Back in those days the public expected a luxury car ride in a luxury car. The public wanted a smooth, quiet, serene ride, not a hard, noisy ride. That’s why the Imperial with its stiffer front torsion bar/ rear leaf spring suspension, noisier unibody ride couldn’t compete against Lincoln and Cadillac, which both cars had full perimeter frame and coil springs all the way around which provided a quieter, smoother ride. The 429 2V with 320hp was standard on the Marquis, the 429 4V with dual exhaust was optional at 360hp, which was standard in the T-Bird. And the Marquis Brougham weighed 4600 lbs and not designed to go flying through slaloms, that’s what the Boss 302 Mustang was for. The Marquis shared a basic chassis with the full size Fords, but the full size Mercury’s had a 3” longer wheelbase.
I love soft suspension. There's almost nothing more fun to me than driving a super windy road in one of these boats. And coming to stops at traffic lights is always fun because of the nose dives, then when you completely stop the whole cars rocks like a boat for a few seconds. It's just something fun you don't get with vehicles anymore.
My Drivers' Ed teacher in the 70s taught us a nifty trick. When braking hard for a stop light or sign, JUST the second before the car will be at a complete stop, let off the brake for just a brief instant, then press all the way. Car will be dead still.
Glad to hear this! When I was 19, three friends and I bought a beat-up 1970 Marquis that wouldn't start. Chief Auto Parts sold us a starter for 39 bucks and we were on our way---It was our party car for a year and a half! All four of us would pile in and go pick up a couple more friends and terrorize the neighborhood. We painted each body panel a different color and called the The Beast. It had a green nylon interior, a scary-sounding exhaust, and got about 11 mpg. That thing could burn rubber for days....Hope you're having fun with yours!
1971 started the detuning of engines. I had the 1970 Marquis with 429. 360HP and 10:5 to 1 compression. That was a hot motor, and despite a 4500 pound sled, that car would haul ass, and lay rubber for 100 feet or better.
i love these videos, takes me back to when I was 4 or 5 yrs old and Bud would be on at like 5am on Saturday mornings before cartoons, like Scoby doo and bug bunny.
@@SuperBooboo02 The tradeoff in RELIABILITY is worth it, I HAD a Cadillac CTS great ride and amazing turning radius but ate a half tank of gas every day and repairs needed all the time even though I "Babied" it. Maxima is amazing... American manufacturers should LEARN!!
I thought my 84 Fleetwood Brougham was a big car until I saw this video, that Mercury is a massive car! I like these 70's cruisers better than any new car on the market today. My 84 Caddy floats on the road
Looks good! I think I'll go to my local Lincoln-Mercury dealer tomorrow and get one. Hopefully they still have some left. Ideally one with wheel covers that disappear and reappear like on the test car.
2:11..............."Is it possible for a modern-day automobile to lean over far enough to fall off its springs?". Well, that is just one of the questions that the Car & Track road test crew asked the day they put this 1971 Mercury Marquis Brougham through their pylon course. Watch & find out!!!!!
My parents had a 1971 Mercury Marquis Colony Park station wagon. The engine was a 429 V8 with a 2 bbl carburetor and single exhaust. With 10.5:1 compression, it produced 320 horsepower. With the 4 bbl carb, the horsepower went to 360. The engine detonated like crazy when the octane ratings decreased in the late '70s. One of the interesting things about this car is that the power locks operated on air. If you locked and unlocked the doors several times while the car was not running, the power locks would stop working.
Had a '71 Monterey with. 429 power pack. Those extra 29 cu.in. CID made a difference in the stats presented here with the 400. My FAVORITE. car of all I have ever owned. It was like a GIANT sports car with a sedan interior. The steps and stances of the suspension were decent. Overall, a car that marked the end of an era of the pre- suffocated V-8s, minus cat converters and blowbys, with blocks and peripherals made for each division of particular makers back then. THANKS BIG Bud, Lindemann for making these period shows, and you for posting.
