Faults:

Air suspension has gone several times. The car is reliable (engine) except for the air ride suspension. When thinking about purchasing a used Mark VIII or any Lincoln, always ask if the suspension has been replaced yet. It inevitably will need to be at some point.

The factory alarm system is a nightmare and has a mind of its own. It goes off anytime, anywhere, apparently for no reason. I got the instructions from MarkVIII.org to disconnect the system. This website is not-for-profit and useful to all Mark VIII owners who want to save money by doing their own repairs when possible (the engine is almost impossible to get to). My car was towed away once when the alarm went off for two hours while I was shopping.

The transmission was replaced at 120,000. The original transmission shuddered a lot when shifting. It turns out that can be cured with a simple replacement part. Also described at the Mark owners website.

The engine was rebuilt at 165,000 and continues to run strong. I've never been able to ever put the gas pedal to the floor, because the car zooms to 100 in seconds.

The fuel pump was replaced at 200,000 miles.

The alternator was replaced shortly after the fuel pump.

The air-conditioning stopped working this summer. It is fully charged, so it's electrical and far too expensive to trace. Of course this occurred during the hottest summer in recent history.

The ABS/traction control stopped working at 218,000. It needs a computer module that costs $750 (new) at the dealer. I found one for $50 (used) on eBay and plan to have it installed by local Lincoln/Mercury Dealer in Catskill, NY who will install customer purchased parts as long as you sign a waiver. I think this is a great practice.

General Comments:

This car is the fastest luxury car I've ever driven. It has more power than I'll ever need.

My Mark gets 28-30 MPG on the highway and 20-22 MPG in the city. Unbelievable mileage for a large luxury car. This is why I keep it. The electronic air suspension lowers the car and tilts it "front down" to reduce air drag thereby increasing gas mileage. If you replace the air suspension with a conventional system (a lot of people do) you will lose this feature and gas mileage will fall enough to make a difference. Also, it only runs well on super unleaded, so there is a trade off for the mileage.

This is definitely a sports car and not a family car. It's not very roomy in the back, and it's difficult to get in and out of the back seat.

The trunk is enormous!!

All in all, I'm totally satisfied and believe I've gotten my moneys worth. I'm looking for another used Mark VIII now.

Because of the high engine torque, this is not a car that does well in snow or rain. You MUST buy very good tires for good traction in inclement weather. If you don't put snow tires on it in the winter, you will never reach your destination if it starts snowing.

Faults:

Overdrive lockout switch has not worked since I bought it and the trans shudders going into 4th sometimes.

Alternator had to be rebuilt at 110,000.

Front air bags replaced at 105,000 miles.

General Comments:

This car was originally over $40,000 and is a fast, fun car to drive. It has a Jetchip (stage 2) with a 180 degree thermostat, and 50 series tires (double A traction) so it goes fast and sticks in corners for a big car.

It has leather seats and all the creature comforts, a great Bose stereo and climate control, and everything still works and is in great shape, it still gets comments from people on it's looks.

It is great on gas for a big car as long as you don't do a lot of stop-and-go driving, but is very difficult to work on. I have no doubt replacing the timing chain on this engine (4 overhead camshafts) is tough, and just removing the engine cover is a chore to get to plugs, etc. Oil changes are an adventure, as the genius who thought of putting the oil filter in it's location did not consider it needed to be replaced occasionally.