"And what, exactly, is the point of Mercury?"

[nadepalma]

Concering the continuing decline (and possible elimination) of another American brand --- something that arguably should fire up any domestic car-guy after both Oldsmobile and Plymouth went to that great auto-wrecker in the sky --- the subject of Mercury has come up a few times over the past year since Ford unveiled its latest "Way Forward: Version X.0" and speculation is now ripe over what new CEO Mulally will do with the brand. As an auto-industry outsider, he has no sentimental attachment to the brand and any possible decisions on the brand will be "colder" than someone from the within the industry.

Over the past few days there have been one new post or another speculating over possible future Mercury products and what is in store for the brand.

Well it seems some GMIers weren't that far off the mark to speculate, as now AutoBlog chimed in on this topic as well, after they reported on a Detroit News article that outlines future Ford products with little mention of the Mercury brand.

Here is what they're thinking:


SOURCE: http://www.autoblog.com/2007/01/16/a...nt-of-mercury/

And what, exactly, is the point of Mercury?



After last week's flurry of news from Detroit, we're realizing that little was heard from Mercury. Parent Ford certainly had some introductions and unveilings, but nothing from across the corporate hall. It makes us wonder whether the Mercury brand is going to completely wither and die, or if Ford's got some surprises left. There really seems to be little point to the brand. There are no Mercury-specific models like there once were (Cougar, Villager, etc.) and really nothing particularly compelling for sale. Perhaps giving Mercury a segment to fill would drive the brand.

More armchair quarterbacking after the jump

[Source: Detroit News]

How about nixing the Fusion and making the Milan the place to go for your C-segment car? The MKZ should hang around to fill the lux niche. The Milan is arguably more handsome than the Fusion, and definitely has a nicer interior. That'd at least give people one reason to enter the Mercury store. Mercury's game plan is to be the bridge between Ford and Lincoln; what that means for now is badge-engineering by way of fascias and accoutrement.

Once the Way Forward becomes a clear path, we may see the sun rise on new and distinctive Mercurys. Part of what's eating at Alan Mulally is that Ford globally is about more than the blue oval. There are several different branches on the family tree worldwide, each with distinct product. This stratification leads directly to us US drivers acting like Beatlemania-posessed teenage girls. Ga-ga over the Euro offerings; pressed up against the fence, trying to get at the Mondeo or Focus. Mulally is keen to bring Ford's worldwide operations closer together, and acknowledges that we deserve fewer Emperor's New Clothes "remakes," and more soul-stirring machinery.

There are different design themes between Ford in the US and Ford abroad. Part of merging and streamlining global operations will be a convergence of design. That doesn't mean F-Series trucks that look like the Transit, but it will mean finding some common themes that make Fords recognizeable worldwide. May we suggest, if they're hot to bring the European product over to the Colonies, making Mercury the sole agent for those uniquely-accented Fords? Spiffy interiors and different faces only go so far.

Letting Mercury be the sole outlet for something different than what's across town at the Ford lot would at least get some notice. There also exists an opportunity to punch-up the style coming out of Mercury. Style is largely a misnomer for the brand right now. The Grand Marquis has all the style of a pair of orthopedic shoes. Sure, it's a nice enough car; but there's not a line on the flanks that appeals to anyone under 70 that's not a cop or cabdriver. The Montego is even more ho-hum than its Ford Five Hundred sister. Only the Milan and the Mountaineer have some semblance of uniqueness to them, and they're far more handsome than their Ford counterparts. How about building on that? The Norelco grille is classier than the "three bar."

MORE HERE

[jbernie]

Having only been in the US for 7 years I have always wondered why Mercury existed now, obviously the brand has a history & heritage etc. But when all your products are rebadged Fords with very little to distinguish the two models.

Ford seems to have seen the light in regards to doing different sheet metal on the same platform so vehicles are visually different, though not too many have gotten to market.

If they are prepared to give the Mercury brand different sheet metal to the Ford models then there is hope. Otherwise there really isn't much left to do.

Maybe Ford is doing to Mercury what GM is doing with Pontiac, not too much but they intend to revitalize the brand, wait a while so you can do a proper refresh of the vehicles.

Did Ford acquiring Volvo hurt Mercury? Volvos would be perceived to be a level or two up on the Fords and now have a pretty decent product line. About where Mercury should be.

I would be loathe to suggest they keep Mercury just for fleet sales, but at some point you go beyond the point of no return where you need to spend too much money to make things worthwhile again. Then again what would it cost Ford to "close" Mercury by way of dealer lawsuits/fees?

[camaro_freak]

If Ford doesn't give the brand unique vehicles along with sheetmetal then what is the point?

kill the brand and focus more on your core...

Chrysler dumped Eagle and Plymouth
GM dropps Olds

[cfch3399]

Like someone else mentioned elsewhere, let Ford have some of the Mercury style cues and interiors and then get rid of it.

