Sedan

2006 Mercury Grand Marquis

2008 Mercury Grand Marquis

$25,280 - $28,170

Large RWD sedan with classic styling

2008 Mercury Milan

2008 Mercury Milan

$18,965 - $25,770

Mercury gets a very nice sedan

2008 Mercury Sable

2008 Mercury Sable

$23,780 - $29,420

The Mercury Sable Returns

SUV

2008 Mercury Mariner

2008 Mercury Mariner

$21,155 - $28,945

A differently styled version of the Escape SUV.

2008 Mercury Mountaineer

2008 Mercury Mountaineer

$26,305 - $32,370

An Explorer with more styling

Mercury's vehicles closely parallel the products sold by its sister division Ford. In fact, Mercury's product line consists of the same products with mildly differentiated styling. Only the aged Grand Marquis is exclusive to the Mercury brand, with the Ford Crown Victoria now relegated to fleet duty only.

The Mariner SUV wears updated styling for 2008. While the interior and most sheet metal are new, the overall styling change is more of a evolution of the prior model. Most importantly, the Mariner retains its comprehensive powertrain offerings, including 4-cylinder and 6-cylinder gasoline engines, as well as a gasoline/electric hybrid version that is unique to the compact SUV segment.

The Sable returns for 2008:a name change and minor refresh to the Montego results in a new Sable sedan. A 3.5L V6 now provides 260-bhp, and Ford has dropped the CVT transmission in favor of a six-speed automatic transmission. The net result is a new sedan that is far more competitive than its predecessor was.

Like the rest of the Ford Motor Company lineup, the SYNC technology is offered on many products. SYNC is a technology developed by Microsoft to ease the inclusion and use of technology devices like phones and mp3 players in the automobile. The SYNC system is an inexpensive option and is only available on Ford products in 2008.

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