2017 Lincoln Continental
09-13-16, 02:04 PM
#376
Lexus Fanatic
You and I may disagree on this, but I don't think Ford would have spent the kind of development money it did on the MKC, MKX, Continental, and the MKX's facelifting this year if they weren't trying to get serious about Lincoln. The next big project, of course, is probably to get a string of Lincoln-specific dealerships.
09-13-16, 02:19 PM
#377
Lead Lap
Thread Starter
Under FCA, the answer is even more clear. FCA is on a shoestring budget and knows that taking Chrysler upmarket or relaunching Imperial would require too much time, money, AND would not take advantage of the global presence of brands like Maserati and Alfa Romeo that are already in the stable. Even with Cadillac getting massive investment, it's very clear they still have a perception issue. Chrysler's perception issue is twice as bad. If FCA was just flush with cash I think such a thing would be considered, but now is certainly not the time to be bothering with that effort.
09-13-16, 02:23 PM
#378
Lexus Fanatic
Even Cadillacs, IMO, aren't necessarily that much better than lower-priced Buicks and Chevys. The Impala, for example, is truly an outstanding large sedan for its price....though its dash contours take a little getting used to. If you haven't yet sampled one, I highly recommend that you try out a V6 version. It's hard to find anything else for the money that drives like that.
09-13-16, 03:04 PM
#379
I tend to agree that a major manufacturer needs to be either "premium only" as in Mercedes and BMW, etc. Or have an upmarket brand for people to aspire to. Otherwise if you are just an economy, lower rung automaker you loose a large number of customers as they become affluent and want to move up. If Lincoln was truly a premier brand people aspired to own (and I don't think Cadillac is there either, but closer than Lincoln) it would benefit Ford as a whole. It does sadden me to see these brands only a shadow of what they once were as far as prestige is concerned. For some reason I really want the Continental to succeed, but if it was my $70k+ I was spending I am fairly certain it would go elsewhere.
Ford lost its way for a while. In 2000 they established a Premier Automobile Group that included Jaguar, Volvo, and Land Rover. The first domestic entry in this class was the Lincoln LS sedan which was based on the Jag S type. It was widely praised by the auto press as the beginning of Lincoln's rebirth. That is when they got lost. The Premier Auto Group died and along with it the follow-on Lincolns. When Alan Mulally took over, he sold off the foreign brands so that Ford did not need to take bail-out money from the government, and started rebuilding Ford into a profitable company. On of the elements is that higher end cars (and pickup trucks) generally have higher profit margins than economy or mainstream family cars. Ford needs Lincoln to be highly profitable so the F150 doesn't carry all the load. It is not easy to re-establish a luxury reputation. Cadillac has poured a huge effort into advance tech and very nice cars and yet is having difficulty selling them.
I sincerely hope both Lincoln and Cadillac succeed.
Steve
09-13-16, 03:07 PM
#380
Lexus Fanatic
Even Cadillacs, IMO, aren't necessarily that much better than lower-priced Buicks and Chevys. The Impala, for example, is truly an outstanding large sedan for its price....though its dash contours take a little getting used to. If you haven't yet sampled one, I highly recommend that you try out a V6 version. It's hard to find anything else for the money that drives like that.
The steps taken to differentiate Cadillac from the rest of GM's lineup are much clearer than the steps taken to separate Ford from Lincoln. Multiple vehicles on Cadillac RWD platforms vs none at Lincoln...
09-13-16, 03:33 PM
#381
Lexus Fanatic
Again, I'll say......if you have not sampled a V6-equipped Impala, by all means, do so...there are several Chevy shops not far from you. Then you may see what I'm talking about. Consumer Reports was also floored with their Impala. They gave it 95 out of 100 on a road-test, unheard of for a mainstream Chevy sedan...those kind of road-test scores are usually racked up by cars like the LS460 and S-550.
the additional R&D they invested in the CT6 is very apparent, its a bespoke platform, RWD, Cadillac specific engines. Cadillac also has invested in their own infotainment setup (love it or hate it) while Ford just reuses Sync and MyFordTouch in Lincolns and it all looks exactly the same.
