Zephyr’s gone with the wind; are MKZ, MKX, MKS too alike?

by Paul A. Eisenstein (2006-02-13)


"What is in a name?" So wondered Shakespeare, and so are wondering observers around Dearborn this week. In a clearly controversial move, Ford has decided to abandon some of the traditional names used by its Lincoln brand, opting instead, for alphabetical designations. The old Aviator SUV, for example, will be reborn as the MKX, or "Mark-X," the newly preferred pronunciation. The new Zephyr sedan, one of the division's few recent success stories, will be renamed the MKZ.



"'Mark' is one very, very strong nameplate," asserts Anne Stevens, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Ford's operations in North and South America. It was a long-running nameplate used on a variety of Lincoln products, most recently with the Mark VIII coupe, and Stevens added, "We believe it will be very relevant."



A few familiar names will survive the transition, such as that on the Town Car, Lincoln 's rear-drive traditional luxury sedan, and that on the Navigator, the brand's newly redesigned full-size SUV. "The Navigator name has a lot of equity across the marketplace, so we decided to keep it," explains Ford's Vice President of Marketing, Sales and Service, Cisco Codina.



Sweet-smelling, or otherwise?



But will an MKZ smell as sweet as a rose? Or sell as well as a Zephyr? The decision to drop Zephyr, another once-popular Lincoln nameplate, wasn't easy, Codina admits, nor will it be cheap. The automaker invested millions of dollars in last year's launch of the small luxury sedan - much of that simply to establish name recognition in a brand that will be abandoned barely a year after hitting showrooms.



"It's hard to establish equity in a name, and unless it's a disaster, you should probably stick with what you have," contends Dan Gorrell, head of automotive practice for the California consulting firm, Strategic Vision. "This provides another element of confusion in a market already confused by all the nameplates out there."



The use of alphabetic or alphanumeric names has long been the norm for the high-end German manufacturers Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW. In recent years, however, the practice has spread across the luxury market. The approach has been adopted by manufacturers ranging from Lexus to Cadillac, which recently renamed its DeVille sedan the DTS, in keeping with the new CTS and STS models.



But the approach doesn't always work, experts caution. Acura lost a significant amount of momentum when, a decade ago, it abandoned well-known nameplates like Legend, adopting alternatives, such as RL, TL and CL. Confused buyers often avoided the brand's new alphabet soup.



Even Mercedes-Benz has run into some problems as its lineup has rapidly expanded. At one time, it was easy to understand the relationship between models like the C-, E-, and S-Class. But it's become much more confusing with the addition of products such as the CLS, CLK, SLK, SLR, ML, and GL.



Too close for comfort?



What particularly concerns observers about the new Lincoln strategy is that the names of three new or coming models - the flagship MKS sedan, smaller MKZ sedan, and MKX crossover - are virtually identical. The automaker experienced similar confusion two years ago when it decided to give the nearly identical Freestar and Freestyle names to a new minivan and a new crossover.



"I'm not sure that this will be successful," says Michael Barr, of Lincoln 's new naming strategy. The president of the San Francisco firm, NameLab, which develops product names and brand strategies, Barr stresses that "A name is central to the failure or success of a vehicle," and cautions that an undifferentiated name can be as damning as an undifferentiated product.



Barr adds that American motorists have traditionally associated names, rather than alphanumeric designations, with Detroit's products, so the new approach could very well confuse potential customers, especially when the badge says MKZ but the company will refer to it as the "Mark Z."



Ford's Codina concedes there will be a learning curve for consumers, but he insists this is the right time to make the change on the Zephyr, "before it gets too much (brand) equity," as well as with other Lincolns.



Introduced only last autumn, Lincoln's dealers sold only 4895 Zephyrs through the beginning of February. So, without a well-established presence, Ford planners believe it's easier to make the switch. And Lincoln will be upgrading the sedan with a new engine, among other improvements, which can be used to establish the new identity.



Lincoln's new naming strategy is just one of the challenges the brand faces. Once the country's number-two luxury nameplate, it is now a distant afterthought for most upscale buyers, lagging well behind import brands such as Lexus, Mercedes, and BMW, never mind its longtime rival Cadillac.



Partnered with the equally-troubled Mercury division, Lincoln has been starved for product, and only last year, Ford planners considered the possibility of dropping one or both brands as part of the so-called "Way Forward" turnaround plan. Mark Fields, president of Ford's Americas operations, has decided to rebuild both Lincoln and Mercury, but it will take some years to get the revival in gear. Whether the new naming strategy will encourage or hinder Lincoln's rebirth remains to be seen.

source : thecarconnection

 

Lincoln's "Mark" used to be a strong nameplate, now its all forgotten - wont do them any good.

 

Well if they are gonna do that, I think they should spell it out as Mark X, Mark Z. etc. But either way, people are going to be confused. MKZ, MKS, MKX. It all looks the same. Ford did not think this one through. And while they are at it, they need to get rid of those ugly grills as well.

 

I agree with you here.

I barely recognize Lincoln as a luxury car maker, so they can name them whatever they want.
He Lincoln
ITS THE PRODUCT STUPID!!!

 

Who buys lincons anymore anyway?

The navagator is for brain dead soccer moms, I laugh every time I see some Dood driven them with his hand slumped over the wheel like its a gold plated brick wall!

Has anyone even see the back of that new stupid zepher, or whatever it has the uglyest taillights I have ever seen, EVER!

What a joke all those new names are, did they hit a cracked out monkey on the head then write down letters it blabed out for those names.
LOL

 

Michelle Kwan would be so pleased!

 

It's so sad to see a car company spend billions of dollars to engineer, develop, and test cars, but in the end muck it up with not being able to name them properly.

Whoever was in the board room to decide on the MKX MKZ, MKwhatever....naming should be fired. That's it. YOU'RE FIRED!!!! Americans don't like luxury cards to be named with 3 letters. Cadillac completely lost me when they went to this system. CTS, STS, DXT, SRX, MGD. What the F***? It's no wonder why their best selling car is the simply named Escalade.


The "MARK" naming plate don't mean squat now. Lincoln should be trying to attract younger buyers and should not confuse them with names of cars that look exactly the same when you are skimming pages on the internet. MKZ, MKX, MKS. How long did that take you to read each of those letter or did you even read them at all?


Hm.........


Lincoln Town Car. At least they kept something that worked.