Edsel’s Mercury Had A Good Run

By all accounts, Edsel Ford, son of cantankerous Henry, was a kind and decent man. His flair for auto design and modern consumer desires contrasted against his father’s dogged determination to give people more black Model Ts. 

Under Edsel’s direction, Lincolns became stunningly elegant. In 1939, he unveiled the Mercury 8, a medium-priced entry that took basic Ford mechanicals and dressed them with Lincoln Zephyr styling. A sticker of $916 pit it against Buick, Nash, Hudson, and DeSoto.

Seventy-one years later, Mercury faces a tougher world. On June 2, Ford announced it would discontinue Mercury by this fall. Ford is pursuing a line of global vehicles like the Fiesta, Focus, Fusion, and Taurus. These cars are upscale, beautiful, and endowed with driving dynamics that were foreign to Americans a generation ago. Lincoln moved slightly down market with the MKX and MKZ, invading Mercury’s space with refined tailoring. Mercury’s demise will open a gap for a Lincoln compact to compete against the Lexus CT200h, Audi A3, and upcoming Mercedes B-Class.

Mercury had a great run. The ’39 Mercury 8 sold 65,884 units in its very first year, proving there was a market for a Ford with more panache. The post-war 1949 models are icons of streetrodders with their sleek bodies, chopped tops, and slammed suspensions. Beautiful Montclairs, powerful Marauders, and generations of Cougars defined Ford’s middle brand. Grand Marquis, Mercury’s longest-running nameplate, was introduced in 1975 and is still a heavyweight of its class. Futuristic Sables defined the ‘80s. Mountaineer SUVs, Mariner crossovers, and Milan Hybrid sedans were all great, but never separated far enough from Mother Ford.

Today, Mercury accounts for 0.8% of Ford’s 16% U.S. market share with sales hovering around 90,000 units annually – fewer than most individual Ford models. Ford moved up in refinement while Lincoln pursued the younger and style-conscious buyers Mercury once attracted. Eliminating Mercury will allow executives to focus all of their energy on global Fords and potentially international Lincolns.

With Mercury and Lincoln, Edsel put Ford solidly on the path of becoming a full-line automaker that is the equal of any. He would have fit right in among the current team at Ford, including his grandson, Chairman Bill Ford, and CEO Alan Mulally. Unlike his father, Edsel had no problem with change when change was required. Mercury served its time, but its time has come. We’ll always have the memories.