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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  Great car - 2008 Mercury Sable
  By Texas guy - September 16 - 9:10 am

  Best car Ive ever owned. Plenty of power, 25 mpg on the highway, very smooth ride. Good handling.

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  Nice SUV - 2001 Mercury Mountaineer
  By APD - September 15 - 2:00 am

  I have been very pleased with this SUV. I have owned a number of trucks in the past and this one by far is the most comfortable one yet. Because of its relationship to the Explorer, you are able to find many parts to upgrade mechanical and appearance.

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  I love MY Villager! - 2001 Mercury Villager
  By luvmyvillager - September 14 - 5:40 am

  My Villager has been extremely reliable and comfortable. I have had no problems with it. Its a fun van to drive and I wish they were still making them!

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  My New Milan - 2006 Mercury Milan
  By TKOlive - September 12 - 3:16 pm

  I just leased a new Milan Premier V6 and so far I love it. I traded in a 03 MINI Cooper, and was spoiled by her pep and manueverability- but I am thrilled with everything so far. The Milan does not take off the moment you accel like a CVT transmission, it does jump a bit and lose a little road control with a harder accelleration. After less than a second, it does pep up by leaps and bounds...getting on the highway is a breeze. The back window is a little hard to see out of, the brake light blocks the car directly behind you and the rear-view mirror is distorted. Leasing is a great option if you dont want to pay $400 a month for this car. I got $1000 incentive + $500 college grad money.

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  Good To go! - 2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid
  By Mariner21 - September 5 - 9:00 am

  MPG as advertised. 30-34 around town and highway. Great small turning radius. Very maneuverable. Environmental controls are excellent - heat/air/defog etc. Delivered fit and finish just fine. Interior molded plastic parts a little on the cheap side - not terrible but not a clean design - bolt/screw fitting visable. Overall - would buy another one. Dealer sales and service support adequate but could use some Toyota/Honda customer/service style training. Mariner Hybrid - good example of why you should buy American. Good wheels!

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  I LOVE IT!!!! - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Rick Wood - September 4 - 10:00 am

  I owned a Lincoln LS before the GM Ultimate Edition. I absolutely love the ride and handling of the GM. The LS was a little too stiff for me. I have driven the vehicle 3300 miles in less than two months and am still impressed with the way it rides, handles, and provides me with pain free comfort on long trips. A must see! A must buy!

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  My Second Love - 1999 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By Rhythum - August 29 - 2:00 am

  This is our forth Mercury Grand Marquis Each one just gets better. They are fun and easy to drive. I am very confident of the dependablity. It gets very good gas mileage. 22 to 26 miles to the gallon.One of the most important parts is its comfort . We travel alot and really enjoy the comfort and the huge trunk. It will not nickel and dime you with repairs.This one has and excellent paint job with a half rag roof. Looks very sporty.

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  38 months and counting - 1999 Mercury Sable
  By kessdoggie - August 26 - 2:00 am

  Solid performer overall, may have lower trade in value than Honda/Toyota, but I paid a lot **less** for it to begin with. Get about 24 on highway (65-70 mph avg) and about 17 around town.

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  Best car I ever owned! - 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By D.S. - August 24 - 8:16 pm

  This is the best car I ever owned. Went from a 90 Towncar to this. Great ride, handles like a sports car. Will pass anything with ease. Mileage is 23 mpg. The LX with all the bells and whistles would be nice too. One down side is it is smaller inside than a TC but everything short of a van is. If you are looking at one to buy I would jump at it. Great safety, dual air bags. Handles like a sport car, rides like a luxo coupe. Good mileage, lots of space. Looks fantastic. If you want a more sporty ride get the Marauder. But I can not fault this car. Just did a trip with it and the cruise stays within 3 mph of where you set it going up and down hills.

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  Excellent big V8 value - 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis
  By FRANK - August 24 - 7:23 pm

  My satisfaction with a 1994 ford crown victoria I purchased new, drew me back to my looking at the Mercury. The excellent value for the money of a quality auto ruled out considering the Chrysler big cars and the Toyota and Honda offerings as well as the Chevrolet big car. The comfort and room are worth the small trade off in gas mileage, plus the safety of a bigger car. The wide choices of options allowed not having to pay for unwanted and needless ones. Only one small service shop item, failure of keyless door pad which was repaired at no charge. The standard features and overall attention to detail shows that from my 1995 crown vic, to my present 2006 grand marquis, quality is first class.