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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  Style & Comfort - 2001 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By turnerjim77 - March 5 - 1:56 am

  Great long trip comfort ride with respectable gas mileage, especially for full sized vehicle. Second such vehicle I have purchased, as 96 was totalled by red light-running fool. Was struck at 50 mph and both I and passenger came out of it OK. Believe me when I say I feel pretty darn safe in this car! Great style, comfort, safety and decent economy in full sized ride.

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  Delightful but underpowered - 2005 Mercury Montego
  By jjenny - March 4 - 11:20 am

  Loaded with nice touches: All steering wheel mounted controls lighted, exterior temp on dash, lighted clock remains operative with radio controls, interior rearview mirror magically dims following lights, ground lights from side mirrors, able to control duration of exit lights lag, keyless entry pad permits trunk and 4 door unlatch.

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  Best New Car Ever - 2006 Mercury Mountaineer
  By pfoxcroft - March 2 - 1:33 pm

  I have owned Mercedes, Bmw, Acura etc. This is the best vehicle I have bought. No problems .Extremely quiet. Magnificent transmission. 21 mpg at 70 mph.Loaded with features . American cars are back. Why pay more for a funny looking more expensive smaller import? Have you driven a ford lately? Do your self a favor.

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  An average vehicle - 2007 Mercury Mountaineer
  By jhood1590 - March 1 - 10:03 am

  This is my second mountaineer, I bought it brand new and got a deal because the mercury dealership was going out of business. The interior quality has decreases dramatically from the 2002 model I previously drove. It looks nice inside, just cheaply quality. Navigation makes it look very nice, and is very functional. Sound system is great. Exterior quality is OK. The paint has always been excellent on Fords, but the rims are a real problem. I dont recommend the polished aluminum rims. They have a terrible protective coat and a week of salt will destroy them. Ford customer service has always been awful, but the vehicles are a pretty good deal.

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  Mercury Villager - 2002 Mercury Villager
  By Steve - February 28 - 4:43 pm

  This is our second Mercury Villager. There great vans. We have always been pleased.

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  Nice Looking Nightmare - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Angela - February 28 - 7:20 am

  In looks and comfort, this is a great vehicle. Repairs have been plenty. Had all 4 wheel bearings replaced at 80k miles, then front differential, rear differential seals, driveshaft and transfer case all replaced at 90k miles. At 107k miles, it is back in the shop for new front differential and transfer case. This truck is a money pit and will be used in helping me to buy my new Toyota. It is comfortable though but that doesnt help me if I cant drive it anywhere.

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  Excellent vehicle for the american road - 1996 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Phillie Dee - February 28 - 2:00 am

  In simply two words the car is "Bullet proof". Purchased used with 56K, drove it 90K on one set of tires with no need for wheel alignments and tire rotation. Acceleration is excellent and its quiet, roomy and comfortable. Now at 183K miles it looks and runs like a new car. You would never know that it has high miles on it. I average 21.9 MPG in combo driving and it can take a beating, being driven 100 miles every day to commute. Recently took it on a road trip 3000 miles in 4 days and it ran flawlessly at around 26.5 MPG.

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  Good car but sometimes expensive to fix - 1995 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Joe - February 25 - 1:50 am

  I have owned this car for 3 years. The problems i have encountered so far: - new brake lines (rotted at 88k) $300 -steering gearbox seal (102k) $90 -pitman arm and idler arm -tie rod and tie rod end (common) -lower balljoint on driver side (VERY COMMON) -muffler hangers ($20) - new headlight lens(peeling) very common -egr valve gives code, cant get valve out, in tight space ($300 to replace at mechanic) The above problems i have encountered was mostly wear and tear and things that DIDNT go while the car was driving it. I havent had any problems other than maintanance items that keep the car going. I have enjoyed driving the car and recommend highly!

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  Decent - 2000 Mercury Sable
  By Jabba - February 23 - 10:00 am

  Moved to the Sable Wagon from a Plymouth Grand Voyager. The wagon seems smaller on the road but sure is larger putting it in the garage! Excellent ride and visibility. Clean, classy looking front end styling but slab sided, and dated rear end styling. Our local Ford/Mercury dealer is clueless for service so I do it myself or take it to the next dealer 30 miles away. Be sure to get the 24-valve motor - we didnt and regret it.

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  RIP MysTAKE - 1998 Mercury Mystique
  By kij1989 - February 21 - 11:36 am

  Purchased my 98 Mystique GS two years ago for 1,800, with 86K on it. Since then, must have put 3K worth of repairs into it. The interior lights would fall down when driving. Headlights were awfully dim, replaced them and made a slight difference, but with the fogginess of the plastic what do you expect? Brakes were replaced and still were .. clunky when stopping. Next was the transmission! Oh boy, that went at 100K, got it replaced for the amount I paid for the car. About 2 months ago, it started an awful rattling noise when starting up the car, and when the A/C was on. Took it to my mechanic thinking it was the compressor, turns out it was the engine. Im sure theres more, but never AGAIN!