I've got a 66 Park Lane convertible with the 428. You said it perfectly, the car is like a giant sports car, and in 66 it was a good bit lighter as well. I've had the suspension totally rebuilt to how it would have been when it left the factory. It really handles well. As for acceleration, even with stock 2.80 gears, the 428 makes so much torque, it doesn't matter. The car feels effortless and never short on power.
i think Bud got an early press release for the Marquis...the base engine was the 429...400 never offered until much later. vid view of the engine is too dark to see which engine is in this car, but should be a 429. I drove a 429 4v Marquis back in the day and it was amazingly fast for such a land yacht.
This factory brochure says otherwise. I didn't think the 400 was that early, but apparently it was. www.xr793.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/1971-Mercury-Marquis-CN.pdf
I agree Iam confused but I think the editing or something is messed up when they filmed this . I know the look of a 429/460 engine very well and it looks like a 385 series big block ford in there. It’s dark but I can tell by valve covers.
'Big Bud' Lindemann as I affectionately dubbed him, with admiration from those mid 70s teen years, exuded a level -headed, All-American soundness of presentations about American-built cars that was really cool, all the way to his Illinois/ Michigan/ Ohio Valley, Big Dutch speaking accent. Every now and then these days do you find that kind of urbane, yet sports driven Mid Western drawl. Anyway, as I wrote somewhere before, those Saturday afternoon, syndicated, locally distributed film celluloids were the rage for baby boomer teenagers back then. As for the car, I had it's twin brother, (i e the Monterey) with identical power train. Bought in 1993, the car still had that new car smell inside. As for the tech, and being fun to drive, it couldn't be beat.Okay, so what? The 'fat of the land' cars were , to me, a bit of a national lampoonery security blanket, in that they were the 'last of the Mohicans' in terms of big style, and unbridled sportiness inder the hood. That combination in a simpler form, from a simpler time now gone, is lamentable.
Take a stock car with the 429 4 v engine. Take it down the quarter mile. Now take the front and rear bumpers off. Go down the track again. Take the hood and fenders off. Pull the back seat. Take the car apart until it's 12 seconds in the quarter mile. In an old hot rod magazine this was done to a 1970 Cadillac. The name of the article was called : " Caddy Hack "
As one of a diverse line of early 'info- mercial' type 1/2 hr. features, becoming more popular in the mid 60s -70s, and backed and themed by print periodicals, and other companies🎉🎉🎉, Big Bud comes across as your "big cheese friendly neighborhood car salesman, if not the dealerships' franchise owners themselves". It inspired a sort of confidence, and trust that the automakers were in a continuously progressive straight line.This is, however, notwithstanding the pullback of the Nader age effect of ' Unsafe At Any Speed". But who would have wanted to be saddled with such thoughts when shopping for the car of their dreams back then; right? And what's more, I forgot to add Wisconsin to my mentioned list of possible places as the other Midwestern state maybe spawning that irrepressible, irresistible, Northern states, Yankee Ingenuity, power pitcher of sales speaking accent. GO BIG BUD! These are Retro dream days 4 SURE!
If he was looking for acceleration he should have picked the high compression 429 4V Zero to 60 in 7.2 ABS was also available that year Despite impressions given by Hawaii Five O the Marquis was never intended for winding roads or flying around corners. It offered unbeatable smooth and quiet cruising for the price
Yes they did,made for going up and down a straight road all day in luxurious boat like comfort, stick to the double nickel and she'll stop just fine 😀👍
Back in those days a local ford merc dealer would have these mercs lined up on a side street, facing the street and the lead light covers would be open on all the cars. I never understood why?
My uncle loaned me his '71 Marquis for a couple of months while I was in high school. Same 429 engine. Had no choke on the carb and I had it during a very cold winter. It would take me 10 minutes just to start it and get it to idle.
I don't care what the gas mileage would be to drive one of these cars today. I have a back problem and that car would be easy on it with that soft ride.
gosh by comparison the Oldsmobile Delta 88 and Chrysler New Yorker of the same year handles like a Corvette compared to this car, I thought the standard engine on the 1971 Marquis was the 429ci V8.
