The 2004 Mercury Monterey replaces the Villager minivan, which was developed through a joint venture between Ford and Nissan and built at a Ford plant in Ohio. (Nissan's version of the van was the previous-generation Quest; it since has been replaced with a dramatically styled all-new minivan of the same name.) The Villager was never considered a full-fledged minivan. It was far smaller than traditional minivans and in earlier generations it was extremely underpowered and carried a hefty price for its smaller package.
Ford Motor Co. is trying to breath new life into the Mercury division. However, it is doing so by feeding it vehicles that are basically Ford Division models. Such is the case with the Monterey, which is essentially a rebadged Ford Freestar, which in turn, is an updated and renamed Windstar.