There’s something to be said about a cool sleeper build that’s done right. Unfortunately, if you search the internet, you will find so-called “sleepers” that either give the car’s status away or a car like a third-gen Nova that will never be a true sleeper because it’s way too cool. The idea behind a sleeper is to build a fast car out of something that was never intended to be quick. Over the years, some of our favorites have been Buicks, Caprices, Fairmonts, and even a Volvo or two. However, thanks to Cleetus McFarland, we’ve now found another car that we like, the 2003-’04 Mercury Marauder. 

Picture Courtesy Of 1320 Video

Mercury’s Marauder

The Marauder was built as a sporty yet luxurious machine. Capable of 0-60 times in the 7.5-second range, these cars were somewhat quick in their day. A 1/4-mile time of 15.5-seconds at 91 mph might not seem significant; however, these cars weighed in at 4,195-pounds and only had 302 horsepower. But the drivetrain is solid with an 8.8-inch rear axle stuffed with a limited-slip differential and 3.55 gears. It even came with a set cool looking 18×8-inch five-star wheels. The only thing that’s missing is more power. 

The McFarland Marauder

Unlike Mercury’s Marauder, the McFarland version has a few more goodies under the hood. We reached out to McFarland to get some details about the Marauder. He said, in true sleeper fashion, “Not sure why you’d ask. It has a stock 32-valve Marauder engine.” However, based on the images and performance of this vehicle, this is certainly not the case. Instead, the 32-valve Marauder engine has been replaced with an LS engine and a massive turbo, or “A/C compressor,” as McFarland likes to call it. 

This is what a 32-valve Ford engine does not look like, even though McFarland said it’s stock.

The Texas Speed & Performance 6.0-liter turbocharged LS engine made some steam on the dyno, cranking out 693 horsepower at the wheels with a little over 11-pounds of boost from the turbocharger. At this power level, Sam was able to pilot the Marauder to high ten’s at over 120 mph in the 1/4-mile during Sick Week. 

Picture Courtesy Of 1320 Video

How To Win

Oh, there’s one detail that we left out at the beginning of this article. McFarland is giving away the so-called “stock” Marauder. Al you have to do is head over to CleetusMcFarland.com, and for every $5.00 spent, you will receive one entry. The contest started on February 5, 2022, and will conclude on February 26, 2022. Also, there’s no purchase necessary, and you can see the official rules here. 

The winner has the choice of taking the Marauder and $10,000 cash or $25,000 instead. If you win, we hope you take the car, and please give us a call. We’ll want to do a full feature and go for a ride and see what that giant A/C compressor (turbo) is all about.