md3184 Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 Anyone have any strong opinion on the future success in China? Their appetite for American cars seems to be strong-- considering the Germans stronghold in the Europe luxury market (80 pct marketshare)-- it's hard not to think Lincolns future as a true global luxury brand rests heavily on their success in China. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 There's definitely potential for growth there, and I think a strong Lincoln brand in China can help them in other markets as well by allowing the brand to recover development costs more easily. That's assuming Lincoln keeps the vehicles it sells there similar/identical to the ones it sells in other markets. I know other brands have had different strategies about that over the years and even some Fords sold there are different (or at least older) than the ones it sells elsewhere in the world. I could see China as a good jumping point to add the necessary volume for Lincoln to get back into the RWD market at some point as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzcat Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 It's make lemonade from lemons time at Ford as far as Lincoln expansion goes. The brand has relative low awareness in China and even lower recall, which are not good. However, it does have the cachet of being an authentic foreign brand so it all depends on how Ford market and positions the brand. I honestly doubt that Ford is thinking Audi/BMW/Mercedes but I think it would considers the brand launch in China successful if after 3 or 4 years, Lincoln is outselling Acura or Infiniti, or catching up with Cadillac. That is a pretty reachable goal. Ford had a very rocky launch with Volvo, which was the last premium brand they had in China. I think they learned a lot about what not to do. The main thing is to have the right products to launch, otherwise, you stay out. Is MKZ and MKC the right product? I think so... certainly better than Volvo S40. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 17, 2014 Share Posted April 17, 2014 d had a very rocky launch with Volvo, which was the last premium brand they had in China. I think they learned a lot about what not to do. The main thing is to have the right products to launch, otherwise, you stay out. Is MKZ and MKC the right product? I think so... certainly better than Volvo S40. Given that the Edge already seems to be working out in China it bodes well for the MKX fairing decently as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2b2 Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 imho FoMoCo's lack (at least when compared to Ford-US) of experience & confidence (& perhaps hide-bound-ness) is the greatest PLUS for Lincoln-China to do (globally) what Lincoln-US would never-ever be ALLOWED to do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theoldwizard Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 Possible MKX concept teased as Lincoln confirms China expansionFrom the press release"Lincoln will bring to China a new breed of global vehicles developed with today's Chinese luxury auto customer in mind. By 2016, Lincoln will bring five new vehicles to China, starting this autumn with Lincoln MKZ, a midsize luxury sedan, and Lincoln MKC, a small luxury utility vehicle. The two vehicles will be followed by a midsize luxury SUV, an all-new full-size luxury sedan and a large luxury SUV – Lincoln Navigator"Okay, it is time to see if Ford is serious about Lincoln in China ! Volvo has lead the way witha stretched version of the S80 called the S80L. If Lincoln is serious, they must have a stretched version of the MkS ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 If Lincoln is serious, they must have a stretched version of the MkS ! Well, I think that depends how large the non-stretched MKS turns out to be. The S80 was always on the small side for a "full-size" car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2b2 Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 ^ in my pursuit of needlessly over-complicating EVERYthing... recent thought is that the MKS(whatever it's called) MIGHT be designed from the got-go to eventually be transformed into a BEV-electric when/after the Continental arrives to be emphatic Driver-Lux Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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