CarBrandLogos archive · Mercury · 2006

MercuryMercury Milan

Mercury's last new nameplate: a Fusion with better manners and much less time.

Photo: IFCAR · Public domain

The story

A defining chapter in Mercury history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the Mercury Milan, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

Origins

Named after the Italian city, built in Hermosillo, and engineered in Japan as much as in Michigan, the Milan was Mercury's version of the Ford Fusion and arrived in 2006 when the division had nearly run out of things to sell. The underpinnings came from Mazda6 architecture, which is why a comfortable American mid-size sedan turned out to steer rather better than it needed to.

2006 Mercury Milan interior · No machine-readable author provided. Sfoskett~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0

Design and engineering

Darrell Behmer's team gave it a squarer grille and a cleaner flank than the Fusion, and the options list stretched to all-wheel drive, a V6 and later a hybrid. It was a genuinely competitive car in a class full of them.

Washauto mercury milan · Aude · CC BY-SA 2.5

In production

It was also the end of the line. Production ran from August 2005 to December 2010, stopping as Ford wound the division down, and the final cars were sold as 2011 models. No Mercury was ever launched after it.

2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid · IFCAR · Public domain

At a glance

The facts that define it.

Engine

Petrol engine

Designer

Darrell Behmer

Body

4-door sedan

Technical specification

The Mercury Milan, in detail.

Production: August 1, 2005–December 17, 2010
Class: Mid-size
Body style: 4-door sedan
Layout: FF layout; All-wheel drive
Engine: Petrol engine; Gasoline: ; 2.3 L Mazda L engine#2.3L (L3-VE, L3-N5, L3-DE); Duratec 23 Straight-four engine; I4 ; 2.5 L Mazda L engine#2.5 L (L5-VE); Duratec 25 I4 ; 3.0 L Ford Duratec V6 engine#VVT; Durat
Transmission: 5-speed Mazda G5M manual; 6-speed Mazda G6M manual; 5-speed Mazda FNR5 automatic; 6-speed Aisin TF-80 automatic; 6-speed Ford 6F35 automatic; Aisin CVT
Designer: Darrell Behmer, Mercury Chief Designer
Assembly: Mexico: Hermosillo, Sonora (Hermosillo Stamping and Assembly)
Manufacturer: Mercury (Ford Motor Company)