REPORT: Stand-alone Lincoln-Mercury dealers being scaled out of existence
In 2006, Ford began to shrink its dealership network in order to more efficiently align its distribution network. Three years later, it appears that the hardest hit are the company's stand-alone Lincoln-Mercury dealerships. While there were 619 Lincoln-Mercury dealerships nationwide just a few years ago, the number had dwindled down to just 357 at the beginning of 2009.
Automotive News recently spoke with Ford CEO Alan Mulally about the future of the Lincoln brand and its stand-alone Lincoln-Mercury stores. While Ford's current strategy is pushing combo Ford-Lincoln-Mercury retailers, Mulally would not confirm that eliminating the stand-alone Lincoln-Mercury dealerships was the desired end result. When pushed on the question, Mulally reiterated that Ford was focusing on building a distribution network which allowed sales volume, product breadth, and profitability... qualities that are apparently better served by the Ford-Lincoln-Mercury store.
Mulally added that although these combo dealerships will be selling the Lincoln MKS on the same lot as the Ford Taurus (both vehicles share platforms and mechanicals), retailers will learn how to deliver the sales experience that fits the vehicle and differentiates the brand. Whether this concept works or whether car salesmen simply take the easy route and sell the less expensive Ford remains to be seen.
Either way, it has to be asked – is peeling away at the automaker's stand-alone LM dealers part of a larger plan to do away with Mercury altogether? Inquiring minds want to know...
[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req. | Image: Stephen Brashear/Getty]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Jamal 7:10PM (11/09/2009)
I'd like to know what that picture is all about?
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ALBGunner04 10:18PM (11/09/2009)
No cars on the lot?
Joey Mazz 10:50PM (11/09/2009)
Apparently the lot still isn't wet enough.
mk15 8:56AM (11/10/2009)
Maybe they're just prepping for a customer appreciation wet skid pad day.
Larry in Miami 7:21PM (11/09/2009)
Now it will be much easier for the non auto enthusiast public to see that Lincolns are just Fords in drag.... Lincoln: what a luxury car USED TO be." (my former favorite car.)
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Polly Prissy Pants 9:47PM (11/09/2009)
What do you mean? Didn't you read the article? Mulally says "retailers will learn how to deliver the sales experience that fits the vehicle and differentiates the brand."
Lord, even reading that sentence a second time makes me heave a little.
Clavius 10:33PM (11/09/2009)
Polly I think he means that as the people go in the Tri-model stores they'll notice that some of the cars look the same and are simply rebadged. Why pay say a 10k premium for a Lincoln when you can get a similar equiped Taurus.
Alex 9:55AM (11/10/2009)
I think the smart move is to assign salesmen to specific brands. Jag/LR dealerships have dedicated salesmen for both Jaguars and Land Rovers. Ford could do the same have a number of salesmen for Ford and a smaller number for Lincoln. If you are going in looking at a Lincoln MKS you are likely not interested in going down grade to a Taurus.
jamie 11:29AM (11/10/2009)
Mulally says "retailers will learn how to deliver the sales experience that fits the vehicle and differentiates the brand."
FAIL.
What respectable upstanding nouveau riche debutante is going to purchase her Louis Vuitton at K-Mart? Or her (ugh) Lincoln MKS at a Ford dealership?
Lincoln is already a tarnished brand and this action will just drive the knife through its dying corpse. Lincoln only competes with its sister sibling Mercury nowadays. Neither brand is worthy of mention in automotive circles unless you're looking for a good joke to laugh at.
As I said before, Ford should have kept Jaguar and should hang onto Volvo as well. These two products are far superior to anything that Lincoln-Mercury has to offer.
Oh BTW, Ford was gradually turning the fortunes of Jaguar around. If they had axed Lincoln-Mercury long ago, then that job would have been complete today.
HogHead 7:22PM (11/09/2009)
Looks like a flood scene. Guy is cleaning mud.
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xunker 7:24PM (11/09/2009)
How many badge-engineered brands does one manufacturer need? Ford has one, Mercury, and honestly I think the world could do without it. Lincoln at least has the decency to wear different sheet metal.
I'm not old enough to remember the old-tyme glory that Mercury used to have so I have no emotional state in them and, really, they should just take it quietly in to that good enough. With a lick of paint Lincoln could happily be Fords' Acura.
Ford, put Mercury on your list -- to axe.
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inline6 9:37PM (11/09/2009)
I wasn't alive for their "glory eras", either.
