2006 Mercury Mountaineer

Typical pattern

3.3% of complaints about the 2006 Mercury Mountaineer came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 2006 vehicle — around the middle of the 250 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 5.3 yr in service. The most-reported system is engine cooling (43 complaints), typically at 5.3 yr or about 57,300 miles.

Complaints: 153
Median age at failure: 5.3 yr
Median mileage: 58,945 n=123
Crash / fire / tow: 10.5% of reports
Safety recalls: 2

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

07E104000 2007-12-11

Visibility:glass, side/rear

CERTAIN CURVED TEMPERED REPLACEMENT GLASS MANUFACTURED BY HANGZHOU SAFETY GLASS LTD AND SUPPLIED TO SAFELITE BY AUTO TEMP INC., IDENTIFIED AS DOT-430, AND SOLD FOR USE ON CERTAIN DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN VEHICLES MAY NOT BREAK INTO SMALL PIECES AS EXPECTED OF TEMPERED GLASS AND FAILS TO CONFORM TO FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 205, "GLAZING MATERIALS."

IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE CRASH, THE OCCUPANT(S) MAY BE SERIOUSLY INJURED BY SHATTERED GLASS.

05V520000 2005-11-09

Visibility:windshield wiper/washer:motor

ON CERTAIN TRUCKS, PASSENGER CARS AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR MAY HAVE BEEN PRODUCED WITHOUT GREASE BEING APPLIED TO THE OUTPUT SHAFT GEAR.

AFTER A PERIOD OF CONTINUOUS USE ON THE HIGH SPEED SETTING, LACK OF GREASE ON THE OUTPUT SHAFT GEAR MAY CAUSE THE GEAR TO DISTORT OR FRACTURE DURING OPERATION RESULTING IN A LOSS OF WIPER FUNCTION. INOPERATIVE WIPERS UNDER INCLEMENT WEATHER CONDITIONS COULD CAUSE A CRASH DUE TO IMPAIRED VISIBILITY.

In owners’ own words

Power train mileage not reported 1.3 yr in service

THE TRANSMISSION IN MY 2006 MERCURY MOUNTAINEER HAS "POPPED" INTO REVERSE TWICE ONCE IT WAS PLACED INTO PARK, CAUSING IT TO ROLL BACKWARDS. IT ALSO ROLLS FORWARD AND BACKWARDS WHEN PLACED IN PARK UNTIL IT "CATCHES" AND FINALLY LOCKS IN PLACE. WHEN CLIMBING HILLS OR STEEP GRADES, THE TRANSMISSION WILL SURGE, AND WHEN COMING TO A STOP, THE TRANSMISSION WILL SHIFT HARD AND JERK. *NM

Power train mileage not reported 8 mo in service crash / fire / tow

VEHICLE WOULD NOT SHIFT GEARS. 4 RPMS AT 25 MPH. VEHICLE SLOWED. PULLED OVER AND FRONT BRAKES WERE ON FIRE. *AK

Power train 10,750 mi 1.8 yr in service

TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS THAT RESULTED AFTER RECALIBRATION IN RESPONSE TO RECAL NOTICE. VEHICLE NOW LURCHES FORWARD BY ITSELF WHEN STOPPED AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT. ONE NEEDS TO STAND ON THE BRAKES TO PREVENT VEHICLE FROM STRIKING OTHER VEHICLES.

Engine cooling 20,800 mi 2.8 yr in service

MY 2006 MERCURY MOUNTAINEER HAS A PROBLEM WITH THE A/C FAN UNIT. THE A/C FAN WILL NOT DECREASE IN BLOWER INTENSITY EVEN IF MANUALLY DOWNGRADING THE FAN OR TURNING UP THE TEMPERATURE. DOES NOT MATTER WHETHER YOU ARE IN AUTO OR MANUAL A/C MODE. *TR

Other Mountaineer model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2006 Mercury Mountaineer

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

In owners’ own words

Other Mountaineer model years

How to read this