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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  Just a Lemon - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By cougar - October 9 - 9:26 am

  I loved this car when I first got it. Now as I review it I actually ran out of space I can use. The list or things wrong: 6 alternators, air only works on high, sunroof will not go back only up, fuel system replaced, engine light stays on, lights inside and outside dim when you turn the radio on or air on, you can hear the motor of the air/heater when you first turn it on. I have taken good care of this car only those Ford parts have been used with them installing the parts. I was upside down in payments after the first 3 yrs so I couldnt trade it in. I would not sell this care to anyone-seriously. I looked it to the lemon law but the warranty had expired on the car.

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  Bought a ford with a problem - 2010 Mercury Mariner
  By BCampbell - September 4 - 2:06 am

  Bought a Mercury Mariner in Nov. 2009 in Jan started making a squeal when started in a certain temp out side took back to dealer 4 times contacted ford customer care and basically since this only happens at a certain temp and they do not know what causes it they will not fix it or do anything about it stuck with a 20,000.00 dollar vehicle with a problem that is now my problem.

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  Only for Mercury Fans - 2004 Mercury Monterey
  By Boca Heat - August 26 - 6:06 am

  great on a road trip, never misses a beat. room to spare, good ride, good front seat comfort. Poor quality interior. Cheap plastic, poor fit and finish..looks and feels cheap, even the leather seats are not very good quality. very bad dash controls, figure it out if you can. this van will run hard and never fail its owner.

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  Bad Ford DNA - 1995 Mercury Villager
  By Alias999 - August 2 - 10:00 am

  We chose this used van for its Nissan drive train and better than avg. fuel economy. The Ford components of this joint venture vehicle are terrible. Brakes, front-end parts, wiper switch are all high-maintenance items. Buy it cheap and have the front-end made right and youll be OK.

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  Miserable SUV - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By dencal26 - July 30 - 4:19 pm

  Transmission went at 51K. Bearings, Rotors warped, Calipers froze. Now the rear makes noise and at 91K I need a transfer case because it leaks and makes steering difficult. Never again will I buy a Ford.

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  Please Dont Buy - 1998 Mercury Mystique
  By kdub198 - July 24 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car new not knowing that Ford likes to make inferior brake rotors that tend to warp quickly. I had many problems with the car as soon as the warranty ran out. How convenient. I had to replace the break twice in 65K miles due to warped rotors (which cant be turned). The wheel cylinder sprung a leak the power steering pump leaked dry, plus all the recalls. Amazingly, I always had great service from all of the dealerships that I had to visit. The V6 is a must, but nowadays smaller engines do just as well and dont suck down the gas. Leather is nice if you dont live in Vegas. Its probably a good thing that ford discontinued the mystique.

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  BY A PODES - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By R PODESTAR - June 11 - 2:00 am

  I TRADED IN MY 1996 GRAND MARQUIS,IT HAD A GREAT RIDE AND VERY QUITE. BIG MISTAKE, MY NEW 2003 GRAND MARQUIS ULTIMATE IS VERY NOISY AND THE RIDE IS VERY BAD,EVERY BUMP AND CRACK IN THE ROAD IS FELT. (JIGGLY). THE GAS MILAGE IS NOT WHAT THEY TOLD ME. LUCKY TO GET 21MPG ON HIGHWAY.NO ROOM IN THE FRONT SEATS TO STORE ANYTHING.VERY DISAPOINTED.

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  A few problems - 1997 Mercury Sable
  By Fred Applegate - June 5 - 10:00 am

  At 5 1/2 years and 52000, after light suburban driving and regular maintenance, the car needed a transmission rebuild and a new front end at a cost of more than $3300. The mechanics seemed not to be surprised, and I know them. Our kids play soccer together, and he is an honest guy. I can only imagine how much this would have cost at a dealer! The biggest problem is that it is the ideal car for our needs.

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  headache in disguise - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Terrell.le - June 2 - 3:00 pm

  i bought my 2002 mercury mountaineer used in January of 2009, Truck did good for 2 hours then the both the front wheel bearings went. Shortly after the dealership fixed this problems i was back in the shop again. The power steering pump went along with the rack and pinion. I have only purchased the mountaineer 2 weeks prior. I made it another month until the transmission blew out on my on the expressway. Took the dealership 10 days to rebuild my new transmission and it still shifts kinda funny. Now 5 months later and the front differential is beginning to go, thanks god for extended warranties! Word of advise for anyone buying this model, DONT! Save yourself the trouble!

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  Mercury Cougar - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By angel42497 - May 20 - 5:27 am

  I currently have this car, and all the other complaints about this car above are absolutely true. It is a complete gas hog, it has ALOT of mechanical issues, my interior sucks, headlights are horrible. My car has 134k miles on and is expected for problems, but too much. My Engines motor mount is bad, which causes my car to buck leaving me wonder if it will start for me. Hot weather it is TERRIBLE in, after it gets to about 80+ degrees it wont start. I have never had a problem with the cold though it has been negatives many times. Its fuel injector is going out, transmission is bad, and the RPMs get ridiculous. It sputters whenever you hit the gas lightly. Over all it isnt a good first car.