1996 Mercury Villager GS Global player in a changing world. By Bob Markovich, New Car Test Drive .com

Once upon a time in the car business, it seemed Japan could do no wrong and America

could do almost nothing right. America's Big Three carmakers figured if you can't beat

'em, join 'em. So they partnered up with their Japanese competitors and built vehicles

here using much of the same engineering that had given Japan an edge.

The Mercury Villager is a product of just such a partnership. Introduced in 1992, the

front-wheel drive Villager gets its drivetrain and most of its design from Nissan, and

shares both with the nearly identical Nissan Quest. Powertrains come from Nissan, and

assembly is handled at a Ford factory located in Avon Lake, Ohio.

The Villager arrived as a more carlike, more compact yet surprisingly spacious

alternative to Chrysler's then-aging minivan trio.

In fact, it represented the first true challenge to the original Chrysler minivan

concept--car-like driveability and van-like cargo capacity, plus garageability. Early

responses from Ford and GM were based on rear-drive truck platforms, and GM's

front-drive Chevrolet Lumina APV, Pontiac Trans Sport and Oldsmobile Silhouette never

quite caught on.

In addition to nailing the concept, the Villager and Quest were affordable, with

pricing that started at about $17,000.

The Villager is still pleasantly carlike and spacious for its size, and gets a host of

upgrades for 1996. And at $19,940 to start, it's still affordable. But with larger,

newer minivans at a comparable price from Chrysler and even Ford, the Villager also

shows how much the world around it has changed.