Now that we know that Mercury is finally gone for good, I have been wondering if this is a tragedy or long overdue.
Usually, I look at several aspects:
1) Were there any exciting upcoming products?
2) Were there any exciting products recently?
3) How were sales?
Unfortunately it seems that Mercury was a victim of rebadging for far too long. In turn, this left the brand with no pipeline in the works. When I was discussing the topic with several other car guys last Thursday on FOX Car Report Live, we quickly realized the last original product was the early 2000s Mercury Cougar.
It wasn't bad and it wasn't all that good. It was just par.
With that said, it is clear that there were not any genuinely exciting recent products.
On top of this, sales were not blowing anyone's doors off. Granted, they were still better than Lincoln's; however, that is not saying much. Keeping in mind that Lincoln's sales are lower, does this mean that Lincoln is next on the chopping block OR is that brand going to have to move upmarket?
Additionally, what were your favorite Mercury memories?
Popular Mechanics' readers know that Ford Motor Company is on a roll with new product introductions. Our archives are filled with recent reviews of new models ranging from the B-Segment Fiesta to the XXXL F-Series Super Duty and the luxurious new Lincolns.
But auto show after auto show, something was conspicuously missing from Ford's corporate announcements: new Mercury models. For more than two years, executives deflected questions about the brand going away. On June 2, Ford announced what many thought was inevitable: Mercury is no more...
[Source: Popular Mechanics]
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