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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  The BEST bang for the buck! - 1995 Mercury Villager
  By carecarpro - October 7 - 4:00 am

  This vehicle is underrated and the Nissan/Mercury name has been badly ridiculed. I have owned my Villager for over 14 years and all I can say is $21,000 for this LS model and all is well. My wife owns a Lexus SUV and I paid over $53K a year ago and it has been in the shop 7 times. The Villager we own has 267k miles and has never seen major repair. My cousin and my good friend both have 95 Villagers and all I can say is 289k and 212k miles and the same results. That is a real review.

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  Looks can be deceiving! - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By jayd96 - October 7 - 2:00 am

  I had nothing but problems from the start. The passenger rear door would not open from the inside, it takes me several times to start the car in cold weather, the back glass leaks when it rains, and the window rattles. I had this car for two years, and it has been in the shop for over three consecutive months for transmission problems, they say it is fixed however, Im still having problems. I will never purchase another domestic vehilce if I can help it.

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  its been good to me - 1999 Mercury Villager
  By readany - October 7 - 2:00 am

  I have nearly 100,000 miles and have never had to do any mechanical work other than routine maintenance.... It still drives and looks like a new car!

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  Go For It - 1997 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By David in Dallas - October 7 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car with 63000 miles on it and it now has 100000 miles on it. I plan to have it another 50000 miles. It is the best riding car I have ever owned. Very smooth, fun to drive, and great on long trips. You wont regret the purchse. Best one I ever made.

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  Nice SUV for the money - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Bill - October 6 - 2:36 pm

  the AWD is so well implemented that you dont notice it - unless youre the one driving the speed limit in the left lane when everyone else is slowing way down. This was my second (after a 2000)and the ind. rear susp improved the handling over the prev model. Even my wife loves it.

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  mystique is good - 1998 Mercury Mystique
  By j to tha lo - October 6 - 10:00 am

  i like my mystique. it rides very well and is fun to drive. i love its cherry red color.

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  Not happy with transmission - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By dinger22170 - October 4 - 6:06 pm

  bought a 2004 mercury mountaneer in 1- 06 with 26000 miles had a front wheel bearing go out at 35000 miles now at 71000 miles transmission broke i have never towed anything with it the transmission has no dipstick i am very un happy with this vehicals powertrain transmission is very week and this vehical is suppose to have the towing package and is the premiere package with the v-8 and AWD i am not very impressed with mercury will never buy another one

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  Reliable Comfort - 2004 Mercury Sable
  By JGP - October 4 - 10:10 am

  Traded a 2002 Miata in for it when I needed a new car to drive coast to coast pulling a trailer. Wound up making the drive twice and the car performed flawlessly. Now has 55,000 miles on it and the only repair trip to the dealer was to replace a failing speaker. Car has DOHC 3.0 engine. Pulls down 28 MPG on the highway and 22-24 MPG around town which is surprising for its size. In winter I use 4 studded snows and have never gotten stuck in the worst storms New England can throw at it.

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  Not all of us like SUVs - 2005 Mercury Montego
  By rizcpa - October 3 - 10:30 pm

  The car is absolutly wonderful in the snow. Have had nothing but good to say about it. Caught the gravel once and the car pulled right out of it. Worst snow of the year and drove right through it, the all wheel drive is great! Plenty of room in the back for my teenage boys, more room in the car and trunk than in most of the SUVs on the market. Sits a little higher than other cars but lower than a truck. The only problem I have is reaching over the window sill at the bank and the ATMs. Going to sell the 2005 and buy a new one. I havent found another car on the market today that handles this well in the snow and rain, and the safety features are really comforting.

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  great car - 2006 Mercury Milan
  By c.h. - October 3 - 2:36 pm

  the milan is a great car with lots of features of a luxury car and very roomy comfortably fits five a very roomy trunk. powerful for a for cylinder fun to drive great tranny five speeds does great in the mountains downshifts going up great in drive i dont even see why they have a low gear on this car it does awesome in drive eatc climate control is nice you just set it and forget it overall im very happy with this car i would buy another in the blink of an eye