Nope 71 the rear reflector in the middle are different the 72 reflector had tiny chrome squares on them My dad had a 72 Monterey which was the same car but didn't have the hide away headlights and the rear had Mercury stamped in the middle of the taillights
Everything I don't want to drive; sloppy, sloppy, sloppy - and yet I love the 71-72 Marquis - better looking than the Electra, 98 or New Yorker and in top trim kitted out inside as well as if not better than any of them.
@Amplass 333 most people know Ford Power Steering sucked and even car magazines said Lincolns good ride came at great cost to the handling, GM car and Chrysler Cars handled much better. My friends dad got his Mom a 78 Grand Marquis 2dr, she hated the way it handled and got rid of it in 3 years
@Amplass 333 actually no , she was pretty good she had a nice loaded 73buick Regal with a handling package previously and before that a 67 Fury 2dr hardtop also drove the family Imperials. She stopped driving about 12 years ago, she turned 100 last Nov. Car magazines disagreed with you on that, but maybe the american Mercurys were different, her late 70s Grand Marquis was like a Lincoln
I hate today’s vehicles. They ride like crap. I think that the media has done a great job convincing people that they must have all wheel drive. Most don’t.
Hilarious! This has to be the most ill conceived, evil-handling boat ever to come out of Detroit. Here we are at the early-70s nadir of wretched excess. Monstrous, yet lacking a respectable luxury monicker like Lincoln. Big V8, but a gutless one. Soporific acceleration. Nightmare handling. All here in one grotesque package from Ford’s second-banana luxury line, Mercury. You know if this car is right for you. If it isn’t, breathe a sigh of relief.
Watching that heavy boat of a car on a test track driving through pylons is comical. It’s way too heavy to have any good steering characteristics. What were people thinking when they bought these cars, didn’t put on seatbelts and took up so much real estate ? Big, bulky waste. It took Japan to change all of that and the gas crises
these cars were built with ride comfort number 1 priority...and we had cheap gas..these are ment for long highway trips with ease...something japan didnt know anything about
Corporate CAFE standards had an impact as well...with the GM downsizing of 1977 leading the way. Though loopholes allowed the SUV market to take off. People wanted space and towing capacity and the SUVs did help with that.
The American lust for full frame, V8 powered vehicles has not in any way changed. The only change has been the form of the vehicle American buyers have chosen. Doubt me? Just look at the sales figures of full size Trucks and SUVs.
You're missing the point with these type of cars. They were built for effortless, comfortable, near silent transportation. The least amount of input from the driver was the order of the day. Sadly (in the UK at least), we have gone way to far the other way. Comfort and effortless driving have been replaced with handling, feel and feedback. Somewhere in the middle would be nice
4 місяці тому
This was tested with a 400 with a 2bbl. What happened to the 429?
![1972 Mercury: Land Barge with a couch inside - [Dealer Film]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/bT3HBdpESpo/mqdefault.jpg)
Nothing like floating down the freeway on a cloud. Those huge cars with soft suspensions were awesome on long trips.
Back in those days the public expected a luxury car ride in a luxury car. The public wanted a smooth, quiet, serene ride, not a hard, noisy ride. That’s why the Imperial with its stiffer front torsion bar/ rear leaf spring suspension, noisier unibody ride couldn’t compete against Lincoln and Cadillac, which both cars had full perimeter frame and coil springs all the way around which provided a quieter, smoother ride.
The 429 2V with 320hp was standard on the Marquis, the 429 4V with dual exhaust was optional at 360hp, which was standard in the T-Bird. And the Marquis Brougham weighed 4600 lbs and not designed to go flying through slaloms, that’s what the Boss 302 Mustang was for.
The Marquis shared a basic chassis with the full size Fords, but the full size Mercury’s had a 3” longer wheelbase.
