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:

• 

  Bring back the oldies - 2004 Mercury Marauder
  By Scott Tallman - June 19 - 2:00 am

  Super car, but dont try and back it up at nite. the backup lights are not very bright, have been blacked out by Ford. The ride isnt quite as comfortable as the regular Marquis because of the low slung tires the Marauder has. This is my 4th Grand Marquis, so I thought Id try the new Marauder. Its a joy to drive as long as the road isnt bumpy and its not at nite. Scott Tallman

• 

  2002 Big M - 2002 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By libsdad - June 19 - 2:00 am

  Excellent highway cruiser/with good fuel economy. Drove to FLA last summer (12 hour run) and did not feel beat when we arrived. Not a young persons car, but ideal for 50 and older crowd.

• 

  Dont buy one - 2000 Mercury Cougar
  By unsatisfied - June 17 - 2:00 am

  The Mercury Cougar is number 5 on the "lemon list" put out by the government. I have had mine in (that has less than 30000 miles on it and is still under warranty) 4 times in the last three months! The have replaced the "brain" to the transmission, fuel pump, etc. 2002 is the last year they are making them because they have so many problems.

• 

  Best Van...or maybe vehicle Ive owned! - 2002 Mercury Villager
  By David - June 16 - 2:00 am

  I dont know what the editors were rating when they rated this vehicle but obviously they were sports car enthusiasts or something, lol. Its no Porsche or Corvette, its a van. This is the second Villager Ive owned, the first one being a 1997. I have had great luck with both of them. Absolutely the most reliable vehicle I have ever owned. I do not know why they stopped production so early on. I have owned my current 2002 model for almost 6 years now and have put about 80K miles on it(it had 25K when I bought it) Outside of normal maintenance I have done nothing to this van except I had to replace a CV Joint. thats it in 6 years. Reliable, roomy, comfortable...what else do you want!

• 

  Good purchase for the money - 2004 Mercury Mountaineer
  By trbjfb - June 14 - 9:30 am

  I am overall pleased with the SUV. I have had a transmission problem, starting at 15,000 miles. Some other minor problems. I was in an Acura 3.5RL before and loved that car. It too was not perfect. I needed an SUV and thought this was a good priced purchase. I looked at many SUVs and decided on the Mountaineer. I have the AWD Premier V8. Tons of power and rides nice. We had a Navigator before and it rides better than the 98 Navigator. For the options this truck came with it was a good buy. I do not know if I would buy another one because of the transmission issue. After reading the reviews from others, I guess mine is not a normal Mountaineer.

• 

  Mercury Grand Marquis - Experiences - 1996 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Julie - June 11 - 10:00 am

  Generally, this car has been very, very dependable and comfortable to ride on a daily basis. The down side is on a long trip, the seats do not give as much support as they should, resulting in back-aches. The car is very long, and the suspension is rather "floppy" in that it is "swooshy", and not tight like a more sporty model. The turning radius is not tight.

• 

  Very Durable Performer - 1997 Mercury Sable
  By Rolling in Mississip - June 11 - 10:00 am

  We had our previous Sable (1986 wagon) for 240,000 miles and loved it -- great ride, room and comfort, plus 30 mpg highway. So we bought the 1997. Initially, I didnt like it much because the seats were firmer, the springs were harsher and the ride had too much "road feel." It also had less interior space. (And lower fuel economy (28 mpg highway). All that said, my admiration for the car keeps growing and growing. It is very dependable. Nothing has had to be replaced except for tires and oil, so far. This baby ought to go 300,000 easy.

• 

  Update - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By Merlin - June 10 - 8:40 am

  Purchased the car ll/07 and immediately fell in love with it. However, after a few months and several thousand miles some chinks have appeared in its armor. Gas mileage is awful. 20 mpg in mixed driving and 24/25 freeway driving. Computer consistently shows 4 mpg more than car is actually getting. Also, car has developed an annoying noise in the front suspension that is worsening with time. Havent had a chance to get it back to dealer yet.

• 

  It has its ups and downs. - 1998 Mercury Sable
  By Arah - June 8 - 10:00 am

  At first it was a great car. Then after a year little bad things kept happening. Window frames keep breaking, paint job flecking, windshield wipers goofy, parking brake light misbehaves, door sensors often wrong (had to remove interior light bulbs to save battery), hinge on front storage compartment broke, springs in change storages broke. Etc. On the plus side though nothing serious has ever broken. The only major failure after 160,000 miles was the bearing in the alternator went bad.

• 

  96 Mercury Cougar - 1996 Mercury Cougar
  By 96greencougar - June 6 - 10:00 am

  i have owned mine for two years, the V6 is to small of an engine for this car so if you have the chance buy the V8. remeber that even though the V6 is a 3.8 this is a big car so the more power the better. Just like any sports car lack of fuel economy is part of the deal. For a coupe this car has alot of room in the backseat. Over all i am very happy with my cougar