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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  Better Than Explorer - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By daryll44 - December 31 - 10:00 am

  We have an 03 that we bot in Sept, 2002, loaded. A great improvement over the 3 Explorers we had during the 90s. The quality has been excellent! Almost went Toyota after all of our 99 Explorers problems. We now have about 25000 miles on it and there has not been one defect. Easier to drive than old Explorers... a little more "squat". Less bounce and easier/lower entry for my wife Two complaints. Major: the so-called leather seats. The drivers seat is clearly beat up at 25K mi and will certainly reqire sheepskin covers at 50-75K. Minor:the rear window should have a more solid closing mechanism. But other than that, its been great.

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  Powerful, unique, needs better quality.. - 2000 Mercury Mystique
  By Aaron - December 28 - 2:20 am

  i own the V6 LS model and it has ran great with minimal problems to this day. bought in 2001 and still own it today in 2009, very reliable, still attractive. love the LS features, preamium sound system, leather seats, motorized radio antenna. added a few things to it myself, like remote start and a better horn. few things have needed to be replaced but it seems that everything needs fixing at once now.... 1,000 dollar suspension estimate at belle tire. everything is luse in the front end. also had to repllace alternator at low miles. it has 151k miles now still good. needs new battery, it also makes this weird humming noise every now and then, doesnt seem to do anything major. left it alone

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  mariner value - 2006 Mercury Mariner
  By Ron W - December 26 - 3:30 pm

  We love this vehicle. My wife actually picked it out. Ive used it to haul cargo with back seats folded down and was amazed at the room inside. Although it is still quite new so gas mileage probably isnt correct yet, it seems to do very very well on a gallon of gas.

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  lvc - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By lvcollins - December 25 - 10:00 am

  I love the mountaineer. Its comfortable and has a smooth ride. The only problem that Ive experienced is that the car wants to stall out in either cold or warm weather. The engine begins to rev up, the car lunges forward repeatedly,then proceeds to stall when I decelerate upon approaching a stop sign/light or into a turn. Eventually I have to put the car into park and give it a little gas to stop the revving. Its an intermmitent problem occuring a few times a month. I have had it looked at twice and they cant seem to find the problem. Today it is in the shop for an oil change, hopefully they can correct the problem.

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  little problems - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By roack1 - December 24 - 1:03 am

  This is my 3rd mountaineer, and on all 3 the windows froze and wouldnt thaw till driven 15 min w/defrost hi. Wipers also a problem-froze up quickly. 2001&2004 check tire pressurelite always came on even when pressure was ok.I love the OD on/off-I do a lot of just riding in the mtns. Never been a problem w/ control in heavy snow-I can get right thru snowbanks when Im plowed in. I guess I love it if I have had 3 mountaineers since 1998.

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  Best Car I Ever Owned - 1999 Mercury Cougar
  By I luv my cougar - December 23 - 7:30 pm

  I bought my Cougar new in 1999. It had 91 miles on it. I just traded it off 3 days ago with over 128,000 miles on it. I loved that car. Even with that many miles the engine and the transmission are still going strong. The Cougar is built solid and reliable. I traded it because my family is expanding and it is not practical with 2 car seats, but I will miss it terribly.

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  Nice and refined-2010 base automatic - 2010 Mercury Milan
  By skater69 - December 23 - 12:28 pm

  I have the 2010 base automatic (there was no option to select this on Edmunds). Bought the car used with 26K miles. Came with a nice sunroof, leather wrapped steering wheel, fog lights, SYNC..etc. Its nice and comfortable to drive. Quiet, great mileage, good power for a 4cyl, very nice cloth seats. I really enjoy this car. Handles well too but if youre looking for a sports sedan, I wouldnt go that far. Just a really nice car in my opinion. A steal for the price used. Feels/looks like a classy ride.

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  Bought for work car, but.... - 2007 Mercury Milan
  By drlmg - December 22 - 3:46 pm

  I bought this car to drive back and forth to work....appx. 35000 miles per year. I was not expecting much for the price but I have ended up liking this car more than 2 others that cost $65,000 and the other well...over $65,000. The car runs, drives, and handles great. Great sound system (pioneer with GPS). Very tight steering and handling. Ride..very good, however I do have one issue related to this. Being front wheel drive normally would not be a hit with me but I actually like it in this car. In short I love this car. It is far beyond what I expected. I will go as far as to say it is one of the best cars I have ever owned.....and aside from my school years, the cheapest!

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  My Last American Car - 1999 Mercury Cougar
  By Ford Hater Forever - December 22 - 3:06 am

  I bought my car right after my divorce, thinking that I needed a reliable car to drive my kids around, boy was I wrong. The car has left me stranded numerous times with my children in the car. Ive replaced the alternator twice, tied rod ends, wheel bearing 3 times, the check engine light is always on because of a vacuum leak 5 mechanics havent been able to find, I cant get it inspected, Ive put tires on 4 times and it eats brakes, the radio shorts out and the anti freeze light comes on if the antifreeze goes below max level. Im considering parking the car because I owe so much money on it I cant trade and cant afford to drive it

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  Quote on worth of Grand Marquis - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Thomas Zimarino - December 19 - 8:46 am

  This car is wonderful on trips due to its comfort. It has leather interior which gives it a very plush feeling. We are most appreciative of the large trunk for luggage. City driving however is hard on gas mileage.