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Mercury Marauder
From 2003 to 2004, Ford produced the Marauder as a "high-performance" version of the Mercury Grand Marquis sedan, comparable in execution to the 1994-96 Chevrolet Impala SS.
The Marauder was discontinued in 2004 mostly due to lackluster sales, blamed by some on styling too similar to that of the competing and lower cost Crown Victoria LX sport, an incorrect target audience, and a lack of major advertising or marketing of the car. There is some speculation that due to federal and industry CAFE/CARB/OBD regulations hidden performance capabilities were not made available from the factory, but were instead intended for owner implementation. Relatively simple changes such as 4.10 axle gearing and modified transmission shifting and converter lock-up dramatically improve drivability and performance - as if factored into the powertrain during the Marauders development - but were not made available at the time of purchase due to a 3 to 5 mpg decrease in fuel economy, California emissions rules and other related factors. It is believed that word-of-mouth regarding the necessary changes to unlock the vehicles hidden performance did not spread rapidly and widely enough to impact sales, and arguably the Marauder became best known for the misunderstood "hype" regarding its performance capabilities, leading to the flagging sales which ultimately doomed its production.
Mercury Marauder
From 2003 to 2004, Ford produced the Marauder as a "high-performance" version of the Mercury Grand Marquis sedan, comparable in execution to the 1994-96 Chevrolet Impala SS.
The Marauder was discontinued in 2004 mostly due to lackluster sales, blamed by some on styling too similar to that of the competing and lower cost Crown Victoria LX sport, an incorrect target audience, and a lack of major advertising or marketing of the car. There is some speculation that due to federal and industry CAFE/CARB/OBD regulations hidden performance capabilities were not made available from the factory, but were instead intended for owner implementation. Relatively simple changes such as 4.10 axle gearing and modified transmission shifting and converter lock-up dramatically improve drivability and performance - as if factored into the powertrain during the Marauders development - but were not made available at the time of purchase due to a 3 to 5 mpg decrease in fuel economy, California emissions rules and other related factors. It is believed that word-of-mouth regarding the necessary changes to unlock the vehicles hidden performance did not spread rapidly and widely enough to impact sales, and arguably the Marauder became best known for the misunderstood "hype" regarding its performance capabilities, leading to the flagging sales which ultimately doomed its production.