1998 Mercury Grand Marquis Review

Most families in the 1950s just had a six-passenger sedan with rear-wheel drive and a V-8. The Mercury Grand Marquis and similar Ford Crown Victoria are the only such cars left.
Sales of each total approximately 100,000 units annually. But Ford Motor considers the Grand Marquis the ``retail'' car, because most of its buyers are average motorists. The majority of Crown Victorias are bought for use as fleet vehicles such as police cars and taxicabs.

The 1998 well-equipped Grand Marquis is restyled to look smoother. It has more horsepower and improved handling, braking, directional stability and steering feel.

The quick steering is precise and handling is surprisingly good with the optional handling package. But the Grand Marquis is no BMW. Even with that package, its ride is a bit floaty and it has pronounced body sway and tire squeal when pushed too hard through curves.

Larger new front brakes work with an easily modulated pedal to help stop the car quickly, and acceleration is swift. But the 4.6-liter overhead-camshaft V-8, which produces 200 to 215 horsepower, is rather small for a 3,917-pound car; it thus needs lots of revs to provide lively acceleration. The 1958 Mercury V-8s were much larger than the rather noisy 1998 V-8, but were fuel hogs. The Grand Marquis delivers an estimated 17 m.p.g. in the city and 25 on highways with its smooth four-speed automatic transmission.

Although billed as a six-passenger car, the Grand Marquis only seats four 6-footers comfortably. The center of the front and rear seats are uncomfortable and best suited to kids and short trips. Most of the huge trunk's capacity is in an awkward-to-reach deep well in the center of the floor.

This Mercury, which has shared its chassis with the Lincoln Town Car for years, comes as the $21,890 GS and higher line $23,790 LS, which features upgraded upholstery and remote keyless entry.

The Grand Marquis has an old-fashioned solid rear axle instead of an independent rear suspension. But a new Watt's linkage back there improves steering feel and provides better directional stability--reducing sensitivity to crosswinds when passing trucks on highways.

Still, large bumps or potholes in tight turns can upset the car because it still has that sold rear axle.

Most Grand Marquis buyers couldn't tell a Watt's linkage from a hammer. They'll first notice the restyling. There's a new grille, hood, fenders, headlights, park/turn lamps and cornering lights. There also are prominient new chrome-accented taillights and a restyled trunk lid.

Mercury didn't neglect the interior, which gets a new two-spoke steering wheel and green backlighting of gauges and controls. The LS model also has a larger rear center armrest.

Beauty is more than skin deep here. The 1998 Grand Marquis has a modified front suspension for better control and larger 16-inch wheels and tires. Newly optional is all-speed traction control, which is ``bundled'' with the $775 anti-lock brake system.

The quiet interior has an impressive number of gauges, including a voltmeter and oil pressure and coolant temperature gauges. Mercury knows most Grand Marquis buyers, who have a median age of 65, grew up with cars that had plenty of instrumentation. They're also accustomed to rear side windows that roll all the way down, as do the Grand Marquis' rear windows.

The handling package costs $855 for the GS and $535 for the LS. Well worth the bucks, it contains performance tires on stylish alloy wheels, heavier stabilizer bars for a better-controlled ride--along with a rear air suspension and a performance axle ratio for faster acceleration. It also features dual exhausts, which raise the base 200-horsepower rating to 215. Last year's ratings were 190 and 210 horsepower.

The $270 rear air suspension for the LS model provides automatic load leveling for those who carry lots of cargo.

There's still room left for a car such as the Grand Marquis. After all, even BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz sell large sedans with V-8s and rear-wheel drive.