Jump to content

Ford Motor Company June 2013 Sales


Recommended Posts

Ain't that the truth! The Platinum F150 is pretty darn luxurious!

And why would you bother with a Lincoln truck if the F150 Platinum gives Ford

decent sales at that high price point without the need for differentiation.

 

It wouldn't surprise me if the term "platinum" hasn't been mentioned as an option

for other vehicles that may not fit into the Lincoln line up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And why would you bother with a Lincoln truck if the F150 Platinum gives Ford

decent sales at that high price point without the need for differentiation.

 

It wouldn't surprise me if the term "platinum" hasn't been mentioned as an option

for other vehicles that may not fit into the Lincoln line up.

 

Agreed, and I'm sure that's why there is no Lincoln F150 any more. Now the Navigator may be a different story. I could see the Navi selling enough to make a Lincoln version worthwhile.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Agreed, and I'm sure that's why there is no Lincoln F150 any more. Now the Navigator may be a different story. I could see the Navi selling enough to make a Lincoln version worthwhile.

Well, in the case of the Navigator, you don't have trim levels of Expedition that shoot into the stratosphere like on the F-150 either. Plus there's the aforementioned livery market that likely wouldn't be served at all by the Expedition alone.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Agreed, and I'm sure that's why there is no Lincoln F150 any more.

 

The Mark LT was only created for one reason - to give Lincoln dealers something to sell when the LS and Aviator were killed. I doubt Ford made any profit on it - it was done strictly to help out the dealers for a few years.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Mark LT was only created for one reason - to give Lincoln dealers something to sell when the LS and Aviator were killed. I doubt Ford made any profit on it - it was done strictly to help out the dealers for a few years.

 

I'm just guessing, but I don't know if I'd say that, given the little amount of differentiation there was alongside the price.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm just guessing, but I don't know if I'd say that, given the little amount of differentiation there was alongside the price.

 

I'm sure there was profit on each vehicle sold but the volumes were very very low and there was additional cost for the new sheetmetal at a minimum. I'm just not sure there was enough volume to recover the incremental costs even though those costs were low. I could be wrong. The point was it wasn't done to make money for Ford.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Mark LT was only created for one reason - to give Lincoln dealers something to sell when the LS and Aviator were killed. I doubt Ford made any profit on it - it was done strictly to help out the dealers for a few years.

 

I'm sure that's the case, and while they probably did make a few bucks, it wasn't worth the extra money to have the Mark LT for the differentiation.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm sure there was profit on each vehicle sold but the volumes were very very low and there was additional cost for the new sheetmetal at a minimum. I'm just not sure there was enough volume to recover the incremental costs even though those costs were low. I could be wrong. The point was it wasn't done to make money for Ford.

 

The only differentiation I remembered was the grille and tailgate, and nicer leather inside. Doesn't matter lol. I understood what the point was just saying I'd be surprised if it didn't at least break even, despite low numbers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm sure there was (and still is) quite a bit of profit with the Mark LT since only a few things were altered for it. After the Blackwood disaster, Ford was probably cautious on putting too much effort and I dont blame them. My only problem with the Mark LT was...that was the first sign...off...the dreaded MARK BS!...ugghhh !

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Mark_LT

Edited by ANTAUS
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Mark LT was only created for one reason - to give Lincoln dealers something to sell when the LS and Aviator were killed. I doubt Ford made any profit on it - it was done strictly to help out the dealers for a few years.

 

All development of the Mark LT platform was paid for by the F-150. So, I'm going to speculate that the $4.67 Ford spent on a different grille and a reflector for the tailgate didn't impact the profit on a truck they sold for north of $40K

Link to comment
Share on other sites

All development of the Mark LT platform was paid for by the F-150. So, I'm going to speculate that the $4.67 Ford spent on a different grille and a reflector for the tailgate didn't impact the profit on a truck they sold for north of $40K

 

They were being discounted up to $10k which wipes out most of the per vehicle profit and they only sold 35k total in the US. If they were lucky they broke even.

 

If they just wanted to make more money they would have made it a platinum ford from the get-go. They made it a Lincoln to help the dealers - period. It was never intended to last more than a few model years in the U.S.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They were being discounted up to $10k which wipes out most of the per vehicle profit and they only sold 35k total in the US. If they were lucky they broke even. If they just wanted to make more money they would have made it a platinum ford from the get-go. They made it a Lincoln to help the dealers - period. It was never intended to last more than a few model years in the U.S.

Much like my unreasonable desire for a Blackwood, I was nearly as smitten with the Mark LT... So damn irrational.

 

The only differentiation I remembered was the grille and tailgate, and nicer leather inside. Doesn't matter lol. I understood what the point was just saying I'd be surprised if it didn't at least break even, despite low numbers.

 

Correct... the grille insert was different, and the tailgate had a different skin allowing for the Navigator-esque inset reflectors. The seat frames were the same with Lincoln-spec upholstery.

 

 

The saddest thing to me about the Mark LT was what it could have been... There was once an F-250 based 2+2 luxury monster planned for Lincoln. I haven't seen it, but people who have said it was awesome. If only.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They were being discounted up to $10k which wipes out most of the per vehicle profit and they only sold 35k total in the US.

 

But was that Ford's discount or the dealer's discount? That would determine whether Ford made a profit on them or not wouldn't it?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To the extent that the incentives come from Ford, they are booked as "Sales, general and administrative" (SG&A) expenses, and are offset against the per unit profit of the vehicle.

 

And yeah, $10k in incentives might (but probably didn't) take the Mark LT into the red.

 

The likely issue with the Mark LT was the turn rate: If it didn't turn as quickly as other Lincoln products and F150s, it was--essentially--a drag on profitability. From Ford's perspective: If one were to, say, sell one Mark LT every two months, vs. a F150 every month, unless the Mark LT delivered twice the profit of the F150, it would be a net loss in terms of opportunity cost.

 

The same goes for the dealer. If the dealer has $100k tied up in two Mark LTs that sell every 120 days, the profit per unit has to be half again the profit of an MKZ, if the dealer can spend $100k on three MKZs that turn every 120 days instead.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I thought the entire front end was unique. If it was only the grille insert and a few badges then it probably was profitable, although that still wasn't the primary reason for building it.

 

It was grille insert, tailgate skin, taillight assemblies, badges, and seat covering... That's it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It was grille insert, tailgate skin, taillight assemblies, badges, and seat covering... That's it.

 

The wheels, don't forget the shiny Lincoln wheels! :)

 

The '10+ Mexico-only model looks hideous IMO. The pre-'10 model actually looked pretty good, but the '10+ version looks like an afterthought.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...