Special Order Requests-Will Mercury Do??

[jrc50]

My 2002 LX Sport has 86K miles and will have 110 by Sept. I am trying to decide to get another one or get an 04 MM. Would do the moonroof, etc. in DTR. Would likely order one as no dealer around here stocks such options.
My question is, has anyone had experience giving Mercury special order requests for things like rear end ratio? The 3.55 is great for around town, but I run tons of highway miles and prefer better milage. I have had 3.27's and even 2.87's in various CVics I have had in the last few years.
Other than getting dealer to do it as aftermarket, any opinions or experience with ordering specials? :coolman:

[greyghost]

There is no factory option on the rear axle ratio!! 3:55s are it. Going price for a new ratio installed is $450-500. Go for it but don't be surprised if the 3:55s aren't the best for milage.

[jgc61sr2002]

I believe the 3.55 Posi (locker) is the only ratio available from the factory. A number of members on this board changed the gears to 4.10 or 4.30 and report only a slight decrease in mileage. With the stock rear I get 24 MPH on the highway. If you haven't done so already test drive the Marauder and you will be hooked. Good luck. :up:

[jrc50]

There is no factory option on the rear axle ratio!! 3:55s are it. Going price for a new ratio installed is $450-500. Go for it but don't be surprised if the 3:55s aren't the best for milage.

Yep, I realize there is no "official" option but the swap for a standard Grand Marquis gearset would not be a big deal, one would think especially in light of how few MM are being sold in 2004.
Just was curious if anybody had tried and what Mercury's reaction was. :coolman:

[TAF]

No need to special order a Marauder (although, if I could have one with the P73 extra 6"...I'd do it in a moment)...the Marauder is such a dramatically better platform than any Panther car ever built. No CV, GM or TC for that matter has ever come with the advancement that this car has from power, drivetrain to suspension.

And, frankly...if gas mileage is what you're after...you're not a fit for owning the Marauder, in my opinion. Performance cars should not be bought by folks obsessed with gas mileage. The two are at opposite ends of the spectrum.

[03mmmonroe]

Yep, I realize there is no "official" option but the swap for a standard Grand Marquis gearset would not be a big deal, one would think especially in light of how few MM are being sold in 2004.
Just was curious if anybody had tried and what Mercury's reaction was. :coolman:

The dealer should not changes the gears do to EPA rating on the car. By Law the cars emissions was set for the 3.55 gear. Now if you want later to have them done by out side person that is another story. But drive the car and you will see I am getting 25 mph HWY and 17 around town. Good luck.

[RoyLPita]

If your dealer won't order what you would like, how about trading with another dealer? While scrolling through the new car listings in Trader online, I saw a DTR MM at Gateway LM in Comumbus, GA with the moonroof and light flint interior. Whitten LM in Richmond, VA and Pomoco Chrysler both have one with Dark charcoal interior. Have the dealer do a locate. It could not hurt.

Just my .02 here.

[jrc50]

The dealer should not changes the gears do to EPA rating on the car. By Law the cars emissions was set for the 3.55 gear. Now if you want later to have them done by out side person that is another story. But drive the car and you will see I am getting 25 mph HWY and 17 around town. Good luck.

Well, that is pretty good-better would be a five speed automatic like FOMOCO offers on a number of their vehicles, or the 6 speed auto I read recently they are planning to offer in 2006.
My highway milage with my 98 Mustang Cobra 5 speed was excellent, like 26, but the fifth gear was a real loafer. Used the car for 1 1/2 years, ran it to 70K now I use it as my weekend fun car (convertible). So 24-25 highway miles is not bad for a MM sized car with only 4 speed.
Anyway, I don't plan to order one till after April, so we'll see how hungry Mercury gets with the incentives at that point. :burnout:

[CRUZTAKER]

^^I was unable to edit the above post in the fashion I wanted, so I deleted and started over :)



frankly...if gas mileage is what you're after...you're not a fit for owning the Marauder, in my opinion. Performance cars should not be bought by folks obsessed with gas mileage. The two are at opposite ends of the spectrum.Touche!

Most of just woke up one day and knew, this was what we wanted.
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

[TAF]

^^I was unable to edit the above post in the fashion I wanted, so I deleted and started over
Oh yeah??!! Well just what did it say, Barry??!!



J/K ;)

[Bigdogjim]

Oh yeah??!! Well just what did it say, Barry??!!



J/K ;)

Hey TAF! Don't push or he'll post llike Martyo:lol: :baaa: :baaa:

[TAF]

Hey TAF! Don't push or he'll post llike Martyo:lol: :baaa: :baaa:
Naw...Barry's my bud...