I love soft suspension. There's almost nothing more fun to me than driving a super windy road in one of these boats. And coming to stops at traffic lights is always fun because of the nose dives, then when you completely stop the whole cars rocks like a boat for a few seconds. It's just something fun you don't get with vehicles anymore.
Just sit at the lights with the foot on the brake and keep pushing on the accelerator 😀 ROCK THE BOAT BABY ,DONT TIP THE BOAT OVER .
One of my biggest gripes with most new cars.
My Drivers' Ed teacher in the 70s taught us a nifty trick. When braking hard for a stop light or sign, JUST the second before the car will be at a complete stop, let off the brake for just a brief instant, then press all the way. Car will be dead still.
exactly all these new cars, suvs, etc ride like shit..stiff, hard and noisy
That’s right. The whole idea of a luxury car was to have a nice cushy ride.
These big cars were never intended to be pushed, but Bud does it anyways! That's why I love that old series!
Took my driver's test in a '71 Marquis Brougham. Wish I had that car now.
As an 18 year old who owns this car, it is truly a joy to drive. Hilariously fun. Great looking car too, beautiful in a sinister way
Glad to hear this! When I was 19, three friends and I bought a beat-up 1970 Marquis that wouldn't start. Chief Auto Parts sold us a starter for 39 bucks and we were on our way---It was our party car for a year and a half! All four of us would pile in and go pick up a couple more friends and terrorize the neighborhood. We painted each body panel a different color and called the The Beast. It had a green nylon interior, a scary-sounding exhaust, and got about 11 mpg. That thing could burn rubber for days....Hope you're having fun with yours!
1971 started the detuning of engines. I had the 1970 Marquis with 429. 360HP and 10:5 to 1 compression. That was a hot motor, and despite a 4500 pound sled, that car would haul ass, and lay rubber for 100 feet or better.
Actually it was 72
What a beast of a car. I like how this was filmed. Very cinematic and the background music was great.
I enjoy this video ..television was so awesome through the years...this is original and real!! Thank you for posting so we all can enjoy!
i love these videos, takes me back to when I was 4 or 5 yrs old and Bud would be on at like 5am on Saturday mornings before cartoons, like Scoby doo and bug bunny.
Beautiful luxury sedan. The comfort is top notched. There’s absolutely no riding quality like this today.
TRY the new Nissan Maxima Platinum!!! I've got one, it's amazing- and I used to own a 1976 Mercury Marquis!!!
@@TheSpritz0 doesn’t even come close
@@TheSpritz0 no nissan rides like a mercury, lincoln, or a cadillac....not even close
@@SuperBooboo02 The tradeoff in RELIABILITY is worth it, I HAD a Cadillac CTS great ride and amazing turning radius but ate a half tank of gas every day and repairs needed all the time even though I "Babied" it. Maxima is amazing... American manufacturers should LEARN!!
The ultimate Luxury Barge Era...😊
I thought my 84 Fleetwood Brougham was a big car until I saw this video, that Mercury is a massive car! I like these 70's cruisers better than any new car on the market today. My 84 Caddy floats on the road
Before they were downsized in 1977 enormous Fleetwoods were the biggest cars on the road
Looks good! I think I'll go to my local Lincoln-Mercury dealer tomorrow and get one. Hopefully they still have some left. Ideally one with wheel covers that disappear and reappear like on the test car.
I got some bad new for ya bud…
When you get to your local Lincoln-Mercury dealer, order one for me too....I'll take my chances with the 429-4V
You'll probably have better luck finding one at the Pick n' Pull
2:11..............."Is it possible for a modern-day automobile to lean over far enough to fall off its springs?". Well, that is just one of the questions that the Car & Track road test crew asked the day they put this 1971 Mercury Marquis Brougham through their pylon course. Watch & find out!!!!!
My parents had a 1971 Mercury Marquis Colony Park station wagon. The engine was a 429 V8 with a 2 bbl carburetor and single exhaust. With 10.5:1 compression, it produced 320 horsepower. With the 4 bbl carb, the horsepower went to 360. The engine detonated like crazy when the octane ratings decreased in the late '70s.
