rmc523 Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 http://www.autoblog.com/2017/04/12/lincoln-chauffeur-service/ Lincoln is launching a unique service in Miami this year called Lincoln Chauffeur, and it does exactly what you'd expect. Any Lincoln owner can request someone via an app to come to their house and drive him or her wherever they'd like. That driver will then drive the car back. Lincoln pointed out this will allow other household members to use the car, and even helps avoid having to pay for parking when going to the airport. A representative said that a driver could be sent to a bar or restaurant to pick up a car left in favor of a cab after drinking.In addition to driving you to a location, the driver can also go and fill up your Lincoln with fuel and run other errands. Need some groceries? Your Lincoln driver can do that. And the Lincoln drivers are employed and vetted by Lincoln. If you find a driver you like, you can also request that person and Lincoln will try to accommodate your request.The service is currently in the pilot stage and only available in Miami. The next city that will get access to the service is San Diego. However, the plan is to continue expanding. It's also available for all Lincoln owners, new and old, not just members of Lincoln Black Label. Buyers of any new Lincoln will be given the equivalent of eight hours free in the service. This is a significant perk, since Lincoln said the estimated cost is $30 per hour of use at the current pilot pricing. Sounds like an interesting idea. I wonder if it'll stick around. If I had a Lincoln, I'd try it, as I'm close enough to Miami. And it's not limited to Black Label vehicles either. It says 8 hours of free service, I'm assuming after that, it'd cost the $30/hour they mentioned? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 This would be great for when the car needs servicing too...you can drive to work and have them come and pick it up for you and drive it back to you before you leave for the day. Surprised they aren't rolling it out in New Jersey sooner, since this is one of the area's that Lincoln sells' well in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brucelinc Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Apparently I am not a Lincoln customer. NO WAY IN HELL would I have a total stranger drive around in my car. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 ...Surprised they aren't rolling it out in New Jersey sooner... . Fugetaboutit.....Your average Lincoln owner in Jersey would put two in the back of the drivers head if he caught him driving his car... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rperez817 Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 This kind of service offering isn't unique. For example, Dryver does all of the things described for Lincoln Chauffeur and more in 76 U.S. cities. https://www.dryver.com/personal-driver.html Lincoln's inclusion of free 8 hour personal driver service with the purchase of a new car is unique, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 This would be great for when the car needs servicing too...you can drive to work and have them come and pick it up for you and drive it back to you before you leave for the day. Surprised they aren't rolling it out in New Jersey sooner, since this is one of the area's that Lincoln sells' well in. Lincoln already does that for the 2017+ models and some dealers (like mine) do it for previous models as well. Any time we need maintenance or a warranty repair they come pick up the vehicle, leave a loaner and then bring it back when it's done. I can see some good use cases - it's essentially black car service but using your vehicle so it should be a lot cheaper. Need to go to the airport but don't want to leave the vehicle there. Need a driver to take you home from the bar. Need to run errands but have an injury or condition where you can't drive. I'd use it sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sevensecondsuv Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 (edited) So if this makes it past the pilot phase to full implementation, they'll drive way out in the country to take our beat-up 12 year old LS back to town to buy groceries for us all for $30/hr? I may have to try it once just to see the look on the driver's face!!! Edited April 12, 2017 by Sevensecondsuv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted April 12, 2017 Author Share Posted April 12, 2017 So if this makes it past the pilot phase to full implementation, they'll drive way out in the country to take our beat-up 12 year old LS back to town to buy groceries for us all for $30/hr? I may have to try it once just to see the look on the driver's face!!! I'd have to imagine it's with 2017 or 2018+ models only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 I'd have to imagine it's with 2017 or 2018+ models only. It's also available for all Lincoln owners, new and old, New owners get the first 8 hours free but any Lincoln owner can use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted April 12, 2017 Author Share Posted April 12, 2017 New owners get the first 8 hours free but any Lincoln owner can use it. Oh I didn't realize that. So by that, I gather new owners get the 8 hours for free, and everyone else pays for it from the get-go? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Oh I didn't realize that. So by that, I gather new owners get the 8 hours for free, and everyone else pays for it from the get-go? That's the way I read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Hm at $30 an hour, I would figure an Uber/Lyft might be easier (taking it from a bar, too/from airport). As for going shopping, eh Amazon, or my housekeeper which does all my food shopping and errands and shes about half of that. I guess it's for people who like playing "Miss Daisy" in the back and insist they want to be driven in luxury which I can get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 An Uber/Lyft driver won't bring your own car home with you, and I'm pretty sure they'll end up charging way more than $30/hour. And you get to ride in a Lincoln instead of a Prius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exploder48 Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 This would be great for when the car needs servicing too...you can drive to work and have them come and pick it up for you and drive it back to you before you leave for the day. Surprised they aren't rolling it out in New Jersey sooner, since this is one of the area's that Lincoln sells' well in. What am I missing here? Lincoln already does this with pickup and delivery service, bringing you a car to use and taking yours in for service, cleaning it after service, and returning it to you. And its a free service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoonerLS Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Any Lincoln owner can request someone via an app to come to their house and drive him or her wherever they'd like. New owners get the first 8 hours free but any Lincoln owner can use it. Cool. I'm requesting Charlize Theron and Scarlett Johansson to drive me to Vegas. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoonerLS Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 (edited) What am I missing here? Lincoln already does this with pickup and delivery service, bringing you a car to use and taking yours in for service, cleaning it after service, and returning it to you. And its a free service. What this adds is that Lincoln will send someone to drive you, in your Lincoln, to the opera, movie, or ballgame, then come back and get you afterwards. Basically, they're renting you a chauffeur. Edited April 12, 2017 by SoonerLS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
focus05 Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 I may be reading more into this than there this, but this appears to be a beta test of what you'd expect a driverless car system to do for you. In the future, even if we still *buy* as opposed to *share* driverless cars, it will be common for the car to drive you to work and then go park further away where it's easy. It could "run errands" if there is official standard for exchanging money and goods with the car. It could drive itself to servicing, to get fuel, etc. Ford may be trying to figure out what people value the most in terms of services so that they try to automate them through driverless first - thus creating higher value in the technology when it's launched. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
probowler Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 What an interesting concept... Automated pickup, the opposite of delivery. Reminds me of irobot when people would send their robots put to do their grocery shopping... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brucelinc Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 If a Lincoln owner finds their car so boring to drive that they want someone else to drive it for them, they should have bought something else. I know...I know.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoonerLS Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 If a Lincoln owner finds their car so boring to drive that they want someone else to drive it for them, they should have bought something else. My Lincoln isn't boring, but I might consider using this service to go to a football game. When you get 80K-120K people on campus on a Saturday, getting around can be a royal PITA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Look at where they're rolling this out: Miami, San Diego, I think this is targeted at wealthy retirees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brucelinc Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Look at where they're rolling this out: Miami, San Diego, I think this is targeted at wealthy retirees. My thoughts exactly. I mean no disrespect to anyone who would use this service but it strikes me as something the Town Car set would appreciate. More specifically, it seems geared to those who view their Lincolns as just a transportation module and not so much a piece of machinery to bring pleasure. Come to think of it, that likely describes most Lincoln owners! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 My thoughts exactly. I mean no disrespect to anyone who would use this service but it strikes me as something the Town Car set would appreciate. More specifically, it seems geared to those who view their Lincolns as just a transportation module and not so much a piece of machinery to bring pleasure. Come to think of it, that likely describes most Lincoln owners! I don't think "being driven around in your own car" is really the main use case here unless you're injured, drunk or otherwise impaired. I think it's more about being able to drive somewhere and not have to leave the car (airport e.g.) or to retrieve a car you left somewhere else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 (edited) My thoughts exactly. I mean no disrespect to anyone who would use this service but it strikes me as something the Town Car set would appreciate. More specifically, it seems geared to those who view their Lincolns as just a transportation module and not so much a piece of machinery to bring pleasure. Come to think of it, that likely describes most Lincoln owners! It's not just a transportation module for them, though. It's a 'reward'. A while back, when Lincoln first adopted this 'American Luxury' approach (which, frankly, suits them to a T), they said that the heart of their market wasn't 30-something professionals leasing a status symbol, it was self-employed/small business owners who, having put in the hard work, feel they've earned a bit of luxury. So, yeah, they're not interested in performance, as such, but they want the premium materials, they want the premium quiet, and the premium sound, and they want to feel like their hard work paid off. What they want is different from what you want, but that doesn't necessarily mean they don't want pleasure from their cars. Edited April 13, 2017 by RichardJensen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 And, frankly, I think Cadillac could serve this market just as effectively, but they don't see things that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
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.