Peter Horbury, chief designer for Ford Motor Company, says that the current Mountaineer SUV showed that "Mercury could grow again, with design as the differentiator." When the redesigned second-generation Mountaineer debuted for 2002, it did signal Mercury's new design direction and proved that by cloaking Fords in what Horbury calls "clean, contemporary, and metropolitan" clothes (read: satin-silver trim), consumers would be attracted to Mercury showrooms.

Four years later, the Mercury Mountaineer gets a mid-cycle update for 2006 that includes an all-new interior, a significant power upgrade, and a re-engineered platform that should tide consumers over until a completely redesigned model arrives later this decade.