nelsonlu

On second thought: 1. I think, actually, the Titaniums (in general) would be the wrong vehicles to occupy the same space as the Lincolns. The reason is that the entire reason the last few decades why Mercuries were paired with Lincolns is that you want the Lincoln dealer to have some still-premium-but-lower-priced vehicles available for the people who come in who decide that they can't afford the Lincolns. The Titaniums might not necessarily be any lower-priced than the Lincolns and would effectively be fighting the Lincolns themselves in the same showroom. 2. I think what you would want, conventional-vehicle-wise (I'll address the hybrids/EVs below), is to have some Ford vehicles that don't directly occupy the same space as the Lincolns and yet are nice vehicles to look at. Of the sedans/coupes, I'd say top-of-the-line Fiestas and Focuses (until/unless the C-segment Lincoln sedan is ready), Fusion SEL I4s, and Taurus Limiteds. Similar strategy among the SUVs. Perhaps some F-150 Titaniums, and top-of-the-line Mustangs (both GTs and highly-optioned V6s). 3. And, again, I'd say hybrids and EVs can feature prominently. Yes, Lincoln will have the MKZ Hybrid available, but I think this is where having a Fusion Hybrid available in the showroom doesn't hurt. Until/unless a Lincoln version of the Kuga is available (which presumably will also have a hybrid/plug-in hybrid available), have the Escape Hybrid. When Transit Connect EV and Focus EV are available, put them in there, too. They'd serve as complimentary to the Lincoln lineup while enhancing, not detracting, from the "Lincon is high tech" image that Ford wants to cultivate.

That wasn't what I had in mind, but that sounds like an interesting idea. Or, perhaps, hybrids and EVs.

But if the same dealer has a Ford franchise, why can't it (and I don't see how it won't) simply replace the Mercury vehicles on the floor with Ford ones? It's the same floorspace, and is it really going to be that distracting visually or otherwise to replace Milans/Mariners with Fusions/Escapes? As far as the dealer that doesn't have a Ford franchise, obviously, that dealer will have issues. It will probably have to accept a buyout from Ford, or otherwise take on another brand.

I don't think Ford necessarily needs an entry brand. As it stands, the entry level trims that Ford has are competitive price-wise with entry-level brands with more/better features. For example, the Focus S is currently priced at $16,290; I'd expect it to go up to no more than $18,000 after the new model is introduced next year. By comparison, the Scion tC starts at $18,570. (The Kia Forte does start at a much lower price -- $13,695 -- but I still wouldn't say that the Focus is completely out of its price range, and, again, I think that the Focus has a better reputation.)

Update -- when I took the car out tonight, regenerative braking was behaving normally. Never realized before how regenerative braking, in addition to being a fuel saver, also improved the quality of the ride as you brake...

Hi, folks -- I'm wondering if anyone has run into this and knew whether this is a problem or not... Today, as I was driving home on a 7-mile surface street drive, it seemed like the braking feel was different -- and I was looking at the gauge, it appeared that the regenerative braking was not working at all, as, when the brake was depressed, the "recycle" icon was not displayed. (The uparrow on the battery did display, but was in blue, not in green.) The situation continued throughout the drive. I'm home now, so the car is off, but I'll be driving it later today, and I'll see if the situation continues. I'll also run a vehicle health report. Does anyone have an idea what might be going on, and whether this presents a safety issue or not? (This is not a battery calibration cycle, as the engine shut off normally when the car was at rest at the red lights.)

What "variation of options" is available on a Mercury that is not available on a Ford these days?

As Ford referred to in the press release, some (and I assume a majority) will be offered Ford franchises. If they accept, then they can sell Fords.

They could always try to sell Fords as well... I know that there are Mercury owners who allegedly will never buy a Ford, but if they would have been attracted by the Milan, is it really going to be terribly difficult to get them into a Fusion? (Certainly I preferred the looks of a Milan but didn't have any problem buying a Fusion.)

C&D Article on fortwo ED Somehow, I don't think it'd be that easy to sell ED to men.

I haven't driven a Fusion with a 3.5, but it is still my contention that the 2.5 Hybrid configuration provides the best of both worlds.

