2007 Mercury Mountaineer Review

The 2007 Mercury Mountaineer now comes in only two models, Mountaineer and Mountaineer Premier. The base Mountaineer comes with a 210-horsepower, 4.0L V6, while the Premier can be specified with either the V6 or a 292-horsepower, 4.6L V8 engine with variable cam timing. The V6 comes with a five-speed automatic transmission; the V8 gets a six-speed automatic. Both the base model and Premier come either with rear-wheel drive or a road-oriented all-wheel-drive system. With either the V6 or V8, the Mountaineer can tow up to 3,500 pounds.

The Mountaineer is mechanically similar to the Ford Explorer, but it has a very different look inside and out, thanks to satin-aluminum finishes, along with the distinctive Mercury waterfall grille in front and more elegant interior trim.

The base model comes with two rows of seating, while the Premier has three-row seating standard. A 60/40-split, flat-folding second-row bench seat is standard on the Mountaineer, but the Premier model also has an upgraded version with reclining seatbacks for access to the third row. Second-row bucket seats with a center console are available. And on Premier models, power-folding seatbacks are optional; the system allows the third row to fold completely flat with the touch of a button.

AdvanceTrac with Roll Stability Control, a stability control system especially oriented toward avoiding a rollover situation in tall vehicles, is now standard on the Mountaineer. Front side air bags are standard, as is the Safety Canopy side-curtain bag system covering first- and second-row outboard occupants.

The base Mountaineer comes quite well equipped, including 17-inch machined aluminum wheels, fog lamps, and dual-zone automatic climate control. The Premier includes 18-inch machined aluminum wheels, heated power mirrors, leather upholstery with heated front seats, a garage door opener, a reverse-sensing system, rear climate controls, and an Audiophile seven-speaker upgraded sound system with six-disc changer and subwoofer.

Notable options include a DVD-based navigation system, power-deploying running boards that automatically retract out of view, and a heated windshield that helps reduce defrost times.
The Mountaineer's model lineup has been simplified for 2007 and is now limited to two models, Mountaineer and Mountaineer Premier. Ford's Safety Canopy side-curtain air bag system is now standard on all Mountaineers.

The available rear-seat DVD entertainment system now has a larger, eight-inch screen, and a heated windshield is newly available on all models. Also, all models now have an auxiliary audio input jack.

New colors for 2007 include White Chocolate Clearcoat Tri-Coat (Premier model), Alloy Clearcoat Metallic, and Dark Cherry Clearcoat Metallic. see less