mm.owner
09-30-2007, 07:58 AM
Hi Everyone,
On this site, I previously used the ID MM.Buyer. I now go by MM.Owner, because I just purchased a 2003, Blue, MM, with 27K.
THANK YOU to the site administrators and members for helping me with info about these great vehicles.
NOTE: I used CarFax to re-assure me of what I was about to buy and verify what the seller told me. I got unlimited VIN searches until 10/10/07. If you send me a VIN, I'll run it and send the report to your email. Hope this doesn’t violate any site policies.
ALSO NOTE: During my search, I've come across 2 MM's in CT: Silver at Dealer in Milford, CT with 60K miles (ask for Hugo) and Red at Dealer in Vernon, CT. Also, CarMax has a Black in Laurel, MD with 17K miles.
FINALLY: I know the following missive is rather long, but I like to write.
OBSERVATIONS:
All I can say about the Mercury Marauder is: "Whatta friggin car!"
When they first came out, I loved the whole idea. Like the GNX. I appreciate fine, thoughtful engineering. But at $32K-$36K, I said "I'd have to sell or re-finance everything I own". Then I found out folks were paying $4K-$6K over MSRP. I said "Fer-getta-bout-it". Which I did. Sortta. 5 years later, here I am. "Whatta friggin car!"
First impressions:
* APPEARANCE: Big, roomy, 4-door, aggressive looking. Gotta love it.
* PERFORMANCE AND HANDLING: Very similar to my CV, PI, P-71, only quieter, smoother and with more luxury. See SIDE-BY-SIDE below.
* CRUISE CONTROL: Did I miss something? There's no dashboard indicator light.
* EXHAUST: Am I hearing things? After a ride, I shut it down and within a couple minutes, I hear a "DING". Sounds like a hammer hitting a pipe. A couple minutes later, another "DING". I think it's the exhaust cooling down.
* OK, EVERYONE, ALL TOGETHER NOW: "Whatta friggin car!"
LONG TERM PLANS:
This will be a fair weather car. Nevertheless, see TIRES, below.
Keep the vehicle stock, with few mods. It already has some kinda cone shaped air filter. And some kinda tuner do-dad that changed the tranny shifting pattern. I'm learning. Just give me a Marauder Minute or two and I'll catch on. Mods are fun, expensive and need to be proven worthwhile.
* PAINT:
This MM musta suffered thru 1,000 car washes. Swirls all over. Some chips, too. Someday, I'll spring for new clearcoat, maybe several layers of some tough stuff. Like for it to look wet, all the time.
SHORT TERM PLANS:
* FLUIDS:
Changing all fluids in a couple days at the Ford dealer in Berlin. Having them inspect everything front to back. Hope they let me have a look underneath. Maybe I'll take some pics.
* TIRES:
Original BFG tires need replacing. NOW. They look good, but I know there is nothing better or safer than new tires. I'm researching options. Like to stay with same tires and sizes because I respect what the Mercury engineers did. But, I'm a good listener. Whatever I decide, it must be safe on wet surfaces. I've had 15 years experience with GY GT Plus 4's, GY RSA's and GY RSA Plus's on 3 CV's. Those tires are all noisy and great on dry roads, until they wear out at 30K miles. But around 15K miles, they all become unsafe on wet roads, slippin and slidin all over the place. Not fun!
* SIDE-BY-SIDE:
I have a 2001, CV, PI, P-71 with 127K miles. This is a very fast vehicle, from a stop to ???. A harsh ride compared to the 2003 MM.
Like I said above, this CV is very similar in performance and handling to my MM. Before I sell the CV (asking $5K), I'd like to do a side-by-side compare.
MOTTOS:
"There will always be someone bigger, faster or with more money than you"...Biker John
"You must be young and foolish, in order to become old and wise"...Ole Biker Bob
"Let it go, let it go, just, let it go"...Biker Spot
"Less government, more individual responsibility and with God's help, a better country"...Robert Welch (John Birch Society founder)
"The work of the individual, is the spark that moves mankind ahead"...Igor Sikorsky
Stay in touch,
Bob Vincent
MM.Owner
Middletown, CT.