What advertising? (At least, I haven't seen any Kizashi ads.) My belief is that, while obviously not the only reason, "Kizashi" was an awful name for the North American market because unless one is seriously into car comparisons, no one would remember that name.

But utility-wise, there is little shared between the Accord sedan and coupe. The sedan, in fact, is classified as a large car by the EPA (at 106 cubic feet of interior space) and the coupe classified as a compact car (at 93 cubic feet). The difference is smaller than, but not much smaller than,t he difference between the Genesis sedan and coupe.

Well, no worse than the Accord and Accord Coupe... In any case, the Genesis seems to be genius naming-wise when compared to the Equus... I still think the Equus brings unsavory images to mind...

I have never driven (except on a one-day service rental of a Flex and a test drive of the Taurus) a vehicle with the MKZ's 3.5 V6, but when I had the 3.0 V6 Fusion SEL for a week for a trip last year, the Hybrid that I have seemed substantially more powerful due to the torque curve despite the lower raw HP numbers. I don't think that a MKZ Hybrid is going to be, in real terms, underpowered compared to the regular 3.5 V6.

As I understand it, the Fusion doesn't do this (neither does any other mid-size sedan, as far as I know). The only Ford vehicle that I know of that does this is the Flex.

The Prius is arguably a nicer car than the Lexus HS. (I know, they're not really on the same platform, but...)

The BMW 1-class doesn't seem to be going away any time soon...

Not that odd... One dealership close to where I work (which, however, is shutting down) is an FLM/Kia dealership. Kia effectively serves as the "lowest level" brand for the dealership, I think.

Well, I am not sure how many Acura/Infiniti dealers are actually real standalone dealers, though. For example, our local Infiniti dealership is actually owned by the same owner as the local Ford dealership as well, and the two dealerships are only a block away from each other. I am not completely certain that the Infiniti dealership could stand on its own without sharing infrastructure with the Ford dealership as it does -- and we're in a pretty affluent, foreign-car-buying population here in Silicon Valley. (No, I am not suggesting that the Infiniti dealership is not profitable; I am suggesting that it wouldn't be profitable without cost-sharing with the Ford dealership.)

I don't see how MKS/Taurus and MKZ/Fusion are any less different than ES/Camry, appearance-wise.

Not when the "older folks" (which I myself, in my late 30s, am beginning to consider myself, although obviously I'm not really there yet, I'd think) think that the cars are for their parents. Sure, the nation is aging, but you still need to change the perception about the cars to this aging group rather than expecting them to simply abandon their "younger cars" for "older cars." Of course, Ford has never had much of a problem making me a Mercury customer (see my list of cars), but this was back when a day when the Sable was considered a revolutionary car. (An appearance as the Coneheads' car certainly didn't hurt that perception, I think, although I had long wanted a Sable before that. :shades: ) Ford's product portfolio these days is heading back to a perception of Ford as being technologically advanced. But given that, I'm not sure that it is possible to make Lincoln/Mercury seem even more advanced.

Disclaimer: I have never worked in the auto industry, and I do not consider myself a particularly savvy car buyer. Most other people who post here will know more. But I decided to respond because these other folks might not feel as free to speak... 1. Usually it will be more expensive. That's because when a dealer has a car on the lot, he/she has an incentive to try to get rid of it, whereas if a car is ordered, while a good dealer shouldn't be trying to rip you off for it (and you should try to negotiate before the order to make sure that he/she doesn't), nor does he/she have a particular incentive to try to make sure that it gets off the lot. So the tradeoff is the higher cost versus configuring it exactly the way you want it. 2. Not likely any time soon. The start of a model year is generally when nothing, or very little, gets discounted. 3. That I don't know for sure, but I doubt it. But there should still be plenty of 2010 Fusions around if you want one.

I believe that a $500 deposit was required.

I'll prove it when you prove that CAFE causes people to drive more. (Of course, I'm sure you'll mangle up some alleged proof that doesn't actually prove anything.) I can just imagine the faces of what my ex-coworkers at Cisco would be like if I told them that someone is suggesting that the real reason they're doing their lengthy commutes is that their cars are more fuel efficient than they used to be. Yeah, right.