Page "Edsel" Paragraph 19

The public also had difficulty understanding what the Edsel was, primarily because Ford made the mistake of pricing the Edsel within Mercury ’ s market price segment.

Theoretically, the Edsel was conceived to fit into Ford ’ s marketing plans as the brand slotted in between Ford and Mercury.

However, when the car debuted in 1958, its least expensive model — the Ranger — was priced within $ 73 of the most expensive and best-trimmed Ford sedan and $ 63 less than Mercury ’ s base Medalist model.

In its mid-range pricing, Edsel's Pacer and Corsair models were more expensive than their Mercury counterparts.

Edsel's top-of-the-line Citation four-door hardtop model was the only model priced to correctly compete with Mercury ’ s mid-range Montclair Turnpike Cruiser model, as illustrated in the chart below.