The Mercury Grand Marquis is an automobile that was produced by Mercury from the 1975 until 2011 model years. Introduced as the flagship sub-model of the Mercury Marquis in 1975, the Grand Marquis became a stand-alone model line in 1983, serving as the largest Mercury sedan. The model line served as the sedan counterpart of the Mercury Colony Park station wagon up to 1991. The fourth generation was the basis of the 2003 and 2004 Mercury Marauder.
From 1979 until 2011, the Grand Marquis shared the rear-wheel drive (RWD) Panther platform with the Ford LTD Crown Victoria (Ford Crown Victoria after 1992), and from 1980, the Lincoln Town Car. For over three decades, the Ford and Mercury sedans were functionally identical, with two of the three generations of the model line sharing the same roofline. The Grand Marquis was available as a four-door sedan for nearly its entire run; from 1988 to its final year in 2011, it was the only body style that was offered. A four-door hardtop was available from 1975 to 1978 and a two-door hardtop coupe from 1975 to 1987.
The Grand Marquis was the second-best-selling Mercury line (after the Cougar) with 2.7 million units produced; at 36 years of continuous production, the Grand Marquis was the longest-running Mercury nameplate (the Cougar, 34 years). Ford manufactured the Grand Marquis, alongside the Mercury Marquis, Mercury Marauder, Ford (LTD) Crown Victoria, and (beginning in 2007) the Lincoln Town Car, at two facilities: the St. Louis Assembly Plant in Hazelwood, Missouri (1979–1985) and the St. Thomas Assembly Plant in Southwold, Ontario, Canada (1986–2011).
Ford announced the discontinuation of the Mercury brand in 2010, but a few 2011 model-year Mercurys were made. The last Grand Marquis - and the final Mercury branded car - was produced on January 4, 2011, at St. Thomas Assembly in Ontario, Canada.
1975–1978
For the 1967 model year, Mercury introduced the Mercury Marquis two-door hardtop as a divisional counterpart of the Ford LTD. Distinguishing it from other Mercury two-door hardtops, the Marquis included a standard vinyl roof and upright rear side windows that were similar to the Cougar.
For 1969, the division revised its full-size range. The Monterey was retained as the standard-trim model, with the Marquis replacing the previous Montclair and Park Lane (the Marquis Brougham became the top Mercury, replacing the Park Lane Brougham). The Marauder returned as a fastback Marquis (replacing the S-55), lasting through 1970. Mercury discontinued separate station wagon models, with the Colony Park becoming a Marquis-based station wagon.
The Grand Marquis name made its first appearance in 1974 as part of an interior trim package for the Marquis Brougham. In addition to a wood-trim steering wheel, the interior was fitted with leather-and-velour split-bench seats.
For 1975, all full-size Mercury sedans adopted the Marquis nameplate, as the division retired the Monterey (in use since 1950). To expand the model range, the Grand Marquis became the highest-trim Marquis (slotted above the Brougham).Odin, L.C. A concise guide to the Ford and Mercury full-size automobile production 1969-1978. Belvedere Publishing, 2016. ASIN: B01HE91Y4K. Bridging the price and content gap between the Marquis Brougham and the Lincoln Continental, the Mercury Grand Marquis gave the division a vehicle to compete against premium medium-brand sedans, including the Buick Electra 225, Oldsmobile Ninety Eight, and the Chrysler New Yorker Brougham. The Grand Marquis was offered in either a four-door "pillared hardtop" sedan or a two-door hardtop sedan body style; as with the Marquis and Colony Park (and the Lincoln Continental), hidden headlights were standard. The model line included the V8. A V8 became standard for 1976 and 1977, with a V8 becoming standard for 1978 (except in California, where the 400 V8 was standard). Through 1978, the 460 V8 was optional. All engines were paired with a three-speed automatic transmission. Shared with the Lincoln Continental, four-wheel disc brakes were optional.
First generation (1979–1991)
For the 1979 model year, the full-size Mercury model line was downsized. The Grand Marquis returned as the premium model of the Mercury Marquis model range. The cars were 17 inches shorter and nearly 1,000 pounds lighter (depending on the powertrain) than their 1978 predecessor. While its exterior footprint closely matched the Cougar (Montego) intermediate sedan, the 1979 Grand Marquis offered more interior and luggage space.
Alongside the extensive downsizing of the model line, the Ford LTD Crown Victoria was introduced for the 1980 model year, serving as the first direct divisional counterpart of the Grand Marquis. Both vehicles shared nearly identical exterior designs except for front and rear fascias.
During the early 1980s, all three Ford divisions revised their full-size and mid-size models. For 1983, the Mercury lineup moved the Marquis nameplate to the mid-size segment (replacing the previous mid-size Cougar), introducing an all-new Cougar coupe (replacing the previous Cougar XR7), and discontinuing the Zephyr (replaced by the smaller front-wheel drive 1984 Topaz). The Grand Marquis now served as the full-size Mercury; for the first time since 1951, Mercury produced a single full-size sedan nameplate (alongside the Colony Park station wagon).
The "downsized" Grand Marquis introduced in 1979 would remain in production throughout the 1980s, as competitors such as the Buick Electra, Oldsmobile 98, and Chrysler New Yorker (and Fifth Avenue) were downsized further and adopted front-wheel drive. Amid these mid-tier competitors, the Grand Marquis eventually became the only option on the market with rear-wheel drive and a V8 engine; the GM competitors were downsized to a smaller, front-wheel-drive platform for 1985, while Chrysler got out of the traditional full-size market in 1981. Only the full-size GM station wagons carried on as direct competitors to the Mercury Colony Park wagon during the late 1980s.
