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Motor Trend got rather excited about the MC4 when it debuted in
1997: “The MC4 is for Mercury what the Viper Roadster was for
Dodge nine years ago.” Yes, it was far more interesting to look at
than the blob-like Mystique or the softly contoured Mountaineer …
but no one knew that, 13 years later, Mercury would stop producing
vehicles, its sales cannibalized by parent company Ford.
In
1997, however, Mercury’s star shone far brighter. The MC4 wore the
edgy, minimalist look characteristic of Ford’s New Edge design
language, initiated by the GT90 concept in 1990 and most familiar
to folks on the 1999 Mustang.
A trapezoidal grille and
emphasized wheel arches are common to both that Mustang and the
MC4, which actually started life as a V-8–powered ’96 Thunderbird.
Unlike the T-Bird, the Mercury concept boasts four doors and a
rear cargo area accessed by a pair of gullwing doors. It had
style, space, and, of course, a healthy dose of tech that hadn’t
quite been readied for production: video cameras instead of side-
or rearview mirrors, nickel-chrome plate bedazzling the interior,
and heated and cooled cupholders.
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