Mercury: The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name
Man, we are so going to the National Automobile Dealers Association convention next year; you know, if they let us in. Where else would you hear Ford Prez Mark "Tool Time" Fields say "Mercury has a place in our brand portfolio" and then refuse to assure the brand's dealers that Ford won't kill it? In fact, the AP [via MLive] reports that "Ford executives" told "a group of dealers that "new Mercury products are coming." Such as…? A Mariner hybrid? A Mercury version of the Edge? [crickets chirping] Let's try that again. "When asked what he would tell dealers who fear the brand could be discontinued, Jim Farley, Ford's group vice president for marketing, said they should look at the new products." Such as…? [cue: tumbleweeds] "They wouldn't give us any definite answers," revealed Steve Downing, owner of a Lincoln-Mercury dealership in Yuba City, Calif. "Obviously the future's with Lincoln." Too true Steve, but don't worry. As Fields says, it's all part of a "process." ""Any good business on a continuous basis looks at their portfolio. Any good business does that, not just automotive, and that's part of our process."
More by Robert Farago
Comments
Join the conversation
Geotpf, I've read that before somewhere... ;-)
What they should do is send her out to dealers and have a Jill Wagner Mercury sale day. With after sale test drives and her riding along. That would sure get me to a Mercury dealer in ummm, well for the first time ever now that I think about it.
You GOTTA put Mercury on your s**t list!
Mercury IS the Grand Marquis. Ford refuses to invest in the Panther platform. No Grand Marquis = No Mercury. That's about as simple as it gets.