Should Lincoln come to Australia?

[flappist]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

I don't seem to be able to stress enough that we're talking about Lincoln here, not Ford or FPV or Tickford or anything related to FoA products or branding at all.

Unlike the examples given, Lincoln isn't a trim level, it is a completely focused brand [now] with focused products - from a marketing standpoint alone this opens up so many opportunities to create a position and identity in the marketplace that Ford or FPV could never achieve with a Falcon or Territory based product - no matter how good the product is in reality, the marketing behind it can only really be in addition to other Falcon products.

You mean FORD Lincoln, like Ford Mustang, Ford Couger, Ford LTD, Ford Fairlane, Ford Galaxie, Ford Landau, Ford Probe, Ford Taurus.........

[FPV GTHO]

How can you mention Ford and Lincoln together in the same breath as Ford Mustang and others...

It is a seperste brand and needs to be treated as such in order to succeed, despite its Ford ownership.

[Rodge]

Yeap bring in the Lincoln...why not ?
Lexus is a Toyota with slightly better quality control & technology and that works for them.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by flappist

You mean FORD Lincoln, like Ford Mustang, Ford Couger, Ford LTD, Ford Fairlane, Ford Galaxie, Ford Landau, Ford Probe, Ford Taurus.........

If they came over here it would be wise to not associate the brand with Ford even though that's what they are.

Same thing with Opel and GM.

[2011G6E]

I think Australians would take a while to see it as a separate and individual brand worthy of the premium pricing. It took long enough for people to stop laughing at Lexus as a "fancy Toyota"...it sort of is, but once you see the quality you stop laughing and give it the (grudging) respect the brand deserves. It took quite a while though.

Ford would know this, and realise that if they brought in some brand and tried to price it as a premium brand...people would say 'It's just a fancy Falcon", until years went by and the got used to the idea.

We haven't grown up with a big maker with several brands under one banner...in the USA you have Ford, which makes "Fords", but also Lincolns, Mercury, and others, and Chev, which then makes "Chev's", but also Buick, Corvette, and the others, all seen as virtually "separate" brands.

Even when Ford here had Fairlanes and LTD's, they were still "Fords", and not sold as a separate line of vehicles...they all shared floor space with everything from Escorts to Cortinas to Falcons.

Given the precarious footing of car makers, I don't think they're going to take a big gamble like that. Look how long it's taken the excellent Chrysler 300C to be seen not as some "expensive prestige brand" that wasn't really seriously considered by most people as a purchase, to being seen as a worthy alternative to a higher spec Commodore or Falcon which "ordinary" people now assess when buying a big sedan...

[pottery beige]

Lincoln or Ford call it what you want.. its still as ugly as a hat full of bumholes...

nevar is ugly the new cool..

[falconnut]

We already have heaps of brands, they should just sell them under the ford brand.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by pottery beige

Lincoln or Ford call it what you want.. its still as ugly as a hat full of bumholes...

nevar is ugly the new cool..

You should see some blokes missus.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder I guess, I don't like that stupid front grille that every Lincoln has.

[mad cow]

honestly NO. although i do think ford australia products should be the basis for their cars.. but not sold here. there simply isnt the target market to support such a venture. even if its sold as rhd in other countries, there is still a lot of local testing and legal loopholes to get them on sale here. and where would the dealerships be? i hazzard to guess at ford / fpv dealerships? the brand association could never be clean cut.

and 19 and have the ability to purchase a lincoln? can you get me a job????

[Flat Top]

my guess is that within the next 5 years or so the luxury brand pricing will come down to that in other parts of the world, the more brands the more the globalisaton push on price points. Does ford want to enter the market with the high end brands , but end up not making a premium price in Australia to that in the US? I doubt it. Unless they can use existing infrastructure (service ??)

[mike_nofx]

Originally Posted by Big Damo

If they came over here it would be wise to not associate the brand with Ford even though that's what they are.

Same thing with Opel and GM.

I don't think the name Ford is "tarnished", mostly just the Falcon name.

Opel and Holden is different because they are divisions of GM.
But Ford is Ford.

[Bossxr8]

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

From "luxury" cars to their Turks, Yanks just don't get the idea of quality...not on the level we're used to. Horrible plastics, shoddily built, technically behind. They do make good cars, but sometimes they just trip over their feet and put out monstrosities that only a badge blind made in the USA customer would accept.

You do realize that Lincoln was no 2 in the JD Quality survey last year don't you, and top 5 the year before

But I say no. They can't even sell 7000 cars a month in the US across their whole range so I can't see how they can be successful here if they can't even be successful over there.

