jpd80 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) If those MKZ's are actually spoken for and simply not yet delivered, that's silly. ATP on the MKZ's would certainly be higher. Don't kid yourself that there's a huge pre-order bank, dealers are reporting that lack of attractive leasing is the main fly in the ointment shifting MKZ - hopefully, Ford is remedying that in the coming months. Of those 30,000 odd Fusions sold, I'm betting that more than 70% are SE and Titanium spec which transforms the entire landscape on how we view Ford brand and its products. I want Lincoln to be a success but I don't want it getting in the way of Fusion production either, what a heck of a spot to be in , hey...who would have thought this would happen a few years ago. Edited April 2, 2013 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodrowwilson Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 The MKZ will have respectable sales once the roll out is complete.........late or not. A new MKS can't come fast enough! Nav, MKT barely matter at this point. The MKX being down almost 10% is the only surprise to me. I was looking at a 2013 mkz a few weeks ago and asked the dealer if I could sit in an MKS. We strolled the back lot only to find out that the dealer, 1 of the 3 Lincoln dealers in the Seattle, didn't have one sitting on their lot... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) I was looking at a 2013 mkz a few weeks ago and asked the dealer if I could sit in an MKS. We strolled the back lot only to find out that the dealer, 1 of the 3 Lincoln dealers in the Seattle, didn't have one sitting on their lot... In tight times, dealers are loath to hold floor stock, even though it's the very thing that can cause an impulse buy. Walk in sales are just as important as those people prepared to order and wait. Mustang sales of 7,688 almost kept up with Camaro 8,102 and the combined sales of Fusion & Taurus stayed well ahead of Malibu & Impala Edited April 2, 2013 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) GM Vehicle Total 245,950 Ford Total Sales 236,160 Edited April 2, 2013 by jpd80 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoonerLS Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 This is spectacular to see and completely justifies the ramping up of Flat Rock later this year and I for one would gladly trade that 4,000/mth MKZ production for more Fusions to dealers. I don't think Lincoln would make that bargain, and I'd bet dollars to donuts that the Lincoln dealers would pillory you for suggesting it. I'd also bet the margins are higher on the MKZ, so Ford probably wouldn't go for it, either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) I don't think Lincoln would make that bargain, and I'd bet dollars to donuts that the Lincoln dealers would pillory you for suggesting it. I'd also bet the margins are higher on the MKZ, so Ford probably wouldn't go for it, either. Let's see how MKZ sales go in the next few months, Hermosillo is currently producing around 4,000 MKZ a month so inventory should be built out in no time soon, let's hope so because there are some big months coming for Fusion.. I don't dislike MKZ, it's just that I prefer seeing high sales of Fusion, something it deserves. since January, there's been over 10,000 MKZ built, surely there's enough around now to ease back a bit.. Edited April 2, 2013 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark B. Morrow Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) I just started seeing a fair number of MKZs on the road within the last two weeks. The two largest Lincoln dealers here are starting to do some advertising now that they have a few on the lots. Edited April 2, 2013 by Mark B. Morrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstock Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 It's just amazing how few Lincoln customers there are at this point, especially since Lincoln isn't a boutique brand. You may be amazed, but that's just you and your mind-set. As I've fallen on my sword, I'm glad you picked it up and are continuing on with the good fight Borg. Keep up the fight....LOL! Uh, that wasn't a sword you fell on, you'll have to try again, just wait til the laughter stops, OK? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atomcat68 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 GM Vehicle Total 245,950 Ford Total Sales 236,160 What's even more amazing is that just the Ford division trails the entire GM corp. by just under 7,000 sales. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) What's even more amazing is that just the Ford division trails the entire GM corp. by just under 7,000 sales. The effort put into elevating the perception of the Ford brand is paying huge dividends, GM chose Buick and Cadillac instead of Chevrolet and it's being revealed in the above sales figures. You know, the ones GM fans like to poke in our faces every month....Ford brand is our "Buick" Edited April 2, 2013 by jpd80 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 (edited) There is a great opportunity for Ford to look at doing even more now that Fusion is at around 30,000 sales. Later this year, I would love to see Flat Rock take off with Fusion sales and for Hermosillo to start building some Fusion badged Mondeo based Hatchbacks and Station wagons as incremental production increases.. I think that would put Ford over the top in Mid sized sales... Edited April 2, 2013 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Extreme4x4 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 The effort put into elevating the perception of the Ford brand is paying huge dividends,GM chose Buick and Cadillac instead of Chevrolet and it's being revealed in the above sales figures. You know, the ones GM fans like to poke in our faces every month....Ford brand is our "Buick" But, now that Ford has retaken the truck lead over GM, Ford is on the brink due to it being a "truck only" company. Vs when GM led Ford the last couple of months, which proved how desirable the GM trucks still were. :do what: :do what: I wonder what Fords fleet sales percentage was this month, as we know GM's was 32%, and GM is always high on the rental side, vs Ford which is high on commercial/government. I do think it would be funny to see the Malibu's fleet sales for March. However, that would only prove how desirable the Malibu is to the rental market, instead of how GM was dumping them because they are not selling. That said, I just saw our first new Malibu in Payson..................... on the road. How pathetic is that?