In place of the three trims of the Five Hundred, the Montego was offered in two: Luxury and Premier. The third-generation Montego was manufactured at the Chicago Assembly facility in Chicago, Illinois alongside the Ford Five Hundred and the Ford Freestyle; the latter was a CUV wagon serving as a replacement for the Taurus/Sable station wagon. Chassis The third-generation Montego was built on the Ford D3 platform. Developed in collaboration with Volvo, the D3 chassis is the first full-size Ford platform to utilize front-wheel drive (or its optional all-wheel drive). Shifting away from the body-on-frame Panther platform, the D3 chassis utilizes unibody construction. Only two inches shorter than the Grand Marquis in wheelbase, the Montego was nearly 500 pounds lighter in curb weight. The Montego was equipped with a single engine, shared with the previous Taurus/Sable, a 203 hp version of the 3.0L DOHC Duratec V6. Front-wheel drive versions were equipped with a 6-speed Aisin AW F21++ automatic while AWD versions were equipped with a ZF CVT. Total Vehicle Geometry (TVG) The Montego, Five Hundred and Ford Freestyle were manufactured using a Volvo-derived system called Total Vehicle Geometry (TVG) to ensure fit, finish and craftsmanship — by requiring comprehensive participation by all engineers as well as suppliers and vendors. Heavily using computer-aided design, TVG tracks all design modifications, translating them into the central CAD database which in turn allows each engineer access to current project data. The system improves part tolerance at the body-in-white stage as well as early cabin integrity testing, via air leakage testing. TVG improved fit and finish at the first prototype stage and decreases pilot manufacturing times. For side impact protection the bodywork is braced at the B-pillar via an energy-channeling structural cross-car roof tube and a corresponding undercar energy channelling cross-tube — with the front seats mounted above the lower tube, locating them above a side impact energy path. The system derives from a side-impact safety design marketed by Volvo as its Side Impact Protection System (SIPS). Exterior The first completely new full-size Mercury since the 1992 model year, the third-generation Montego was offered solely as a four-door sedan. With a height over five feet tall (matching the far-longer Maybach 57), the Montego was the tallest Mercury sedan in over 50 years. While visibly sharing much of its exterior with its Ford Five Hundred counterpart, the third-generation Montego was distinguished by exterior several design features.