Mercury (automobile)
Mercury was a brand of medium-priced automobiles that was produced by American manufacturer Ford Motor Company between the 1939 and 2011 motor years. Created by Edsel Ford in 1938, Mercury was established to bridge the gap between the Ford and Lincoln model lines within Ford Motor Company. From 1945 until its closure, it formed half of the Lincoln-Mercury Division of the company.
In addition to serving as a combined sales network for Ford's two premium automotive brands, Lincoln-Mercury also represented the Continental, Edsel, Comet, Capri, De Tomaso, and Merkur. Through the use of platform sharing and manufacturing commonality, Mercury vehicles often shared components and engineering with Ford or Lincoln, serving as counterparts for vehicles from both divisions.
Following an extended decline in sales and market share for Mercury, Ford announced the closure of the division at the end of 2010.
History
During the mid-1930s, under the leadership of Edsel Ford, son of Henry Ford, the Ford Motor Company discovered that it needed to expand its brand footprint to match its largest competitors. In 1935, Ford offered only its namesake brand and the cars of its more expensive luxury vehicles of its Lincoln Motor Company division. In contrast to the comprehensive line of brands available from General Motors and the Chrysler Corporation, Ford offered its Ford Standard/DeLuxe V8 range and the Lincoln Model K. In contrast to the Ford V8, the Model K was among the most expensive vehicles built and sold then in the United States, rivaled in price by the Cadillac V-12, Duesenberg Model J, and the flagship lines of the Germans' Mercedes-Benz and the British of Rolls-Royce.To address the gap between Ford and Lincoln, Ford Motor Company launched its own version of the late 1920s General Motors Companion Make Program, leading the company to expand from two nameplates to five by the end of the decade. For 1936, Lincoln-Zephyr was introduced as a sub-marque of Lincoln, giving the line a V12 car competing against the LaSalle and Buick, plus the notable revolutionary streamlining style of the Chrysler Airstream and the Airflow, along with the Packard One-Twenty. For 1938, De Luxe Ford became a sub-marque of Ford, offering a higher-price V8 car with a model-specific interior and exterior trim.
In 1937, Edsel Ford began work on Mercury as a completely new brand, personally selecting the Roman god's name from over 100 options - in spite of the name having been used just four years earlier for the Chevrolet Mercury and no fewer than seven separate failed automobile companies from 1903 to 1923.
In November 1938, Edsel Ford introduced four body styles of the Mercury Eight at the New York Auto Show. Along with a two-door sedan and a four-door sedan, the Mercury was also introduced as a two-door convertible and a two-door trunked sedan; the body design was overseen by E.T. 'Bob' Gregorie. While similar in concept to the modestly restyled De Luxe Ford, the V8-powered Mercury was an all-new car sized between the V8 Ford and the V12 Lincoln-Zephyr.
1939–1940s
For 1939, the Mercury was launched at a starting price of US$916 ; over 65,800 vehicles were sold in the inaugural model year. In response to the popularity of the model line, Ford revised its branding structure after 1940; De Luxe Ford was discontinued as a sub-marque, and all Lincolns became derived from the Lincoln-Zephyr as Lincoln retired the Model K.For 1941, the Mercury underwent its first redesign; in another change, the model line adopted the Mercury Eight nameplate used in sales literature. To consolidate development and production, the Mercury Eight shared much of its bodyshell with Ford, distinguished by its longer wheelbase. To further separate the two model lines, the Eight was given a model-specific grille, exterior and interior trim, and taillamps. For the first time, a decorative wood-bodied station wagon was offered by the brand.
Unlike Ford products where components originated from the Ford River Rouge Complex outside Detroit, Michigan and shipped in knock-down kits to dozens of cities across the United States, all Mercury vehicles only originated completely assembled from River Rouge until 1952 when Wayne Stamping & Assembly Company started production and was the only location that created Mercury components which were sent to only three cities that had dedicated assembly branch factories that completed Mercury vehicles until 1960. This approach was also used for Lincoln vehicles which only originated from the Lincoln Motor Company Plant until 1958 when Wixom Assembly Plant replaced the old Lincoln plant and completed assembly and became the component location for all Lincoln vehicles and the Ford Thunderbird and sent knock-down kits to selected branch locations in the United States.
For 1942, Mercury implemented several changes to the Eight. As part of an interior redesign, the Eight received a dashboard configured similar to the Lincoln Zephyr. For the first time, the Flathead V8 was offered with in standard form. To compete with Fluid Drive and Hydramatic, the 1942 Mercury offered Liquamatic, the first semi-automatic transmission offered by Ford Motor Company. Shared with Lincoln, Liquamatic proved complex and unreliable, with many systems replaced by conventional manual transmissions. As production was suspended following the outbreak of World War II, Ford produced only 24,704 1942 Mercury vehicles.