One of the interesting things about this car is that the power locks operated on air. If you locked and unlocked the doors several times while the car was not running, the power locks would stop working.
Beautiful!!!!
Had a '71 Monterey with. 429 power pack. Those extra 29 cu.in. CID made a difference in the stats presented here with the 400. My FAVORITE. car of all I have ever owned. It was like a GIANT sports car with a sedan interior. The steps and stances of the suspension were decent. Overall, a car that marked the end of an era of the pre- suffocated V-8s, minus cat converters and blowbys, with blocks and peripherals made for each division of particular makers back then. THANKS BIG Bud, Lindemann for making these period shows, and you for posting.
I've got a 66 Park Lane convertible with the 428. You said it perfectly, the car is like a giant sports car, and in 66 it was a good bit lighter as well. I've had the suspension totally rebuilt to how it would have been when it left the factory. It really handles well. As for acceleration, even with stock 2.80 gears, the 428 makes so much torque, it doesn't matter. The car feels effortless and never short on power.
This is a 429
i think Bud got an early press release for the Marquis...the base engine was the 429...400 never offered until much later. vid view of the engine is too dark to see which engine is in this car, but should be a 429. I drove a 429 4v Marquis back in the day and it was amazingly fast for such a land yacht.
This factory brochure says otherwise. I didn't think the 400 was that early, but apparently it was. www.xr793.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/1971-Mercury-Marquis-CN.pdf
I agree Iam confused but I think the editing or something is messed up when they filmed this . I know the look of a 429/460 engine very well and it looks like a 385 series big block ford in there. It’s dark but I can tell by valve covers.
wow amazing video I love the raw sound of this car. blast from the past!
The sound was added later
He REALLY puts everything he drives thru torture !
Love those big old cars and soft ride! But look at all of that tire smoke, he's burning through an entire set of tires in 4 minutes!
That was fabulous, Bud thanks!
I learned to drive in a '72 4-door Marquis. I'd love to have that car today with it's squashy suspension and big ass 429 4 barrel carb.
'Big Bud' Lindemann as I affectionately dubbed him, with admiration from those mid 70s teen years, exuded a level -headed, All-American soundness of presentations about American-built cars that was really cool, all the way to his Illinois/ Michigan/ Ohio Valley, Big Dutch speaking accent. Every now and then these days do you find that kind of urbane, yet sports driven Mid Western drawl. Anyway, as I wrote somewhere before, those Saturday afternoon, syndicated, locally distributed film celluloids were the rage for baby boomer teenagers back then. As for the car, I had it's twin brother, (i e the Monterey) with identical power train. Bought in 1993, the car still had that new car smell inside. As for the tech, and being fun to drive, it couldn't be beat.Okay, so what? The 'fat of the land' cars were , to me, a bit of a national lampoonery security blanket, in that they were the 'last of the Mohicans' in terms of big style, and unbridled sportiness inder the hood. That combination in a simpler form, from a simpler time now gone, is lamentable.
11 seconds. LORD ABOVE!!!! Beautiful car, but best when standing still.
I owned this car! I loved it! It had a 429, the title of this video says that but good old Bud said it was a 400.
Wonderful car.🇺🇸👍
Now a days, our vehicles are just as big, called SUVs !
Take a stock car with the 429 4 v engine. Take it down the quarter mile.
Now take the front and rear bumpers off. Go down the track again.
Take the hood and fenders off. Pull the back seat. Take the car apart until it's 12 seconds in the quarter mile.
In an old hot rod magazine this was done to a 1970 Cadillac.
The name of the article was called :
" Caddy Hack "
The 71 merc sure was a nice car!
2:27 Notice the car has shed every hub cap at this point.
STUNNING 😍😍😍😍😍❣❣❣❣❣❣
I miss these heavy cruisers with posh seats and a cloud like ride.
I give the test driver credit for keeping that beast on the track.
those poor tires!!!
