Marauder as a daily driver ?

[AZ MM]

My question is will the Marauder hold up the test of time,and yes I'm getting one regardless if I have to drive my IS 300 Lexus as a daily driver its a nice car, but I'm a 8 cylinder type of person and going to be 40 in november my thinking :)

[jgc61sr2002]

My question is will the Marauder hold up the test of time,and yes I'm getting one regardless if I have to drive my IS 300 Lexus as a daily driver its a nice car, but I'm a 8 cylinder type of person and going to be 40 in november my thinking :)


I think it will hold up. There are several members of this board with high mileage Marauder's that they use daily. :)

[Skiordie53]

i use mine everyday, got it new last aug, jgot 27,000 on the clock now runs great. i wouldn't worry too much.

[423REED]

My question is will the Marauder hold up the test of time,and yes I'm getting one regardless if I have to drive my IS 300 Lexus as a daily driver its a nice car, but I'm a 8 cylinder type of person and going to be 40 in november my thinking :)
I believe that the Mercury Marauder will hold up very well over the years. This is one instance where we should compare our MM's to the Grand Marquis's. They have proven to be solid, well-built cars. We should expect the same results with our Marauders. Now if you're drag racing, doinf 1/4 mile runs, and 0-60 runs, you could have less life expectancy for your Marauder.
Jim
______________________________ ___
2004 MARAUDER 300A - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[bigslim]

Drive mine every sunny day.

[gpfarrell]

I think it's a great daily driver. Very easy to live with, and with a bit of care should hold up better than NYC taxis... and they're good for 300,000 miles.

[Rider90]

Drive mine everyday, rain or shine. 20k miles so far, only problem has been with the heated seat switch LEDs blinking....should get that fixed soon :help:

[Rkammer]

I believe that the Mercury Marauder will hold up very well over the years. This is one instance where we should compare our MM's to the Grand Marquis's. They have proven to be solid, well-built cars. We should expect the same results with our Marauders. Now if you're drag racing, doinf 1/4 mile runs, and 0-60 runs, you could have less life expectancy for your Marauder.
Jim
______________________________ ___
2004 MARAUDER 300A - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN
I've only had my MM for about a month so can't attest to it's longevity with frequent drag racing use. However, I do have a Buick Grand National with over 166,000 miles that has over 200 12 sec. drag strip passes and is still solid. It has the original motor and doesn't burn any oil and is still very quiet and dependable. I think if you care for your MM properly you can race it occasionally and still expect it to serve you well as a daily driver. The modular Ford V8 has proven itself with law inforcement agencies and taxi cab companies all over the country. :)

[BillyGman]

I drive mine every day regardless of weather conditions. It gets me to work and back in the sun,rain, sleet, & snow.I've also noticed what a comfortable ride it is on long trips. The farthest I've driven mine all at once so far is 800 miles. I have 30,679 miles on it to date. So far, so good.

[kingsford]

I have 61000 miles on mine and have had no problems....although most of those are going 5 mph on the 57 fwy (california)

[seans]

Mines a daily driver also. Even though I only have a five minute commute I still had to drive mine during the winter with no problems after putting Blizzaks on it.

[Shaft333]

It's part of the beauty of a parts bin performance car.
There is nothing that's really exotic on the car.

I bought my MM intended to be a daily driver. Just with a bit more style, character and oomph than some of the other large car choices.

[Murader03]

If you check my signature, you'll see I have 83K+ on mine. I certainly don't have the higest mileage on the board! Up until last December, I was driving 100+ miles 5 - 6 days a week round trip. Since December, the daily commute has droped to about 35 miles daily. The car has made speed runs to Florida twice, I mean speed, 32 hours round trip times and one trip I spend about 8 hours in a motel. It's also been to Ohio and back several times, Indy and back, another speed run here too! Right gang? Other than tires, it still had the original brakes. Of curse the tranny was beefed up by Dennis, along with an engine replacement from Ford. It's held it's own, but I'm getting antsy for a new Mustang.....What can I say! :beer:

[RoyLPita]

Mine will be a daily driver when I get one.

[mcb26]

Drive mine everyday, rain or shine. 20k miles so far, only problem has been with the heated seat switch LEDs blinking....should get that fixed soon :help:
Funny you should say that Just had mine fixed last week 20K miles. I drive mine about every other day.

[Bluerauder]

Drive mine everyday, rain or shine. 20k miles so far, ...
I drive mine everyday as well in rain, shine or snow. :D Has 22,250 miles on it to date. I actually enjoy driving to work in the morning ... but the return trip is much more fun !!! :rolleyes:

[ckadiddle]

I can't afford to keep any "extra" cars. The 22000 mile Marauder replaced a perfectly good 2001 Crown Vic LX that had only 14000 miles on it. The ride is noticeable stiffer than the Crown Vic, but still comfortable enough for everyday driving. It has to get me a short drive to work every day, errands and going out on the weekends. It also has to be comfortable enough for any road trips we make, although those are pretty few. It's a rather unique combination of style, performance, comfort and luxury that will carry around five large adults and their luggage. :)

[dwasson]

I have 42K on mine. I drive it every day between April and November.

