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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  Nice vehicle, great lease deal - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Shelcom - May 18 - 2:00 am

  Very quiet for an SUV. Build quality surprisingly good, especially for an American model. The $4000 rebate and cheap lease made me look. Driving it made me sign the papers. Really nice family vehicle.

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  OK vehicle over all - 2000 Mercury Villager
  By bobby - May 8 - 4:20 am

  This has been a pretty darn reliable vehicle. It has over 100,000 miles on it and it still runs real good. I wish i would have gotten a Ford Expedition 4x4 because this vehicle is too small for us, and it does pretty bad in the snow. It does real good on gas 14cty 19-21hw. There has been absolutly nothing mechanically wrong with it.

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  poor gas and break pedals - 2009 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By ted - May 7 - 11:06 pm

  the 2009 mercury grand marquis, changes were made not to my liking. the gas pedal is TOO vertical, ( needs to be more on an angle) this is causing greal nerve pain in the entire leg. The break pedal is too high, can no longer move foot from the gas to the break easly. More pain in the shin portion of the leg. These obvious changes were not present from model years 1992 thru 2007. I had no problem with these models.

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  No Confidence In This Car - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By T-K - May 2 - 10:00 am

  Negatives: * Replaced fuel pump twice * Been in the shop 5 different times. * Turning radius is terrible (it reminds me of a semi) * Backseats are too small for adults. * Dim Headlights are too dim. * No compartments for change & stuff. Positives: * Tons of trunk room * V6 is fast & fun. * Mercury covered the cost of the fuel pump recall. I have had the car into get serviced many times. The fuel pump has been replaced twice. No one seems to know what is wrong with it. After the redesigned pump was put it, I figured my problems are over. I still have a sluggish engine and I am constantly worried it will break down. Basically, im selling it!

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  Mercury Montery Mileage - 2004 Mercury Monterey
  By Mercury Driver - May 2 - 10:00 am

  We traded a 2000 Olds Siloutte and are somewhat disappointed with the Montery in comparison. The gas mileage on the Montery is VERY disappointing. We are averaging 14 around town and about 19 on trips. This van is also much louder (engine/road sounds) than was our Siloutte. While the van looks great, we are disappointed with mileage and interior noise. I also need to note when the rear DVD player screen is in use it completely blocks the drivers sight view from the rear view mirror. This was not the case in our Oldsmobile. Lastly, the auto climate control is confusing in setting temperatures for driver, passenger and rear. The fan speed cuts back to soon leaving the car uncomfortabe

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  Good but not good enough - 2005 Mercury Mariner
  By Vanz73 - April 25 - 6:20 am

  I bought this because my old expedition would not fit into my new company garage. I wanted something small but still in the SUV range. I was initially impressed with the features of the vehicle but in time I have found this vehicle lacking. It uses way to much gas with weak acceleration. The brake rotors are so cheap I spent more than $400 getting them replaced after only 19,000 miles (yes I drive hard - thats why I drive an SUV!). I have had it in for warranty service to replace the gas tank intake and several switches (window, sunroof). My brother has the same vehicle and he likes it. For me, I am counting the days to trade it in.

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  Love it, BUT.......................... - 1999 Mercury Cougar
  By NJCougar - April 11 - 2:00 am

  Car performs nicely and serves many purposes courtesy of the fold down rear seats. Encountered too many nickel and dime repairs, recalls, tweaks over 4 years, not to mention a problem with the Cat conv that I had to fight with Ford to have covered under warranty. Several electrical problems alternator, wiring harness, battery from year one to 2003

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  Stay away from the Cougar - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By blinky1pxp - April 6 - 8:56 am

  Ive had the Mercury Cougar for 2 years now and it already is starting to fall apart. Im having tramission problems. My cat converter needs to be replaced. This car drinks gas like crazy. Its a cool looking car, but not a good buy. This car breaks down a lot and ends up being an expensive couch.

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  Was nice - not now! - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Cindy L. - March 11 - 7:33 am

  Looked for 2 years until we decided on the Mountaineer. Really liked it, took it on many long vacations, very comfortable to ride in and drive for hours on end. Now at 110,000 miles, its all over. Trans is difficult to get back into park, wheel bearings shot, running boards cracked, back hatch cracked right down the middle. I can only afford to drive this thing when absolutely necessary. Went out and bought a $1500 beater to get around in. Ford does not stand behind their product. Too many complaints out there about bad transmissions and bad wheel bearings. Ford should recall and fix these continual problems before someone gets killed.

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  Worst Car Ive Ever Ridden In my life. - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By Joshua - March 9 - 5:00 pm

  This vehicle Is not reliable. I just recently wrecked my wougar going 45 and ran straight into a electrical pole. The airbags did not deploy and the seatbelt did not lock in place for the passengers in the backseat. The Cougar is not a good vehicle for a first time driver. Do not buy this car for your teenage daughter or son. It crushes like a can. I put a dent on my front right fender by just leaning on it. It broke down many times for multiple reasons.