Focus Shifts to Lincoln from Mercury - Car News

[taxman100]

The Panther is still the best platform Ford makes, mainly because of it's attributes, but also because, other than the Mustang, Ford doesn't have any other automobile platforms - the rest are copied from someplace else.

 

Nassar and Billy Boy really screwed this company.

[P71_CrownVic]

If your only concerned with police sales, not to mention the since the car hasn't changed all that much, if they replace them, they can reuse the old equipment on them, saving money.

 

Theres a big difference between being a good business choice and a good car.

There are very few things that will it into my '01 from a new '07 or '08.

 

And for a platform that Ford neglected for the past 10 years, it still is a pretty good platform...for what it is.

[silvrsvt]

The Panther is still the best platform Ford makes, mainly because of it's attributes, but also because, other than the Mustang, Ford doesn't have any other automobile platforms - the rest are copied from someplace else.

 

Nassar and Billy Boy really screwed this company.

 

 

Come on. give me a break...so Ford is supposed to not use anything from companies it Owns for crying out loud?

 

Thats just as bad as saying FNA shouldn't use FOE platforms, because they wheren't developed by them.

 

Both the CD3 and D3 platforms started life as a Mazda and Volvo platform, but I can guarette that the Mazda platform had alot of Ford involvement even before it became a Ford and the Volvo platform was seriously massaged by Ford engineers before coming the 500/Taurus and that the whatever Volvo uses the D3 for now was improved because of that...

[silvrsvt]

And for a platform that Ford neglected for the past 10 years, it still is a pretty good platform...for what it is.

 

A Cop/Taxi car....what a great thing to strive for :rolleyes:

[LincolnFan]

Is 3700lbs a lot for a 4 door vehicle now?

 

I think LF needs to take a peak at vehicle weights these days as they continue to go higher and higher with safety and technology features driving weight up.

 

3700 pounds is almost as much as the D3 Taurus, a much bigger vehicle with a best in class rating from IIHS.

 

worse platform alive? i thought that was the panther?

 

SAt nav how long did it take to get SAT NAV on CD3?

 

BTW this isn't about the aura.

This about the new cougar

 

 

The panther, although old is reliable and has some uses. AKA heavy-duty police stuff.

 

The Aura is just a piece of shit molded together by redneck spit, the NAV was available on the Zephyr when it first came out. Even the piece of shit CD3 that was biased on the shitty 626 isn't close to being as shitty as the GM midshitters.

[silvrsvt]

Even the piece of shit CD3 that was biased on the shitty 626 isn't close to being as shitty as the GM midshitters.

 

The CD3 was based more on the CDW3 (? aka Mondeo and Contour) platform then the older 626 platform...

[MKII]

I don't think you can be a volume brand and a Luxury Brand at the same time. You can have a model within a brand that represents volume. Something your price well, and market well under the target of it being the volume 'bread-n-butter' of a specific brand. But can you have a real 'volume' brand, and still maintain the distinction of being luxury?

 

BMW's 3 series.

[rkisler]

BMW's 3 series.

 

Absolutely the 3-series is an example of a high volume luxury brand.

 

BMW sell over 500,000 units annually worldwide. They have numerous derivatives. And they have the balls to charge extra for leather (the base model has "leatherette" seats), metallic paint, and power seats, so a decently equipped model runs in the high 30's to mid 40's.

 

At these economies of scale and pricing, BMW is printing money.

[morgande]

BMW's 3 series.

 

BMW is a brand. The 3 series are models within the brand of BMW. The 3 series IS NOT A BRAND. There is no dealer I can visit that sells only 3 series BMW's and nothing else of BMW.

 

Hummer = Brand.

Caddy = Brand.

Lincoln = Brand.

 

However:

 

CTS does not = Brand

7 Series does not = Brand

SLK does not = Brand

 

My argument is that you can a MODEL within a BRAND that represents volume. The 3 series is a MODEL within the BMW Brand that is volume for the BRAND. However it is NOT a BRAND in of itself!

[Watchdevil]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand

 

The word brand has nothing to do with the terms make or model. Branding has a literal meaning... To mark or designate something with a specific name, symbol, insignia, etc. So Fords are branded with the blue oval, but also branded with specific model names and in some cases insignias or logos that represent specific model names.

 

Car models can be considered brands within brands themselves. The Mustang is just one prime example. It is a brand of Ford. It uses a name, symbol or insignia, specific design and imagery all associated with the specific model name and vehicle itself.

 

Soft drink manufaturers have brands of sodas all made by the same company. Same goes for many household products as well.

