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2001 Detroit Show: Trucks and Stuff
The North American Truck of the Year is typical of today's truck - better at handling than hauling... Read More
2001 Detroit Show: Trucks and Stuff
The North American Truck of the Year is typical of today's truck - better at handling than hauling... Read More
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What does $10 buy today? Not much, most would agree. But at Mercury showrooms this fall, it buys a whole lot. You see, the major changes to the Villager for 1999 - an all-new exterior, a larger, more powerful engine, more interior room and a standard driver's side sliding door - come at a base price of $22,995, just $10 more than last year's model. Of course, you need to spend a bit more to get one fully equipped. Our test model (a base Villager) had a price tag of $25, 075, and came equipped with the Comfort Group (auxiliary AC, rear audio controls, power drivers seat, privacy glass, air filter) and the Convenience Group (lights, flip-open liftgate window, remote entry) and ABS.
Villager was built by PLUs, or people like us - albeit with engineering degrees - who understand that minivans are intrinsically a bit, well, ho-hum. Mercury knows that the minivan market is essentially flat because most people buy them to carry groceries and ferry kids, not because they're particularly exciting rides. But Mercury’s design team hopes that the new Villager, with its sharp looks, compact size, and good road manners, may just attract attention from a typically un-minivan crowd including young rofessionals with one child and sophisticated empty-nesters. Recently relocated to trendy California, Ford’s Mercury division sought to turn their updated minivan into more of a "lifestyle vehicle" which will appeal to a wider market, still in need of a comfortable people-mover.
The Villager shares nearly everything but badging with its Nissan sibling, the Quest, which has received the same 1999 makeover. Although its 195 in. wheelbase is unchanged, Villager has grown 4.6 inches in length and 1.2 inches in width, resulting in an extra 9.6 cubic feet of usable space.
New nomenclature
The new Villager has three distinctive styles; the base Villager, the Villager Sport (with a more athletic look) and the upscale Villager Estate. (Gone are last year's GS, LS, and Nautica designations.) Each has model has a slightly different personality, with unique content, color and trim treatment.
