Ford wants Lincoln to be a luxury player with FWD

[Moby Vic]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

Yes, Lincoln will need this kind of vehicle in the medium- to long-term future even if for bragging rights alone, but to prematurely shoot the bullet on a risky model like this when you have yet to prove yourself to consumers on even the most basic models (MKZ et al) is just asking to go out of business!

Lincoln doesn't have a chassis for a class-leading RWD segment leader at the moment. But if they don't get there, they won't survive.

I agree with your statement, but what concerns me is that the official press releases state that Lincoln has no interest in going beyond where it is at the moment, and that the target market is young professional females. That is not Lincoln's DNA, and it is not the way forward if the brand is to continue.

I would love to see Lincoln revert to a single-vehicle lineup. Offer a very expensive four-door car in sedan and convertible form. Give it at least eight cylinders, make it rear-wheel or all-wheel drive, and use an all American steel body. Make it truly luxurious, and build 500 less than the market demands.

The problem with that is that it would probably destroy standalone Lincoln dealers (no longer buoyed by the former volume of Mercury sales). Ford needs to examine the costs of keeping Lincoln around, and the value a prestigious luxury marque could bring.

[fou_bleu]

Originally Posted by Moby Vic

Ford needs to examine the costs of keeping Lincoln around, and the value a prestigious luxury marque could bring.

I would love to see Lincoln revert to a single-vehicle lineup. Offer a very expensive four-door car in sedan and convertible form. Give it at least eight cylinders, make it rear-wheel or all-wheel drive, and use an all American steel body. Make it truly luxurious, and build 500 less than the market demands.

Ok, I'm done with this, my logic here must be just... dumb.

[Moby Vic]

The MKZ will not revive Lincoln. It's a midsize car. This is the USA. We like big for luxury cars. The Lincoln LS, even with its excellent Jaguar chassis, made little impression on the US market, in part because it was a small car by US luxury standards.

Lincoln is betting its livery future on the (FWD) MKT. How could you suggest eliminating it? It's the Town Car replacement. Lincoln wants buyers to use it for the professional (i.e., funeral) cars and airport shuttles of which the Town Car has been a mainstay for decades.

The Navigator, while ridiculous. is where the profit is in the USA. The unfortunate "brace face" restyle of a few years back has hurt sales, though.

I agree that a RWD flagship requires profits, but those won't come from Lincoln. They'll come from Ford. Ford is on the rise at the moment. The question is whether Lincoln will limp along long enough for Ford to be profitable enough to invest in a true luxury knockout again. The MKXZ is absolutely not it.

Lincoln is associated with presidents, gangsters, and old money, in that order. Gussied-up Fords on unibody FWD chassis are associated with none of that. That association is what killed Mercury.

[Dave R]

I've caught this thread a little late and the news is certainly a disappointment. As long as Lincoln stays FWD nobody is going to take them seriously. You can argue all you want about what defines a luxury car etc, but one thing is certain - the brands Lincoln is chasing all build RWD sedans. Lincoln isn't going to move out of Ford's shadow until they build a proper rear drive luxury sedan to compete with the Germans.... and Cadillac.

[Bossxr8]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

Oh, I get what you're saying, the ONLY reason Lincoln sales are shot is because there is no RWD.

I said nothing of the sort, all you do is make assumptions and twist other people's words. I'm not saying they should have RWD across the range, i'm saying basing the whole range on FWD/AWD Ford platforms is just dumb. Having a couple of FWD/AWD models is ok, especially for the smaller vehicles, but they must have the bigger cars as RWD. They have gone nowhere using re-hashed Ford FWD/AWD chassis's, they may as well change Lincoln to Mercury and kill off Lincoln if thats all they are going to do, cause thats basically all they are now, higher priced Mercurys with stupid looking grilles.

[QUOTE=cool65]

Originally Posted by Bossxr8

Acura is the only one I can think of that doesn't have one and they are a minor player with rubbish restyled Hondas. The NSX was the only good Acura.

They need a modern version of this. Put JFK in the advertising if need be

Ask & ye shall receive - 2012 Acura NSX
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LofPu0ycbo
(tomorrow's superbowl ad)
S E X on wheels

I was referring to bringing back the Lincoln Continental in the pic, not the NSX.

I couldn't care less what Acura do, and the new NSX while looking pretty good, is un-appealing to me cause its a lame hybrid V6, rumoured to make around 300kw. 300kw does not make a supercar, Ferrari, McClaren and Lamborghini are pushing well past 400kw now, 300kw was good in the late 90's, laughable for a supercar now. I know power isn't everything but having power that much lower than its rivals create's a problem of credibility.

[cool65]

All about power to weight!

[Bossxr8]

Originally Posted by cool65

All about power to weight!

Batteries and electric motors aren't exactly light, and the Ferrari 458 and McClaren MP4-12C are both lightweights.

[Nic85]

Not sure if it's been mentioned, but you only need to look to Hyundai for an answer on big sedans. I've mentioned on this forum a few times that for a family sedan it matters little which axle drives the car. However, for a large luxury sedan, I believe it matters a lot. Buyers in this market want bragging rights on power, driven wheels, badge and gadgets. Hyundai knew to break into that segment they'd need a large RWD platform with a V8 engine. Enter the Genesis/Equus - RWD, V8, 8 speed auto. Audi seem to get away with it in the A6 for some reason, but the higher end A6 range all get Quattro AWD, and all A8's are also AWD.

[fou_bleu]

Lincoln won't be making an A8 / 7-Series / S-Class size car for a long time, so I'd not even worry about that - try again around new Mustang / Falcon time and see how that pans out...

[Polyal]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

Lincoln won't be making an A8 / 7-Series / S-Class size car for a long time, so I'd not even worry about that - try again around new Mustang / Falcon time and see how that pans out...

I cant believe your telling a bloke n America who is obviously half clued up about a local car from here.

[fou_bleu]

Originally Posted by Polyal

I cant believe your telling a bloke n America who is obviously half clued up about a local car from here.

Meaning? If you think that Lincoln will have an S-Class sized RWD sedan before 2016, I have pity...