Ford Inside News banner

Lincoln Launches New Branding, Leverages Lincoln Motor Company Name

40K views 74 replies 21 participants last post by  2b2 
#1 ·
Rumors surrounding a Lincoln name change are now validated.
www.FordInsideNews.com
November 29, 2012
By: Nick Saporito



In a new commercial on the brand's YouTube page, Lincoln has officially launched a new advertising campaign and a tweaked name: Lincoln Motor Company. The new ad validates recent speculation that Ford Motor Company was pondering a name change for their luxury brand, and suggests that an entirely new branding strategy is beginning to roll out just as the 2013 MKZ launches.

The commercial depicts flashbacks of Lincoln's past, including an opening shot of an individual clearly mimicking President Abraham Lincoln, for whom the Lincoln brand was originally named after. Throughout the spot blurbs from the past compare to the realities of the all-new 2013 MKZ, such as the car's panoramic roof in comparison to the suicide doors on the 1961 Continental.

At the end of the ad is when Lincoln's branding change is displayed clearly. The ad ends with the text "Lincoln Motor Company" and the iconic Lincoln star logo. Likely in an effort to drive home the new name, it is even verbally announced in the ad.

Oddly Lincoln has not made any formal announcements regarding the name change or new campaign, though we fully expect to see a slew of new ads rolling out in the next few months as Lincoln Motor Company rolls out their latest and greatest, the MKZ.
 
See less See more
#27 ·
It would spoil the whole thing. It's like saying that BMW should start building their vehicles at Goodwood.
Other than marketing what is the purpose as you see it?

As for the BMW reference, do you think they will be building the new 1 series which shares its platform with the Minis on an exclusive to BMW line? I don't think so. In this day and age we have independent companies partnering to reduce the significant costs of developing platforms, it is the way of the future, and I have a difficult time taking Ford to task for not bucking the trend.

Most on these boards pine for a 3/ATS/C-class competitor built on the Mustang platform, yet wouldn't it still be a tarted up Ford? I believe they will build the Lincoln brand, but its going to take time. I don't disagree with their plan of attacking the highest volume segments first for two reasons. One, they are the segments most likely to include vehicles based off of pedestrian platforms. Two, it offers the largest possible customer base from which to pull. I think once/if they manage to take a reasonable share of those markets we will see them begin to move upward, which I expect will include platforms that will be competitive in those segments. However I do not expect to see them be exclusive to Lincoln, I fully expect to see Ford versions.

Back when Audi had the unintended execration scare with the 5000 they as a brand were not really anything more then a Volvo competitor, not BMW/Merc as they are now. It took them a decade and a half to get to this point, Lincoln is going to take every bit as long.

Cadillac introduced the first CTS in 2003, just now going on ten years and they are just now beginning to be seen as a real competitor to the Audi/BMW/Merc trifecta.

I'm sure Ford management would love to just jump from this stage to legit competitor as much as we wish they would. The reality is we won't have a good idea of whether they'll ever make that jump for probably another five years or so, at which point you would expect to see the beginnings of the truly competitive platforms showing up, if they do then all is well, if in five years we are not at least hearing, or seeing spy shots of such cars then we'll know they never intended to aim above Acura.

I have hope, I don't have confidence, but I also don't dismiss their current trajectory as misguided.
 
#29 ·
#30 ·
I don't think so, the current MKZ's side profile looks different

http://image.motortrend.com/f/roadtests/sedans/17120590+w799+h499+cr1+ar0/112_0903_12z%2B2010_lincoln_MKZ%2Bside.jpg[][/QUOTE]

It is. Look at the C-pillar, its exact. Look at where the bumper meets the fender and wheel well, exact. I say its just a current MKZ. I think the combination of lighting, and primer which will show the shadows/contours more then glossy paint makes it appear slightly different.

:)
 
#31 ·
It is. Look at the C-pillar, its exact. Look at where the bumper meets the fender and wheel well, exact. I say its just a current MKZ. I think the combination of lighting, and primer which will show the shadows/contours more then glossy paint makes it appear slightly different.

