2008 Mercury Mariner I4 2.3L I4 2WD from North America

Summary:

Beautiful small SUV!!!

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

Great SUV and great on gas.

My son owns a 2000 Mercury Cougar, and has had so many problems with that vehicle, but he did an internship at a local Lincoln/Mercury dealer; and knew that my 2006 Honda CR-V lease was almost up and I was running out of miles. So he told me to try out a Mercury Mariner, because the dealer would let him have some commission.

So I did I try the V6 version, and it had the deluxe stuff leather navigation, and I don't need that and stay cheap. So I tried this baby blue 4 cylinder Mariner and fell in love; it's stylish on the inside and out. I needed something great on gas and cheap (lease).

It comes with a lot of features at a little price. I got the moon and tune package, and I love the sunroof; it's the first car I've had that's had that.

But the MPG is GREAT! I live in Ohio and went to Atlantic City, New Jersey for vacation; it got between 29-31 MPG.

Overall I love it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 18th July, 2008

19th Nov 2020, 19:37

I agree that the 4 cylinder version of the Mariner/Escape is good on gas mileage, but I find it to be more like 26 MPG when you drive mostly highway to work. The problem with gas mileage is that it is highly variable depending on how the car is driven. I think this car is best used in the county where you average 50 mph on the rural highways. It has a lot of wind resistance as it is a high profile vehicle which also decreases MPG significantly. The hood rack also probably adds 1/2 MPG, but can be very difficult to remove if you are thinking about doing it. 4 cyl is underpowered, so I only fill the gas tank 1/2 way and drive to almost empty to be able to accelerate faster. In warmer climates, a driver will notice the vehicle has less power with A/C. Wish vehicle was lower to the ground as it would really help with MPG.

2007 Mercury Mariner Premier 4WD 3.0L Duratec V6 from North America

Summary:

I really do love my Escape/Mariner

Faults:

Car paint of poor quality in my opinion; since the day I took delivery, it seems I have water spots all over my car. The dealer and detail shops are telling me I need an acid bath due to hard water spots.

Had a parking brake issue, took back 3 times to Mercury dealer for recheck; they stated nothing wrong. Just took into local Ford dealer and they said my parking brake shoes were sticking on backing plates, and that I was lacking slide grease to the backing plates.

Steering strains at low speeds on right turns. Both dealers have said there is nothing wrong.

Engine ping/rattle noted and fixed by TSB.

13,000 miles transmission went out, I just got my car back last night. I had never towed. Had taken the car in for similar problems to Mercury twice before, and told it was fine. My car had a lack of power and it couldn't seem to find the right gears and sometimes the RPM's would almost redline before finding a gear. Ford found low rev clutch burnt and seized O/D rev planet coming apart and metal in transmission. Cost to overhaul was greater than the price of a re-manufactured transmission. Seems to drive great now.

General Comments:

I had been getting around 15 mpg, not sure if related to the transmission problems I had been having.

Seats are not as comfortable as I would like.

Took out 2 of the head rests in back due to severe blind spots.

It seems like I have been at the car dealer continuously since I bought this car, but looking through my car receipts it is mostly due to my local Mercury dealers incompetence.

Heaters for the seats could be more conveniently located (they are on the side of the seat and are hidden when the cushion is sat on; so you are unable to see whether they are on or off). It's also easy to bump them when getting in or out of the car.

The car handles great, and I love the ease of parking.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 25th April, 2008