Mercury's "glory" came in three main eras, and none of them lasted long:
1949-51 - Legendary "bathtub" models, which would eventually be featured in "Rebel Without a Cause" and a host of other classic films.
1955-59 - When Mercury actually used their own bodies, as Ford prepared to move the division upmarket as Edsel came on-line for '58.
1967-73 - The Cyclone/Cougar/Marquis/Marauder era. The big Mercs looked like Lincolns at a much lower price, the imported Capri added excitement, and badge-engineering in its most cynical sense only affected one car: the Maverick-based Comet.
Then came the retrimmed Gran Torino Elite they called the new Cougar XR-7 in '74, the lightly retrimmed Granada they called Monarch and re-grilled Pinto called Bobcat in '75, '77 Cougar-badged sedans and wagons that, for the first time, shared every exterior body panel with their Ford counterpart: the LTD II, and a '78 Zephyr that was different to the Fairmont Futura only by grille insert and taillight lenses. Mercury never really looked back from (very lightly) retrimming Ford models and charging 2% more on the sticker.
Of course, there were a couple of diversions into quasi-unique models, like the poor-selling Australian-built FWD Capri convertible, the rebadged Nissan Quest we knew as the Mercury Villager, and the flash-in-the-pan Mondeo-based '99 Cougar hatchback coupe. But none of them went anywhere. At all.
Once the bulk of the dealerships are consolidated, there will be little reason to keep Mercury. Of course, there's little reason to drop the brand, too, since they require minimal investment to grab incremental sales. So they probably make the company more money than they grab it attention.
If that's the case, then they should probably keep the brand until they get fully back on their feet.
John H. 9:40PM (11/09/2009)
If Ford could figure out how Mercury is supposed to be different from Ford and Lincoln, I guess it could stay.
Of course incremental sales for Eagle, Plymouth, Pontiac, and Oldsmobile didn't save them, either...
Daniel 1:19PM (11/10/2009)
David Pearson's #21 Purolator Mercury. Now that was what a Mercury should be!!!!!
David Pearson is second on the all-time Cup Series victory list with 105 and is a three time Winston Cup champ. He won the ‘76 Daytona 500, set a record for super speedway qualifying by winning 11 straight poles at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In ‘73, Pearson won 11 of the 18 Cup races that he entered. He did all this while rarely entering as many races as his contemporaries. Pearson missed alot of races.
DiRF 7:31PM (11/09/2009)
What is the point of having Ford and Mercury in the same showroom?
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paul34 7:32PM (11/09/2009)
I truly believe Ford would be significantly better off without the albatross that is Mercury. Maybe the Lincoln could become truly competitive with its supposed rival - Cadillac. Don't get me wrong, the new Lincolns are great in their own respect, but they still don't match the refinement of a new CTS, for example.
However, I digressed - this is about the future of Mercury. It is indeed possible, and like with GMC, it may just be an extra brand kept around in order to appease their dealer network. Now that they're being more heavy handed with their dealer network, maybe they can finally do the right thing and axe Mercury altogether.
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Joey Mazz 10:54PM (11/09/2009)
I agree with you that Mercury isn't worth much on it's own and I'm not sure why it is still around, but Lincoln is making a lot of progress. I think in 5 years it will easily rival Cadillac, although they will never truly take on the euro brands without a rear-wheel drive platform.
Dr. Greenthumb 7:42AM (11/10/2009)
Joey Mazz: If Lincoln is aiming at today's Cadillac, in 5 years, Caddy would have moved on.
Ford missed an opportunity, by not stuffing the 3.5 EcoBoost mill into a hotted up version of the MKX. That MKS thing is not deserving of such a good motor.
Not saying that Ford should stop building ugly, big-assed cars, there is obviously a market for them. Fusion/MKZ however, is where their high performance (Sedan) dollars should be spent.
P.S.: My Lincoln is about to become a Cadillac. See Ya.
Dr. Greenthumb 8:58AM (11/10/2009)
OOPS!!!!
Ford missed an opportunity, by not stuffing the 3.5 EcoBoost mill into a hotted up version of the MKX. That MKS thing is not deserving of such a good motor.
Should have read: ....hotted up version of the MKZ
Lar7789789 3:37PM (11/10/2009)
The 2010 Lincoln MKS and MKZ with their updated wood grained interiors and THX premium stereos and Ecoboost engines don't match the refinement of the CTS??
That is strictly your opinion.
Maybe Lincoln isn't selling as much as Ford would like, but then again, I don't exactly see the CTS flying off lots either.