:)
I'm second guessing myself now.

The lighting is really throwing it off, it looks like its more defined where the C-Pillar comes down in the video than the production car.
 
#33 ·
 
#34 ·
Other than marketing what is the purpose as you see it?

As for the BMW reference, do you think they will be building the new 1 series which shares its platform with the Minis on an exclusive to BMW line? I don't think so. In this day and age we have independent companies partnering to reduce the significant costs of developing platforms, it is the way of the future, and I have a difficult time taking Ford to task for not bucking the trend.

Most on these boards pine for a 3/ATS/C-class competitor built on the Mustang platform, yet wouldn't it still be a tarted up Ford? I believe they will build the Lincoln brand, but its going to take time. I don't disagree with their plan of attacking the highest volume segments first for two reasons. One, they are the segments most likely to include vehicles based off of pedestrian platforms. Two, it offers the largest possible customer base from which to pull. I think once/if they manage to take a reasonable share of those markets we will see them begin to move upward, which I expect will include platforms that will be competitive in those segments. However I do not expect to see them be exclusive to Lincoln, I fully expect to see Ford versions.

Back when Audi had the unintended execration scare with the 5000 they as a brand were not really anything more then a Volvo competitor, not BMW/Merc as they are now. It took them a decade and a half to get to this point, Lincoln is going to take every bit as long.

Cadillac introduced the first CTS in 2003, just now going on ten years and they are just now beginning to be seen as a real competitor to the Audi/BMW/Merc trifecta.

I'm sure Ford management would love to just jump from this stage to legit competitor as much as we wish they would. The reality is we won't have a good idea of whether they'll ever make that jump for probably another five years or so, at which point you would expect to see the beginnings of the truly competitive platforms showing up, if they do then all is well, if in five years we are not at least hearing, or seeing spy shots of such cars then we'll know they never intended to aim above Acura.

I have hope, I don't have confidence, but I also don't dismiss their current trajectory as misguided.
If Lincoln is going to call themselves Lincoln Motor Company, why would they want to build cars at Ford plants? People will pay top dollar for an exclusive and unique luxury experience. That's why Rolls Royce is so successful. Having their own plant just makes them more exclusive.

Lincoln doesn't have to have all exclusive platforms, but they do need at least one.

Like I said, not doing these things would defeat the purpose of calling it Lincoln Motor Company. Lincoln has to be 100% differentiated from Ford Motor Company.
 
#36 ·
^^ THANKS for that pic, Andrew


...In this day and age we have independent companies partnering to reduce the significant costs of developing platforms, it is the way of the future, and I have a difficult time taking Ford to task for not bucking the trend.
EXCELLENT way of putting it, SP1966


...Most on these boards pine for a 3/ATS/C-class competitor built on the Mustang platform, yet wouldn't it still be a tarted up Ford? I believe they will build the Lincoln brand, but its going to take time. I don't disagree with their plan of attacking the highest volume segments
OTOH
the 3-series/C-class *IS* the largest volume ""lux"" segment
I made a list (with help) in a thread earlier this year
(edit: can't find it here but LINK to post on CarSpyShots)

...Back when Audi had the unintended execration scare with the 5000 they as a brand were not really anything more then a Volvo competitor, not BMW/Merc as they are now. It took them a decade and a half to get to this point, Lincoln is going to take every bit as long.

Cadillac introduced the first CTS in 2003, just now going on ten years and they are just now beginning to be seen as a real competitor to the Audi/BMW/Merc trifecta.

