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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  2001 Mercury Mountaineer - 2001 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Robert Zell - August 11 - 10:00 am

  Having owned this for 6 months now, Im very satisfied with the SUVs performance and quality. The only drawback has been the gas mileage which is extremely bad (5.0 liter engine and AWD). The overall ride comfort is good even though you should expect that this will ride like a truck....because essentially, it is. Cargo room is sufficient for most needs and the leg room between seats is satisfactory. The climate control feature works perfectly and in this particular model, the rear seat area can even control the climate. The one question most folks want to know following a review is usually, "would you buy it again"? My answer: most definitely.

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  Just good transportation - 2003 Mercury Sable
  By geobar - August 11 - 10:00 am

  The Sable is still a comfortable and reliable sedan, with all the creature comforts in the LS. Its fine to tote around customers and the boss. If you crack it up or its stolen (Boston driving), you just go grab another one. For the money, its a good value.

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  2004 Grand Marquis - 2004 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By robowman - August 7 - 10:00 am

  This is the third of this model car in the last 5 years that we have owned. Outstanding value, good mileage for a full size V-8. We hope that Mercury continues to produce this model in future years.

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  Sable Is Great - 1998 Mercury Sable
  By Starjet - August 5 - 10:00 am

  Ive owned this Sable since 98 and have had little problem with it. Its a nice looking car with a great amount of leg room in the front and rear. Quite ride, however, some wind noise.

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  Da Marquise - 1997 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By richie3102 - August 4 - 4:45 pm

  This car is all around great. Surprising fuel economy, good handling for size, extreme comfort, good audio system, and nice pick up. I made it look like a copncar with rims and the pushbar and people stare. We have named him Marquis and I have loved him from the day I stole him from a dealer for next to nothing. No break downs or any problems what so ever. And man does he slam with my little additions. I have friends falling asleep in the back seat all of the time with the sort seats and smooth ride. Just broke 100000 and Im driving him to the junk yard hopefully around 300000.

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  Great Van! - 1999 Mercury Villager
  By Doug N - August 3 - 10:43 pm

  We have put over 100000 miles on our Villager. It is a great van and has been fun to drive. Like the commercials said when they were first introduced, "the mini-van that drives like a car". I would highly recommend a Villager to anyone looking to purchase.

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  Very Pleased! - 2010 Mercury Milan
  By jege - August 3 - 1:00 pm

  Got my Sterling Gray I-4 Premier 012210 after trading my 2008 Mariner Premier. With approx. 1500 miles, all is great. I had a 2005 Mazda6 (the base for this car) before my Mariner and Im enjoying the same feeling the Mazda had. Great ride/handling with excellent brakes and very quiet. Fuel economy in town is about 24mpg so far. Fit & finish is comparable to imports. Leather is luxury car quality.

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  Montaineer 2006 SUV - 2006 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Lou Gayoso - August 3 - 5:30 am

  Love this SUV, which is my first SUV vehicle. I have been a passenger in several luxurious suv;s. this one is special, Mercury has a winnier competing against foriengn suvs; I have driven this suv on highways and city traffic, both of these esperiences were wonderful comfortable rides. I love the handling, especially, the six cylinder which has enough power and gas savings for my taste. Although, gas is an issue these days, the Mountaineeer you can live with and its reults of gas mileage - remember you are driving a truck - that is certainly a surpise and im pleased that i own a Mercury Mountaineer. Linclon vehicles are luxurious an American product you can be proud of. Buy One!!

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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.