fuzzymoomoo

I'm not gonna lie, I don't even know where the local Nissan dealership is

When did the new model go on sale? I personally find it hilarious that I already saw one sitting on the used lot at my local Chevy dealer tonight. It was 2:30 in the morning so I couldn't get a great look at the badging, but I'm pretty sure it was the XD model.

If a smaller engine (3.0 GTDI) can make north of 400 in the Continental and MKZ, I don't see a reason why they can't or won't justify an increase in power beyond torque for the F-150. The only thing I'm certain of is the Raptor will get the most powerful version for trucks.

There's a distribution center in New Boston, MI that's near the Flat Rock plant. They ship predominantly via truck there. They do have the ability to ship via rail, but it's mostly trucks. That COULD be where it was sent.

XT5 launch is moving slower than they would like. They had to idle the plant they're built at for a week because of a parts shortage caused by the Japan Earthquake.

He's right, there's no stop ship going on for the Mustang right now. I would have heard about it at the plant. That kind of stuff is usually big news. They probably sent it to a third party distribution center, there's one not super far from FRAP. The retaining lot at the plant is a little full right now and they can only load trains so fast. If you don't mind me asking, where do you live? That could help answer a few questions.

I agree. I saw it at NAIAS this year and I didn't like it at all. It's like they tried way too hard to shoehorn the new look onto it. I get trying to establish brand identity. They're trying too hard.

I prefer the Impala over the Malibu. The new Cruze on the other hand. Blech. The whole nose looks off to me.

I think that's a pretty safe bet for the regular F-150 models since that engine will be making 450+ in the Raptor.

By all accounts the new model is VASTLY improved over the outgoing model. Plus it seems to be selling pretty well early on. Not saying I personally like it because I don't. It looks like King Kong sat on the front end of it. Totally agree about the Camaro. They also made the window narrower!. I had no idea that was even possible. How the hell are you supposed to see out of the thing?

10R80 as far as I've seen/heard

I think the unexpected part is it's being released before the raptor. I don't think anyone saw that coming. I know I didn't.

No beef with the platform. It was a great platform that lived a long life. When they killed it there was nothing they could do to make it any lighter, more efficient or safer. It was time for it to go.

lololololololololololol I laugh at these so called "contractors" who drive around in fully loaded Platinum F-150s that they wash no less than twice a week.

Matt? Now I'm lost....

uh.... the Tahoe is made in the US....

Fire sale on the old model, on top of the new model actually being competent vs. the old one. Fusion is in the process of the 2017 changeover. I don't expect Fusion sales to be down for long.

With exception of MKZ, presumably due to the 2017 changeover, every Lincoln model experienced growth. Even the dead in the water MKS. But Lincoln needs a total lineup reset now.... Sheesh....

IMO, in this instance the main reason for that is the insane buzz around the Continental. There have been instances in the past where a refresh jumpstart sales. The Honda Civic a few years ago jumps to mind.

It's still considered a new model since it's a refresh in Ford's eyes. Half of MKZ sales are hybrid? Wow I didn't know it was that high.

A. I doubt you know me, 1. I'm older than you. 2. I don't think you live near me B. I am on Facebook but I don't give that out to anyone.

Uh, you're hard pressed to find a bigger Rush fan than me. That song isn't necessarily about factory workers. It's the working man in general.

That's a great point. I wonder how much MKZ/Continental will step on each other's toes given that they're both new models launching within 8 months of each other.

They did tack a different grille on Ford models. They called them Mercurys and they added nothing to the bottom line.

You're right, Lincoln will never me Mercedes, BMW, et al. They don't need it to be. The goal is to make as much profit per vehicle as they can, not moving metal just for the sake of sales. Have you ever worked in a factory before? Based on your attitude and "we live comfortably" comment (which where I come from is code for rich boy, FYI. You did yourself no favors by saying that) you haven't. I've now worked in 2 assembly plants and am in process of experiencing first hand how complicated a new model launch is with the Continental. The first was the 2015 Focus refresh and while that was relatively minor as far as changes go, it was still an ordeal. The Lincoln is way more involved. Every car to this point that has been built has been gone over with a fine tooth comb, and we are still MONTHS away from job 1. It's still a long road ahead, this doesn't happen overnight. And oh by the way, they still haven't perfected the line processes, and they won't until after job 1, they almost never do. Stopping production in 5 assembly plants for the sake of doing a hard reset on the Lincoln lineup just isn't feasible. They wouldn't even do that for the Ford lineup. It still took them 5 years to revamp that. Look at what happened in 2014 when Ford did 23 product launches worldwide and look at the resulting quality issues that happened. That's the absolute LAST thing Lincoln needs is quality issues. Then there's the money aspect. It takes MILLIONS to retool a plant for a new model. Don't believe me? Look at the investment Michigan Assembly Plant is getting to retool from Focus/C-Max production to Ranger and Bronco production in the next 4 years. $900 million. By the time it's all said and done, that number could likely top $1 BILLION. For 2 models. You can look at the 2015 UAW contract if you don't believe me. So retooling 5 assembly plants, probably every stamping plant on some level, PLUS getting suppliers in order is an investment that not even GM would be stupid enough to do, and they wrote the book on questionable business decisions.