PREMiERdrum Posted June 1, 2011 Share Posted June 1, 2011 LINK - Auto News & Commentary Lincoln tops Tsunami-affected Infiniti again, Acura and Lexus slip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BORG Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 (edited) Lincoln sales are down except for the MKZ and MKX, and the MKZ is padded with HEAVY incentives, largely to keep Mercury customers. MKX was able to sustain sales with no incentives however. Edited June 2, 2011 by BORG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Lincoln sales are down except for the MKZ and MKX, and the MKZ is padded with HEAVY incentives, largely to keep Mercury customers. MKX was able to sustain sales with no incentives however. I dunno about that...the MKZ has almost 3500 in rebates, but the MKX has 1500 in rebates on it. Strangest thing is the MKT has only 1K rebate on it..and its the slow selling Lincoln LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BORG Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 (edited) I dunno about that...the MKZ has almost 3500 in rebates, but the MKX has 1500 in rebates on it. Strangest thing is the MKT has only 1K rebate on it..and its the slow selling Lincoln LOL There are additional incentives to Mercury "Households" on the MKZ as well. The MKZ also stickers much lower than the MKX. My parents were Mercury Mariner customers, and Lincoln customers prior to that. They've had the MKZ before and didn't want another, no matter how good the incentives (largely because they wanted an SUV and Lincoln/Mercury only had the very pricey MKX to sell them). There were $5,500 in incentives on the MKZ when they were shopping in March. I still think it was a tremendous mistake to axe Mercury before Lincoln had a Mariner equivalent. They are going to loose a ton of those customers in this process. Edited June 2, 2011 by BORG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 There are additional incentives to Mercury "Households" on the MKZ as well. The MKZ also stickers much lower than the MKX. My parents were Mercury Mariner customers, and Lincoln customers prior to that. They've had the MKZ before and didn't want another, no matter how good the incentives (largely because they wanted an SUV and Lincoln/Mercury only had the very pricey MKX to sell them). There were $5,500 in incentives on the MKZ when they were shopping in March. I still think it was a tremendous mistake to axe Mercury before Lincoln had a Mariner equivalent. They are going to loose a ton of those customers in this process. Anybody who wants a Mariner but refuses to buy an Escape baffles me. I could understand buying a Mariner over the Escape if the two are side by side but refusing to buy one now just because it doesn't have a Lincoln or Mercury badge sounds really snobbish to me given the very minor differences in styling. Losing the Milan sure hasn't hurt with Fusion sales at all time highs so I'm pretty sure Ford is really happy with the decision to kill Mercury. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintlaz1 Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Anybody who wants a Mariner but refuses to buy an Escape baffles me. I could understand buying a Mariner over the Escape if the two are side by side but refusing to buy one now just because it doesn't have a Lincoln or Mercury badge sounds really snobbish to me given the very minor differences in styling. Losing the Milan sure hasn't hurt with Fusion sales at all time highs so I'm pretty sure Ford is really happy with the decision to kill Mercury. You have never heard of personal tastes? You dont see refine styling of the Mariner vs the Escape? even if its just a front end change i still see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Strangest thing is the MKT has only 1K rebate on it..and its the slow selling Lincoln LOL I think that is telling. Ford is probably far more comfortable with MKT volumes than us armchair CEO's are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 You have never heard of personal tastes? You dont see refine styling of the Mariner vs the Escape? even if its just a front end change i still see it. Well, Ford's volume for the past several months has increased enough to completely erase the losses caused by Mercury's demise. Seems like a great decision so far. Remember: Mercury's ATP's were far closer to Ford's than they were to Lincoln's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford Jellymoulds Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Well, Ford's volume for the past several months has increased enough to completely erase the losses caused by Mercury's demise. Seems like a great decision so far. Remember: Mercury's ATP's were far closer to Ford's than they were to Lincoln's. If you take the new Fiesta numbers out it has fallen Nick. The European Fiesta now world car has replaced the lost Mercury sales... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 If you take the new Fiesta numbers out it has fallen Nick. Why would you take out the Fiesta numbers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford Jellymoulds Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 (edited) Why would you take out the Fiesta numbers? Why would you say axed Mercury numbers don't count for anything? Edited June 2, 2011 by Ford Jellymoulds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Why would you say axed Mercury numbers don't count for anything? Outside of the Grand Marquis, The Ford name plated platform made up (and then some) the difference in sales that the Mercury model did this time last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Why would you say axed Mercury numbers don't count for anything? Where did I say they don't count for anything? All I said was that Ford's increased sales are more than making up for the volume that was contributed by Mercury at this point last year, which is true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wish4newstang Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 I really think you maybe missing the point. Maybe the Mercurys were Fords with fancy grills. However along with that fancy grill came the dealer, and the real or percieved service one got at the Mercury dealership. So maybe you did make up for the loss of Mercury, but those are still customers Ford may never get back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PREMiERdrum Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 I really think you maybe missing the point. Maybe the Mercurys were Fords with fancy grills. However along with that fancy grill came the dealer, and the real or percieved service one got at the Mercury dealership. So maybe you did make up for the loss of Mercury, but those are still customers Ford may never get back. Unfortunately, it looks like the cost required to keep them wasn't justified by the dollars they brought it. From a volume standpoint, YTD Ford/Lincoln has recovered Mercury's volume more than threefold: LINK - Auto News and Commentary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I really think you maybe missing the point. Maybe the Mercurys were Fords with fancy grills. However along with that fancy grill came the dealer, and the real or percieved service one got at the Mercury dealership. So maybe you did make up for the loss of Mercury, but those are still customers Ford may never get back. So if I lose one Mercury customer but gain 2 more Ford customers while saving billions each year AND getting rid of excess dealers in the process - tell me again how that's bad for Ford? