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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  Missed opportunity - 2006 Mercury Montego
  By richman6 - September 21 - 4:02 am

  When I first purchased this car I was initially impressed. It was very comfortable to drive with the seating and easy to get in and out of the car with lots of trunk space. Unfortunately, then the problems started to surface. The paint began to peel off the leading edge of my aluminum hood, the drivers side window goes down when you press the up button, the rear drums are rusting prematurely, and the module that controls my AWD shorted out my control panel! The dealer quoted me $1900 to replace the module and keep my AWD! My first and probably last experience with the Ford brand. BTW, my car has not even reached 100,000 miles.

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  3rd Marquis - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Roverbear - September 12 - 10:00 am

  after 2 prior Marquis which did not offer service, I really was hesitant to buy this 2003...the updates it afforded allowed me to chance it once again...Gas mileage seems less than the prior 95 which was repurchased by Ford due to many things wrong, and 96 LS with air suspension, that lasted 69000 and blew 2 cylinder heads...2003s rear end whine needs to be explored by the dealer..handling is far superior to prior models and wind noise is still annoying..has only 4000 miles at present.

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  Nice Looking Car; lacks comfortable driving - 2009 Mercury Mariner
  By nikki626 - August 29 - 8:48 pm

  This car is really built nicely and it looks pretty but the drive is very forgettable. Cannot get Sync to work... will be trading in for something else.

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  Good car - But Unreliable - 2000 Mercury Sable
  By Copyman - August 18 - 10:00 am

  While my Sable LS Premium is a decent car from a comfort and feature standpoint the reliabiity is simply horrible. Ive had the car serviced for brakes problems and recalls 9 times in last the year. If you enjoy losing your car once a month to the dealership and have no confidence in driving over a long distance this is the car for you. Reviews, price, interest rates and reviews and were a big factor for me in purchasing this car. This was my second Ford vehicle and last.

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  OK I GUESS - 1999 Mercury Villager
  By 64FAIRLANESC - August 16 - 10:00 am

  Bought the van for my wife and she likes it. I however am 63" tall and can tell that it was designed by the Japanese (Nissan). I have to bend in half to get in and have no headroom or leg room and do not like to drive it for very long. My 2001 Ford Windstar that I drive is 10 times more comfortable for a taller person. Mechanically I have had no real problems but I am a stickler for maint, and do all repairs myself. Had to replace ball joints and a CV axle. Some electrical connecters in lights bad, I see this on Japanese designs alot though. It now has 75000 miles and is reliable and ok to drive if your not tall than 58"

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  Priceing - 2002 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By P.Arcara - August 14 - 10:00 am

  Great car for the money, but would hesitate buying a nother one because of changing rebate dollar amounts. 30 days after my purchase additional $1,000 was offered. I lost my sense of true value for this car.

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  Bad Transmission - 2008 Mercury Mariner
  By speedlump2 - August 9 - 5:09 pm

  I bought a brand new 2008 Mercury Mariner from Malloy Auto Mall in Woodbridge, VA. In 2009 the transmission starting skipping gears. Took it to the shop, it was fixed under warranty. 2010 took it back to the shop for the transmission again. Not covered by warranty. Cost over $800 to fix. Jump forward to 2011, took it back to the shop, for what you ask? The transmission again. This $2235 to fix it. Ford refuses to do anything about it. DO NOT BUY THIS VEHICLE. I wish I would have read other reviews before I purchased. I will never buy another for vehicle. Dont take my word. Read other reviews and see the same problem I have.

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  GREAT BODY BUT.... - 1999 Mercury Cougar
  By YOSHE - July 31 - 10:00 am

  I PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE BRAND NEW W/ 7 MILES ON IT. IMMEDIATELY I RAN INTO BRAKE PROBLEMS CONSTANT GRINDING. BRAKE DISC WERE SHAVED DOWN THEN COMPLETELY REPLACED. NEXT PROBLEM ELECTRICAL. CAR ELECTRICAL SYETM THEN THE VEHICLE WOULD SHUT COMPLETELY. TWICE ON THE HIGHWAY!! ON-GOING BATTLES BETWEEN DEALERSHIP NOT WANTING TO WORK ON THE VEHICLE B/C THEY DIDNT DO THE INITIAL REPAIR WORK. LOVE THE BODY LOVE DRIVING CURVES AND WINDY ROADS. AS A YOUNG PERSON BUYING THIS VEHICLE STYLE OVER RIDES OTHER OPTIONS. IM NOT COMPLETELY UPSET OVER PURCHASE, BUT NEVER AGAIN BY A 1ST YEAR VEHICLE. LET THEM WORK OUT THE KINKS FIRST AND THEN BUY ONE....

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  Ford: 4 letter word that starts w/ F - 1999 Mercury Sable
  By bouletheou - June 18 - 2:00 am

  At 64K miles the transmission went out. It was a bad bearing on the pumpshaft which took out the torque converter. That cost $850. At 87K miles a friend wanted to buy it. I told him to have a mechanic check it out and drive it for a few days. Turns out the head gasket was blown. I had no idea. It never got hot and since you cant actually see in the radiator, and the little bottle stayed full, nobody caught it. We are now pround Camry owners.

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  Solid ride - 2007 Mercury Mountaineer
  By vusford1 - June 5 - 1:56 pm

  I mostly enjoy my new Mountaineer. It has pretty good comfort in all rows, has a smooth ride, and decent handling for a truck- based suv, however I do wish that fit and finish was a little better, as I have had some minor problems. Ford motor company quality control could be better