1988 Merkur XR4Ti review from North America

Windshield replaced due to pitting 2000.

Windshield replaced again due to cracking (do NOT glue the mirror on the windshield with regular mirror glue, get the right stuff from someone.)

Cruise stopped working before I bought it in 1992.

Turn signal part inside steering column broke 2001.

Throttle position sensor replaced in 1994.

Leather seats recovered on driver side due to stitching pulling loose.

Several cooling system hoses replaced over the duration of ownership.

A/C has always been marginal and freon leaks out within 6 mos. or a year.

Brakes & clutch replaced - very high mileage.

This is by far the best car I have ever owned or seen for LA freeway use. It is very fast, handles and rides well, and durable except for minor stuff. Provided that you know cars mechanically, so that when something goes wrong (i.e., broken cooling hose) you know what to do.

If the air conditioning could be economically brought up to new car standards I would maintain and keep these cars forever. I actually own three of them, two on the road and one that was the original car I bought in 1992 that is relegated now to a parts car. (The information above is kind of a composite of things that have gone wrong with all three cars.)

These cars have traveled over 300,000 miles with me driving them and have been amazing.