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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  Montego Test Drive - 2005 Mercury Montego
  By R J Harris - June 19 - 7:36 am

  I was looking for an AWD sedan, and drove the CVT Montego. The car is big, but I found the drivers seating position to be cramped. Power was adequate, but the engine was rough and noisy. The CVT was weird, but seemed to work OK. I could get used to it. The car is nothing special to look at and a bit unrefined. The price is right, however, and if it had been more comfortable, I might consider it. There are too many other choices out there.

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  Better Gas Milage Please - 2006 Mercury Mariner
  By John Holkmes - June 18 - 11:53 am

  I actually love the Mercury Mariner except when I was driving back from my brothers house last weekend the check engine light came on and the system monitor stated that there was an emission system problem and to push the start button to clear it so that is what I did and ever since I have been getting terrible fuel economy between 16 and 17 mpg when I should be getting 22 to 24 mpg I am not happy with the fuel economy.

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  Can you beat this? - 1999 Mercury Cougar
  By Merc123 - June 9 - 2:00 am

  Can you beat this? Buyers beware. Some have no problems while other have tons. V6 Automatic with 56K miles on it. Part x Replacement Times ----------------------- Altenator x 6 Flywheel x 1 (flexplate in ATX) Brakes Rotors x 1 (Bought aftermarket @ over $500) Brake Pads x 1 (bought aftermarket) Hood Latch Cable x 2 Center console x 1 (still broke) Trunk x1 (fixed self after 2nd time) Radiator hoses replaced x 1 A/C fixed x 1 Weather stripping x 2 (still messed up) Wheel bearing x 1 Defrost vent pops up. Transmission started slipping at 28K and is now slipping nicely at 56K. Alarm still randomly goes off for no reason

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  Okay buy - 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Mike Stevenson - June 4 - 4:36 am

  I always thought that the japanese made a better car but took a chance with Mercury. The Mercury has a good ride and leather but handles horribly, gets 15 MPG, and is bad quallity. I had one mechanical problem after 28,000 and thats all.

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  Sable is underpowered - 2001 Mercury Sable
  By art friedman - June 3 - 2:00 am

  small v-6 has only 155 horsepower and is definitely underpowered. Gas mileage around town is absolutely terrible. (15mpg)and nothing to write home about on the highway (about 25mpg. The LS model would be a much better choice.

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  Transmission Trouble - 2001 Mercury Cougar
  By Sue - May 2 - 6:26 pm

  I had to review my car after reading all of these reviews. I love my cars styling, but its NOT the most reliable car Ford ever made. My transmission went out at 92,000 mi. Looks like theres more people with the same trouble. Ive replaced tires several times and a rim that was dented from the low ride. Im buying a Focus next time.

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  Worst auto I have ever owned - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By John Doe America - April 23 - 1:36 pm

  A/C, rear axle bearings and seals, broken coil springs in the rear end( remember the sable recall?) rear hub assemblings, left and right rear window regulars, right rear view mirror, both front rotors replaced(that is a classic ford) rear hatch problems, that was recalled, differential noise......now I think I have bad front axel bearings. An unbelievable list of mechanical failures. All of this happened between 75000 and 88000 miles. I will not be a return customer of Ford. My next SUV will be a 4Runner, Pilot or a Sequoia.

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  Transmission Problems Again - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By OneThunderbird - April 6 - 9:36 am

  This could be a good SUV if Mercury would fix know problems with the Transmission. Back to the dealer for the fourth time with OD Light flashing and Service Light on. Dealer claims it takes days to recieve parts and then after installing, the same problems return. Gas Mileage is awfull and paint failing. We no longer trust this SUV as it fails to shift and has stalled several times while in traffic.

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  Good Reliability - 1999 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Mark - March 25 - 8:16 pm

  I got this car at 40,000 miles for free from my dad. It took some getting used to but it is alright for now. Its too floaty and cant get comfortable in the front seats. Ford needs to redesign this 70s interior. Pay me a couple hundred grand and I will tell you how to do it Ford. It is obvious you are overpaying your help with this one. The only thing I like about it is it has not broken down yet. What the heck is wrong with Ford for not having anti-lock brakes standard on this car. Give me a break. Its like I am in my dads Impala from the 70s. The car has decent headlights and hopefully will get me around this winter with no problem.

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  Junk - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Allstar - March 22 - 10:00 am

  Love the concept of this SUV. SUV performs well except gas milage. However we have had this SUV in the shop 9 times in one year. 3 times for seat belt clip. 3 times for air conditionier finally figured out the air compressor was leaking feron so they had to replace compressor. Check engine light keeps coming on. Door hinge on drivers side keeps coming loose and squeaking like a worn out car. Back hatch latch kept coming apart. Finally that was fixed. We are at the point now were we dont know what could happy next.