First pics! My new Mariner

My digital camera is broken, but luckily my buddy stopped by to check out my new ride, so here are the first pics. The color is Black Pearl, which is really graphite, not black. Actually I like it better than black. I had never been a fa of the Mercury "waterfall" grille, but you know what? On this I like it. Much nicer than the oversize eggcrate on the Escape.

I love the lack of claddiing or useless bump strips on the sides. A clean crisp look.

The jeweled taillights catch the light well and look nice. The 12 spoke rims look like they'll be a pain to clean, but when clean they look sharp. They also hide the lack of rear disc calipers.

I like the satin accent below the hatch, combined with the grille and roof rails, it's just enough bright work without looking like a pimp mobile.

Day 2 goes well, I've got the flashdrive in the dash, loaded with music and the SYNC system makes it easy. I went grocery shopping after work and the load height is perfect. I'm loving the 2 way opening of the cargo area too. Click the remote button twice and the glass pops open, or for bigger loads you can open the full door.

Smooth ride over bumpy roads, but not floaty or tippy. I've yet to drive it hard through any twisty roads, but it's not my old Mazda3, so I don't expect sports car handling from my new cute ute.