Posted on 05/28/2010 7:57:35 AM PDT by Military family member
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Bloomberg has reported that Ford will soon announce the discontinuation of the Mercury brand. When Mercury shuts down, Ford is likely to keep most of its customers, according to Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information.
Edmunds.com’s cross-shopping analysis indicates that 46 percent of Mercury shoppers currently consider Ford vehicles, and that Chevrolet and Honda are also popular alternatives.
(Excerpt) Read more at wabashvalleyjournalonline.com ...
I love the Mariners. I ended up buying an Escape Hybrid, but checked out a Mariner. It was the cushiest, most luxurious car in the inside. Many features, burled wood, seats with adjustable lumbar support that the Escape didn't have. Quieter, smoother ride.
I ended up buying the Escape because the Mariner had a black leather interior which would've been killer in the Texas summers. The Escape has gray leather interior, which still gets quite toasty in the Texas sun.
more amazing to me is that it took Ford so long to come to the conclusion that has been obvious for decades—too many brands, models and price points.
Turns out many if not all of them have some kind of air suspension. Cost her over a grand...well over...to get it fixed.
Heck if I wanted those kind of problems I'd find an old Citroen! (or Austin America)
prisoner6
I am lusting after the 2011 Shelby GT500; but because I don’t buy new I will wait until December, 2012 to pick up a used one with low mileage.
It’s hard to distinguish the big Ford from the big Merc.
Wasn’t always that way.
Remember the “breezeway rear window” on the mid 60s Mercury sedan ?
Sure wish we could get good ventilation on modern cars. We
had a Plymouth wagon with the electric rear window. Never
missed AC that much.
Sigh..I can dream...Wife would NEVER let me!
prisoner6
I know it’s needed but it’s still sad to see such a historic brand go. My first car was a 1969 Mercury Cyclone. I’ve also owned a ‘66 Comet and a ‘68 Cougar XR7. There hasn’t been anything made since then that I would have bought though. I’ve had lots of Fords.
I knew an undertaker in Leavenworth Kansas who had one of those: rear window straight up and down. Believe it had `suicide doors’ too. I was on a crew way up on scaffolding. We were grinding and sanding the exterior of his funeral home, prepping it for painting.
He would either pull up to the curb in his Merc and get out, or come out of the building and squat on his haunches, his arms straight out, elbows on his knees looking up at us.
Crew cut, `birth control’ glasses, black trousers, white short-sleeve shirt with pocket protector, skinny as a rail. I can still see him looking up at us, like a buzzard hoping someone would fall.
Brrrrrrr ..... odd, I drive a Mercury Sable. OK, I admit it, this doesn’t have much to do with the topic.
“They have not had a distinctive model since about the time they quit building the Cougar, and that was just a restyled Ford Thunderbird.”
The last Cougar was actually built on the Mondeo/Contour/Mystique platform.
“And later a restyled Mustang, (circa 1971?) I think. A friend had one of those and it was fast and fun.”
IIRC, the Cougar shared its platform with the Mustang through 1973. A college friend of mine had a ‘68 Cougar XR7 with a big-block; that was one sweet car! A good friend of my parents owned a yellow ‘70 Cougar Eliminator, which I don’t ever remember seeing leave the garage until he sold it (he was a driver-ed teacher and usually went to and from work in one of the school cars).
My folks had a ‘76 Grand Marquis 2-door around the time I got my driver’s license. Yes, it was a 2-door, but it would still seat six comfortably, and back-seat access wasn’t that bad given the doors were as long as an MG Midget! That car had a 4-bbl 460 with dual exhausts and it sounded like a Winston Cup car when you stood on it.
My first experience with triple-digit speeds was in that car. And lemme tell ya, it was SCARY at that speed!
You’ve gotta take Mercury off your list.
I like the idea of the aluminum block (way less weight) however, I’m also wary of the coated cylinders. Probably best to wait for the 2012 model.
Never liked the looks of the GT500 - that gaping bass mouth doesn’t do a thing for me.
I still see those mid-60’s Comets and Falcons out on the road. The old Dodge Darts and Plymouth Valiants are true survivors also.
Even worse, they won't stay fully closed -- so the rain comes in... :-((
Sigh....absolutely.
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