GrandmaC

Can somebody please tell me what the TIME IN TRANSIT is from the time a vehicle actually leaves the plant in Hermosillo, on a rail car or a truck, until it gets to the port in Benicia, CA?

I want to add my thanks to all of you for filling us in on the details of dealer allocations and ordering. As dedonut says, we have been fascinated, and wanting to find out as much as we can. Thanks to the internet and the Forum we can get close to the process, and for me the closer I get to it, the closer I want to get to it. But, cars are almost here, and now I'm thinking that when they do get here we're going to have a big gap in our time--no more research to do! hmmmm Guess there's nothing to do but get in those babies and go out and enjoy DRIVING them!

It IS exciting, and I'm enjoying learning about the production/shipping process. And, of course, since I have the VIN I just feel that I should be able to use that to track the car like tracking a UPS or FedEx package! Guess its not that simple, though. Anyway, I love the wealth of information that this forum provides, and thank you, too, for your responses.

I have the last El Dorado, a 2002 ESC, and have loved it-- hate to give it up actually, but technologically it's a dinosaur. Cadillac just doesn't have good reliability ratings right now, so I have not even looked at them. I was looking at Buick LaCrosse and had pretty well decided that would be the car, but then decided to try the Lincoln just for comparison, and liked the ride better than the LaCrosse. I also like the ratings that Lincoln is getting and fact that Ford did not take bail-out money.

A question, now, about rail transport from Hermosillo. Austin suggests a transfer point in Texas. We are in northern California. Is there also a rail route that would come north from Hermosillo instead of going east? Is there a distribution center somewhere in southern California for all the cars being trucked north?

Thanks, Austin, for taking the mystery out of the building process for us. Short of a tour of the factory, your response and the video are the next best thing! I loved the video. :-)

Thank you, NNRT, and dedonut. I'll await further replies.

I have a Lincoln MKZ on order, with a build date of 3/18. So now I'm wondering how long is a car actually on the production line before rolling off, ready for transit?

Good, thanks for the reassurance!

Thanks for this info. As my car is on-order, with a build date of 3/18, I'm wondering now if the disaster in Japan will have an effect on the supply of electronics for its completion?

I'm excited about buying my first Ford product, actually, a Lincoln MKZ, after some 40 years of being a loyal General Motors owner. The MKZ is assembled in Hermosillo, Mexico, and my question is, how do I know where the components are coming from: engine, transmission, body pieces, and finally, the electronics? I've found the Global Operations site, but without knowing, for instance, which transmission the Z comes with, I can't tell which of the five transmission plants will be providing the transmission for my car. The same with all the other components of the vehicle. Any advice?