styling isnt my thing.

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  2007 Montego - 2007 Mercury Montego
  By Pat - January 2 - 7:26 am

  I just recently bought a slightly used 2007 Montego with 17K miles. It was a returned lease back that was in near perfect condition. I wanted a good quality larger American car that got good gas mileage. Im not your average Mercury buyer as Im 30 years old. So far I am really happy with the purchase. This car got such negative press since it first launched and I cant understand why? The engine is plenty adequate for every day driving. At 80mph Im only hitting 2,100 RPMs. This engine is really reliable as I had it in my Taurus and put 155,000+ miles on it with no major engine problems. Averaging 26MPG overall and usually 29MPG highway.

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  Monterey - 2004 Mercury Monterey
  By dnhollin - December 31 - 2:00 am

  A high quality and well built vehicle. Safety features outstanding

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  Honest real world opinion - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Thom - December 27 - 8:03 pm

  My driving and ownership experience. Hmm. Well all said and done, second too none. The MGM is by far the best car I have ever owned, inside and out. Ive given this car the highest ratings all around including fuel economy. I find though my research most larger cars as well as mini-vans or other family sized vehicles average around 20-25 mpg. I average about 25 mpg (26.7) to be precise with my Grand Marquis. Now factor the size and weight and power of the car and compare that on a scale to ANY small car or large car. You will find the MGM is the green or most fuel efficient car on the road. Outside of fuel economy, I rate the reliability five stars. MGM has a proven record and still holds it.

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  Awesome SUV with some small issues - 2005 Mercury Mariner
  By Sean - December 24 - 11:50 pm

  I love my Mariner. I bought it a week ago but I do regret buying it a little in the middle of this gas crisis... oh well. I have experienced some buzz/crackling with the speakers and the subwoofer is nothing close to the Infinity sub I have in my basement. However, the stereo sounds great when there is no distortion in the speakers. I wish Ford would update their plain and boring entertainment clusters. The rest of the car looks great. The suede insets on my seats are already a little marked up and I dont know how I should go about cleaning them -- if at all. The knobs on the roof rack were murder on my thumbs. Are those things meant to be turned? LOL Overall I am very happy with it.

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  Frank - 2010 Mercury Milan
  By Frank - December 22 - 7:33 pm

  I traded in a 2000 Lincoln LS for this Milan. The Milan is a great car. It is comfortable, gas mileage is good (27 - 30 mpg) highway. The Sync system is a great value, as is the 202A package, which includes the back-up camera feature and the blind spot light on the side view mirror. These are huge safety features.

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  A Great Car - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By RJM - December 21 - 12:16 am

  I enjoy driving my Mercury Sable. It is a very well-built car and has a lot of room. The trunk is large. I receive compliments on it often.

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  Excellent Vehicle!!! - 2001 Mercury Cougar
  By Estranged - December 20 - 7:43 pm

  I got my custom V6 manual in Feb01. Its custom cause I got convenience package + ABS brks. Its very fun to drive (both the stick and auto). Transmsn is designed/made in Germany and it shows! A very european car, with a huge trunk. The biggest plus of this car is handling. It has a computer: "temperature outside", "average speed", "mpg", and best of all "miles before empty tank". Id also say that chicks dig the car - one made me roll down my window on the hiway to say how cool my car was.