The Mercury Sable is a range of automobiles manufactured and marketed by the Mercury brand of Ford Motor Company. Introduced on December 26, 1985, as the replacement for the Mercury Marquis, the Sable marked the transition of the mid-sized Mercury product range to front-wheel drive.
Over its production span, the Sable was Mercury's rebadged counterpart to the Ford Taurus, below the Grand Marquis in the Mercury range. From the 1986 to 2005 model years, it was produced as a mid-sized, four-door sedan and five-door station wagon. For 2006, the Sable was replaced by the full-sized Montego and mid-sized Milan. It was reintroduced for 2008 as a full-sized car, offered as a four-door sedan.
Due to declining sales, the Sable was discontinued after the 2009 model year, leaving no Mercury counterpart for the sixth-generation Taurus. The final Sable was produced on May 21, 2009; in total, 2,112,374 Sables were produced during its 1985 to 2005 production run.
Background
In early 1980, the Mercury Sable began development alongside the Ford Taurus; the $3.5 billion project was the largest development ever undertaken by Ford at the time. Originally intended to replace its full- and mid-sized, rear-wheel drive product lines (Panther and Fox platforms, respectively), the Taurus/Sable were focused toward the mid-sized segment in 1981, as the company felt stabilization of gasoline prices justified the continuation of its full-sized model lines. Coinciding with the 1986 launch of the Sable, General Motors downsized Buick, Oldsmobile, and Pontiac full-sized sedans to front-wheel drive, only slightly larger than the mid-sized Sable.
For 1983, Mercury underwent a brand revision, with the Cougar reverting to its traditional role as a two-door personal coupe alongside the Ford Thunderbird; while retaining the same chassis underpinnings, the Thunderbird and Cougar underwent a complete exterior redesign, becoming the first Ford cars produced with highly aerodynamic designs, a central objective of the Taurus/Sable design. The 1983 Cougar was well received in the marketplace (outselling the 1983 Thunderbird);
As Ford did not market the Mercury brand in Mexico, Ford of Mexico marketed the model line as the Ford Taurus. In South Korea, the Mercury Sable was marketed by Kia alongside the Kia Potentia (Mazda Luce/929) as they assemble Kia Pride as Ford Festiva in export market.
Chassis specification
The first-generation Sable used the front-wheel drive Ford DN5 platform, sharing its wheelbase with the Ford Taurus. As with its Marquis predecessor, the Sable used unibody construction. The Sable was equipped with a four-wheel independent suspension. The front axle was fitted with MacPherson struts and a stabilizer bar; the rear axle on sedans was a coil-spring 4-link layout (also with MacPherson struts), while the rear suspension on station wagons was a coil-spring double-wishbone design (short/long arm), along with a stabilizer bar. Though two inches longer than the Taurus, the rear wheel openings were cut off at bumper height (though not skirted) to visually add additional length. In what would be associated with the styling identity of Mercury for nearly a decade, the Sable introduced a low-wattage lightbar between its headlamps, later adopted by the Mercury Topaz, Tracer, and Villager (skipping the Cougar and Grand Marquis). The lightbar feature largely emphasized the lack of a conventional grille (while primarily a "bottom-breather" design, the Sable used vestigial air intake slots in the bumper below the lightbar). The Sable and the Taurus followed the configuration pioneered by the 1950s Citroën DS; the Ford Mustang SVO and Ford Sierra also lacked a conventional grille.
During its production, the first-generation Sable underwent few changes. For 1989, the exterior underwent a mid-cycle revision; the amber parking lamp lenses were replaced by clear units and sedans saw revisions to taillamp lenses. For 1990, the Sable underwent a redesign of the dashboard to accommodate the addition of a driver-side airbag; a CD player was added as an option. On the station wagon (shared with both the Sable and Taurus), the front fascia was redesigned, along with the interior.
The interior of the Sable underwent a redesign of the door panels, dashboard, and interior controls. They featured a 2-way liftgate (raise the entire liftgate or just the window), a roof rack with crossbar and tie-downs, an optional rear-facing third seat, a lockable under-floor compartment, and an optional fold-out picnic table. With both rear split seats in the upright position, standard cargo capacity was 45.7 cubic feet. The platform used for the previous two generations underwent an extensive revision, redesignated as the DN101 platform; the wheelbase was extended from 106 to 108.5 inches. As before, the Sable returned as a four-door sedan and five-door station wagon.
While mechanically identical to its Ford Taurus counterpart, the sedans of the two model lines shared less sheetmetal than before, with only the front doors, hood, and front fenders common between the Taurus and Sable (as before, the Sable served as the basis for Ford and Mercury station wagons). In contrast to the oval-influenced roofline of the Ford Taurus, the Sable was styled with a sloped roofline with a rectangular rear window; the model received its own front and rear fascias. optional in the Sable GS, the Duratec engine was an enlarged version of the engine from the Mercury Mystique.
