1973 Mercury Marquis

55k miles.

The rarely seen Mercury Marquis wagon model with hidden headlights but not a Colony Park woody. Looks to be well optioned too.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mercury-Oth...1b5ccd707&item=350942451463&pt=US_Cars_Trucks

 

This looks like a fantastic buy. It looks to have the equipment you would expect of a high-end wagon. Being a Marquis, not Colony Park, makes this even rarer.

 

It's interesting that the rear wind deflector and top of the tailgate seem to have the wood appliqué. I'm curious if a new buyer could even order these items without the wood.

 

This looks very similar to the Mercury that member Hullinger owned, except his was a '71 IIRC.........

 

His white beast came to mind also, was a nice one.....to bad the shipper ripped his roof rack air deflector off


but none the less, this does look nice..... even with selective pics but it does have.... Quote from listing,,,, Has the BIG MOTOR........

So what does that tell you? Seller is clue less?? Does seller even know what motor is in the car?....Oh, yea he does, it's got the BIG MOTOR

 

The strip on the bright trim at the top of the tailgate is painted black. All the full size wagons in 73 had woodgrain on the air deflectors, as well as woodgrain stips on the siderails of the luggage rack. Some of the mid-size wagons came with a "bright" air deflector though.

No bids on this yet.....unbelievable!

 

NOTE: Reserve is not met. I wouldn't start calling this a bargain just yet...

 

hey, hey, hey

I'd buy it. Not a problem. No woodie is okay. Huge expanses of easily dirtied white paint is okay. What ever engine it comes with till be just fine. Hubba hubba.

 

Minimum bid is $7200 which is pricey for what it is. Just sayin'.

Especially when this beautiful Colony Park can be had for $ 5300.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mercury-Oth...0dbd32522&item=141127001378&pt=US_Cars_Trucks

 

73 Marquis

JW,
I'm on -board with you on that! And only 7 pictures when Ebay lets you
post 24! C'mon! Big motor shmotor! The seller probably paid $2,000
and wants to make 400 Percent. Geez!!!! Nice car tho!

 

When I saw this listing it reminded me of my old CP too, especially since my old wagon had the wood removed. Anyway, I'm not certain these command the prices of say a GM clamshell so the $7,200 might be optimistic. We'll see if the blue one that JWDtenn pointed out sells and at what price.

As for my old CP, I remember the headlight doors would stay closed for about a week in the summer months before popping open. In the winter it was closer to 3 or 4 days before the vacuum would seep out. This one has the headlight doors open already so this would be a good question to the seller. Also, these wagons are fantastic to drive and are just effortless with light steering, comfortable seats, adequate brakes and rear gearing that's meant for the highway. Plus, the mechanical bits are about as expensive as dirt so replacing things like a power steering pump, brake calipers, wheel cylinders and such are easy peasy and cheap.

Chris

 

It seems to me, then, that the question is whether the rarity of the "plain" Marquis wagon will compensate for its not being the top-of-the-line Colony Park. It appears to me that most collectors prefer that top-of-the-line prestige. Not that the Marquis gives up very much to the CP (as I recall the two are very nearly identical except for the woodgrain). This also assumes that the car is in as good a condition as suggested by the (few) photos.

In any case, I think $7200 is a bit high, even for a 55K mile car. That mileage is fairly low, but not exceptionally so (it's not 5k, after all). I don't think that should add too great a premium to the price.

Note that the seller is a dealer, who has a '53 Eldo up for sale in another auction with an opening bid of $245,000. Looks like he's used to asking top dollar.

Anyone else think that maybe the $6k range is more appropriate?

I have to admit, though, that if my CP was a '73 instead of a '76, I'd be tempted to go check this one out.

 

I don't necessarily believe bids on eBay, since it is so easy to shill bid. An eBay listing seems to close at a certain price, and then the car appears a week or two later for sale again. Dealers are naturally suspect. Sellers who engage in this practice must hope that there are "real" bidders who get caught up in the hype, and then actually bid against imaginary bidders.

I'm not saying for certain that this is the case here, but it is a possibility.

 

Oh, by the way, I love this guys garage. It looks like an old skating rink with the arched roof and wood flooring.

 

That can't be the case here. The $7200 is the opening bid, and no one's bid yet. Also, there's a reserve, and it's higher than $7200 (the last I checked, no had bid on his $245,000 Caddy, either).

Frankly, I'm re-thinking my earlier $6K suggestion. That might be more of pre-recession price. Any thoughts, anyone?