Ford Crown Victoria

1998 Mercury Grand Marquis Luxury car features and value in a full size sedan. By Jim McCraw Overview If you want a real American six-passenger sedan that has rear-wheel drive, body-on-frame construction, lots of luxury amenities, and a reasonable price, you are shopping in a very narrow segment. Chrysler Corporation gave up on rear-wheel-drive passenger cars years ago, and 1996 was the last year in which General Motors made any large sedans with rear-wheel drive (the Cadillac Brougham and the Chevrolet Caprice were canceled after that). That leaves the Ford Crown Victoria for the police forces, daily rental and taxicab companies, and the Mercury ... Read Full Story

1999 Mercury Grand Marquis Maturing nicely and priced right, it's Ford's family limousine. By Jim McCraw Overview The Mercury Grand Marquis is among just three full-size passenger cars Ford Motor Company makes that feature four doors and rear-wheel drive. The Lincoln Town Car is designed for affluent buyers, while the Ford Crown Victoria serves America's police forces, fills rental fleets and does duty for cab companies. The Mercury Grand Marquis is the full-size car for the rest of us, a car that offers the comfort of the Town Car with strength and durability. Sales of the Grand Marquis have been growing over the past ... Read Full Story

Ford Crown Victoria police cruisers have been controversial for more than a decade for a propensity for fuel leaks and fires when struck from behind. Safety experts also say these cars provide marginal protection of drivers in side-impact crashes. The location of the gas tank has been linked by critics to more than a dozen deaths of police officers, most in stopped cruisers struck from behind at high speeds. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2001 and 2002 investigated 23 fires in civilian and police Crown Victorias and mechanically similar Mercury Grand Marquis and Lincoln Town Cars that involved 14 deaths, mostly police ... Read Full Story

hough the Ford Crown Victoria had a great run with consumers, the manufacturer has recently opted to only sell the vehicle as part of fleets for law enforcement, government offices and select others. When the Crown Victoria first made headlines in 1995, it was a 6-passenger hardtop with a stainless steel band along the waistline. However, the model only made it two years and wasn't brought back until 1980 as a trim level for the LTD car. In 1983, Ford rebadged the LTD lineup and called it the LTD Crown Victoria. As the LTD Crown Victoria gained popularity, Ford opted to completely do away ... Read Full Story

Jaimi and I recently returned from a fabulous Thanksgiving trip to sunny south Florida. We stayed with her parents – they have a beautiful house in a mature, active adult, no walkers or oxygen tanks allowed, 55+ community. This community is on the more active and lively end of the scale when it comes to Florida’s retirement communities, but as soon as we left the friendly confines of Tivoli Lakes, we found ourselves surrounded by the sunshine state’s Golden Oldies. And surrounded on the road by other massive, slow-moving land boats, just like the Grand Marquis. In other words, my choice of the full-size ... Read Full Story