As one of a diverse line of early 'info- mercial' type 1/2 hr. features, becoming more popular in the mid 60s -70s, and backed and themed by print periodicals, and other companies🎉🎉🎉, Big Bud comes across as your "big cheese friendly neighborhood car salesman, if not the dealerships' franchise owners themselves". It inspired a sort of confidence, and trust that the automakers were in a continuously progressive straight line.This is, however, notwithstanding the pullback of the Nader age effect of ' Unsafe At Any Speed". But who would have wanted to be saddled with such thoughts when shopping for the car of their dreams back then; right? And what's more, I forgot to add Wisconsin to my mentioned list of possible places as the other Midwestern state maybe spawning that irrepressible, irresistible, Northern states, Yankee Ingenuity, power pitcher of sales speaking accent. GO BIG BUD! These are Retro dream days 4 SURE!
Yes. People really do want a soft and comfortable ride!!!!
Especially with my back problem.
great car
He says this has a 400 and two barrel. Why does the title say 429? My sister had a 71 with 429 4bbl and high compression, it moved along OK.
"Soft leg muscles..."
😆
If he was looking for acceleration he should have picked the high compression 429 4V Zero to 60 in 7.2 ABS was also available that year Despite impressions given by Hawaii Five O the Marquis was never intended for winding roads or flying around corners. It offered unbeatable smooth and quiet cruising for the price
I think Americans would buy a BIG sedan or coupe again, the proof being in how popular giant SUVs and pickups are.
Yes they did,made for going up and down a straight road all day in luxurious boat like comfort, stick to the double nickel and she'll stop just fine 😀👍
you can see the asbestos dust coming out of the wheels during braking lmao
Back in those days a local ford merc dealer would have these mercs lined up on a side street, facing the street and the lead light covers would be open on all the cars. I never understood why?
My uncle loaned me his '71 Marquis for a couple of months while I was in high school. Same 429 engine. Had no choke on the carb and I had it during a very cold winter. It would take me 10 minutes just to start it and get it to idle.
Why would somebody remove the choke🙄
Back in the day when a straight stop was when the back end fishtailed but stayed in the lane.
I don't care what the gas mileage would be to drive one of these cars today. I have a back problem and that car would be easy on it with that soft ride.
It threw a wheelcover just resetting the trip odometer!
It looks like they just took them all off for the slalom test.
A hubcap fell off. Sure miss those days.
I remember that one time I took a guy's 68 Lemans out for a wild ride and lost all 4 of them.
My first car took my driver's test in it the 429 was standard two barrel four barrel optional
Might be, your next garage full. Too Funny.
Them bucket seats
all that luxury and 5 mpg
one would have to compare today times with the better tires and some improved chassis parts whether the values improve!
dangerous car
Bias play tirer shredder car !
Wonderful car. Whatever happened to soft comfortable suspension - just another wonderful thing that has just gone out of fashion.
Along with the mini skirt.
And it was high compression the octane was supposed to be either 108 or 109
And mine was navy blue with navy blue and cloth interior black vinyl top four-door hardtop love that car
And drove it for 8 years never really gave me any problems and it was 7 years old when I bought it
How come they keep taking off , & putting back on the hub caps ? Weird 🤔
Такой же себе куплю обязательно
does anyone know which site this is ? where is this track today ?
wonder if Adam from Rare Classic Cars has seen this one
gosh by comparison the Oldsmobile Delta 88 and Chrysler New Yorker of the same year handles like a Corvette compared to this car, I thought the standard engine on the 1971 Marquis was the 429ci V8.
Old 98, Buick Electra was a better handling car
….”or in a crisis situation..”. I can’t stop laughing.
Yeah. Accidents are funny.
Either that or your comprehension is straight from public school.
Keep pretending to giggle to yourself.
This must be a '72 because '71s were still high compression at FoMoCo.
