ice-capades

I understand the point you're making but in hindsight, what incentive was there to move the engine production back to the States just because they moved Super Duty production?

It's a 6-8 delay this year due to COVID-19.

Per Friday's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin) here's the production timetable for the 2020/2021 Ford Ranger. 09/04/2020 - 2019MY Fleet Final Order Due Date 09/17/2020 - 2019MY Last Day to Spec Change 12/04/2020 - 2019MY Balance Out Date 09/14/2020 - 2020MY Order Bank Open Date 10/15/2020 - 2020MY Scheduling Begins 12/07/2020 - 2020MY Job #1 Date The 2021 Ranger Order Guide will be available on or about 08/12/2019 and will be uploaded to the Product Order Guides section as soon as it's available.

Per Friday's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin) here's the updated production timetable for the 2020/2021 Lincoln Navigator. 09/04/2020 - 2020MY Fleet Final Order Due Date 09/12/2020 - 2020MY Last Day to Spec Change 11/29/2020 - 2020MY Job Last Date 09/16/2020 - 2021MY Order Bank Open Date 10/15/2020 - 2021MY Scheduling Begins 11/30/2020 - 2021MY Job #1 Date The 2021MY Lincoln Navigator Order Guide should be available on or about the date that the USOB (Unscheduled Order Bank) opens.

Per Friday's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin), the updated scheduling and production timetable has been released for the 2020/2021MY Explorer. 04/03/2020 - 2020MY Fleet Final Order Due Date 07/23/2020 - 2020MY Last Day to Spec Change 09/20/2020 - 2020MY Balance Out Date 07/13/2020 - 2021MY Order Bank Open Date  08/13/2020 - 2021MY Scheduling Begins 09/21/2020 - 2021MY Job #1 Date The 2021 Explorer Order Guide will be uploaded to the Dealer Order Guides Section as soon as it is available.

Per Friday's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin) here's the updated production timetable for the 2020/2021 Ford Expedition. 09/04/2020 - 2020MY Fleet Final Order Due Date 09/12/2020 - 2020MY Last Day to Spec Change 11/29/2020 - 2020MY Job Last Date 09/16/2020 - 2021MY Order Bank Open Date 10/15/2020 - 2021MY Scheduling Begins 11/30/2020 - 2021MY Job #1 Date The 2021MY Expedition Order Guide should be available on or about the date that the USOB (Unscheduled Order Bank) opens.

Per Friday's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin), the updated scheduling and production timetable has been released for the 2021MY Lincoln Aviator. 04/03/2020 - 2020MY Fleet Final Order Due Date 07/23/2020 - 2020MY Last Day to Spec Change 09/20/2020 - 2020MY Balance Out Date 07/13/2020 - 2021MY Order Bank Open Date 08/13/2020 - 2021MY Scheduling Begins 09/21/2020 - 2021MY Job #1 Date The 2021 Lincoln Aviator Order Guide will be uploaded to the Order Guides Section as soon as it is available.

You're right on the mark regarding EU compliance and the battery supply issue. The big factor will be battery and production capacity for the 2022MY.

There's supposed to be allocation for stock units but it's unknown how many stock units will be available for production. How many stock units Ford makes available as a factor compared to how many retail orders will be produced the first year is anyone's guess at this point. There's also the question of how allocation will be distributed nationwide. I'd expect it to be primarily on the two coasts with the larger dealers getting a larger share of whatever the stock availability will be. With first year production limited to only 50,000 units, with half supposedly committed to Europe, first year availability is going to be very limited to say the least. Then factor in that Ford wants Dealer stock units available for "extended" test drives. It's going to be interesting to see how things develop. Ford doesn't have to do anything about limiting production. It's pretty much understood that the first year's production is limited to battery availability. As for pricing, it's out of Ford's hands as Dealers can charge what they want. I'm expecting that most Dealers are going to sell Mustang Mach-E's above MSRP based on the limited availability. The market will decide how successful the Dealer pricing will be. Shelby customers have accepted MSRP+ pricing for years because of the limited availability. it was the same for F-150 Raptor's for years but now in many markets you can name your own price for a Raptor.