For 1997, the Sable underwent several cost-cutting revisions; several features of the LS became available on the GS as options.
Models
{| class=wikitable
!Model
!Year
!Engine
!Power
!Torque
!Transmission
|-
|rowspan=2|G<br>||rowspan=2|1996–1997||3.0 L SFI Vulcan V6|||||| rowspan="5" |4-speed AX4S automatic<br>4-speed AX4N automatic
|-
|rowspan=2|3.0 L DOHC Duratec 30 V6||rowspan=2||| rowspan="2" |
|-
|LS||1996–1999
|-
|rowspan=2|GS||rowspan=2|1996–1999||3.0 L SFI Vulcan V6||||
|-
|3.0 L DOHC Duratec 30 V6||200 hp (149 kW)||
|}
Fourth generation (2000–2005)<span class="anchor" id="4"></span><span class="anchor" id="2000"></span>
thumb|left|2000–2003 Mercury Sable LS wagon
The Sable received another redesign in 1999 for MY 2000, which minimized some of the oval design elements from the 1996 model, replacing them with more conventional styling. on the sedan; station wagons retained four-wheel disc brakes.
thumb|left|2004–2005 Mercury Sable GS sedan
The 2002 Sable included extra equipment on every trim level, including a CD player and power driver's seat on the GS, and a power moonroof or leather interior on the LS.
Models
{| class=wikitable
!Model
!Year
!Engine
!Power
!Torque
!Transmission
|-
|rowspan=2|GS||rowspan=3|2000–2005||3.0 L SFI Vulcan V6|||||| rowspan="3" |4-speed AX4N automatic
|-
|rowspan=2|3.0 L DOHC Duratec 30 V6||rowspan=2||| rowspan="2" |
|-
|LS
|}
Fifth generation (2008–2009)<span class="anchor" id="5"></span><span class="anchor" id="2008"></span>
The fifth-generation Mercury Sable was launched for the 2008 model year. Developed as a mid-cycle update of the Mercury Montego, the production vehicle revived the more widely-recognized Sable nameplate at the 2007 Chicago Auto Show. While the 2008 revival of the Ford Taurus (renaming the Five Hundred) largely ended retail sale of the Crown Victoria, the Sable remained below the Grand Marquis in the Mercury range.
While approximately 10 inches shorter and 500 pounds lighter than the Grand Marquis, the fifth-generation Sable was the first produced as a full-size car. For the first time, the model line was offered exclusively as a four-door sedan (no Mercury counterpart of the Taurus X wagon was developed). Front-wheel drive remained standard, with all-wheel drive becoming an option for the first time.
In the transition from the Montego to the Sable, a number of changes were made to the body and chassis. Alongside the addition of the 263 hp 3.5L V6 and 6-speed 6F automatic, the exterior underwent several revisions, including a revised front bumper and grille, redesigned headlamps; the LED taillamps were retained, but given white lenses. The fifth-generation Sable adopted the trim lines of the Montego and Milan, with an unnamed standard trim level and a top Premier trim.
Water pump issues
Water pumps on the 2008 and 2009 Mercury Sable equipped with the 3.5 L Ford Cyclone V6 have a tendency to fail and potentially ruin the engine when they do. The water pumps on these engines are internally mounted and driven by the timing chain. As a result, when they fail, antifreeze is dumped directly into the crankcase; mixing with engine oil and potentially damaging the head gaskets and connecting rod bearings. These water pump failures could occur without warning, and repair could require engine disassembly or removal to access the water pump, or in some cases, engine replacement. A class action lawsuit was filed against Ford as a result of this issue.
Models
{| class=wikitable
!Model
!Year
!Engine
!Power
!Torque
!Transmission
|-
|Base<br>Premier||rowspan=3|2008–2009||rowspan=3|3.5 L Cyclone V6||rowspan=3||| rowspan="3" ||| rowspan="3" |6-speed 6F automatic
|}
Special editions
A few rare special editions of the Sable were made, all consisting of first generation models.
During MY 1987, Mercury introduced a special edition of the Sable called the "LS Monochrome Edition", which as an option would color the bumpers, side trim, and wheels white. It was only offered during MY 1987; the production quantity is not known and it is also unknown how many still exist.
A special one-of-a-kind Sable convertible was created in 1987 for the 1988 Detroit SAE auto show. It was built from a sedan chassis and featured a completely custom two-door body with a custom folding top. However, it was shelved; the only one sat in a warehouse for years until it was given a VIN, titled, and driven. It was sold on eBay in 2006.
References
Further reading
External links
- Mercury Sable official site
- FAQ Farm's Mercury Sable FAQ: wiki question and answer forum
- Taurus Car Club of America
- TCCA: Taurus/Sable Encyclopedia