With almost 130,000 Marquis models sold in 1973, this line of luxury cars would be a success both with buyers and with FoMoCo. The seller, a car dealer, has this 1973 Mercury Marquis Brougham posted here on craigslist in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and they’re asking $8,995. Here is the original listing and here is a link to the car on their dealership’s website with many more photos.
The look is unmistakably Lincoln-like but with a middle-management twinge and truth be told, it’s more car than anyone really needed so a Lincoln would just be extravagant. Sadly, with all of the great photos that the seller has in the listing and on their website, there is literally just one photo – the opening photo here – that shows the car in its entirety. One. One photo. Only one. They sell cars for a living. There’s just one photo showing the whole car. Should I keep going?
The exterior photos that are shown, mostly in detail and snippets, show what appears to be a nice and solid car, so that’s good news. Color-keyed wheel covers would have been great here but otherwise, I wouldn’t change anything about the exterior of this big beauty. The second-generation Marquis was made from 1969 through 1978 and there were some big revisions in that decade. This is a 1973 to 1978 restyled example and they are what I personally think of when I think of a Mercury Marquis.
The seller’s photos include several showing the bottoms of the doors and they look amazing, as does the black interior and this nice, unique spotted fabric. I don’t see a flaw inside at all and the back seat looks like new. The seller lists the miles as being 45,527 and they were told by the previous owner that those are the actual miles. In looking at the photos, I don’t doubt that at all.
The engine appears to be super clean and tidy and it very much looks like a low-mile car under the hood. That’s a Ford 460 cubic-inch V8 which would have had 202 horsepower and 330 lb-ft of torque. It runs and drives as it should, according to the seller and it sure looks good. Have any of you owned a Marquis from this era?
Very nice Marquis. Somehow the big bumpers don’t look quite so bad, maybe because the front one has some style to it, or maybe because it’s such a big car in the first place. My idea: you and the wife invite another couple for a drive in your smooth, quiet Marquis. Head out on some rural two-lanes, leisurely taking in the scenery such as farms and perhaps fall colors. End up in town at a nice restaurant.
Large and in Charge Bob.
“Rural two-lanes”
Bob, your confidence in anyone piloting one of these barges down anything but a freeway is concerning, LOL.
Other than that, your take is spot on.
Ride in style! On par with the Lincoln, just a wonderful big ole crusier.
Don’t you just love how the author dances around the truth, but let’s call a spade a spade, this was a poor mans Lincoln, and that was okay. Reminds me of “Uncle Buck”( his was a 2 door, he was a funny guy, why do all the funny guys die early?) Case in point, many moons ago, I worked at an auto body shop supply, as a driver, what else, and the guy who was 2nd in command, had a car just like this. He was a total doofus, like most that are 2nd in command, but he just didn’t make enough for a Lincoln, and “settled” for the Merc. To be honest, you’d be splitting hairs on the difference, Mercurys had the same guts as a Lincoln, and were just as nice. Lost all faith in FOMOCO when they axed the Mercury. A little thirsty, but when you figure a Uber ride costs $2.00/ mile( or more) and ride in some crappy jelly bean, for cushy transport, you simply can’t go wrong here. When America made great cars, just like this. You wonder why I’m bitter?
My dad had a 4-door in dark green. I learned to drive on it. Holy crap, driving down narrow Chicago sidestreets during wintertime was an education and a half. Miracle I never sideswiped anything. It was gorgeous. Regularly got positivie comments from passerby. Hate to pay for the gas these days, though.
Every year I would look forward to the fall new car preview edition of Car and Driver magazine to find out if Mercury had finally done a de Sade edition of their Marquis. Sadly it was not to be. What a pain.
Mike – ha ha – with the tight black leather upholstery and the lace-up vinyl top.
Yes I owned one, right out of college I bought , what I thought was a beautiful car , right off the showroom floor. Doing well in business , why not. Owned it for 2 years, always had comments it was the longest car ever made. Drove great , but mileage was worse than terrible. Went back to my roots after 2 years and traded it for a 280z , 3 pedal. Drove 2 of the Z cars back to back, until time to trade again. Back in the 70’s about all I could wish for was about 75k miles and the car was toast.
Smooth riding Mercury was what I missed when I went to the Datsuns.
Great find, Scotty. I love how we have the “Marquis,” because a gas-guzzling 7.5L mobile living room is so… French? Well, I’m sure in the days of the horse and buggy, a time that most buyers of new ’73 Broughams remembered fondly, a French Marquis may well have chosen a similar softly-suspended display of excess. All that said… I love it! I’d probably hold out for the four-door ’70-’71 four-door Continental, but this is a lot of car (in more ways than one) for $9,000.
Sadly, no de Sade version exists.
I drove a ’76 Grand Marquis for years, that was my Grandfather’s car. Loved the car. I always describe driving these cars, as “Piloting a waterbed”… Great for highway cruising, though.
Owned a 73 two door with the 429 4 barrel in 1974/1975. Great highway car, offered a totally isolated environment. Trunk was large enough to swallow my Honda CT70. Called it the “Green Machine”, was a very attractive car. The 2 door looked so much better than the 4 door version. Dare I say sportier? Traded it in on a new 1976 black Camaro with a 350/4. Camaro had rusted rear fenders in just 3 years.
I remember TV commercials for these where a jeweler cut a diamond in the backseat to demonstrate the smooth ride. And the. SNL did a spoof of it with a mohel performing a circumcision! 🤣
LMAO!! Good one, and yes, I remember both… THE BEST. (I can’t find it on youtube, but I think the Saturday Night Live ad used a 4-door cougar, if I’m not mistaken)
check out this beauty!!
1972 Mercury Marquis Brougham Commercial – Cartier Jeweler Diamond Cutter
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8It6KFhlsBo
A Cartier diamond no less! Right you are on the 4-door Cougar – hope you can see it here – you might have to join Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/312218800
I like it and wouldn’t mind having it but I think it’s $6,000 overpriced
Vice Grip Garage! He just bought one like this but not nearly in as good condition! Drove it 500 miles smoking
all the way home.
@glen. Actually he bought one that was several years older.
I purchased one from a New Car dealer I worked at around 1980. It was the nicest riding car I have ever owned, although we got pretty friendly with most of the gas stations around! It was a nice ride for sure and I miss the quality and craftsmanship in today’s cars!
I owned a 1974 version for a short while. Being the Diva of huge cars, this was right up my alley. Mine was dark brown with beige interior and black top. Most car makers shrunk their cars after the 1976 model year, but FoMoCo kept theirs big until 1980.
I unfortunately sold it to buy a new 1984 Camaro Berlinetta. Had that until it was stolen 18 months later. Then back to the land yachts.
Dad had one of these as a demonstrator for a few months. That car was smooooooth! Dark blue and simply vast – my sisters and I (ranging in age from 13 to 8) could sit in the back seat and never have the dreaded “Stop touching me!” closeness that we were later to experience when he switched over to a Granada. LOL.
You should have got the ‘Stretch Granada’….aka….Lincoln Versailles. lol
If you could remove the overt bumpers this car would look similar to a Lincoln of the late 1960’s.
Had forgotten how horrid those bumpers were.