Ford will do what they often do. They'll run a branding spot for the Mustang Mach-E, prospective customers that didn't know about it beforehand will go to see the new model at dealerships, see none in stock, find out how few will be available, object to some Dealer's pricing and walk away, or be an impulse buyer and buy/lease at any price. The branding campaign will run until the vehicles are on the way to dealers and then Ford will pull the campaign and rely on word-of-mouth and interest generated when the Mustang Mach-E is out on the road. Ford will make a splash with the campaign initially and then they'll pull it and turn to something else. Ford won't spend a penny more on marketing the Mustang Mach-E than they have to.

An updated 2021 EcoSport Order Guide has been uploaded to the Dealer Order Guides section.

It'll be interesting to see how many of the "options" will be Dealer installed, factory invoiced items. In any event, with the sheer volume of options it looks like will be available, it's going to be very interesting to see the order guide and how the options, packages, etc. are structured. Lots of customization, etc. to suit a wide variety of buyers but I expect the new Bronco is going to be a potential nightmare to order but we'll know better next week once the order guide is released.

Initial scheduling and production is restricted to Dealer stock orders and vehicle colors are not a factor. I've never seen a paint color listed as "late availability". Retail orders don't start scheduling until the "Okay to Buy" status is achieved which is after 5 consecutive days of production without defects which is usually when the initial shipping authorization is issued. The "Okay to Buy" status is usually achieved within the first 4-6 weeks of production. Until then, all produced units are held at the plant pending additional potential work to repair detected defects in units produced prior to the "Okay to Buy' status being achieved. It takes time to clear out and ship all the stock units that have been sitting at the plant but once the "Okay to Buy" status is reached, units produced are released for immediate shipping.

The Job #1 Date is the production start date for the new Model Year.

With a Job #1 Date on 10/26/2020 and the usual slow production ramp up with a new model, especially with all the media attention expected for the Mach-E, vehicles probably won't start to arrive at dealerships until at least mid-December or later. As such, I'm surprised they don't introduce the Mach-E as a 2022MY which would be easy.

Per Friday's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin), here's the production timetable for the 2021 Mustang Mach-E. 06/22/2020 - 2021MY Order Bank Open Date 08/20/2020 - 2021MY Scheduling Begins 10/26/2020 - 2021MY Job #1 Date

The Lincoln Division has been poorly managed for decades. The last time it was distinctive was back in the '70's and '80's with the iconic waterfall grille on the Mark IV/V series and the Town Cars. They were unmistakable on the road and you could spot them a half mile away. Then they started changing the design language but never did anything that had the same impact and they kept changing the look every few years. The one thing that's been consistent is the inconsistent commitment to the Lincoln brand. In the past 10 years the company has been pouring billions of dollars into the brand to try to save/revitalize the brand and it's image. At least now all the Lincoln models have a unified appearance. The new models may be very good regarding quality, etc. The big problem is that there's nothing distinctive about a Lincoln and you can easily pass by one and not even realize it.

FYI... The 2021 Mustang Mach-E scheduling and Job#1 Date (10/26/2020) information was posted in the Mustang Forum.

Per today's FDNB (Fleet Distribution News Bulletin), here's the production timetable for the 2021 Mustang Mach-E. 06/22/2020 - 2021MY Order Bank Open Date 08/20/2020 - 2021MY Scheduling Begins 10/26/2020 - 2021MY Job #1 Date

Order guides have been updated for the following vehicles. 2020 Ford Transit 2021 Ford Transit Connect There are no Lincoln order guide updates.

This is old news for the Continental in the U.S.

Here's some of the new website banners for Mach-E marketing released to Dealers.

Here's some of the new Mach-E marketing photos that Ford released to Dealers.