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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  Happy - 2008 Mercury Mariner
  By Happy - October 9 - 5:03 am

  I love my Mariner! I think it drives very smooth and takes turns like a champ! I love everything about my car! I feel safe and that was a number one concern I had when shopping for a car! So if you are thinking about getting one do it!

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  2008 Sable Premier FWD - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By JC - October 8 - 12:33 am

  I was looking for a large car that could offer some comfort on road trips as well as decent highway mileage. I found it in the Mercury Sable. It also offered a large trunk with fold down seats giving the flexibility to carry sports equipment. So far there have been no problems and the car gives me everything I needed. Im looking forward to driving it for several years. The options and standard equipment offer a lot of features and value for the price.

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  Upscale Explorer - 2000 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Rob78 - October 7 - 10:00 am

  After my wife totaled our Contour, it was time buy a SUV. We looked at the Explorers for the longest time. We couldnt find the right Eplorer without the ugly brown interior, so we started looking at Mountaineers. This is the one of the classiest looking SUVs on the road. Get all-wheel- drive!!! If you cant, get the limited- slip diff.

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  The 06 Mountaineer - 2006 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Wolfmann - October 4 - 9:46 am

  The vehicle I purchased lacked only one thing as far as my needs where concerned, daytime running lamps. Other than that the car is fun to drive, sure footed on wet pavement. Responsive 4.6L from the 4.0L in the 02 version. In upstate NY on RT 17 theres a hill 5 miles long and goes up about 2700 ft, no problem the 06 doesnt shift out of O/D to maintain 64 - 67 mph with cruise control on. Im 6-2" and driver and shotgun are very comfortable, 2nd row probably ok for 5-9"s , 3rd row kids only. The rear area HVAC is great for cooling down the car and holding it cool on hot days. The 6cd w/satelite radio has great sound. Its a car you get into n say this is the way they should have done it.

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  Great Value-Great Car - 2009 Mercury Milan
  By TT - October 2 - 10:43 pm

  Bought this car a few weeks ago. I had been shopping Honda, Hyundai, Ford, etc. This car is great looking and they did a nice job with the interior- love the contrast stitching-leather very rich looking and feels great. Sync takes some time to learn but is great once you learn how to use it. The steering is also great-heavy and accurate. This drives and looks like a much more expensive car. Sticker was 26,620 and I paid 22,900. What a value.

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  Love the Mariner - 2006 Mercury Mariner
  By R. Vondenberger - October 2 - 5:20 am

  This is the best car I have ever driven. It handles very easy. Very comfortable. Room enough for family and has room for lots of things. It has alot of power. Love driving it. Looks are excellent size is perfect.

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  Best Ive owned - 2001 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Nichiar - September 30 - 2:00 am

  I bought it as an excutive car with 10k on it. I have put 16k on it since then. Considering that its awd, it has worked well both on steep mountain rocky trails in northern Arizona and in sane in the desert.I do a lot of hunting and get off road frequently. It could do a little better on gas (getting 14 to 18). Other than that, I have not had any problems with it.

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  simple solutions - 2001 Mercury Sable
  By hazardsys - September 30 - 2:00 am

  I had the same problem as Merck with my sable. When I got to 65mph the front would start to vibrate. Luckily I used to work at a Ford dealership in parts and had some knowledge. The vibration is cause by the wheels not being balanced. I took the car back to the dealership and told them that the wheels needed to be balanced. Since I did this just a few days after buying the car they covered the charges even though wheel balancing isnt covered by warranty. I am happy to say it solved the vibration problem and the car now drives beautifully. I used to live by chevys. I am giving Ford a chance to win me over and so far they are doing very well.

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  Mercury Villager #2 - 1999 Mercury Villager
  By dede - September 28 - 12:36 pm

  This is our second Villager, the first one has been great, we still have it and it has 177000 miles on it, but this newer one has problems. The accelerator sticks. We have had it fixed once already and in less than 3 years need to have it fixed again. We were charged almost $400.00 the first time. It also bounces a lot. Even with new tires it is not the smooth ride our other older villager has. It rattles, windows pop open on even small bumps.

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  Great Car - 2000 Mercury Sable
  By SamboTwo - September 28 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car from my daughter that used it as a company car. It is near perfect. We replaced our Infinity J-30 (that my wife totaled) with this car and I like it as well as the Infinity. Due to our experience with this car, we bought another one... a 2001. They seem almost identical with maybe the ride being a little better with the 2000. We still own both at this time. The ride is great and a very quite (every bit as quite as the Infinity) inside. Ive had NO major mechanical problems with this car. The seating is perfect... the driver is located in the right position for the steering wheel, brakes and pedals. Rear seating is very good.