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Sedans Ford Crown Victoria/Mercury Grand Marquis Ford Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis
3244 messages, Last post on Aug 25, 2009 at 8:13 PM
You are in the Ford Crown Victoria/Mercury Grand Marquis Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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My last Toyota & Honda were '77 models. Both were extremely reliable, and I never had to argue, plead or fight with either if something went wrong during warranty. Consumer Reports data seem to suggest their reliability is still high. Your wife should take a test drive in cars under consideration. (But a short test drive may not fully bring out the factors cited below.) A buddy and I alternate driving to visit places, with drive times ranging from 2 -10 hours. He has a '01 Accord. He absolutely loves my GM for these trips, because it is comfortable and quiet. His Accord has a stiff ride. It is noisy; you have to raise your voice when conversing at 70 mph. And its seats are lower, meaning your legs are practically straight when sitting rather than having more knee bend in my GM. (My lower back sometimes hurts after a long ride in his Accord.) When we get to our destination, I am happy, because his car is just plain uncomfortable for me. We have no such problems in my GM, and he fully admits that. So - your wife may well find her desire for an Accord or Camry is trumped by creature comfort factors present in the CV/GM. Good luck with the decisions. |
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Thank you two for your input.As for the snow issue, as long as I've put 4 Michelin Snow tires on my RWD vehicles we have had no trouble getting around even in the worst storms.As for test drives I agree that a short dealership test drive can hardly tell you how good any vehicle will perform.I suggested renting the Camry one weekend and then a CV/GM the next.A reasonable way to get a good feel for these cars.My wife is a little spooked by the sheer size difference with the CV/GM but I assured her in a few days she would get used to it.Maybe I'll Just Buy a Loaded Grand Marquis and be done with it! If she Doesn't feel comfortable driving, then that means I'll Get to drive it more!! Thanks Guys,Merry Christmas To All BD EYES |
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You might also want to look at and consider the Ford Five Hundred, which in addition to being FWD/AWD, has a HUGE trunk (even bigger than the Vic) and is very comfortable. I love the CV/GM, but due to the size of the parking spaces at my condo complex, the Five Hundred was a far wiser choice. Gas mileage is better, too. The safety systems and underlying chassis are all heavily influenced by Ford partner/susidiary Volvo. Under Nasser, this car was almost certainly going to replace the CV/GM. Now, thankfully, that isn't happening. But I did think well enough of the Five Hundred/Montego that I bought one! |
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Sorry, I should have included this in my previous post. I live in Michigan's lower peninsula. With OEM Michelins on my '00 GM, I've been stuck just once in snow. Last winter, winds had whipped snow into 4 - 6 foot drifts on roads near my place. 60 feet from my house, I wanted to obey traffic laws, so slowed for a stop sign. Plows had cut the drifts there to 12 - 14 inches, but the whole underside of the car got pancaked onto them. I got a shovel from my garage, made paths in front of all four wheels, two young men stopped and pushed and I got out easily. Had I not slowed, I would have plowed through those drifts just as I had at six or eight others I'd already gotten through. With some foresight and planning, I've always gotten through. I did, though, replace the Michelins with Bridgestones a few months ago, as payback for Chirac's anti-American drivel. Having run Bridgestones, including Blizzaks, on several cars, I'm confident they'll do as well as the Michelins. Re: the CV/GM bulk - I find this GM easier to drive and park than a '99 Sable I had. You can see all four corners of the GM, and you do adjust to its bulk. That's four more corners than you could see on that Sable! And since walking is most of the exercise I get now, I generally park far away from other cars, which saves my car from the door dings that it inevitably would get from clods who don't think before flipping open a door in close quarters. Tell your wife, too, that a 4200# CV/GM will protect her better than a lighter car should she ever be unlucky enough to get smacked. Bulk ain't all bad, baby! Good luck! |
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| Sales of the Crown Victoria and Grand Marquis really have dropped a lot lately. In November, the Grand Marquis was down almost 1/3 from a year ago, and the Crown Vic was down about 25 percent. The rumor is that these cars will be replaced by stretched Five Hundreds later in the decade. | |
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| stretched? They need to widen them, not stretch them. The back seat and trunk of the Five Hundred/Montego is far longer lengthwise than the Panther cars... | |
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Sales were down November to November, but GM sales are down 3.8% for the year. Hard to say why November sales changed so much - maybe fleet purchases in 2003 or something. 2004 YTD, the Grand Marquis still makes up 25% of the sales for the Lincoln-Mercury division, with little advertising. |
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...and probably at least 25 percent of Mercury profits. These vehicles were amortized years ago and are both very profitable for Ford Motor Company and a very good buy for the consumer who intends to own the vehicle for a very long time. Depreciation is terrible, but repair costs are low. V8, body on frame, reasonably priced. There simply is NO competition. I own a Five Hundred myself, and for lots of reasons. But there is MUCH to like about the Panther cars! Don't forget to add in the Town Car, which is mechanically very similar... |
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I think this time next year there will be a refreshened Crown Vic and GM for 2006. They will most likely be getting the 3V 4.6 and the new 6-speed auto transmission. There have also been a few rumors about a larger engine. However, with higher horsepower ratings form the 3V motor, and with the 6-speed auto transmission, I don't think power will be coming up short. The CV is not going anywhere for a while. If Ford decides to stop selling it to the general public (highly unlikely) then it will become a fleet only vehicle. |
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| What would even be better than the 3V 4.6 would be the 3V 5.4 from the F150. Ford, with an eye toward fuel economy, could de-tune the engine to about 280hp, but maintain the +350 lb-ft of torque. The added twist would make everyone happy - especially the police. | |
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