I'm sure Ford management would love to just jump from this stage to legit competitor as much as we wish they would. The reality is we won't have a good idea of whether they'll ever make that jump for probably another five years or so, at which point you would expect to see the beginnings of the truly competitive platforms showing up, if they do then all is well, if in five years we are not at least hearing, or seeing spy shots of such cars then we'll know they never intended to aim above Acura...
I'm not At All sure any mfg is willing to or even *wants* to make a quantum leap (anymore).
It might be a "business-case catch22" - - where the MBA's can't be convinced by anything on paper to even attempt it
- or somethingelse, dunno...
...maybe the mfgs are just being humble(?) about their own ability to follow-thru? (see Acura imploding immediately after building a couple of the BEST looking sedans in the world: previous gen TL & TSX)
but
imho Cadillac & Audi *could* have moved faster - between then and now the wheel hasn't been re-invented;
and Lincoln definitely *could* BE moving faster (IF we believe it doesn't cost more to "bend sheetmetal beautifully vs drably/awkwardly", paraphrasing J Mays of ALL people)
[broken record] the MKC & its delay over the Escape is a major conundrum for me
 
#37 ·
That could be a green screen and they're showing old footage of the LS getting built? Do think it's the LS? It looks RWD.
Come on now, if that is an old shot of an LS can anybody explain the missing gas door? Its a current MKZ, end of story. Also, look at the forward base of the c-pillar, just enough kink to where the window molding extends back. :tongue:


You can keep trying though!! LOL
 
#38 ·
The gas door is a dead give away its not the LS but seeing those two photos shows how similar the C pillars are.. never noticed that
 
#39 ·
Common now, if that is an old shot of an LS can anybody explain the missing gas door? Its a current MKZ, end of story. Also, look at the forward base of the c-pillar, just enough kink to where the window molding extends back. :tongue:


You can keep trying though!! LOL
The gas door is a dead give away its not the LS but seeing those two photos shows how similar the C pillars are.. never noticed that

It still reminds me of the LS though.

It could possibly be a Mustang based sedan. Who knows.
 
#40 ·
In a new commercial on the brand's YouTube page, Lincoln has officially launched a new advertising campaign and a tweaked name: Lincoln Motor Company. The new ad validates recent speculation that Ford Motor Company was pondering a name change for their luxury brand, and suggests that an entirely new branding strategy is beginning to roll out just as the 2013 MKZ launches.

The commercial depicts flashbacks of Lincoln's past, including an opening shot of an individual clearly mimicking President Abraham Lincoln, for whom the Lincoln brand was originally named after. Throughout the spot blurbs from the past compare to the realities of the all-new 2013 MKZ, such as the car's panoramic roof in comparison to the suicide doors on the 1961 Continental.

At the end of the ad is when Lincoln's branding change is displayed clearly. The ad ends with the text "Lincoln Motor Company" and the iconic Lincoln star logo. Likely in an effort to drive home the new name, it is even verbally announced in the ad.

Oddly Lincoln has not made any formal announcements regarding the name change or new campaign, though we fully expect to see a slew of new ads rolling out in the next few months as Lincoln Motor Company rolls out their latest and greatest, the MKZ.
Good find. I'm looking forward to an official annoucment on this.

However, just thinking further down the line, I wonder how this will be manifested on a retail level. Farley hinted at a "new name" for the brand a month or so ago, and we now know that the new name is really just a "return" to the Lincoln Motor Company as a brand. However, that same series of articles where he made those statements also said that Lincoln needs to "separate" itself retail-wise in order to make the impact it needs to attract new customers. Consider that Farley was instrumental in launching Lexus, he knows a thing or two about how to approach the issues of branding and convincing customers that your product is distinct from the "mother company". Could his insistance that the majority of Lexus stores be stand alone franchises signal his next step in relaunching Lincoln? After Ford already killed off a nice chunk of Lincoln-Mercury stand alone franchises, I wonder if he can get them to grow or just get Ford-Lincoln stores to have a separate "showroom" and service center for Lincoln customers?
 
#41 ·
back to the cars in the video ... I just don't know




I *AM* at the point that I can't trust my interpretations - seeing what I *want* to see
(yet I DON'T see the same wheelwell bulge as on the production Z)
Whatever car the sedan unibody in that pic may belong to, I can say with a good deal of certainty that we have never seen it before. The car is no existing or prior production Lincoln, Ford, or Mercury model and is no show car that we've seen either...

