akirby

And the MKZ will sell to a lot of customers on other merits as well such as styling which is probably the biggest factor. If people like the way it looks and feels it will sell decently regardless of what the reviewers say or don't say. As for the plan to retain buyers not being made public - it has, many times. You've just chosen not to listen.

Note that B8B8B is in Canada.

But that bashing didn't cause it not to sell. It didn't sell because it was ugly and the reviews simply echoed that. Had the reviews been positive it wouldn't have made any difference in sales.

They are REQUIRED BY LAW to post the EPA test results on the window sticker. If the EPA tests don't accurately represent the new hybrids then get the EPA to change them but don't blame Ford for following the law.

Well they won't get very far without wheels.......

If the only way to get somebody to buy your vehicle that's already priced below the competition is to throw in an incentive then maybe Lincoln doesn't want that type of customer. I suspect those incentives on the other premium brands are only on the 2012 models left in inventory, not on the new 2013s.

If the MKZ prices are already cheaper than the competition's prices with incentives, why would Lincoln need to add incentives? Especially since you guys already agreed to purchase one without incentives.

Are they doing retail order verification on the MKZ like they did for the Fusion? If they are and your dealer did not sign you up for it then that is the delay and it's the dealer's fault. Or if they are not doing retail order verification then your dealer may not have any allocation left right now. If allocation is available and your order is not on a material hold then it should be scheduled.

Given her gender I wonder if she would object to the title of "no lightweight"...................... (are you calling me fat?!?!?)

I don't think anyone cares any more. I know I don't.

It depends on how it was shown. FDAF is the advertising fee and it's a legitimate part of the dealer's invoice. The dealer pays Ford and Ford gives that money to local dealers for local advertising. It is listed as a separate item on the dealer invoice HOWEVER the dealer invoice price and the A,Z,D and X plan prices on the invoice ALREADY INCLUDE THIS FEE. If the dealer is trying to add this fee on top of the A/Z/D/X plan price or bottom line invoice price or your negotiated price then that is BS because it's already included. For reference - the actual dealer invoice price should be about $150 or so below the X plan price listed on the invoice and that already includes the FDAF and fuel surcharges.

At least 4 times.

That's completely up to the dealer. Ford does not offer any options.

Have you ever seen a really good review of a Toyota Camry or Corolla in the last few years? Nope. Does it hurt sales? Obviously not. The Caddy ATS got rave reviews. Has it translated to great sales? You're putting FAR too much weight on media reviews as it relates to actual vehicle sales. The vast majority of buyers don't read any automotive media at all and some of those who do only look at CR for dependability information.

Most companies don't make such dramatic changes to so many vehicles at the same time and they don't hold products for inspection like Ford does. 5 new vehicles in the last 2 years - Focus, Escape, C max, Fusion, MKZ. 2 new engines - 1.6L and 2.0L EB. 2 new trannies - Powershift and hybrid cvt. A totally new hybrid drivetrain for the Fusion and Cmax. Plus a few MCEs and minor changes in all the other vehicles. That's a lot more than most companies have done in the same timeframe. That said - they have totally screwed the pooch on the Fusion/MKZ launch and the Escape launch before that. It's possible that these problems were a known calculated risk based on getting products out the door as fast as possible, meaning they expected problems because they cut corners and decided that it was more important to get the products out. In that case they'll just change those decisions going forward. Otherwise these were actual screwups and if that's the case heads have probably already rolled to make sure this doesn't keep happening. Either way I don't expect these types of problems to continue. If they do then I'll start to worry.

You totally missed the point as usual. All those internet pundits who you say want this Lincoln supercar and would buy it are the same ones who sang the praises of the XLR, G8 and GTO. The point is the whims and desires of internet automotive enthusiasts do not necessarily translate to sales or profits.

Not nitpicking at all. Case is very important in legal contract language. E.g. in one contract we defined Services (capital S) to include a specific list of tasks to be performed. Using Services (capital S) referred to these specific tasks but services (lower case s) did not.

And I'm sure those same people thought the Caddy XLR was fantastic. And the G8. And the GTO. But they didn't actually buy them, did they? People say they want a lot of things but when it comes down to actually putting their money where their mouth is they don't always come through. Internet enthusiasts also say they want manuals and wagons but neither one actually sell.

What I don't understand is why anybody thinks that this turnaround plan would have anything in common with past turnarounds. In the past there was Mercury, Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin and Volvo to worry about. There was no dedicated Lincoln team. There was no one Global Ford mandate. And most importantly Mulally wasn't in charge.

Nobody here has ever said that Lincoln should never do a performance vehicle. Only that it shouldn't be a current priority and that they'd be better served with a more competitive MkZ, MKS, MKX and MKC first along with upgraded dealer experiences. THEN they can do something similar to the Audi S and RS series. But it doesn't automatically require a new RWD platform - just top level performance and styling. Agreed?

You said Lincoln needed a "halo" sports car to help sales of the more mundane models. Now you say it makes sense to get new higher volume vehicles in place first. Glad you finally came to your senses.

How did that work out for Cadillac with their CTS-V line? Again - you're missing the point. Nobody is saying that Lincoln doesn't need a high performance vehicle - eventually. But doing it now means you take resources away from fixing the mainstream high volume vehicles that pay the bills. All of those other brands you mentioned already had well established lineups before they started making their high performance vehicles.

I HATE that movie. I rented it on VHS and it cost me $80. I left it on the roof of the car and lost it on the way back to the video rental store.

Pony car is a unique segment all to itself.

Usually but not always. You have to check the fine print.