Nope 71 the rear reflector in the middle are different the 72 reflector had tiny chrome squares on them My dad had a 72 Monterey which was the same car but didn't have the hide away headlights and the rear had Mercury stamped in the middle of the taillights
@@michaelflores2318 Whatever the case, '71s were high compression, '72s low compression in both FoMoCo and Mopar.
@@jazzvictrola7104 Actually on mopars the compression started to drop a little bit in ‘71, but not to the point it hurt performance yet.
Car in this test has a 400 2V
I thought the 429ci V8 was standard on the Marquis
It was
Y is a car that big going around corners at any fast speeds ? It'd not built for that
This dude said 194 feet to stop at 65 mph.....thats more than half a football field
Everything I don't want to drive; sloppy, sloppy, sloppy - and yet I love the 71-72 Marquis - better looking than the Electra, 98 or New Yorker and in top trim kitted out inside as well as if not better than any of them.
wasn't a good a handling car or anything else in comparison to the Buick Electra
@Amplass 333 most people know Ford Power Steering sucked and even car magazines said Lincolns good ride came at great cost to the handling, GM car and Chrysler Cars handled much better. My friends dad got his Mom a 78 Grand Marquis 2dr, she hated the way it handled and got rid of it in 3 years
@Amplass 333 actually no , she was pretty good she had a nice loaded 73buick Regal with a handling package previously and before that a 67 Fury 2dr hardtop also drove the family Imperials.
She stopped driving about 12 years ago, she turned 100 last Nov.
Car magazines disagreed with you on that, but maybe the american Mercurys were different, her late 70s Grand Marquis was like a Lincoln
@Amplass 333 grew up in a house with a Buick Electra and 2 Ford's, I've driven them all
@Amplass 333 good for you
I think they are off on that engine the standard engine was a 429
11 sec 0-60? Good grief, bet it couldn't manage more than 10 mpg.
It only had a 2-bbl carb. With a 4-bbl, 0-60 probably would have been less than 9 seconds. Probably had highway gears, too.
400 not 429
I hate today’s vehicles. They ride like crap. I think that the media has done a great job convincing people that they must have all wheel drive. Most don’t.
The post reads 429 but this car has the weak 400 260 hp engine.
The 400 V8 was never offered on the Marquis until 1975
He clearly says it has a 400 ci engine, and also states it has 260 hp, so it's not a 429.
Hilarious! This has to be the most ill conceived, evil-handling boat ever to come out of Detroit. Here we are at the early-70s nadir of wretched excess. Monstrous, yet lacking a respectable luxury monicker like Lincoln. Big V8, but a gutless one. Soporific acceleration. Nightmare handling. All here in one grotesque package from Ford’s second-banana luxury line, Mercury. You know if this car is right for you. If it isn’t, breathe a sigh of relief.
Bias against Ford.
Watching that heavy boat of a car on a test track driving through pylons is comical. It’s way too heavy to have any good steering characteristics. What were people thinking when they bought these cars, didn’t put on seatbelts and took up so much real estate ? Big, bulky waste. It took Japan to change all of that and the gas crises
these cars were built with ride comfort number 1 priority...and we had cheap gas..these are ment for long highway trips with ease...something japan didnt know anything about
Corporate CAFE standards had an impact as well...with the GM downsizing of 1977 leading the way. Though loopholes allowed the SUV market to take off. People wanted space and towing capacity and the SUVs did help with that.
The American lust for full frame, V8 powered vehicles has not in any way changed. The only change has been the form of the vehicle American buyers have chosen.
Doubt me? Just look at the sales figures of full size Trucks and SUVs.
Lots of local raods were shit in those days.
You're missing the point with these type of cars. They were built for effortless, comfortable, near silent transportation. The least amount of input from the driver was the order of the day. Sadly (in the UK at least), we have gone way to far the other way. Comfort and effortless driving have been replaced with handling, feel and feedback. Somewhere in the middle would be nice
This was tested with a 400 with a 2bbl. What happened to the 429?
Extra cost option.
Well I can see why Ford had a reputation for being the most wallowy handlers of the 70s lol. I love these old boats.