[fou_bleu]

Originally Posted by flappist

You mean FORD Lincoln, like Ford Mustang, Ford Couger, Ford LTD, Ford Fairlane, Ford Galaxie, Ford Landau, Ford Probe, Ford Taurus.........

Are you legitimately serious?! My sarcasm detector must be broken...

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Originally Posted by 2011G6E

... in the USA you have Ford, which makes "Fords", but also Lincolns, Mercury, and others...

You have FoMoCo, funding Ford and Lincoln and that's it - except a bit of Mazda and a South American company called Troller.

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Originally Posted by mad cow

honestly NO. although i do think ford australia products should be the basis for their cars.. but not sold here. there simply isnt the target market to support such a venture. even if its sold as rhd in other countries, there is still a lot of local testing and legal loopholes to get them on sale here. and where would the dealerships be? i hazzard to guess at ford / fpv dealerships? the brand association could never be clean cut.

In the scenario of bringing Lincoln to Australia, there's no involvement by Ford in any other capacity than FoMoCo funding the venture - the rest is up to hiring local Lincoln staff and creating the necessary service and concierge network.

In regards to the dealerships themselves, there would be no requirement to be involved with any manner with a Ford or FPV dealership - as a matter of fact, it'd probably be encouraged they are located away from them and near other prestige brands...

and 19 and have the ability to purchase a lincoln? can you get me a job????

Lol, I wish - I mean if I could afford one and it were available, I would have one :P

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Originally Posted by mike_nofx

I don't think the name Ford is "tarnished", mostly just the Falcon name.

Opel and Holden is different because they are divisions of GM.
But Ford is Ford.

Lincoln not being associated with Ford has nothing to do with the Ford brand being "tarnished" period - Lincoln is out to become its own identity and brand - not the sub-division of Ford it once was (or at least is attempting to 'unbecome').

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Originally Posted by Bossxr8

But I say no. They can't even sell 7000 cars a month in the US across their whole range so I can't see how they can be successful here if they can't even be successful over there.

That's a very legitimate reason at the moment, but I'm sure that in 5 years time with an all-new range and the new structure firmly in place, things may just look a little better...

[flappist]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

Are you legitimately serious?! My sarcasm detector must be broken...

Well obviously your reality detector is broken.

Just google "ford lincoln" and see how many pages of web sites come up advertising, reviewing or promoting Ford's Lincoln in USA, Canada, Europe and where ever else.

[Franco Cozzo]

While we're on the topic of brands here, you've got Holden and their performance brand HSV, Ford and FPV, Mazda has MazdaSpeed in the USA, they should badge their MPS3 as MazdaSpeed 3 and any other sporty cars they may sell, like RX8 (but I think its dead now right?) in my opinion.

[jpd80]

No Lincoln anywhere in the world is designed for RHD, until the day that happens,
there's no point even discussing Lincoln vehicles and Australia in the same breath..
the cost of RHD and at least two crash tests per vehicle rules the whole thing out.

[fou_bleu]

Originally Posted by flappist

Well obviously your reality detector is broken.

Just google "ford lincoln" and see how many pages of web sites come up advertising, reviewing or promoting Ford's Lincoln in USA, Canada, Europe and where ever else.

Umm... I don't know where you're getting your info from, but there's no such thing as a Ford Lincoln. There's Ford/Lincoln dealerships in the Americas (the only place they're sold), but apart from that I literally have no idea what you are on about...

[2011G6E]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

One would hope that $76k would be an MKZ Reserve with all the goodies (considering that's about $50k in the U.S.) - not even I believe they could get away with charging $90k! Hence the requirement for other RHD markets - I'm not saying they should be here tomorrow...

If it's $50,000 in the USA, we can actually expect nearer $90,000 here for a similar car, going by past experience with things like the 300C...at the moment a V6 300C in the USA starts for about $29,000, here in Oz the same car starts at $48,000...why would the Ford be any different...

[aussie muscle]

Originally Posted by 4RD4TW

On the other [hypothetical] hand, it would be an interesting marketing experiment to launch the all-new Lincoln brand into a market with virtually no recognition of the current mess they're trying to clean up in the U.S. - I do honestly believe their new approach would leave very little in the way of being scared of the 'American-ness' of the brand and the products are/will certainly be of comparable status (to Lexus etc.).

Australia is quite often used as a test market for Euro and US products, as we are a tiny market, but are still quite affluent and similar to most 1st world markets. A lincoln marketing disaster here would not adversely affect their USA market, so would be ideal testing ground.