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2005Explorer Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I think that is telling. Ford is probably far more comfortable with MKT volumes than us armchair CEO's are. Well it is at 399 a month now. I assume we might see more rebates when it slips under 300. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomServo92 Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I really think you maybe missing the point. Maybe the Mercurys were Fords with fancy grills. However along with that fancy grill came the dealer, and the real or percieved service one got at the Mercury dealership. So maybe you did make up for the loss of Mercury, but those are still customers Ford may never get back. If they replace them with happy Ford vehicle owners, they don't need them back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcthorne Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I really think you maybe missing the point. Maybe the Mercurys were Fords with fancy grills. However along with that fancy grill came the dealer, and the real or percieved service one got at the Mercury dealership. So maybe you did make up for the loss of Mercury, but those are still customers Ford may never get back. I think you may be close to a part of the reason Mercury had to go. The Lincoln service departments have and will continue to provide (or should) a higher level of service than corresponding Ford service. This needs to improve further if Lincoln is to gain Lexus and Benz customers. They cannot afford to sell rebadged fords, at ford price points and give away the higher cost service. And make no mistake, the service costs are higher for Ford and are going to seperate further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I always joke with my "service advisor" at the Lincoln dealership...I walk in thru the doors look a the receptionist and will say things like "SO, how are we doing today in the set of the movie "Cocoon II"?? or, "Ok, its a bit too busy in here, do I need to yell GRIM Reaper to get them running out the door...? or "Will the owner of the Grand Marquis please remove your vehicle from the fire lane, and dash out of the way for the stampede"... But I've asked some of the sales people, what are they selling their current customers and they tell me that the whole "switch from Town Car and buy an MKT instead", won't work at all. The vehicle has horrible sightlines, the older people cant push/pull levers to get to the 3rd row, or even bother with that. And even with the 2 row version of the Town Car MKT, they do not see that as being realistic. They tell me some are moving to the little Lincoln, but very few and seldom. And they tell me the complaints they have been receiving from the Cocoon crowd on the the big sedan have been the sightlines, and they feel too confined with the intimate cockpit, so they feel their just drive their Grand Marquis into the ground. They tell me a good 90% of those who wanted to shop for a new Lincoln, and it's the cocoon crowd, if decided to stay with what they have instead. And its not reflective on just Lincoln, some have told their salespeople they have looked at Buick and Toyota and have similar issues but the few they tell me have jumped ship, have been to Toyota (Avalon and Camry). They do tell me a few that did purchase a new replacement car to their GMarquis, returned with an Escape/Mariner.. They said the customers liked the convinience of getting in and out, good sightlines and good price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I always joke with my "service advisor" at the Lincoln dealership...I walk in thru the doors look a the receptionist and will say things like "SO, how are we doing today in the set of the movie "Cocoon II"?? or, "Ok, its a bit too busy in here, do I need to yell GRIM Reaper to get them running out the door...? or "Will the owner of the Grand Marquis please remove your vehicle from the fire lane, and dash out of the way for the stampede"... But I've asked some of the sales people, what are they selling their current customers and they tell me that the whole "switch from Town Car and buy an MKT instead", won't work at all. The vehicle has horrible sightlines, the older people cant push/pull levers to get to the 3rd row, or even bother with that. And even with the 2 row version of the Town Car MKT, they do not see that as being realistic. They tell me some are moving to the little Lincoln, but very few and seldom. And they tell me the complaints they have been receiving from the Cocoon crowd on the the big sedan have been the sightlines, and they feel too confined with the intimate cockpit, so they feel their just drive their Grand Marquis into the ground. They tell me a good 90% of those who wanted to shop for a new Lincoln, and it's the cocoon crowd, if decided to stay with what they have instead. And its not reflective on just Lincoln, some have told their salespeople they have looked at Buick and Toyota and have similar issues but the few they tell me have jumped ship, have been to Toyota (Avalon and Camry). They do tell me a few that did purchase a new replacement car to their GMarquis, returned with an Escape/Mariner.. They said the customers liked the convinience of getting in and out, good sightlines and good price. The vast majority of Town Car buyers are fleet companies, not old people, so most of those complaints are pretty irrelevant. Lincoln needs to move away from the "Cocoon crowd" as you label them anyway. A brand focused on selling cars to 80 year olds isn't going to survive in this day and age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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