Ford Motor announced this week that it will cease making Mercury brand vehicles later this year. While the demise of Mercury was much speculated, the end of yet another storied American car brand will close its doors at the end in the fourth quarter. Mercury had slowly decreased in models, with this year the production line consisting of just four, the Milan, the Mountaineer, the Grand Marquis, and the Mariner.

Ford said Mercury accounts for less than one percentage point of the company’s 16% market share. Ford noted that overall sales rose 23%, but those of Mercury vehicles, fell nearly 11%. The philosophy behind this move, Ford claims, is that they can better allocate resources to its core Ford and upscale Lincoln brands. Furthermore,  Ford said it plans to introduce seven new or refreshed Lincoln models over the next four years to better compete against its rivals.

There are no stand-alone Mercury dealerships in North America, Ford said, adding that it is working with dealers to maintain “properly located” Lincoln-only and Ford-Lincoln dealers. Mercury, introduced in 1939, was conceived as a premium offering to Ford and was once an important source of incremental sales, Ford said. However, the better-known Ford brand often left Mercury in the shadows, despite marketing efforts to distinguish the brands. Today, the profile of consumers who buy Mercurys is largely indistinguishable from those that purchase Fords, the automaker said. Further, the majority of Mercury sales are to fleet buyers and others purchasing through discount programs.

Sales of Mercury peaked in 1978 at more than 580,000 vehicles but have declined ever since, to about 92,000 last year. It was among the last of a group of not-quite-luxury brands among U.S. automakers that included General Motors’ Buick, Oldsmobile and Pontiac lines. Buick is still around, but GM shut down Oldsmobile in 2004 and Pontiac was shuttered earlier this year.

2010 Lincoln and Mercury Models Featuring the new SYNC

The Sync entertainment and communication system, which is powered by Microsoft, is a bold way to listen and navigate music.  It was first included on many 2008 models, including low end vehicles.  SYNC offers many innovative features, ease of use and value and is one of the most forward-thinking systems available.  Currently the SYNC system is available on the following 2010 Lincoln models: MKS, MKT, MKX, MKZ, and Navigator.  The Mercury models that feature SYNC are the 2009 Mariner and Sable, and the 2010 Milan and Mountaineer. SYNC started out as a means of music and hands free phone calls.  It expanded to a moniter of your vehicle’s health and a connection to 911.  The latest iteration of this technology is SYNC with Traffic, Directions, and Information.  This new version of SYNC offers personalized traffic reports with text message traffic alerts, turn by turn driving directions, and news, sports, weather, and business information.

With SYNC, in place of a mouse, drivers use voice commands and buttons on the steering wheel to control a device such as a portable media player (PMP), mobile phone or PDA.  Sync is the first technology to allow a driver to control nearly any PMP using voice commands. And it’s the first to allow both receiving and replying to text messages without requiring drivers to take their hands off the wheel—or eyes off the road.   Sync gets its upper hand with its superior voice-activation technology, which is not only convenient for entertainments sake, but also critical for on-the-road communication.  Sync uses the Bluetooth wireless communications standard to connect to mobile phones. Bluetooth allows hands-free calling in a car, and has become a common feature on many vehicles. But the Sync system takes in-car communication a step further by receiving and reading aloud text messages, including emoticons.