On this site, I previously used the ID MM.Buyer. I now go by MM.Owner, because I just purchased a 2003, Blue, MM, with 27K.
THANK YOU to the site administrators and members for helping me with info about these great vehicles.
NOTE: I used CarFax to re-assure me of what I was about to buy and verify what the seller told me. I got unlimited VIN searches until 10/10/07. If you send me a VIN, I'll run it and send the report to your email. Hope this doesn’t violate any site policies.
ALSO NOTE: During my search, I've come across 2 MM's in CT: Silver at Dealer in Milford, CT with 60K miles (ask for Hugo) and Red at Dealer in Vernon, CT. Also, CarMax has a Black in Laurel, MD with 17K miles.
FINALLY: I know the following missive is rather long, but I like to write.
OBSERVATIONS:
All I can say about the Mercury Marauder is: "Whatta friggin car!"
When they first came out, I loved the whole idea. Like the GNX. I appreciate fine, thoughtful engineering. But at $32K-$36K, I said "I'd have to sell or re-finance everything I own". Then I found out folks were paying $4K-$6K over MSRP. I said "Fer-getta-bout-it". Which I did. Sortta. 5 years later, here I am. "Whatta friggin car!"
First impressions:
* APPEARANCE: Big, roomy, 4-door, aggressive looking. Gotta love it.
* PERFORMANCE AND HANDLING: Very similar to my CV, PI, P-71, only quieter, smoother and with more luxury. See SIDE-BY-SIDE below.
* CRUISE CONTROL: Did I miss something? There's no dashboard indicator light.
* EXHAUST: Am I hearing things? After a ride, I shut it down and within a couple minutes, I hear a "DING". Sounds like a hammer hitting a pipe. A couple minutes later, another "DING". I think it's the exhaust cooling down.
* OK, EVERYONE, ALL TOGETHER NOW: "Whatta friggin car!"
LONG TERM PLANS:
This will be a fair weather car. Nevertheless, see TIRES, below.
Keep the vehicle stock, with few mods. It already has some kinda cone shaped air filter. And some kinda tuner do-dad that changed the tranny shifting pattern. I'm learning. Just give me a Marauder Minute or two and I'll catch on. Mods are fun, expensive and need to be proven worthwhile.
* PAINT:
This MM musta suffered thru 1,000 car washes. Swirls all over. Some chips, too. Someday, I'll spring for new clearcoat, maybe several layers of some tough stuff. Like for it to look wet, all the time.
SHORT TERM PLANS:
* FLUIDS:
Changing all fluids in a couple days at the Ford dealer in Berlin. Having them inspect everything front to back. Hope they let me have a look underneath. Maybe I'll take some pics.
* TIRES:
Original BFG tires need replacing. NOW. They look good, but I know there is nothing better or safer than new tires. I'm researching options. Like to stay with same tires and sizes because I respect what the Mercury engineers did. But, I'm a good listener. Whatever I decide, it must be safe on wet surfaces. I've had 15 years experience with GY GT Plus 4's, GY RSA's and GY RSA Plus's on 3 CV's. Those tires are all noisy and great on dry roads, until they wear out at 30K miles. But around 15K miles, they all become unsafe on wet roads, slippin and slidin all over the place. Not fun!
* SIDE-BY-SIDE:
I have a 2001, CV, PI, P-71 with 127K miles. This is a very fast vehicle, from a stop to ???. A harsh ride compared to the 2003 MM.
Like I said above, this CV is very similar in performance and handling to my MM. Before I sell the CV (asking $5K), I'd like to do a side-by-side compare.
MOTTOS:
"There will always be someone bigger, faster or with more money than you"...Biker John
"You must be young and foolish, in order to become old and wise"...Ole Biker Bob
"Let it go, let it go, just, let it go"...Biker Spot
"Less government, more individual responsibility and with God's help, a better country"...Robert Welch (John Birch Society founder)
"The work of the individual, is the spark that moves mankind ahead"...Igor Sikorsky
Stay in touch,
Bob Vincent
MM.Owner
Middletown, CT.