Full-sized car fanatics unite: this beauty is a one-owner 1985 Mercury Grand Marquis LS. This one is listed on eBay with a current bid price of $1,900 and a Buy It Now price of $3,000. Why any of the 7 or so bidders would let someone else get it for that $1,100 price difference is beyond me, they must not be seriously in love with this car. I assume that this great-looking car is able to be driven home if the winning bidder flies to Bothell, Washington to pick it up. I can’t help but think of an early-1970s Mercury Marquis commercial where a gentleman is cutting a diamond in the back seat because the car is so smooth. I still say, “Perrrrfect” every now and then, even after all of these decades.
Perfect is the only word that I can think of to describe how this car looks. I don’t see a flaw in this one, inside or out; even the price! NADA lists the 1985 Grand Marquis LS four-door sedan as being valued between $2,405 and $3,405, their range of average to high value. This car’s buy it now price is pretty much right in the middle of those two numbers. This is a car with 81,414 miles on it and it looks like it has even fewer miles than that to me.
In 1985, Ford moved the manufacturing for the Grand Marquis to Canada to make room for the new Aerostar van. Boy, that name is a blast from the past, eh? Where were you in 1985? If you were around and at driving age, did you like these full-sized American cars or were you into smaller imports?
As with the exterior, the interior looks like it just rolled off of the Canadian factory floor, eh. (kidding!) I’m a sucker for a red interior and this one is about as red as it gets. There isn’t much side-bolster on those seats but that grippy velour material will most likely hold your Sans-a-Belt-clad rear end onto that seat with aplomb. In a feat of genius, and about-dang-time’ness, Ford finally moved the horn back to where it dang-well belongs, in the middle of the steering wheel! As most of you remember, it was stuck onto the end of the left-side stalk for a few years and it was about as awkward as it got. This car has an in-dash cassette tape player as in 1985 there was no longer an optional 8-track player available and the CB Radio option was also 10-7, good buddy.
This clean-looking engine is Ford’s 302 V8 with 140 hp and 250 ft-lb of torque. For a 3,900-pound car that’s not a lot of get up and go, but this car is meant for magic-carpeting down the highway with nary a sensation or sound coming from anywhere but your Hits of 1985 cassette tape blaring in the stereo. Have any of you owned a Grand Marquis of this vintage? What do you think of this one, it sure would make a perrrrfect road trip car!
Hideous – but I’d be the first to stump up 3 large
In 1985 I worked in the black car ‘limousine’ industry in NYC and these were utilized by the many thousands. I had one in this very color combination. Within 3 years it had 100,000 miles on it . It had regular maintenance but up until the 100,000 mile mark it didn’t have a full tune up and it didn’t need one . It ran like new . Never any issues with that car at all. This car brings back many memories of that era.
My dad had one of these in Dark brown with tan interior, I borrowed it to take my family on a trip to Florida. Man was that a nice ride, room for the 2 boys in the back seat without them whining who’s hogging all the space, decent gas mileage. When we returned I asked to buy it but he wouldn’t part with it.
I bought one of these from a friend, in 1995 with 150K on it, he drove it back and forth to St Louis in a car pool group, when I bought it, it showed just over 150K it had a couple of engine issues, so within a few months I dropped in a 302 long block. I had that car for another 200K miles and hated to get rid of it, but it did have over 350K miles on it but the body was still in good shape.
It was a good riding car and got good gas mileage. My was Metallic Silver, miss that car
I had an 84 Mercury Grand Marquis that I picked up from the original owner with 153,000. Just 2 years ago I finally retired it with 282,000 miles, and it was still running as strong as an 82,000 mile car – too bad the body couldn’t hold up here in PA.
LOL Gary! Glad you posted the photo, in Pa. I was thinking it was the salt to deal with!
Did you atleast lock the hubs in 4WH?
The right hand tailiight is badly out of alignment. May have had a shunt in the rear and not repaired right.
