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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  Did they say we bought an Escalade? - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Astrophel M. Tejada - April 3 - 2:00 am

  We have the children quiet on long trips. Turn on the DVD..... It looks so stately with the pearl white color on it. It feels so strong and powerful!

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  Awesome Vehicle - 1997 Mercury Sable
  By amazonkarebear - April 3 - 2:00 am

  I bought this vehicle because my old car was a peice of crap and dying and I needed something quick. This car was a very good price and in excellent condtion from the previous owner.

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  Monterey - 2004 Mercury Monterey
  By TJonesMfs - April 3 - 2:00 am

  Quite an improvement over the Mercury Villager. More features, better pickup and more comfortable.

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  Joes choise - 2002 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By njauton - April 3 - 2:00 am

  vehicle was a program car. the ride, drive, comfort and aesthicits are all above average. fuel economy is suprisingly good.(20+ mpg) the only negative is it has some "wind" noise. otherwise, excellent.

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  General - 2000 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By stagebuster - April 3 - 2:00 am

  Had a 1993 and found 2000 did not handle quite as well overall and MPG dropped between 1 and MPG. 2000 did away with locking gas cap and second key so glove compartment and trunk could not be locked from valet parking/etc.

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  Take back America! - 2004 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By JerrLorr - April 3 - 2:00 am

  We are part of the movement to "Take Back America" and prefer our products to be American-made. This extends to personal, home, garden, and automobiles!! Mercury is an excellent product now that the turning wheel base has been improved. We only wish we had a weight-balancing feature.

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  100,000 mile review - 2005 Mercury Montego
  By Tkaxman - April 2 - 4:20 pm

  Now at 105,000 miles with very little problems. The car still looks and runs like new. The Montego is a full size car in a mid-size body. Only complaint is noise. There is a lot of engine and road noise.

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  A Great Little SUV for the Money - 2008 Mercury Mariner
  By Tim - April 1 - 8:26 pm

  Before leasing my new Mariner I compared it with other vehicles such as the new Hyundai Santa Fe and the new Mitsubishi Outlander. The Santa Fe was marvelous, with two faults: 1) Lack of available Nav. and 2) Poor leasing rate percentages (7.9% for a person with stellar credit? Are you kidding me?) The Outlander had all of the bells and whistles, but I just wasnt thrilled with the way its rear-end looked... too much like a hatch-back car from the rear. The re-designed Mariner is very "classy" looking (especially in Gloss Black) and Mercury was offering something like 1.9% leasing. Interest savings alone compared to the actually cheaper Santa Fe was over $120/month just in saved interest.

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  Wake Up People - 2008 Mercury Milan
  By Vidin - April 1 - 6:33 pm

  A great car that is dependable and fun to drive. Gets about 26 mpg all around and on the highway regularly gets 32- 33 mpg. A solid choice.

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  I was surprised - 2010 Mercury Mariner Hybrid
  By Tim - March 31 - 11:43 pm

  Ive had my 2010 awd mariner hybrid for a few weeks now and am very impressed with its drivability. I did not expect the electronic boost of the engine under hard acceleration. It gives the feel of a V6 out of a 4. Interior room and quality is great, very classy design.