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-13-16 at 03:37 PM.
09-13-16, 05:16 PM
#382
Lexus Fanatic
Even Cadillacs, IMO, aren't necessarily that much better than lower-priced Buicks and Chevys. The Impala, for example, is truly an outstanding large sedan for its price....though its dash contours take a little getting used to. If you haven't yet sampled one, I highly recommend that you try out a V6 version. It's hard to find anything else for the money that drives like that.
09-13-16, 05:18 PM
#383
Lexus Fanatic
I tend to agree that a major manufacturer needs to be either "premium only" as in Mercedes and BMW, etc. Or have an upmarket brand for people to aspire to. Otherwise if you are just an economy, lower rung automaker you loose a large number of customers as they become affluent and want to move up. If Lincoln was truly a premier brand people aspired to own (and I don't think Cadillac is there either, but closer than Lincoln) it would benefit Ford as a whole. It does sadden me to see these brands only a shadow of what they once were as far as prestige is concerned. For some reason I really want the Continental to succeed, but if it was my $70k+ I was spending I am fairly certain it would go elsewhere.
09-13-16, 05:32 PM
#384
Lexus Fanatic
09-13-16, 05:40 PM
#385
Lexus Fanatic
Originally Posted by LOWFAST
For some reason I really want the Continental to succeed, but if it was my $70k+ I was spending I am fairly certain it would go elsewhere.
09-13-16, 05:56 PM
#386
Lexus Fanatic
As for the parking brake, I never really use it. Never have I heard or seen an issue without it being used. I doubt its a big enough of an issue, bit that is for the other thread.
09-13-16, 06:03 PM
#387
Lexus Fanatic
At 70K, I would agree...that's a lot of money. (I wouldn't spend 70K on any vehicle LOL). But, lower-line versions at 45 or 50K may be another matter.......and it's nice that, in a base Continental, you don't have to put up with a 2.0 turbo four like in the base Cadillac CT6.
09-13-16, 06:12 PM
#388
Lexus Fanatic
Yeah, I'm pushing GM.......that's why I came very close to buying a Lincoln MKC last year. The only thing that stopped me was its poor reliability record and questionable build quality. And there's no guarantee that my next vehicle will be from GM....especially the way Buick is going SUV-crazy and is screwing up their sedan marketing.
And, next year, I may not be in much of a position to go shopping....it looks like my other knee (not the one that was injured and operated on last June) is pretty much on borrowed time from loss of cartilage. Though not painful or preventing me from walking, it's somewhat deformed now, and, in time, is going to need either a partial or total knee-replacement. That will take some more recuperation and therapy, just like I had this summer.
And, next year, I may not be in much of a position to go shopping....it looks like my other knee (not the one that was injured and operated on last June) is pretty much on borrowed time from loss of cartilage. Though not painful or preventing me from walking, it's somewhat deformed now, and, in time, is going to need either a partial or total knee-replacement. That will take some more recuperation and therapy, just like I had this summer.
09-13-16, 06:15 PM
#389
Lexus Fanatic
Yeah, I'm pushing GM.......that's why I came very close to buying a Lincoln MKC last year. The only thing that stopped me was its poor reliability record and questionable build quality. And there's no guarantee that my next vehicle will be from GM....especially the way Buick is going SUV-crazy and is screwing up their sedan marketing.
And, next year, I may not be in much of a position to go shopping....it looks like my other knee (not the one that was injured and operated on last June) is pretty much on borrowed time from loss of cartilage. Though not painful or preventing me from walking, it's somewhat deformed now, and, in time, is going to need either a partial or total knee-replacement. That will take some more recuperation and therapy, just like I had this summer.
And, next year, I may not be in much of a position to go shopping....it looks like my other knee (not the one that was injured and operated on last June) is pretty much on borrowed time from loss of cartilage. Though not painful or preventing me from walking, it's somewhat deformed now, and, in time, is going to need either a partial or total knee-replacement. That will take some more recuperation and therapy, just like I had this summer.
09-13-16, 06:36 PM
#390
Lexus Fanatic