2003 Mercury Marauder

Sedan

4.6L 281Cu. In. V8 GAS DOHC Naturally Aspirated

Automatic

2MEHM75v33x632435

Clear

Gasoline

I am selling my 2003 Mercury Marauder with 83,000 miles. Black exterior and interior. Location is Glenville / Schenectady, New York (in the Albany, NY capital district). This car has an interior in excellent condition with no known serious flaws (except overhead compass/computer comes on only intermittently) and the exterior is very good for its age. No dents or damage. There are minor dings, a couple of tiny rust spots (e.g., on roof above front windshield), and some light scratches on the rear bumper and side door which I believe would buff out but I am not certain of that. Also comes with four police-style black steel wheels with Nokian "Hakkepeliitta 7" studded snow tires in very good condition (one winter season of use last year). One highpoint of this car is the $3000 I've invested in the audio system. It includes the following: a Pioneer DEH-80PRS audiophile stereo CD deck with twin Burr Brown digital-to-analog converters (DAC) and iPod input in center console; 1000W of amplification from two JL Audio amps (one of which is dedicated to the subwoofer); JL Audio C2650 seperates in the front (with tweeters custom mounted in A-pillars); JL Audio C2570x speakers in rear; JL Audio 13W3v3 subwoofer in a custom built sealed enclosure in trunk; Merta steering wheel controls adapter; and sound deadening in trunk. Although this car is my daily driver and is reliable, it has several issues which should be addressed so, in the interest of full disclosure, I will describe those below. In preparation for the sale, I went to get two things addressed: 1) an occasional intermittent stiffness in the steering; and 2) a suspension squeak (only in warm weather) over bumps, which I found annoying and made me feel at times that I was in a taxi cab. The dealer diagnosed/recommended the following: 1) the steering rack is leaking so the dealer suggested replacing the powersteering rack ($858) and steering shaft ($282); and 2) the upper right control arm is loose so the dealer suggested replacing the upper right control arm ($289). I have no idea how urgent this work is. If I was to keep the car my plan was to address both items this year and get an alignment. During the above dealer visit, it was noted that the car should have new brakes/rotors and new tires soon. The winter tires I am including would take you through winter but in Spring I'm assuming you'd want to get new summer or all-weather tires (this would be my plan if keeping the car long term). Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval W-Speed rated Ultra High Performance All-Seasons would be $550 on tire rack. Brakes might need to be done in order to pass inspection. Because of the above described recommended work I have set the price below Kelly Blue Book value. This is in spite of the value of the stereo system. There are no issues with the title, it is a clear title (I have title), the car has never been wrecked or flooded or anything. It has a passed inspection sticker currently and has never failed inspection. The car history as far as I am aware is very positive. I did Carfax when I bought it and it was a two owner car (I am third owner). Prior owner was an elderly couple of snowbirds who trailered it to Florida. When I got it, it had chrome fender flares! (Lazare had perhaps installed those to make this car attractive to a little old lady looking for a Marquis or Town Car.) I don't know anything about the first owner. I am the third owner and the car has always been garaged, never raced or mistreated by me. I'm a middle aged guy with an office job as a planner/architect, not a boy racer or gangster (in spite of what you might think from the stereo - but I listen to classical and jazz!). I've floored it maybe five times. I have all my maintenance records. I change oil regularly with synthetic oil and do preventative maintenance such as major fluid changes, all at Metro Ford of Schenectady which services many of the police cruisers in the region. I buy many used cars and usually I ask why someone is selling so I will share with you why I am selling this car. I've taken a new job which will require me to drive approximately 20,000 miles per year on highways throughout New York State. This car takes only high octane gas and gets 21 mpg. It so happened that my mom was upgrading to a new Honda Fit and offered me her old one free of charge. I did an analysis that, over 3 years and 60,000 miles of driving, switching from the Marauder to the Fit would save me several thousand dollars so I went for it. I love the Mercury and don't like tiny Honda Fits so this was just an economic decision and a sacrifice I am doing to try to be more financially responsible given how much travel I'll be doing.