Marty's just a sad, lonely, inarticulate puppy dog who LOVES to get hit with the newspaper a LOT!!!:D

[jrc50]

Oh yeah??!! Well just what did it say, Barry??!!



J/K ;)

Well, as to whether I am a fit for a MM, gee I don't know. For the 4 of us drivers in my family (wife, son, daughter) our car lot is already pretty eclectic (did I spell that right?) already.
Me-2002 LX Sport (work beater) & 98 Mustang Cobra Convertible
Wife-94 Bonneville (work beater) & 03 Corvette AE Convertible
Son-01 GMC Jimmy
Daughter-00 CV HPP (one of my old ones!)
I run 50K per year or so highway miles plus fly a lot
The MM if I bought it would be a more interesting road diversion than another CVic, just a question if it is worth the $3K to $4K net price difference. As I am self employed, I could just buy a 6000 # GVW SUV and write the whole thing off in one year, but that is too many miles bouncing around in a truck! :burnout:

[TripleTransAm]

My highway milage with my 98 Mustang Cobra 5 speed was excellent, like 26, but the fifth gear was a real loafer. Used the car for 1 1/2 years, ran it to 70K now I use it as my weekend fun car (convertible). So 24-25 highway miles is not bad for a MM sized car with only 4 speed.


The great thing about the Marauder is that even in high gear (the equivalent ratio of your 5th gear in the manual), you still manage to get more oomph out of the car as compared to your Cobra in 5th.

The thing with some engines is that they may have a "sweet" spot. An RPM range where they will make the best combination of power with good fuel consumption. On a motor like the DOHC 4.6, there is no doubt that lugging the motor is bad for mileage. 3.55s (or possibly even 4.10s) will put the motor in a better range for mileage, in my opinion.

Reminds me of the summer of 2002 when my wife was home on maternity leave, allowing me the pleasure of driving home with the t-tops off on the '98 Trans Am and making all sorts of noise and mayhem along the way. At highway speeds (congested - 50 mph), I'd be forced with the temptation of keeping the RPMs to about 1300-1400 in 6th or bring it up a notch to around 2000 in 5th in order to enjoy the growl of my unmuffled LS1 at speed. Surprisingly enough, highway cruising in 5th at 2000 RPM did little if any damage to my fuel mileage as compared to lugging it in 6th at a much lower RPM.

I suspect this phenomenon is even more evident on a 'cammer like the 4.6l DOHC.

Always remember that the factory set-up wasn't engineered to give YOU the best fuel economy... it was engineered to give the EPA the best fuel economy ON ITS SPECIFIC TEST SCHEDULE. And the more I read and experience, the more I'm convinced the EPA mileage tests don't completely correspond to real life. (ie. my mileage INCREASED when I defeated the stupid 1st-4th skip shift "feature" on my 6 speed tranny - it locked out 2nd and 3rd in some gentle acceleration scenarios).

[TripleTransAm]

And, frankly...if gas mileage is what you're after...you're not a fit for owning the Marauder, in my opinion. Performance cars should not be bought by folks obsessed with gas mileage. The two are at opposite ends of the spectrum.


I'm somewhat obsessed by gas mileage... and I gotta admit that both my Marauder and my 1998 WS6 have not disappointed me one bit. My GTA is fairly economical too, considering the 80s fuel injection technology.

My '78... well, let's not go there. AND it's the weakest V8 in my stable, too...

[jrc50]

The great thing about the Marauder is that even in high gear (the equivalent ratio of your 5th gear in the manual), you still manage to get more oomph out of the car as compared to your Cobra in 5th.

The thing with some engines is that they may have a "sweet" spot. An RPM range where they will make the best combination of power with good fuel consumption. On a motor like the DOHC 4.6, there is no doubt that lugging the motor is bad for mileage. 3.55s (or possibly even 4.10s) will put the motor in a better range for mileage, in my opinion.

Reminds me of the summer of 2002 when my wife was home on maternity leave, allowing me the pleasure of driving home with the t-tops off on the '98 Trans Am and making all sorts of noise and mayhem along the way. At highway speeds (congested - 50 mph), I'd be forced with the temptation of keeping the RPMs to about 1300-1400 in 6th or bring it up a notch to around 2000 in 5th in order to enjoy the growl of my unmuffled LS1 at speed. Surprisingly enough, highway cruising in 5th at 2000 RPM did little if any damage to my fuel mileage as compared to lugging it in 6th at a much lower RPM.

I suspect this phenomenon is even more evident on a 'cammer like the 4.6l DOHC.

