Mercury is on the last legs of its “farewell tour.”  Ford is discontinuing the Mercury line after this year.  Basically, most of the Mercury line has been upscale versions of similar Fords for the last few years, anyway.  They always managed to make the Mercury look just a bit nicer and more luxurious than the Ford, and hopefully Ford will find a way to incorporate some of the Mercury’s traditional qualities into their flagship line.

The Mariner Base is a small crossover SUV, and is the lowest of two trim levels, the other being the Premier, but it still has some nice touches.  It has a 2.5 liter, inline 4-cylinder engine that produces 171 horsepower.  It has 16-inch alloy wheels, a 6-speed, automatic transmission with 4-wheel drive.  It is rated at 20 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway.  An upgrade to a 30. liter V6 that puts out 240 horsepower is avaliable.

The 2011 Mariner Base has standard air conditioning, full power accessories, and privacy glass.  The audio system has 4 speakers, a CD/MP3 player, satellite radio, and an audio jack.  There are, however, numerous upgrades and packages available.

The Mariner has anti-lock brakes, traction control, stability control, side front airbags, and full length head curtain airbags with a rollover sensor.  The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gave it the highest rating of “good” for both side and front impact crashes, but the braking distance is only 138 feet from 60 mph.

Conclusions and driver feedback:

The Mariner does a lot of things OK.  The interior is attractive, and its appearance still has whatever Mercury’s “it factor” is.  There is a decent amount of space for a small crossover, and the front seats, though upright, are still comfortable.  The steering is responsive and the suspension is well-tuned.  It is pretty agile for a crossover but doesn’t sacrifice ride quality.

The engine, while not quite “peppy,” is adequate for a crossover.  It is enough to get the job done while still giving decent gas mileage for its class.  All in all, the Mariner is a nice, solid vehicle.

Sadly, though, in today’s market, “solid” doesn’t keep up with the competition.  When “decent’ and “OK” are the main adjectives used to describe a car, is is usually being swallowed up by the competition.  Many old-timers will be sad to see the Mercury name disappear, but maybe it is time.

The first real sticking point with the Mariner is the brakes.  It is an otherwise safe vehicle, but the brakes need to be better.  Most of the Mercury segment of the market probably doesn’t drive fast anymore, but it’s nice to have a few extra car lengths of stopping power on the highway.  It can be the difference between a close call and a collision.  Also, the rear seat is uncomfortable and difficult to fold down for cargo space.

The verdict:  for Mercury nostalgia buffs only.