Mercury Tracer

Mercury Tracer
1993–1996 Mercury Tracer 4-door
Overview
Manufacturer	Ford Lio Ho (1986–1989) Ford de México SA (1987–1989) Mazda (1987–1989) Mercury (Ford) (1990–1999)
Production	1986–1989 1990–1999
Model years	1987–1989 1991–1999
Body and chassis
Class	Subcompact car (1988–1989) Compact car (1991–1999)
Layout	FF layout
Chronology
Predecessor	Mercury Lynx

The Mercury Tracer is a compact car that was marketed by Mercury from the 1987 to 1999 model years. The replacement for the Mercury Lynx, the Tracer was also sold as a three-door and five-door hatchback and a five-door station wagon; a four-door sedan was introduced for the second generation. Three generations of the model line were produced, with the second two serving as the counterpart of the Ford Escort.

The first Mercury-brand vehicle since 1960 without a direct Ford counterpart in North America, the first-generation Tracer was developed by Mazda. For its entire production, the model line (including two generations of the Escort) was derived from the Mazda 323/Protegé.

Mercury discontinued the Tracer after the 1999 model year, as Ford began phasing out the Escort in favor of the Ford Focus for 2000. Without a Mercury counterpart to the Focus, the brand exited the compact car segment. A fourth-generation Tracer was initially planned for a 2012 release, but the project was abandoned following Mercury's closure in 2010.^[1]