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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  yes! - 2004 Mercury Marauder
  By george10 - September 24 - 10:00 am

  great car. does everything well.With rebates, I paid $26,500!! Everyone admires the car, boys, girls, kids, my 13 year old loves the rumble and is now a hot rod lover! He wanted me to buy a ram air TA, but has no prob with this car. ride quality is excellent, ride control is fantastic, terrific interior, steering tight, very fast once reach 30 mph, exhaust rumble is a phenom. chrome pipes and wheels are a nice touch

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  Good, but not great. - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Brian - September 17 - 10:36 pm

  I purchased a brand new black 03 Crown Victoria based on reviews by Edmunds, Consumer Reports and J D Power. About everything they reported has panned out as accurate. The front bucket seats are extremely comfortable, great for long trips. The rear bench seats lack lateral support. Steering response and tracking are vague which requires more minute corrections to stay on course than in other vehicles Ive driven. The interior is quiet. The gray monochrome leather contrasts nicely with the black paint scheme and the car does not heat-up as much as you would expect in our hot Southern summers. The car will cruise at highway speeds (75-95 mph) with aplomb. Hope to drive her 7-10 years.

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  unreliable - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By beau66 - September 11 - 10:00 am

  Although this car looks good and has some of the best features for the price, it is unreliable. Ive had the cougar for almost 2 years now, and I have put over a 1000 miles on it just from taking it to the shop to get repaired. It has had problems since day one. Ford customer service is a joke. They wont do anything to help me get out of this vehicle, they do fix the problems that occur, but when all you have is problems something else needs to be done. Sure the repairs are warranted, but, its not worth having a new vehicle if you cant count on it.

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  Great family car - 2006 Mercury Montego
  By Bill Riley - September 6 - 5:06 am

  The Mercury Montego is a great family sedan with loads of interior and trunk space. The elevated seating is a very nice feature which is not only comfortable but allows easy entrance and exit from the vehicle. The instrument panel is attractive and functional, and the leather seats have a nice look to them. After the first 13000 miles, we have yet to experience our first problem of any kind. The ride is very comfortable and the handling is very controlled. Mileage seems to be about what they claim for the car which is 21/29mpg. Performance is sufficient for a car this size unless you really need to be the first away from every light. Overall....a great car.

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  Nice Ride - 2003 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Danpemby - September 5 - 8:23 pm

  Bought this car against my better judgment. The wife really wanted it so we got it. I was surprised by the performance and comfort of this vehicle. We drive it on winy back roads and it handles like a true champ. I recommend it to all. Gets 21MPG (non E-85)on average which is great for such a large vehicle.

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  Safe, well built, and well designed - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By cthelightnh - September 1 - 6:56 am

  Mercury Sable is a very refined vehicle. It is well designed and well built. I have had no initial quality issues which is a first for me. For a large sedan, it has great visibility and feels much smaller when driving. It has lots of room in both front and rear seats. Trunk is huge! Controls are logical and easy to use. Stock sound system is pretty good and has a aux input for portable electronics like mp3 players.

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  mine - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By my cougar 00 - August 30 - 10:00 am

  runs good needs a little more trunk space

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  Love the Van - 2002 Mercury Villager
  By David46 - August 30 - 10:00 am

  We have had the van for couple of months, but we are very pleased with it. While we have had to take it to the dealership for some minor "tuning" (back hatch door didnt raise all the way, squeaky passenger side window) we dont feel this is a big deal since it is simply laughable to expect perfection from a machine with thousands of moving parts. The van drives well . . . good pickup . . . carries everything we need . . . looks great even when compared to Hondas allegedly fantastic minivan. This is our fourth mini-van, but first Villager, and we are upset we didnt try it before. They are making a mistake discontinuing it.

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  No major problems yet. - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer
  By Erie, Pa - August 30 - 1:33 am

  Looked for an SUV for a long time. Chose because of price and Explorer reputation. So far have had minor problems with the vehicle not being able to start. After three tows, found out it was bad ground wire. vehicle sometimes seems to lag into gear from park when cold. Also transmission at times acts like something is going wrong. Have 75,000 mile warranty, hope it goes before then. A fine vehicle otherwise, gas mileage around town is 13 and highway is poor at only 18. Questionable whether I would buy another. Also seat foam on drivers seat began to bunch up along left part of seat, I dont weigh a whole lot over 170. Had to have it taken off and fixed. $125.00

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  Slo-poke - 2006 Mercury Montego
  By Mark - August 29 - 2:43 am

  Ford has come a long way in producing a quality vehicle, owned this mercury from March 2005 never had any problems with it, put almost 17,000 miles on it until I got rid of it November 2005. This was/is HUGE car, lots and lots of room, great features and content. However, the darned thing just could not get out of its own way. Ford made a drastic mistake with the powerplant, its a shame because otherwise a great vehicle!!!