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Report: Lincoln getting all of Mercury's ad dollars

Now that the curtain has closed on Mercury, Ford Motor Company will redirect all of its marketing dollars for the oft-overlooked brand to the Blue Oval's luxury outpost, Lincoln. In speaking to Automotive News, the chairman of the Lincoln National Dealer Council, Bob Tasca, Jr., said, "You'll see a lot stronger presence in the advertising of Lincoln in 2011."
Lincoln spokesperson Christian Bokich reminded AN that the automaker is "preparing the way for seven new or significantly refreshed vehicles" that will be launched over the next four years, and the largest ad blitz in 2011 will focus on the refreshed MKX crossover, as well as the MKZ sedan and its hybrid counterpart. Following that, Lincoln has plans to launch a completely overhauled version of its Navigator SUV, an all-new C-segment vehicle and the overhauled 2013 MKZ, which Tasca says will be "strikingly different from its Ford Fusion sibling."
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req. | Image: John Neff/Autoblog/AOL]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Lincoln poised to double MKZ Hybrid production

The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid has been something of a hit for Ford since the beginning, exceeding the company's modest projected 15-percent take rate for more than two years (we say "modest" because that still means an overwhelming majority of Lincoln customers are passing up on the gas-electric powertrain even though it costs the same as the standard model). Either way, Lincoln builds 700 MKZ Hybrids at its plant in Mexico each month, but has sold 715 of them in each of the past three months. That's why, according to a report in The Detroit News, when the restyled 2014 MKZ Hybrid arrives (non-hybrid pictured), Ford is doubling production compared to 2013. Instead of the hybrid model being 20 percent of production, the new hybrid will make up 40 percent.
Ford is doing well with hybrids in general - its portion of the electrified vehicle segment jumping 12 points in a single year to 16 percent. Assuming Ford doesn't change the pricing strategy (along with the changes Ford is making to calibration to improve fuel economy), the sedan could continue to "[show] other luxury hybrids how it's done" when it goes on sale later this year.

2018 Lincoln Navigator Review | 900 miles in mid-century opulence

PORTLAND, Ore. — Driving the 2019 Lincoln Navigator on my usual 80-mile evaluation route just wouldn't be sufficient. The quick jaunt through downtown Portland and out into wooded mountain roads couldn't possibly do justice to a vehicle intended for the literal long haul. All those seats; all that cargo space; all that comfort and opulence. What the Navigator needed was a road trip, so I took two of them — within five days, over 900 miles and a grand total of 20 hours and 17 minutes in the 24-way power-adjustable, massaging, ventilated saddle. The first journey would be from Portland down to Bend, Ore., and then working my way gradually back through central Oregon backroads. This included winding two-lane highways where the Navigator's excellent adaptive cruise control system maintained its distance (and my sanity) when stuck behind parades of Outbacks, before the 450-horsepower EcoBoost V6 of Raptor fame could dispatch them from across the dotted yellow line. Enough really can't be said about how masterful this engine is — so smooth, so powerful and so quiet. It's perfect for a Lincoln. It also got 20 mpg over the course of the full 900 miles, which compares to the EPA's 21 mpg highway rating. Pretty good given the mountainous terrain and the liberal throttle applied to keep up with a pair of substantially sportier cars I was trailing as part of a photo shoot. Not that the Navigator was really able to keep up with anything once the road got tighter and twistier through the lava fields of the Willamette National Forest. Though I still concur with my initial praise of the Navigator's independent rear suspension and steering that "provides consistent, appropriate and reassuring weighting," there's no getting around the laws of physics. This is a gigantic land craft pushing three tons that's best kept at a relaxed pace – also perfect for a Lincoln. As for the ride, which disappointed during my Navigator first drive in Southern California, the "omnipresent nervousness" I reported didn't really materialize on better pavement in Oregon and later in Washington. True, it's not quite as supple as a unibody Range Rover or Mercedes GLS would be, but it doesn't suffer from the near constant vibration over even the smallest bumps you get in a Chevy Suburban or GMC Yukon XL. On the subject of comfort, though, those 24-way front seats can't be ignored.