[Cheeseheadbob]

I bought mine with 40K. Have 53K now in all types of driving conditions. Not one single problem, and I do redline it now and then. I too am approaching 40, and have never felt younger while driving the Marauder. The wife says "MID-LIFE CRISIS" I just tell her I hope to live past 80! Good Luck, and have fun.:beer:

[Forenzic]

I drive mine every day and it has 40000 Km's on it .....


I do believe I bought a lemon tho seeing as mine has had to have the valve thingies replaced (two weeks in the shop) and now the fuel pump went ... there is also that nagging problem of the left side mirrors not working every few months ... had them fixed 4 times already ....

Don't get me wrong .. I love my car ...I like the comfort and I like the power ..

its just too bad that it breaks down al the time

:cry:

[chicago_cop]

My question is will the Marauder hold up the test of time,and yes I'm getting one regardless if I have to drive my IS 300 Lexus as a daily driver its a nice car, but I'm a 8 cylinder type of person and going to be 40 in november my thinking :)

One of the reason that I like American made V8 engines, and full body steel frame cars is that they can take abuse. I have driven Ford, Chevy, and Dodge squad cars for 26 yrs. In Chicago we spared no abuse. Drove over curbs at high speeds. WOT about every other day. Non stop running in all types of weather, and hrs of turning & stopping. Not once have I even heard of an engine blown, or not something that could not be fixed. Sqaud cars take a beaten like no other; along with cabs. None of the cars are sold or traded with less than ll5,000 mi. Also they can be repaired anywhere in the US. Not so with Toy, Honda, Nissan, Benz or what ever. I know from experience with a Ford product. Due to an accident my wife had I had a malfuntion with a heater core on her 98 Town Car, and we got it fixed in Roswell New Mex.(very small town) My 2cts.

[Jeff]

62500 miles and still running strong! I commute 135 miles a day
to work and only have one car. BTW is there any other car?
I mean, really. ;)

[MMM2003]

68000 miles and counting. Daily driver all year round, with some minor mods. Gotta do the PCM/Engine tuning, makes it shift and drive so much nicer, not to mention the extra hp you get.

Bought it new in Aug. 2002. Lots of roadtrips, city and highway driving. Always a pleasure.

Good luck and go for it.

Peter

[LordVader]

:bandit: I guess when you get down to it, it's already been said "There is no other car". I drive mine every day to work and every where me and the Mrs. go on the week-end. I used to drive her car on Sundays, but once I got the MM that all stopped. Heck I don't even hardly wash hers anymore. The MM gets all my attention.

[FordNut]

Great for a daily driver. I drive mine when I can, it has almost 60k miles. Wife drives hers daily, mileage is about the same. Mine heavily modded, hers basically stock. Minor necessary trips to the shop, several voluntary ones. Basically any weather conditions, but very little snow driving. I know how scary a high performace car with a posi is the snow, besides I have several other vehicles so why risk it?

[Bluerauder]

I used to drive her car on Sundays, but once I got the MM that all stopped. Heck I don't even hardly wash hers anymore. The MM gets all my attention.
So it just isn't me !!! :D There was a time when we used the >>ugh<< conversion van >>ugh<< for trips and such; but that all changed with the Marauder. :rolleyes:

[00 Aggie]

The MM is my beater!


It does great and handles this 100+ Houston heat with no problems!

[spidercar]

I drive 20 miles each way to work and just drove halfway across the country and back on vacation with three kids in the back seat and a DVD player strapped between the headrests (saw just one other Marauder the whole time).

These are real everyday cars, not toys like Vipers or those new Chevy pickup hot rods.

Living in Wisconsin, however, I can verify that the Marauder is no picnic when it comes to snow. It is just as bad as the Mustang I used to drive, but the traction control helps significantly.

[Johnman]

I've got 20K on mine as a daily driver and I have always loved the way this car performs. Big, powerful, comfortable, etc. But I've had some problems. The ignition locked up and the car had to be towed in to the dealer on a flatbed so the steering column could be taken apart and fixed. The 6-disc changer in the trunk stopped working after about a year. And finally, after running over a nail, my quest to find an OEM rear tire is like trying to find the Holy Grail, since it's such an odd size. (My car is currently sitting in the garage resting on it's spacesaver spare while I look through my options.) After 20K miles and absolutely no racing, all 4 tires are actually ready for replacement. I really love the car, but I think our threadstarter deserves our honest histories of our experiences and our opinions.