I think that’s just 1985 quality at it’s finest
My wife has her father’s 1986 Crown Victoria 2 door . All original with 44k miles. Runs like a top. Floats down the road like a small boat
Beautiful car, but the AutoCheck Report shows the mileage all over the place. Everywhere from 55,000 to 117,000. It also shows two owners, but what the heck it’s a clean old car. Prolly doesn’t matter anyway for $3,000.
good buy at that price, show him $2500 cash and its yours
I live in Bothell. Nobody wants cars like this over here. Houses sell here for more
than $600k. If this seller is lucky it will sell locally for $1500 or at all ,that’s why it’s on ebay. These are and were great cars, but locally there is no market for them.
My folks have a silver 85 with a black top. Beautiful riding car and got good gas mileage. Only problem was every so often, not sure if it was a ballast resistor or something else, go to start it and nothing happened. Dad would have it towed to the shop, whatever was out was replaced and back on the road. After the 4 or 5th time, he traded it in. Ironically he had bought it new and the dealer never found the cause. I know he hated getting rid of it but being stranded was a worse consequence.
My dad used to buy these all the time for $500. Just as clean as this one. He would drive them for awhile to see if any problems popped up and then resell them to the local cab driver who operated a fleet of 4 Grand Marquis.
I’ve had a lot of cars in my lifetime but unfortunately the only Mercury I ever owned was an 88 Cougar XR7 back in the late 90’s. My father owned a 99 Mercury Sable. but I’ve known a few people who have owned the Grand Marquis and never any complaints from any of them. Back in the days you can never go wrong owning the little cousin to the Town Car. RIP Mercury
Here is my 1991. Got it off eBay last summer and had a epic roadtrip from California back up to Seattle. Magic carpet is right. I learned to drive in 1985 in a Grand Marquis. My high school had that and a HUGE Buick station wagon.
Nice car. However it makes you question the validity of carfax reports. Mileages seem to be inconsistent.
Car fax is useless for the most part. I’m the 3rd owner on a truck I drove off the lot new. Mileage gets messed up in states with emissions testing usually as Jose’ doesn’t care about reading ALL the numbers. I never trust it 100%
Please correct me if I’m wrong, but is this the year(s) that had the variable venturi carb? I’ve heard those could be problematic and expensive to repair. Car looks great, but I’d hold out for a fuel injected 5.0, or maybe even a Town Car……
“I can’t help but think of an early-1970s Mercury Marquis commercial where a gentleman is cutting a diamond in the back seat because the car is so smooth. I still say, “Perrrrfect” every now and then, even after all of these decades.” —- I couldn’t help but think of the SNL parody where the Rabbi performs a circumcision in the back seat! “PERFECT!” LOL!
Wonderful riding automobiles ! Deplorable mid-80’s styling, but that can be overlooked by the cruising attributes. My Dad traded his for a ’99 Town Car, and he thought that the Merc rode smoother. That under hood shot makes me shudder, tho. What a mess of vacuum hoses !
Lovely car is a shame i aint no where otherwise i would have bought it my 84 crown vic was similar so was my 88 Lincoln town car beautuful toys indeed!
classic downsized ford land barge.
One of the best car chases ever, same car…
https://youtu.be/VOK9QW21VPo
Yes Thad, same car….And what a car chase !!!!
Yup just like my 84 crown vic i am in florida no where this car just a beautiful full of power!
I had one just like this except in white! I was the third owner and I never had any issues with it for the 8 years I owned it. It had an unbelievable Limo-type ride to it, and was wonderful to drive from Minneapolis,MN to Dayton,OH while moving back in 2002. I ended up selling it in 2006 to get rid of an annoying credit card off my back much to my regret. It had 250K on the odometer and still ran like brand new. Anyhoot,back to my regret- two months after it was sold, the person who bought it from me drove too fast and hit some black ice, nosediving it into a dried-up creek bed. Broke my heart when I heard about it. What a waste….
This is my 1979 Ford LTD with 50k original mile. Runs good & everything works. It has a 351 Windsor.