As staggering as it may seem, the 2008 Ford F-150 pickup can be ordered in billions of different combinations. That's all going to change for 2009. In an effort to reduce complexity and cut spiraling costs in the process, Ford will be slashing the number of possible F-150 configurations by 90 percent. The automaker isn't leaving the rest of the lineup alone either. The Ford Expedition goes from 250,000 combos down to fewer than 10,000. The 2009 Lincoln MKS debuts with about 300 combinations, and the 2010 Ford Focus will offer only about 150, which is 95 percent fewer than the current model. Are you in the market for a 2009 Ford F-150 and worried that you won't be able to get it exactly the way you want? Don't fret, Ford will still offer more than 9 million combinations for next year's model, including a brown one we presume.
The 2009 Lincoln MKS may be the marque's last chance at establishing a distinct image after two decades of struggling to find its identity. At one time Lincoln, like its counterparts at Cadillac, stood apart from lesser vehicles with unique styling, powertrains and features that clearly delineated its place in the automotive hierarchy. Not that Mark IVs, Vs and VIs were high-water marks in design, but at least when you saw one rolling down the road, you knew you were looking at a Lincoln.
But the Continentals of the '80s marked the onset of Lincoln's utterly forgettable image, and when Ford went on a buying binge in the late '80s with Jaguar, continuing through the '90s with Volvo, Aston Martin, and Land Rover, the waters began to be seriously muddied. The creation of the Premier Automotive Group, which bundled all the premium brands together, did nothing to help Lincoln's outlook, so Ford's in-house luxury brand needed a fresh start. With the dissolution of PAG, Peter Horbury and the team went back to the drawing board to define a look that would shout "Lincoln!" for years to come. Read on to find out if the MKS succeeds.
The all-new MKS is a very big deal for Lincoln, and with 10,000 pre-orders already in the books, the Blue Oval's domestic luxury arm just may have a hit on its hands. To keep a steady flow of information to potential customers, Lincoln is planning a multimedia onslaught for print, web, and TV, and it has even put together a three-minute mini movie to help generate interest. The spot, "Mad, Crazy Love," has been created to draw interest from African American customers between the ages of 30-45. Lincoln has also created 15 and 30 second teasers for the spot, and it plans to run the ads during the Black Entertainment Television Awards pre-show. Once the ads begin to air on the networks, Lincoln will also have the spot on Lincoln.com so interested parties can see more.
While we're very interested to see the spot for ourselves, the ultra-long infomersials tend to be painful to watch more than once, and the acting usually isn't all that great, either. Lets hope Ford doesn't jam this one down our collective throats, even if it actually is pretty good.
Every year, carmakers collectively trot out dozens of new concept vehicles at auto shows around the world. Some fraction of those end up making their way to production lines and onto the streets. Most of the exciting design ideas, however, get heavily watered down in the process of going from auto show stand to showroom. One notable exception is the new Lincoln MKS. When the original MKS concept turned up in 2006, it was basically a slightly fancied up version of the then-new Ford Five Hundred, and it was not warmly received.
In a pleasant change of direction, Ford took the lukewarm reception for the concept to heart and by the time the production version of the MKS appeared at the LA Auto Show last November, it had been transformed. Unlike the "so what" appearance of the concept, the production model elicited much stronger opinions. Some hated it, others loved it. Regardless of how you feel about the new look, it is now a fact of life. The MKS began emerging from Ford's Chicago assembly plant a few weeks ago and Ford invited us down to Washington DC to sample it on the road.
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The first 2009 Lincoln MKS is still a couple months away from arriving at your local Lincoln dealer, but Ford has announced that 8,600 customers have already signed up for the all-new sedan. The MKS has garnered this hefty dose of interest no doubt due to Lincoln's new design language, its well-crafted interior and large number of high-tech gizmos, but Ford's marketing team deserves some credit, too. They began their work announcing the sedan's starting price of $37,895 way back in November during the L.A. Auto Show, then followed up by giving would-be customers early access to a build and price tool on the Lincoln website. The marketing team is also reportedly training dealerships to be knowledgeable about the MKS months ahead of the usual timetable, which has helped salesmen secure preorders for the vehicle sight-unseen.
Preorders traditionally happen for high-end trim levels of a model, and the MKS is no different. Sixty-five percent of the 8,600 preorders have been for the high-end "Ultimate Package," which includes features like 19-inch rims, a THX audio system, and navigation system with Travel Link. An MKS with the Ultimate Package goes for $44,180, which means Lincoln's making some money on the MKS before it even shows up for work.
Ford is desperately hoping that the new Lincoln MKS will prove to be the beginning of a rebirth for its premium Lincoln brand. After flailing about for the past two decades trying to find a design direction for Lincoln, Peter Horbury and the team have created a consistent and unique look that will be applied to all the brand's models over the next couple of years. We've previously seen the MKS on auto show stages and prototypes in various stages of camo on the road for several months. Walking in to my office this morning I spotted a production model on the street for the first time and decided to snap a few pics. Regardless of how you feel about the bow-wave grille, it certainly gives Lincoln a unique, stand-out face for the first time in many years. We'll have our first opportunity to drive the MKS in a couple of weeks, at which time we'll let you know if the driving dynamics back up the visuals.