 

Now some car model designations do not really define themselves as a brand itself, just a designation of a specifc model within a brand. However, if consumers begin to widely recognize a specific model designation and relate it to a specific design or image then it becomes a brand. A brand is generally a name of something that is widely accepted and recognized.

 

If someone mentions a Z28 or 300ZX, those model designations (or in some cases submodel designations) have established brand equity as being commonly recognized as specific vehicles without necessarily mentioning the make and/or model.

 

Now I can see with the poliferation of confusing alpha-numeric names it becomes totally necessary in some cases to mention the brand make along with the model designation just to give people something as a reference to relate a model to.

 

Sometimes brands take a long time to develop recognition. It's part of the reason Taurus was chosen to continue the Five Hundred body style. People recognize Taurus as a Ford brand. If the Fusion stays around long enough and contines with success, it wil become a recognized brand.

 

Some brands become so widely known they become a noun to describe a specific product in general. For instance, Band Aid has become a band-aid for people to commonly refer to a bandage. Vise-Grip is a specific brand which has become a common name for such a tool. In electrical, Romex has become a common name to describe a type of wire.

Edited November 28, 2007 by Watchdevil

[controller]

I love the "Ford is killing Mercury" as much as I love the "Ford should sell cars built in Europe here" line of reasoning.

 

The idea is so simple. Ford should spend a fortune to reduce volume. It's so easy, you'd think they would've thought of that before.

Oh wait, they spent $6B-$7B a year on product development and lost over a million units of NA volume.

 

Fact is Ford will keep Mercury as long as it is an asset. Ford will not eliminate Mercury if it is a performing asset, they will eliminate it when it becomes a liability.

 

The people that claim to see behind what Ford is actually doing and saying probably believe that Dan Brown is a non-fiction writer....

 

Face it people. Ford is keeping Mercury as long as it is profitable. And Ford is doing what they should to keep it profitable. That is, they are not dumping a fortune into it, but are also not ignoring it.

 

DUH.

 

Heck. Ford is about the only car company that has done this right. GM screwed up Oldsmobile, and Chrysler, Plymouth. Just like acquisitions. Whatever Ford's transgressions with Jaguar, they pale in comparison to Saab: Born from Jets. Raised by Citations.

 

Richard,

 

Just wondering: Does Ford truly need Mercury? I have to say this, but if Toyota has Lexsus; Honda has Acura; Nissan has Infiniti; and Dodge has Chrysler; why can't there be Ford and Lincoln? I know Merc is profitable now and if Ford expects it to remain profitable then I understand wanting to keep it. Its just that Ford has added some trim lines to some of there Ford models such as a "Limited" line that they would have to make a Merc something special for a customer to make a Merc purchase. Then there's the issue of making the Lincoln version different from the Merc. To me it seems like some of the Ford models have comepletely surpassed Merc and are encroaching on Lincoln territory as far as interior content goes and it leaves Merc in limbo. I may be off here, but maybe Ford should be the brand that your average American will purchase and then Lincoln is the one and only step up to the luxury brand. Wouldn't the time, money and R/D spent on Merc be better spent if incorporated into Ford models? Ford appears to be too watered down sometimes with producing a Fusion, Milan, and an MKZ; then there's the Taurus, Montego, and now MKS. There defending too many fronts with too little resources. It's great Merc pulls in a lot of female-sales, but Fords can be made with trim levels that will appeal to women too. If Merc is phased out, it'll probably mean many more job cuts, which sucks, so hopefully Ford has some Merc products coming down the line if it intends to keep it. Maybe Ford should phase out Merc, who knows? Sorry if I've offended any Merc employees; just an outsider looking in.

[armadamaster]

worse platform alive? i thought that was the panther?

 

Yeah.....only vehicle tested and passed for 75+ MPH rear end collision....proven good for 400K+ miles....one of Ford's most profitable platforms ever.....oh yes what a turd....

 

Edited November 28, 2007 by Armada Master

[silvrsvt]

one of Ford's most profitable platforms ever.....oh yes what a turd....

 

Gotta quit living in the past...Ford use to sell huge amounts (mostly to fleets) of Taurui back in the day...they dont any more.