[White Knuckles]

I used mine from 11/02 to 2/05 as my primary work vehicle (travel 7 states).
I ran up 87,000 miles without any serious problems. Regular oil changes (Royal Purple), several sets of tires (Thanks--Tire Rack) and regular pampering by Scott and team (Team Ford--Marietta) have kept this Marauder in fine shape. It's become a garage queen and I've only added another 1,000 (@88,073 miles now) since I put 300C AWD into service (16,000 miles).
The Marauder is the first car I've kept-------too much fun! :)

[Krytin]

Three years & 40+k miles - driven every day sun, rain or snow and nothing but FUN!

[Todd]

Drive mine everyday, rain or shine. 20k miles so far, only problem has been with the heated seat switch LEDs blinking....should get that fixed soon :help:

I had the heated seat blinky thing also.


Just had it replaced under warranty along with the drivers cylinder head for the second time under warranty.......

That damn blinking was getting on my nerves...

[fastblackmerc]

Three years & 40+k miles - driven every day sun, rain or snow and nothing but FUN!
14 months old and 20,000+ miles. My daily driver. Just got back from a trip to Naples, Fla. Run fine, never missed a beat (even when we passed 4 of the Florida Highway Patrol Marauders, 2 DTR's and 2 black) on Alligator Alley coming back from our cruise out of Miami. We ran at a steady 77 -79 MPH with the Valentine1 singing all the way..... we saw another DTR on the way down on I75 near Ocala (I think). Averaged 20 mpg with 4 adults, 1 child & a trunk so full I couldn't slip a piece of paper in anywhere! I've had a few minor problems.... blinking passenger side heated seat switch, 6 CD changer not working, minor paint blemish, drivers side seat cover clip (front) not staying on and front end alignment. I'll most likely buy another car, maybe a Hemi Charger, but I'll NEVER get rid of my MM. :banana:

[valleyman]

Mine is a daily driver in city traffic. My only complaint is that it eats rear tires and we have an oddball size tire. In all fairness to the car though I have modified a few things and do tend to throttle-jock it.

[Sully008]

Daily driver here as well. I'm really looking forward to the winter months with this monster. Hopefully I'll be able to find another winter beater to keep my MM out of the snow.

[MENINBLK]

I bought my Marauder Jan 2, 2004.
I've pampered her will all of the maintenance I think she deserves,
and quite often go overboard.
I've got over 34,000 miles now, and she still rides as good
as the day I took her out of the showroom.

Maintenance is the key.
Keep you fluids changed often, your filters clean,
and your tires fresh, and your Marauder will give you
many years of enjoyment, even with a little drag racing
now and then...

[Paul T. Casey]

I pretty much baby my garage queen. :rolleyes: Yep, 95xxx miles, 200 plus time slips, (even got one of them win stickers in the deal), burnouts in 37 states last summer. Should roll into FFW in Epping with somewhere around 97K on the odometer this August. I've had it from the depths of Death Valley (or pretty close) to over 12,000ft elevation. Snow, wind, rain, ice, sun, clouds (luckily no hail). I've run the tank down to 1.5 gallons left (only once), had 5 fat people in it (including myself), and never backed down from a little traffic light duel. I've done "neutral drops", power barke, and assorted other tire spinning antics. Been way on the right side of the speedometer, stuck in stop and go rush hours (Atlanta, Pheonix, San Diego, Houston, Chicago, Boston, New York, CT Turnpike). I probably do at least a burnout a week (my wife says more), a couple practice launches every other day at the rte 78 light, and assorted cornering tests once in a while. The whole point is, there isn't a better daily driver out there. Power, comfort, size, and that menacing blackness (or blueness, redness, silverness depending upon your personal taste). As the Chambers Brothers said in "Time Has Come Today," I've had my fun!

[jgc61sr2002]

Paul - You probably have the highest mileage of any Marauder. :) You definitly have had the most fun. :D

[cruzer]

I've got 20K on mine as a daily driver and I have always loved the way this car performs. Big, powerful, comfortable, etc. But I've had some problems. The ignition locked up and the car had to be towed in to the dealer on a flatbed so the steering column could be taken apart and fixed. The 6-disc changer in the trunk stopped working after about a year. And finally, after running over a nail, my quest to find an OEM rear tire is like trying to find the Holy Grail, since it's such an odd size. (My car is currently sitting in the garage resting on it's spacesaver spare while I look through my options.) After 20K miles and absolutely no racing, all 4 tires are actually ready for replacement. I really love the car, but I think our threadstarter deserves our honest histories of our experiences and our opinions.
John, Check with Discount tire---was in local store yesterday and they found one of our tires in inventory in the area---this was about 4 PM, so it should still be available---if you need a tire for a short time--i have 2 new ones at home---have about 5,000 to go on present set---plan to change to new for the trip to MVIII---you ar welcome to borrow one to get back on the road--PM or call me, Maury