Along with its stablemates, the Ford LTD Crown Victoria and Lincoln Town Car, the Grand Marquis received a light refresh in 1988 that included more rounded front and rear fascias and other subtle updates inside and out. In 1990, a driver's side airbag was introduced as standard equipment to comply with new federal safety regulations.
By 1991, the final year for this generation of Grand Marquis, the only other full-size vehicle to offer both a sedan and wagon variant was the freshly redesigned 1991 Chevy Caprice; the corporate cousin of the Caprice, the Buick Roadmaster, wouldn't offer a sedan until the 1992 model year, while the Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser was strictly available as a wagon for its brief run in 1991 and 1992.
Chassis specification The first-generation Grand Marquis was built on the rear-wheel drive Ford Panther platform. While Ford and Mercury sedans had shared common chassis underpinnings since 1961, the Panther chassis marked the first time the two model lines shared the same wheelbase with the Mercury downsized from .
Although reduced in size, the Grand Marquis retained the suspension design with a live rear axle suspension and double wishbone independent front suspension, with coil springs at all four wheels. In 1985, gas-charged shock absorbers were standardized for the model line, with load-leveling rear air suspension introduced as an option. The Grand Marquis featured front vented disc brakes and rear drum brakes.
For 1986, 15-inch wheels returned as standard equipment (after having been an option since 1979).
Powertrain The previous standard V8 was discontinued, and the V8 (rounded up to "5.0 L" by Ford) became the sole engine available through 1991. The throttle-body fuel injection engine was rated at . Starting with the 1986 model year, the engine adopted multi-port fuel injection with a cast-aluminum upper intake manifold, increasing output to .
The V8 engine was paired with the four-speed AOD overdrive automatic transmission.
Engine nameYears availableConfigurationHorsepowerTorqueTransmissionFord 5.0 L Windsor V81983–1991 OHV V8 (1983) (1984–1985, US) (1984–1985, Canada) (1986–1991) (1983) (1984–1985, US) (1984–1985, Canada) (1986–1991)Ford AOD 4-speed overdrive automaticFord Windsor V81986–1991 OHV V8
Body Mercury offered the first-generation Grand Marquis solely as a sedan in two-door and four-door configurations. For 1983 only, the Grand Marquis was offered as a station wagon (effectively a Colony Park without woodgrain trim); from 1984 onward, all full-size Mercury wagons were Colony Parks. While styled nearly identical to the LTD Crown Victoria, the first-generation Grand Marquis was three inches longer than its Ford counterpart; alongside the doors and front and rear windows, only the bumpers are externally shared between the two model lines.
After the 1987 model year, the two-door Grand Marquis was discontinued; only 4,904 were produced.
Exterior In contrast to the stainless-steel band surrounding the B-pillars of the LTD Crown Victoria, the Grand Marquis was offered with multiple vinyl roof configurations, sharing the B-pillar "coach lamps" of the Lincoln Town Car. Alongside the standard half-length vinyl roof, a full-length roof was offered; the LS offered an additional option of a "formal roof," configured with a "frenched" rear window. The Grand Marquis was styled with a different rear fascia, using full-width taillamps (separated by the license plate).
During its production, the first-generation Grand Marquis underwent minor changes. For 1982, simulated vents were removed from the front fenders. Starting with the 1983 model year, the grille and taillamps were redesigned as the Grand Marquis became a distinct model line. For 1985, to lower production costs, the external "Electronic Fuel Injection" and "Automatic Overdrive" emblems were deleted (both had become standard features); for 1986, a CHMSL (center brake light) was introduced.
For 1988, the Grand Marquis underwent a mid-cycle revision, with restyled front and rear fascias, better integrating the bumpers into the bodywork. To save weight, steel bumpers were replaced by aluminum.
Interior From 1979 to 1991, the Grand Marquis sedan was offered solely as a six-passenger sedan with a front bench seat. While mostly similar to its Ford counterpart, the dashboard of the Grand Marquis was trimmed with brushed stainless steel; in place of the horizontal speedometer, the Grand Marquis was fitted with two square pods for the fuel gauge, warning lights, and speedometer.
In 1985, the dashboard underwent several revisions. Alongside the adoption of a single-DIN radio unit (phased in across all Ford vehicles), the 8-track cassette player and CB radio options were discontinued; control of the horn shifted from the turn signal stalk to the steering wheel.
As part of the 1988 revision, the interior was updated with all-new seats (distinguished by taller head restraints) and an updated dashboard (with more wood trim and revised gauges). The Grand Marquis LS received options including a JBL Audio 6-speaker AM/FM/Cassette stereo system (with a power antenna) and a heated windshield called "Instaclear."
For 1990, the interior underwent a second major revision. To comply with passive-restraint regulations, the Grand Marquis was given a driver-side airbag; the rear outboard seats received 3-point seatbelts. Coinciding with the addition of the airbag, a new steering column consolidated the turn signal and windshield wiper controls onto a single stalk; tilt steering became standard. The dashboard was completely redesigned, adopted the horizontal speedometer used by Ford (using a silver background); for the first time, a temperature gauge was included alongside the fuel gauge.
Trim