1965 Mercury Colony Park

The Mercury Colony Park full-size station wagons were produced between 1957 and 1991, marketed as full-size wagons with/without premium trim, and served as a counterpart of the Ford Country Squire until their discontinuation.

The 1965 model year is considered the four-generation of styling for the Mercury Colony Park, with a one-inch shorter wheelbase while retaining the previous body-on-frame chassis construction. The prior leaf-sprung rear suspension was replaced by a coil-spring live rear axle setup, and the roofline remained similar to the Ford Country Squire. The slab-sided design language of the Mercury sedans, heavily influenced by the exterior of the Lincoln Continental, was adopted by the station wagon.

Mercury station wagons were offered on the Comet 202 and 404 Series resting on a 109.5-inch wheelbase and measuring 191.8-inches in length. The Villanger station wagon had imitation wood paneling and had a power tailgate window. The standard Comet 202 station wagon had a base price of $2,440, the Comet 404 at $2,525, and the Comet 404 Villager station wagon at $2,700. There were 4,814 examples of the Comet 202 wagon, 5,226 of the Comet 404 wagon, and 1,592 of the Villager wagon.

Station Wagons on the Park Lane line rested on a 119-inch wheelbase and measured 214.5-inches in length. The Community wagon had a base price of $3,170 and the Colony Park at $3,370. The Colony Park, distinguished by simulated wood paneling, was the most popular with 15,294 examples built compared to 8,081 of the Community wagon. When so equipped, the third seat option faced the rear.

Powering the Park Lane was a 390 cubic-inch V8 with overhead valves, a Ford four-barrel carburetor, five main bearings, and delivering 300horsepower at 4,600 RPM. Two additional FE V8s were added to the list of options for 1966, including a 330 horsepower 410 CID 'Marauder' V8 and a 345 horsepower 'Super Marauder' V8. The 410 was dropped for 1968, replaced by a 390 CID V8 with 315 horsepower.

Sales of the full-size station wagons declined with the growing popularity of the minivan and four-door SUV vehicles of the late 1980s. When the Colony Park was dropped for the 1992 model year (with production ending in December of 1990), it had no direct replacement.

by Dan Vaughan

The top-of-the-line full-size station wagon, the Mercury Colony Park was offered by Mercury between 1957 and 1991. Sharing the same woodgrain paneling on the bodyside and tailgate as the Ford Country Squire and the Edsel Bermuda wagons, the Colony Park was a pillarless hardtop model until 190 when it was switched to pillared styling for 1961. In 1957, Mercury grouped all of its station wagons into their own series.

The Colony Park featured Ford's two-way Magic Doorgate in 1966. The Doorgate was designed to fold down like a conventional tailgate and also swung sideways much like a door. The 1967 Colony Park showcased Ford's dual-facing rear seats.

For 1969 the full-size Mercury wagons were restyled and were no longer considered a separate series, and the Colony Park became a member of the Marquis series. In this same year, the Magic Doorgate was revised so that it could be swung sideways without having to roll the window down. For the 1973-1978 generation, the Colony Park got as large as it ever would be before Mercury downsized it for 1979.

In 1992 the Colony Park station wagon was dropped from Mercury's lineup and the Grand Marquis was redesigned with aero-styling. Unfortunately, minivans and SUVs took precedence at this time over full-size station wagons. The Chevy Caprice and the Buick Roadmaster Estate were the last of the full-size stations wagons and production ended in 1996.

by Jessican Donaldson