[Johnman]

John, Check with Discount tire---was in local store yesterday and they found one of our tires in inventory in the area---this was about 4 PM, so it should still be available---if you need a tire for a short time--i have 2 new ones at home---have about 5,000 to go on present set---plan to change to new for the trip to MVIII---you ar welcome to borrow one to get back on the road--PM or call me, Maury
Thanks, Maury- I have been working with Discount tire from the gitgo, and they could not locate an OEM rear tire for me. I have decided to go with the KDW2 tires, which should be even grippier (is that a real word?). They should be in the middle of this week. I really appreciate your offer, though. Hope to see you soon at a North Texas Marauder event!

[2003DOHC]

My MM is my only vehicle. I had a 2001 ranger but missed driving the Marauder so I sold the truck. Most fun to drive car I have ever owned!

[djcwardog]

Good daily driver! I sold mine with almost 80,000 on the clock - I put about 14,000 of those on. Ran just fine - great cars!

[sfsv]

:) The panther chassis (MM,CV,GM, & TC) are capable of extremely high mileage as long as they are maintained. I have some clients with over 300K miles on their TC and former CVPI (taxi), many with the orignal engines. The MM chassis is a CVPI with rear air suspension. The only things we see that fail on the 03 & up panther chassis are rear axle bearings (pre 01-01-03 production), struts and shocks (mileage and usage does not affect the failure rate, they just fail without warning) and the front spring insulators. I have driven several livery 03 TC with over 150,000 miles on them and they all drive if they only have 20K miles on them. The suspensions on these cars hold up great, you don't see ball joints or other common wear items since they switch to the rack & pinion set up. Ford did their home work on these 03 & up chassis, the only thing you see when it comes to the suspension is the struts and shocks. I have seen some fail at 7K miles and others that are in great shape with 150K plus miles on them. As a matter of fact, Lincoln warrants the livery and limousine TC for 4yr/150K miles with a Ford ESP free in every state except for Florida (in Florida the buyer must purchase the Ford ESP, because of state insurance regulations). If you want a vehicle that will last a long time and not cost that much in repairs and maintenance, you cannot beat a panther chassis. This is the reason why the panther chassis dominates the law enforcement and commerical vehicle market (taxi, livery, and limousine). As for the MM 32 valve engine, I will say they are very reliable, based on my experience with many Lincoln MKVIII's. I have seen only one MKVIII engine failed in my 15 years as a Ford, Lincoln, Mercury certified service advisor. That 93 MKVIII engine (42K miles) failed two years ago because of a snapped valve spring that allowed the valve to contact a piston.

[bigjon]

obviously, i do not won a marauder.

this is my third panther though. these are great cars!

get one, and enjoy the hype! :beer:

[MarauderTJA]

Bought my 04 Marauder on July 3, 2004. Just turned 22K today. Absolutely love my blown, daily driver. The best daily driver I have ever owned.

[BillyGman]

I've done "neutral drops", ........Neutral drops? :eek: I'd never do those!! That's a good way to say "bye bye" to your transmission. Please tell me you were joking about that. Are you sure you know what the term "neutral drop" means? (reving the engine with the shifter in neutral, and then while staying on the gas pedal and keeping the engine revs high, slamming the shifter into drive:eek: ).....

[Mongoose]

Paul - You probably have the highest mileage of any Marauder. :) You definitly have had the most fun. :D
Not quite. Mine clicked over 135,000 yesterday. :D

[MM03MOK]

Not quite. Mine clicked over 135,000 yesterday. :DHi Charlie! Long time no "see"! :wave: Guess you've been behind the wheel!

[Mongoose]

Hi Charlie! Long time no "see"! :wave: Guess you've been behind the wheel!
Hi Mary! Been real busy up to this time with my son's high school baseball season and getting him squared away to start at U of L this fall, not to mention work. Just registered today for MMVIII so if anybody wants to see how these cars hold up, they can take a peek at mine in Detroit. :wave:

[lwblumjr]

Hi all,

I bought my 2003 300A at the end of December 2004. It had almost 36K miles on it then and has over 50k miles on it now. I just love it to death. It is my all time favorite daily driver (including the '86 Mustang GT Convertible that I bought new.) The only problems I have had with it is a couple of times a window would not go down. (One window one time and another the other time.) Maybe just a curcuit breaker thing. Next day they worked just fine. I drive it whenever I can get my 17 year old son out of it. He drives it down to the local "Ricer" hangout on Saturday nights. (They love it in spite of themselves.) I can't see ever trading it in on another car as long as it is running. My wife even loves it. This one is a keeper!