Following the rise of Henry Ford II at Ford Motor Company in September 1945, the divisional structure of the company underwent further change. On October 22, 1945, Ford merged Mercury with Lincoln Motor Company, creating the combined Lincoln-Mercury Division. While functioning as a single entity, Lincoln-Mercury would continue to market both namesake model line. The Lincoln-Zephyr reentered production following the war, dropping the Zephyr nameplate; the Continental ended production after 1948.
On November 1, 1945, the first 1946 Mercury vehicles rolled off the assembly line. In line with Lincoln and Ford, 1946 production was functionally unchanged from 1942. The Eight underwent several minor revisions, including the return of vertically oriented grille trim. As few were installed before the 1942 suspension of production, Mercury did not return the Liquamatic transmission option. Alongside the wood-paneled station wagon, Mercury introduced a wood-bodied Sportsman convertible. For 1947 and 1948, few major changes were made. The rare Sportsman convertible was dropped for 1947 and the hubcaps were restyled; 1948 Mercurys were effectively carryover.
In 1949, Ford Motor Company launched its first all-new post-war designs for all three of its model lines. In contrast to the 1941-1948 Mercury, the 1949 redesign placed Mercury and Lincoln within a common bodyshell. Largely distinguished by headlight and grille designs, Mercury and Lincoln would also feature separately-trimmed interiors. Mechanically, Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury each offered a separate version of the Ford Flathead V8.
For many years after its production, the 1949–1951 Mercury Eight would develop a following as a street rod, making an appearance in several films.
1950s
The 1949 redesign of the Mercury model line proved successful, with the division increasing its sales six-fold over 1948, becoming the sixth-most popular brand in the United States. In contrast to competing medium-price brands from Chrysler and General Motors, Mercury continued to offer the Eight as its sole model line.For 1950, the Monterey name made its first appearance, denoting a special edition of two-door coupes. Intended to compete against the hardtop coupes from General Motors, the Monterey simulated the appearance of a convertible through the use of a canvas or vinyl roof. During the year, the one-millionth Mercury vehicle was produced. In 1951, Mercury regained an automatic transmission option, with the "Merc-O-Matic" 3-speed automatic.
For 1952, Mercury redesigned its model line, with two nameplates replacing the Eight. The Monterey returned as a distinct model line, slotted above the base-trim Custom; both shared bodies with Lincoln. In 1953, the expansion of the model line proved successful; after emerging from a war-depressed market, Mercury nearly doubled in sales, ranking eighth. While Mercury would have subsequently higher yearly sales, at 5%, this is the largest market share ever held by the division. For 1954, Ford replaced the long-running Flathead V8 with an overhead-valve Y-block V8, with Ford and Mercury receiving their own versions of the engine. As a submodel of the standard Monterey hardtop, the Monterey Sun Valley was introduced, featuring a fixed-panel acrylic glass sunroof. While offering an open-air interior, the Sun Valley was difficult to market in warm-weather climates.
In 1955, Mercury underwent a redesign of its model line. While again sharing much of its bodyshell with Lincoln, the division adopted the three-model range of Ford. As its premium model range, the Montclair was introduced above the Monterey. The revision proved successful, as Mercury reached its then-highest sales. The divisional structure of Ford was revised; Lincoln-Mercury was split In 1956, Mercury renamed the Custom the Medalist.
For 1957, Mercury redesigned its model range, with a wheelbase sized between Ford and Lincoln. In a move upmarket, the slow-selling Medalist was discontinued, with the Monterey becoming the base model Mercury. Previewed by the 1956 XM-800 concept car, the Turnpike Cruiser was slotted above the Montclair, distinguished by its quad headlamps and retractable rear window. In line with Ford, Mercury station wagons became a distinct model line, with the Commuter, Voyager, and Colony Park; all Mercury station wagons were hardtops.
In 1958, to accommodate the introduction of Edsel, Ford revised its divisional structure, with Mercury, Edsel, and Lincoln forming a combined division. The Edsel Citation and Edsel Corsair shared their chassis with Mercury, with the entire division overlapping Mercury in price. The Park Lane was introduced as a flagship model line on a wheelbase. Shared with Lincoln, Mercury introduced a "Marauder" V8; optional on all Mercurys, a "Super Marauder" version became the first mass-produced engine to be rated at.
For 1959, Mercury underwent a revision of its body, expanding to a wheelbase. Coinciding with the discontinuation of the Edsel Corsair and Citation, Mercury produced its own body and chassis. The division pared several slow-selling model lines, including the Turnpike Cruiser and Voyager; the two-door Commuter was in its final year. Mercury was one of the first American full size cars to adopt parallel-action windshield wipers.
As with many medium-price brands, the Mercury brand was hit hard by the economy of the late 1950s. While remaining eighth in sales from 1957 to the end of the decade, Mercury saw a 60 percent drop in sales in 1958, outranked by Rambler. While outselling the heavily marketed Edsel by over a two-to-one margin; it would take nearly 1958 and 1959 combined to match the 1957 sales total.