[silvrsvt]

I may be off here, but maybe Ford should be the brand that your average American will purchase and then Lincoln is the one and only step up to the luxury brand. Wouldn't the time, money and R/D spent on Merc be better spent if incorporated into Ford models? Ford appears to be too watered down sometimes with producing a Fusion, Milan, and an MKZ; then there's the Taurus, Montego, and now MKS. There defending too many fronts with too little resources. It's great Merc pulls in a lot of female-sales, but Fords can be made with trim levels that will appeal to women too. If Merc is phased out, it'll probably mean many more job cuts, which sucks, so hopefully Ford has some Merc products coming down the line if it intends to keep it. Maybe Ford should phase out Merc, who knows? Sorry if I've offended any Merc employees; just an outsider looking in.

 

 

Well keep this in mind:

 

From this point Forward, Lincoln will have its own unique sheet metal vs Ford/Mercury. You can see that now with the MKS vs the Taurus..no sheetmetal shared between the two of them, and the extra money that Lincoln can command makes it having its own sheetmetal smart idea (profitable).

 

Limiting Mercury to a couple models with new front ends and slightly changed rear ends doesnt cost that all much, which is important to keep in mind...because as long as Ford is making money with Mercury and bringing in new clients, it will keep them around.

 

As strange as this may sound to people who a little bit about the automotive industry, People don't equate Mercury with Ford, thus it doesn't have the stigma that Ford might have.Thus why it gets conquest sales.

 

The other thing that Ford should keep in mind is that current Ford products shouldn't be artificially limited because Mercury either (i.e. HID and other "high end" options) for the sake of differentiate the two models. Since many Ford fans would pay for that stufff (and increase the cars profitability)

[P71_CrownVic]

Gotta quit living in the past...Ford use to sell huge amounts (mostly to fleets) of Taurui back in the day...they dont any more.

Thats because Ford let, the car that saved them, rot on the vine and lose market share. Just like the Panthers, Ranger, Escort, Windstar, LS, etc.

[Watchdevil]

Well keep this in mind:

 

From this point Forward, Lincoln will have its own unique sheet metal vs Ford/Mercury. You can see that now with the MKS vs the Taurus..no sheetmetal shared between the two of them, and the extra money that Lincoln can command makes it having its own sheetmetal smart idea (profitable).

 

Limiting Mercury to a couple models with new front ends and slightly changed rear ends doesnt cost that all much, which is important to keep in mind...because as long as Ford is making money with Mercury and bringing in new clients, it will keep them around.

 

As strange as this may sound to people who a little bit about the automotive industry, People don't equate Mercury with Ford, thus it doesn't have the stigma that Ford might have.Thus why it gets conquest sales.

 

The other thing that Ford should keep in mind is that current Ford products shouldn't be artificially limited because Mercury either (i.e. HID and other "high end" options) for the sake of differentiate the two models. Since many Ford fans would pay for that stufff (and increase the cars profitability)

 

Pehaps Ford doesn't do enough to differentiate it's run of the mill lower trimmed models from it's more premium models so people will be attracted to Mercuries.

 

Back in the day within any model series there used to be Torino models which were premium over Fairlanes. The LTD was premium over Galaxies. The premium models usually had alternate styling, grilles and trim to distiguish them from lower end trim levels.

 

With the current lineup, there is very little to distinguish an SE model from an SES, Limited, etc. other than different wheels, leather, powertrain upgrades and maybe chrome exhaust tips.

 

We can still see a greater distinction in trim levels between base Mustangs, GT's and Shelby models.

 

The greatest sales success of the 1970's was creating alternately styled and equipped personal luxury coupes based on a regular mid-sized line of cars but with a style that looked like cars costing thousands more.

 

By the late 1980's it became the thing to create luxury brand makes based on pedestrian Asian models...

 

Nowdays people don't have as much money to throw around or desire as much debt. People are looking for well made well equipped cars with personal style that makes them feel indulged while being a good value.

[elkarlo]

 

Yeah no shit. More product = higher sales.

 

Yeah they do. I think they need to make an upscale Focus. Or at least a small car in the line up.

[Watchdevil]

Yeah they do. I think they need to make an upscale Focus. Or at least a small car in the line up.

 

Here is your upscale Focus... The Lincoln MKY... :cheerleader:

 

Edited December 1, 2007 by Watchdevil

[elkarlo]

Here is your upscale Focus... The Lincoln MKY... :cheerleader:

 

 

Oh good, about time they stop ignoring Lincoln. I think Mercury will still stay around. It's not hard to add a bit of styling and features to a car. That's all Mercury is . Besides Americans love different brands for some reasome, so it makes sense to keep Mercury.

[DCK]

I just have to ask, reading the headline that focus shifts from Mercury to Lincoln, When the hell was focus even on Mercury? It should read focus shifts from penny pinchers to products development.