Deriving its name from a title of French nobility, the Marquis was introduced as the divisional counterpart of the Ford LTD; four generations of the two model lines were paired through rebranding.

While all full-size Mercury two-doors were hardtops, the Marquis was fitted with a standard vinyl roof giving it a wider C-pillar.

[4][6] For 1968, the 410 was replaced by a 390 cubic-inch Marauder Super 390 V8, producing 315 hp; shared with the Park Lane and Brougham, the engine was optional for lower-trim full-size Mercurys.

Serving as the successor to the four-door Brougham and two-door Park Lane, the second-generation Marquis was expanded to a full range of body styles, slotted above the Monterey.

Designed as a competitor for the Oldsmobile Toronado and Buick Riviera, the Marauder was a fastback coupe combining the front bodywork of the Marquis with the roofline of the Ford XL/Ford Galaxie 500 SportsRoof.

Initially sharing its hidden headlamps with the LTD, the usage of the design largely became exclusive to Lincoln-Mercury flagships after 1970, including the Marquis, Lincoln Continental, and Mark-series (the LTD Landau became the only Ford to use the configuration).

[21] For 1971, the Marquis underwent a revision of the exterior and interior; the convertible body style was dropped (along with the Marauder fastback).

Distinguished by the elimination of vent windows and framed door glass (for sedans and station wagons), Mercury saw the introduction of the "pillared hardtop", a sedan combining a thin B-pillar and frameless door glass (to mimic the appearance of a pillarless design).

[19][16] For the first time, the model line introduced a power sunroof option (requiring the selection of a vinyl roof).

Largely coinciding with the addition of 5-mph bumpers for the front and rear fascias, the roofline of the Marquis saw a complete redesign.

[19] Though distinguished further from the Lincoln Continental, the four-door Marquis shared its roofline with the Ford LTD; in contrast to the LTD, the two-door remained a hardtop with retractable side windows (enlarged for better visibility).

For 1974, the grille underwent a redesign (nearly matching that of the Lincoln Continental), shifting to a vertically-oriented layout and eliminating the egg-crate trim of the headlamp covers.

For 1975, the front fascia saw several revisions, with a larger radiator-style grille (with the "Mercury" block lettering replaced by a script above the left headlamp); in contrast to the Ford LTD Landau and the Lincoln Continental, the headlamp doors were revised with chrome border trim and a crest emblem.

While Ford and Lincoln added B-pillars (and opera windows) to their two-door sedans, Mercury retained its hardtop roofline.

For the 1979 model year, Mercury introduced the third-generation Marquis, marking the first ground-up redesign of the full-size range since 1969.

Trading places with the Cougar as the longest Mercury vehicle, the Marquis shed 17 inches in length and over 1,000 pounds in curb weight (in comparison to its 1978 predecessor).

While downsizing of the Marquis resulted in an exterior footprint closer in size to the intermediate Cougar (prior to its downsizing for 1980), the model line saw an increase in overall interior space (through a taller roofline and redesigned seats); a significant increase in glass area contributed to improved outward visibility.

[30] For 1983, Mercury rebranded its entire full-size line under the Grand Marquis nameplate; under minor revisions, the design was produced through the 1991 model year.

An all-new design developed for the downsizing of full-size product ranges for all three Ford Motor Company divisions, the architecture is an evolution of the previous-generation chassis (introduced in 1969).

While the double-wishbone independent front suspension was largely unchanged, the live rear axle was changed from a 3-link to a 4-link layout (all four wheels were supported by coil springs).

For 1980, the Marquis received the 4-speed AOD overdrive automatic transmission as standard equipment with the 4.2 L V8 and was offered as an option with the 5.0 L and 5.8 L engines.

Though sharing the same body as its Ford counterpart, the Marquis was externally distinguished by several styling elements carried over from the previous generation.

For 1983, the fourth-generation Marquis was introduced as Mercury shifted the nameplate to the midsize segment to replace the slow-selling Cougar sedan and station wagon.

Initially developed for compact sedans, the architecture was expanded for a wide range of Ford and Lincoln-Mercury vehicles; as a multiple-wheelbase design, the Fox platform was introduced for the mid-size segment for 1980.

In line with other Fox-platform vehicles, the Marquis uses a front suspension of MacPherson struts with a four-link live rear axle (using coil springs).

(Engine family) (Pinto LL23) 88 hp (66 kW) (1984-1985) Ford 3-speed C3 automatic (Falcon Six) (Essex V6) Fuel injection (Throttle-body) 120 hp (89 kW) (TBI) 205 lb⋅ft (278 N⋅m) (TBI) Ford 3-speed C5 automatic (1984-1986) (Windsor) The fourth-generation Marquis was produced as a four-door sedan and as a five-door station wagon (the two-door was discontinued, with the Cougar becoming the sole Mercury mid-size coupe.

Sharing its entire bodyshell with its Ford LTD, the Marquis was distinguished by its own grille, taillamps, and parking lamp lenses.

To save development costs, the Marquis retained the dashboard design of the Cougar XR-7 coupe (mixing wood and silver trim), adopting its electronic instrument panel option.

Powered by a 165 hp 5.0-liter V8 from the Mustang, the LTS and LX adopted suspension and brake components from the police-package version of the LTD. After the 1985 model year, the trim was discontinued; only 134 were produced (making it one of the rarest vehicles ever sold by Mercury).

After an extensive redesign (though retaining the Panther chassis) for 1992, the Grand Marquis remained in production for 19 model years, becoming the final vehicle produced for the brand in January 2011.