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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  Love this Car - 2007 Mercury Milan
  By Jack - August 18 - 4:10 am

  The car is exceptionally sytled and extremely eye catching inside and out. The I-4 engine is definitely willing to rev and delivers fun to drive performance while delivering very high fuel ecomonmy. I have been averaging 26.5 miles per gallon on mostly city driving with a very heavy foot. The car handling and ride are perhaps the best part. Very tight and very confindent. Feels like a much higher end sportier ride. I would reccomend this car to anyone who is looking for a high quality great looking car that mixes practicality with good driving dynamics.

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  This is a Great car! - 2004 Mercury Marauder
  By Love this car! - August 16 - 2:53 pm

  Overall, I love this car, however there are a couple of things I think Ford missed. Obviously, they couldve put the supercharger on the thing. I also think that it would be nice to have a suspension adjustment switch. It rides very nicely most of the time, but when youre on a bumpy road, you feel it! It would be nice to be able to soften up the suspension a bit when youre just not in a performance type of a mood.

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  We have a winner! - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By CommuterMan - August 16 - 5:00 am

  I bought my Sable two weeks ago and I have to say that Mercury has hit a home run with this one! Theyve addressed all of the weaknesses of the Montego: styling, power, wind noise, and lack of ESC. I love the looks of the new Sable, which must be seen in person to appreciate. I didnt care for the front of the Montego, it looked sort of buck-toothed. The Sable on the other hand, looks hungry. Up close it looks like a cross between the Milan and the Chrysler 300. The Sable has a much beefier engine now and it corners nicely. You just point and go - effortlessly, with plenty of power to spare. The 2008 Sable looks bigger than the old, but is only 2 in. longer.

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  Muscle at its Best ! - 2003 Mercury Marauder
  By 2003MM - August 16 - 2:00 am

  A great car that seats 5 and has the performance of a sport coupe. Nothing beats the sound of an American V-8. Amazing amount of engine performance increase after the first 5000 miles.

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  Great SUV. - 2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid
  By Haole Boy - August 15 - 7:26 am

  1. Despite its appearance, this is indeed a compact SUV. Compare all specs w/the Hyundai Tucson for instance and they are very similar. I was surprised to find that it is shorter than my A4. However, the storage is still more than suficient and when driving, you feel safe and like youre driving a larger SUV, and heck, it fits nicely in a smalle townhouse garage. Love both the interior and exterior design. This SUV consitently turns heads. Have put about 900 miles on it, including a 600 mile road trip. Overall averaging a good 31 mpg. It certainly lacks some pep, but thats to be expected from a 4 cyl hybrid SUV. I still have been able to accelerate into high speed traffic satisfactorily.

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  very safe! - 2008 Mercury Mariner
  By Molly Mc - August 13 - 3:43 am

  although the gas mileage could be improved and the transmission slipping could use improvement too,i cannot say enough about how great the safety features on this car are. I was recently hit from behind by a drag racing honda going in excess of 65 mph. both side curtain air bags deployed, side impact airbags,seatbelts worked fantastic and although my Mariners floor buckled and roof creased in two places and is probably a total loss,i walked away from this accident with a little whip lash. This car took hit fantastically.

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  Great Car - 2006 Mercury Mariner
  By L Fitt - August 12 - 12:40 am

  Have owned the vehicle for almost 6 months with not a single instance of a problem. It is a uiet and the ride is great for a smaller SUV. Owned a Mercury Grand Marquis before and we enjoy this car a much as the other one. Wish the fuel mileage was better on our 4-cylinder engine, but it is pretty quiet and responsive.

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  New to Mercury Milan - 2006 Mercury Milan
  By Paul - August 11 - 10:23 pm

  We just purchased a 2006 Milan. At this time, we are pleased with the overall mechanical performance of the vehicle. She is roomy, comfy, peppy (4cyl), and artfully beautiful inside and out as well as feeling solid and responsive. She suits our needs and we have been content with Mercury vehicles having owned a 1994 Villager and a 1989 Marquis that was sold to a family member. There will be complaints about the 4cyl not being w/o more HP but then they need to be driving the auto of their choice and budget. We cant wait to do a road trip in our Milan. We will let you know how that succeeds. PL

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  Cougar - 1997 Mercury Cougar
  By woody1957 - August 11 - 2:00 am

  Best Car every owned. Excellent fuel economy for a V-8. 19-21 mpg around town, 25 mpg highway. No mechanical problems, execpt the intake manifold recall.

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  it will do - 1998 Mercury Sable
  By chef chris - August 11 - 2:00 am

  bought 98 gs, with 50000 on it, for a steal of a deal. have put 5 thousand on it in a half year, and have not been dissapointed. I had to settle for this as opposed to an sho, but its doin ok. After some practice, the trany is fine, but it must been driven smothly, no sudden acceleration, or it freaks out, but the duratec is a great engine. I look foward to seeing the duratec in a more stylish vehicle such as the new mazda 6, which is a duratec block with mazda designed heads that incoperate valve timing like hondas v-tec. all in all i love it.