Faults:

Engine cooling system is horrible resulting in constant overheating.

Turbo really dirty and in need of a good cleaning or replacement.

Interior wornout.

Weather-stripping Leaks.

Shifting rough.

Bad quality paint.

A/C/ peice of crap.

General Comments:

Fast car.

Good if you're a mechanic and you want a fast cool car that can haul ass when you tweak it right and that gets peoples attention.

Radio still worked well.

Gan be made very comfortable.

European design and feel.

Faults:

Everything has gone wrong with this car.

It had an exhaust lead that leaked carbon monoxide into the cabin almost killing me and my passengers.

The power window switches wore out and replacement parts were impossible to find.

A minor electrical problem turned this car into a towering inferno in the parking lot of the local mall almost killing me and my passengers.

Thank God junk yards, but cars by the pound, I was able to get a little over $100 for this piece of scrap.

General Comments:

This car was the worst vehicle ever manufactured.

The car had 64,000 miles on it when I purchased it and looked great, but it was a mechanical and electrical nightmare.

I will never ever buy another German manufactured vehicle. I almost purchased a 2001 Cadillac Catera until it started and backfired just like the Merkur. The thick black plastic and funky smelling interior reminded me of the Merkur. I immeadiately returned this Cadillac to the dealer even though I was able to take it home for the night for free. It was like the ghost of the Merkur was coming back to haunt me.

This car CAUGHT ON FIRE!

Faults:

Unfortunately, this car's had a very rough life. The engine's been swapped out of an '89 XR, with god knows how many miles on it. Also, most likely been in an accident years ago, because certain things up front aren't exactly a perfect fit.

So far, I've had the alternator, water pump, struts, cylinder head, and fuel injectors replaced.

Also, little leaks and things just keep popping up.

Needs new springs, bushings all around, exhaust manifold, PAINT! as well as other stuff (trans, rotors, etc.)

General Comments:

Even with all of the above listed -- I love it!

It's rare as hell here in the States, is drop-dead gorgeous in that mid-eighties German sedan kinda way, goes pretty quick, and is real comfy. Also, some of the ones that I've seen running around are real Mustang-killers, so it gives me something to strive for.