Always remember that the factory set-up wasn't engineered to give YOU the best fuel economy... it was engineered to give the EPA the best fuel economy ON ITS SPECIFIC TEST SCHEDULE. And the more I read and experience, the more I'm convinced the EPA mileage tests don't completely correspond to real life. (ie. my mileage INCREASED when I defeated the stupid 1st-4th skip shift "feature" on my 6 speed tranny - it locked out 2nd and 3rd in some gentle acceleration scenarios).

Yes, that makes sense-the LS1 is a sweet engine-bringing our 03 AE automatic back from Houston, the computer indicated 26mpg on a steady 75-85 MPH cruise with occasional runs higher-Something about a 200 MPH speedometer and knowing you can run to 170 if you have the cojones to do it helps as well! :coolman:
Since the 4 cam in the Cobra and the MM is weak on low end torque and is really designed much like an older sports car (keep the rpm's up-at least with a manual trans), I guess it would make sense to have a higher ratio rear end than the 3.27 I have on the LX Sport with the 2 cam engine and drastically lower rpm capabilities.

[gilby04]

jrc50,
I had a 2002 CV Sport prior to my 2004 MM. The Sport was a real treat.
The Sport was purchased new in April 2002.
It had just rolled 13,000 miles when I sold it to a private buyer in Oct. 2003.
In my opinion, the price difference between the two vehicles is of very little consequence...maybe 10-15% ???
The two are almost identical regarding the interior appointments and exterior sheet metal. This is the point, in my view, where the comparison ends.
The MM's responsive performance/handling is well worth the additional $$$.
In Oct. 2003, I was fortunate to enjoy MM rebates totalling $5000, and was able to purchase with FoMoCo "A" Plan pricing structure. Total price including options, but not including state sales tax, plates, etc. was $26,539.
Again, in my opinion, the MM is a huge BARGAIN for the price difference, and once you get your MM, you WON'T want to give it up for ANYTHING else.

[jrc50]

jrc50,
I had a 2002 CV Sport prior to my 2004 MM. The Sport was a real treat.
The Sport was purchased new in April 2002.
It had just rolled 13,000 miles when I sold it to a private buyer in Oct. 2003.
In my opinion, the price difference between the two vehicles is of very little consequence...maybe 10-15% ???
The two are almost identical regarding the interior appointments and exterior sheet metal. This is the point, in my view, where the comparison ends.
The MM's responsive performance/handling is well worth the additional $$$.
In Oct. 2003, I was fortunate to enjoy MM rebates totalling $5000, and was able to purchase with FoMoCo "A" Plan pricing structure. Total price including options, but not including state sales tax, plates, etc. was $26,539.
Again, in my opinion, the MM is a huge BARGAIN for the price difference, and once you get your MM, you WON'T want to give it up for ANYTHING else.

Ok, thanks for the advice, when I get through tax season we will get serious. I have now read that Ford is seriously considering stopping "retail" sales of the CVic after 2004 model year (selling only fleet vehicles) and trying to force private buyers into GMarquis models. It is interesting they are killing the MM after 2004-at least in public statements to date-.
Somewhere as well I read the Panther platform cars are the most profitable Ford makes next to the SUV lines, so you would think they would try to boost sales not kill off the Panther line.

[BillyGman]

excuse me if I've missed something since I haven't bothered reading anything but the first two posts of this thread, but it sounds to me like you were talking about ordering a CV LX sport. If I'm correct on that, then I want to inform you that the gear ratio on the 2003 CV LX sport is NOT 3.55's like the MM, but is 3.27, so I assume that it's the same w/the 04 CV.

But to answer your question, I doubt the dealer will be able to order anything special for you since the dealers that I dealt w/concerning a possible CV purchase before I bought my MM all told me that they couldn't do anything in the way of special orders, and that "those days are long gone" as they put it.

I hope this helps.

[jrc50]

[QUOTE=BillyGman]excuse me if I've missed something since I haven't bothered reading anything but the first two posts of this thread, but it sounds to me like you were talking about ordering a CV LX sport. If I'm correct on that, then I want to inform you that the gear ratio on the 2003 CV LX sport is NOT 3.55's like the MM, but is 3.27, so I assume that it's the same w/the 04 CV.

But to answer your question, I doubt the dealer will be able to order anything special for you since the dealers that I dealt w/concerning a possible CV purchase before I bought my MM all told me that they couldn't do anything in the way of special orders, and that "those days are long gone" as they put it.

I hope this helps.[/QUOTe

It is the joy of a wandering thread, I may order an 04 MM later in the spring, I have now a 02 LX Sport that will have close to 100K by then. I realize deviating from the "standard order form is rare, but thought I would check to see if anyone on forum had had any luck doing it :coolman: