1968 Mercury Park Lane - Park Lane Convertible Ex-Niederländisches Königshaus

From the Dutch Royal Family’s motor fleet

Well documented and photographed throughout history

Used frequently by the Royal Family, including for private purposes, until 1970

Largely preserved in its original condition

Mercury had always been saddled with a somewhat thankless task within the Ford empire. A Ford was supposed to be sensible, a Lincoln luxurious. Somewhere in between, Mercury had to convince customers that a little more chrome, a little more engine and a little social advancement were worth the extra money. The Park Lane went about that task with distinctly American self-confidence.

The name had appeared, with interruptions, at the top of the Mercury range since 1958. A new generation of the full-size models arrived for 1964, only to be thoroughly revised again for 1965. The Park Lane became longer, sleeker and more imposing still. By then, nobody looking at a Park Lane was likely to mistake it for merely a Ford.

For 1967, Mercury went one step further. The Park Lane remained available as a Hardtop, Sedan and Convertible, while the particularly luxurious Brougham trim was added for the four-door versions. Restraint beneath that enormous bonnet was hardly part of the programme either. Various V8 engines were available, with the 390-cubic-inch, 6.4-litre unit already providing displacement in abundance. Anyone who felt that abundance was still not quite enough could reach a little higher up the shelf for seven litres. That brought 340 horsepower instead of 315.

Sporting ability in the European sense was hardly the point. A Park Lane was not intended to hustle its occupants over mountain passes, but to make great distances disappear as casually as possible. Automatic transmission, power steering, a power-operated hood and lavish equipment were far more in keeping with its character than frantic gear changes.

And that is precisely where its appeal lies today. The Park Lane was neither a car for the masses nor automotive aristocracy. It occupied that wonderfully American world in between, where luxury did not have to be discreet and five metres of sheet metal were still considered a perfectly reasonable basis for a passenger car. Yet 1968 was already the Park Lane’s penultimate year. In 1969, the name disappeared from the Mercury range.

Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, Prince of Lippe-Biesterfeld and consort of Queen Juliana, was one of Enzo Ferrari’s earliest and best customers in the early 1950s. While privately indulging his passion for Italian sports cars, the Dutch royal household had long placed its trust in solid American machinery from the Ford empire. Every few years, new Mercurys or Lincolns were acquired, occasionally even a Ford, such as a 1960 Thunderbird. Most were black, and all carried registrations beginning with AA. AA 79 was generally reserved for a large convertible that the royal family also used privately. A Lincoln in 1958, a Mercury in 1960, another Mercury in 1964 and, in 1968, a Mercury once again.

A Park Lane, no less, the largest and most luxurious model in the range: black paint, black interior and black hood. Equipped with power steering, limited-slip differential, electric windows and radio, the Mercury cost 33,313 guilders, including 23 litres of premium petrol. It remained with the Koninklijke Stallen, the Royal Stables, until 1970, with every journey meticulously recorded. Whether for official duties or a holiday at the family’s house in Porto Ercole.

After two years and almost 25,000 kilometres, it was replaced by a Ford LTD. To this day, the imposing Mercury survives in exceptionally original condition, complete with one of its AA 79 registration plates. Even a few coins dating from 1968 were still hiding inside the car. Having stood unused for several years, it will require a sympathetic inspection before being brought back to life. With robust, mass-produced American mechanics, it is certainly no feat of magic. It is not without reason that Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard placed their trust in it.