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) GM must be beside itself with Malibu, how embarrassing. I felt for sure that GM would go with a reworked LaCrosse and its longer wheelbase for more attractive packaging Buick Regal is proof that the SWB Epsilon is too close to the Verano and Cruze to be competitive but did GM listen? Edited April 3, 2013 by jpd80 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jniffen Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 There is a great opportunity for Ford to look at doing even more now that Fusion is at around 30,000 sales. Later this year, I would love to see Flat Rock take off with Fusion sales and for Hermosillo to start building some Fusion badged Mondeo based Hatchbacks and Station wagons as incremental production increases.. I think that would put Ford over the top in Mid sized sales... I like the idea, but Americans are simply anti-wagon these days. Can't drive what my mom or grand-dad drove in their day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 I like the idea, but Americans are simply anti-wagon these days. Can't drive what my mom or grand-dad drove in their day. Keep in mind that America swore of hatchbacks too...What I think is important here is for additional products to be genuinely contributory and not substitutes to existing products., it could be that the now fragmented US market has pockets of buyers who prefer particular variations over a sedan, I don't know - that's for Ford to work out. It's so tempting to know those products exist for other markets, the real discipline will be in choosing whether to add them or not....Fusion sedan may have a lot more volume to fill yet without the added complication of variants. but it's nice to consider the possibilities... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BORG Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) Is Chevy still making the old Impala? If not, they are going to see some hits to their volume and marketshare with the new car, although profits should jump. And a Fusion wagon makes much less sense than a Focus wagon, given the pricing and economics of such a vehicle in a climate dominated by a variety of more capable, FE, and affordable crossovers. And a hatchback Fusion in the US would be absolute insanity, that's a very strange cultural niche in the EU/UK market that doesn't make sense here. You don't want variety for the sake of variety and a few extra sales, you want focus and clarity for the consumer. Edited April 3, 2013 by BORG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Is Chevy still making the old Impala? If not, they are going to see some hits to their volume and marketshare with the new car, although profits should jump. I seem to remember reading somewhere that they'd be doing the Impala "Classic" thing (still producing the current one for fleets/rentals) like they did with the old Malibus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) Link For some dealers, new shipments of the MKZ came last month during typically one of the best sales months of the year, and the new sedans spent little time on lots. Ken Czubay, Ford vice president, U.S. marketing, sales and service, said Tuesday in a conference call that the MKZ is spending about 14 days on dealer lots before selling; the MKZ hybrid is on lots for about eight days. But some dealers still have been getting limited numbers of the car and have had difficulty explaining to customers why their vehicles took months to arrive. Ford has tried to patch things up in that time, offering to extend leases for some customers to bridge the gap until their vehicles arrived at dealerships. Ford spent nearly $8 million on two Super Bowl ads to promote Lincoln — including a 30-second spot for the hard-to-find MKZ. The automaker has continued the Lincoln ad blitz with commercials on network and cable television, despite inventory constraints. Edited April 3, 2013 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrewfanGRB Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 The 67k figure on the F-series really struck me. Fantastic. And I can't help but loving the Escape results. Perhaps we'll eventually understand that we should let the people that are paid to know things do those things instead of wildly throwing shit at the wall. (The point: Ford knows eleventy billion percent more about its business than ANY--despite Borg's and FordBuyer's delusions to the contrary--of us do. And they knew the Escape needed to be modernized inside and out.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) The 67k figure on the F-series really struck me. Fantastic. And I can't help but loving the Escape results. Perhaps we'll eventually understand that we should let the people that are paid to know things do those things instead of wildly throwing shit at the wall. (The point: Ford knows eleventy billion percent more about its business than ANY--despite Borg's and FordBuyer's delusions to the contrary--of us do. And they knew the Escape needed to be modernized inside and out.) What's even more surprising about that F truck performance is that by GM's own admission, F150's average transaction price is around $4,000 higher than Silverado ATPs. I think that scenario is being played out across a lot of Ford's key products where buyers are choosing higher series models and increasing ATPs and with it Ford's profitability Edit, Just looked up Fusion inventory, 2-1-13 52,000 3-1-13 46,000 I'm anticipating another 6,000 drop to around 40,000 for 4-1-13 Edited April 3, 2013 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 I don't dislike MKZ, it's just that I prefer seeing high sales of Fusion, something it deserves. since January, there's been over 10,000 MKZ built, surely there's enough around now to ease back a bit.. * Your market may vary. As I pointed out in the other thread, there ARE still in fact people waiting for pre-order deliveries. Some markets may have plenty of retail inventory by now, while others likely still only have a handful or none. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 I seem to remember reading somewhere that they'd be doing the Impala "Classic" thing (still producing the current one for fleets/rentals) like they did with the old Malibus. Correct. Impala "Classic" is supposed to stick around for about a year last I heard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 I wonder who the Fusion is stealing sales from? I saw it posted a 69% increase in Cali Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) I wonder who the Fusion is stealing sales from? I saw it posted a 69% increase in Cali I was listening to Ken Czubay on the conference call, there were lso increases elsewhere too like 30% in the great lakes and North East, and similar in Florida too..I think. They didn't talk about conquest sales, I think it was buyers re entering the market... Edited April 3, 2013 by jpd80 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Damn, with all these Fusion sales, I have still have only seen one and that was 2 months ago. Get some over here in NY. I still haven't seen a new Taurus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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