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Mercury Mountaineer: Ford Explorer
built 198 days ago
The Mercury Mountaineer is a higher-end, fraternal twin of the Ford Explorer. This is both good and bad. It's good because, overall, the Explorer is a superb product. What's not so good is that the Ford Motor Company felt that Mountaineer needed a unique Mercury identity.
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The Mercury Mountaineer is a traditional sport-utility vehicle. Essentially the Mercury version of the Ford Explorer, the Mountaineer is based on a truck chassis for improved towing and hauling capability. If you have a boat to tow and a family to haul, this is a good choice.
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The Mercury Mountaineer's trucklike suspension gave it a bouncy ride typical of the era, and although acceleration was adequate, neither engine was especially powerful or refined by modern standards. Also, the Ford Explorer-Firestone controversy regarding tire tread separation and increased rollover risk applied equally to the Mountaineer. In the highly unlikely event you encounter a first-gen Mountaineer still wearing its original Firestone tires, you'll want to upgrade to better rubber immediately.
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The Mercury Mountaineer comes with rear-wheel drive or full-time, all-wheel drive. The AWD system is able to react immediately to changing road and weather conditions to maintain maximum traction. However, it lacks low-range gearing for serious off-road capabilities. Ford’s AdvanceTrak stability control system with Roll Stability Control is standard and provides added road-holding control, especially around sharp curves. It employs a gyroscope that senses when a rollover is likely to occur, engaging the brakes and controlling engine power in order to bring the vehicle back under control.
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Although the redesigned Explorer had already been out for 2 years, Mercury introduced an Explorer twin called the Mountaineer. The Mountaineer was only slightly different from the Explorer, although it did offer a few extra luxury features that the Explorer lacked, such as a standard 5.0 L 210 hp Windsor V8. First year sales for the Mountaineer did not meet Mercury's expectations. For 1998, so customers could differentiate the Mountaineer from the Explorer, the front fascia was flipped upside down, and the headlights were made smaller, while it got a new rear hatch and unique wheels. The new overhead-cam 4.0 L 205 hp Cologne V6 with a 5-speed 5R55E automatic was now the standard powerplant. Mountaineer sales sped up because of this, though they still lagged behind the Explorer.
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Upon Ford's realization that it could well earn profit by selling a value and luxury-laden SUV in the personage of Mercury, the Mountaineer was created in 1997. Like the rest of the Mercurys, Mountaineer was restyled, repackaged, and refined. Since then the Mercury Mountaineer has been a modest success in the automotive industry. Virtually identical with the Ford Explorer, as it shares its platform with it, Mercury Mountaineer presents a large interior as its primary ace for a pleasurable ride. It could seat seven passengers comfortably without getting restless of the worries on where to place their cargoes.
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