The belief that ultra-wealthy people are the only ones eligible to afford luxury cars is one of the many stereotypes we find objectionable. The same folks who would gladly run you off the road and then use their attorney spouse’s connections to get off on the charges, complaining because their Starbucks coffee contains oat milk instead of almond milk. However, driving a fancy vehicle does not need you to be a living cliche. All you really need is a little timing and the willingness to occasionally give something up.
To start with, if you want to save money, you’ll have to make do with an older premium vehicle. However, older luxury barges are a better deal than you may imagine. If you don’t believe us, just take a peek at this 1989 Mercury Grand Marquis LS. The first-generation Grand Marquis, produced from 1979 to 1991, is the epitome of the American luxury barge; it is less expensive and less sophisticated than a Mercedes C-Class or BMW 5 Series, yet it is still a fraction of the price. If you didn’t feel like paying an arm and a leg for the comparable German sedan, a smooth, comfortable ride was always available for a reasonable price because it was built on the same platform as the Ford LTD Crown Victoria and Lincoln Continental of the time.
Some may consider late 1980s Fords, Lincolns, and Mercurys, with their dependable Ford Windsor V8 engine and positively antiquated Ford AOD four-speed gearbox, to be dinosaurs in their day. On the other hand, maintaining and repairing an antique boat such as this one should not be too difficult. The same cannot be said for a C-Class that was produced around the same period. And a comparable vintage Bimmer? Let’s not even discuss it there.
Mercury vehicles from the late 80s and early 90s offer leather seats, a good radio, a smooth ride, and little more for the type of person who wants nothing else. No unimportant athletic qualifications, and most definitely no unnecessary computer or difficult-to-reach sensors that need disassembling the engine compartment in order to service. All it takes to give it that classic American luxury car look that is famous throughout the globe are pushrods, acres and acres of dead cows, and a cloth roof covering a la Landau. You probably won’t get the same life out of this Grand Marquis as you will with Panther platform variations manufactured only a few years later, given that it just has 84,725 miles on it.
Even yet, this vehicle will continue to cruise the highways long after vintage Mercedes, Audis, and BMWs are mechanically totaled, crushed, or kept in museums, where they will never be driven again for fear of their disintegrating on their own. It certainly beats a 15-year-old Nissan with a malfunctioning CVT, even at $5,000 out the door.