[Lichtronamo]

There is no need for Mercury, especially with the Lincoln brand gaining new products. Some of these new products are the same as sold under the Mercury banner (i.e., Millan/MKZ and the Montego/MKS) and some will be different (MKX and Fairlane clone). With all the new product going to Lincoln, do you really need a brand to bridge the cap. Toyota does fine briding into Lexus, Honda into Acura and Nissan into Infiniti. If Ford needs to cut brands, do so in the middle and at the very top leaving (even as you wonder if they need Mazda too):

Ford
Mazda
Volvo
Lincoln
Jaguar/Land Rover

[minnfang]

Ford needs to kill Mercury now. The price of admission for ANY vehicle into today's market includes great design and tons of features. These things are required of every Ford vehicle now, which leaves no room for Mercury.

Keep Lincoln around though - there is enough potential price difference between a Ford and a Lincoln to do some creative things with the brand.

[throwback]

My suggestion to Ford is to kill the brand. I doubt there are many, if any Mercury only stores in the country. The only Mercury vehicle worth moving to the Lincoln brand is the Mariner. The Milan is a nice car but the MKZ should be the entry level car. The problem of course is how much will it cost to kill Mercury? The only other option is to make Mercury the Euro Ford brand as many have suggested. My feeling is FORD needs the Euro Ford cars, like the Focus, SAV, Fiesta (needs a new name here) and personal favorite the Ka. The fact that Mercury is not mentioned in their future plans speaks volumes about what management thinks about the brand and it's future.

[guitarlix]

I've only been asking this question for a couple of years now.

Mercury needs to go. And so do a few of GM's brands for that matter.

[nadepalma]

Per my comments from one of the other GMI threads that kinda discussed this (a similar article was posted in the Discussion area awhile back from a piece done by The Truth About Cars website):

Originally Posted by nadepalma

SOURCE: Mercury: The Mystique is Gone?!?

Just wanted to post something on this and see what others thought. (I thought this was better to post in the discussion section than the front page, but if a Mod comes across this and wants to move it, that's fine by me. Afterall, while killing Mercury might not have a direct influence on GM, it certainly wouldn't look good for the US auto industry as a whole and that falls under "Industry News".)

Many of you know that I've got a bit of a soft-spot for Mercury as a brand and am kinda annoyed that FoMoCo has treated them like a red-headed step-child (I've ranted on this forever on many posts).

Mercury has to be the most underutilized brand in all of Autodom. It had a decent history and image (even was considered somewhat sporty) back in the 50s and 60s, but not so much in recent imes.

What little history they had was squandered and never really stood out from its Ford bretheren like other brands have, especially among the domestic automakers. And to add to it, while other recently deceased brands like Oldsmobile and Plymouth have had milestone vehicles and great products to distinguish themselves, Mercury really never had this due to some extensive meddling by Ford. The only real product that folks can quote is the Cougar -- and that's about it.

Mercury truly is a brand that is somewhat rutterless .

Despite these negatives, Ford has an opportunity to really do something with the brand and set it apart. We can all look to Saturn as inspiration for this, certainly. But just like Saturn, part of what's good about being "vague" in brand values is that you can basically start from scratch.

Ford should use this as an opportunity to do just that and get things moving in a new direction. Redo the whole division -- give it a unique look, give it a new emblem, image, PR campaign, etc. Money is tight, no doubt, but you don't have to spend big $$ to be effective. In the last ten years, recent hits and successes have proven that.

Keep in mind that Mercury does have some things going for it. Many of their new customers have stated that they wouldn't have chosen another FoMoCo product. Additionally, Mercury has continually ranked high in J.D. Power & Associates in Initial Quality, Customer Satisfaction Index and Dealership experience ahead of many Japanese and other rivals. That is something to build on for sure. That alone should be something that is touted rather than ignored. Just as Buick (who ranks up there with Mercury) should be making more of this rather than ignoring it.

Overall, I don't want to see another US brand die. On top of that, there is something in me that likes to cheer for the underdog. Besides, there are folks out there who will NEVER consider a Ford b/c they are too average and too ordinary, but certainly would consider something that is an "anti-Ford" and Mercury certainly fits that bill of something a bit different and a touch-upscale -- but in what way? Ford needs to better define this and act upon it accordingly. Failing all else they could pull the plug on the brand, but they need to give it a proper go before doing that.

In any event, below is a very recent commentary from The Truth About Cars tearing into Ford and Mercury. I agree with some of what he says (though I dont usually like what TTAC usually posts, I agree with some of it) and was wondering what GMIers might think.

[mbukukanyau]

A Quick fix would be to rebadge Euro Fords and Sell them in US at a Mark up...

[solman98]

Ford does not own enough of Mazda to cut them.

[hotrod747]

Mercury should be a sportier/ more luxurious alternative to Ford as Pontiac is to Chevy. Not only differing in sheetmetal, but engine options as well.

[GM-10]

Simply keeping the Mercury channel on life support until FoMoCo returns to profitability probably makes sense alone. That way they don't have to spend big money to restart the distribution channel.

[johnny smallblock]

Since there are no stand alone Mercury dealerships, FoMoCo should have an easier time then GM did with Oldsmobile. Maybe they could offer Lincoln dealers a Mazda or Volvo franchise to offset the loss of Mercury.

[Saturn69]

Why, the point of Mercury is exactly the same as the point Oldsmobile had. Oh. Wait, never mind.