...whatever this is or is not, it is not something that was merely 'lying around'. That isn't a show car mock up, that is pretty obviously an engineering mock up for a program aimed at production or production feasibility and, by appearances, it's reasonably far along. At a minimum, that tells us that Lincoln has been seriously working on something like this.

What's it based upon? Who knows. It gives the impression of a very 'cab rearward' design which is almost exclusively a rwd design direction, and the fact that the Mustang is shown immediately after this could be a hint that this is indeed the oft rumored and elusive 'Lincoln Mustang sedan'. That said, at yet another point in the video you can see that they have cut off the front structure of the unibody not too far forward of the cabin, which is odd.....unless they don't want you to see how large the gap between front of the doors and the front axle line is going to be. IMO they are very obviously trying to drop some hints here and bait the net into guessing what is coming, they just aren't very clear on what exactly that might be which is par for the course for Ford right now.

What we can say is that this is a roughly A4/3-Series/C Class sized sedan that has not previously been seen by the public and which may have some design characteristics that are, typically, seen on rwd rather than fwd cars. That isn't much to go on, which is apparently how Ford likes it, but it is something.
posted^ mainly to stir the pot

actually
the biggest 'nudge' I get in a LincStang direction is the fact that this and the "Mustang" are so close together -- WHY have a Mustang in a Lincoln video AT ALL?!?
 
#43 ·
Ford Redoubles Effort to Reawaken Its Sleepy Lincoln Brand - N Y Times
An unusual ad campaign features Abraham Lincoln, the president for whom the car brand is named

By BILL VLASIC
Published: December 2, 2012

...On Monday, the company will announce upgraded customer service initiatives, a new brand name for Lincoln that plays down the Ford connection and an unusual advertising campaign that features Abraham Lincoln, the president for whom the brand is named.

Ford’s chief executive, Alan R. Mulally, will begin the rebranding effort at an event outside Lincoln Center in Manhattan — the first in a series of moves meant to reverse Lincoln’s seemingly perpetual state of decline.

Ford will formally rechristen the brand as the Lincoln Motor Company and introduce a television spot that begins with an image of Lincoln, stovepipe hat and all. The brand’s first Super Bowl commercial is in the works, as is a revamped Web site that links consumers to a Lincoln “concierge” who can arrange test drives or set up appointments at dealerships.

Mr. Mulally will also announce the on-sale date in early 2013 for the radically redesigned Lincoln MKZ sedan, as well as plans for three new vehicles down the road...

...The Lincoln comeback effort starts with the midsize MKZ, which has been redesigned with a sweeping grille, tapered body style and an all-glass retractable roof. It will be followed by three other new models, including a larger sedan and S.U.V. ...
 
#44 ·
Anybody who thinks the four door in the video is other then the current MKZ is crazy! The extremely slight differences are due to a combination of primer which doesn't reflect light like a glossy paint and the lighting used. The two small differences are the bulge of the wheel well arch not standing out like in the other picture and the shadow at the base of the c-pillar, both simply lighting/paint differences.

Two things that make this clear as day to me:

1. The window trim on the current MKZ extends at the base of the rear window with a small triangle, you can see relatively cleary in the pic the place where that trim piece will be installed.

2. Here's the obvious one to me, every line is an exact duplicate of the current MKZ, how in the heck will lincoln pass of a LincStang that looks like an eight year old design? Lincoln has gone swoopy with the new MKZ, do we really think a possible LincStang will be a staid design? Really?

I'm not used to being the only person with a clue! :clap: On the other hand I have been known to eat a serving or two of crow!! :facepalm:
 
#45 ·
The Larger sedan comment has me scratching my head... since when?

I am starting to wonder if ANYONE knows what these new models will be
 
#46 ·
Anybody who thinks the four door in the video is other then the current MKZ is crazy!

I'm not used to being the only person with a clue! :clap: On the other hand I have been known to eat a serving or two of crow!! :facepalm:
Or...they just haven't made the connection yet with the styling cues. Yeah, that is pretty obviously the MKZ once you look at them side by side, although it is pretty interesting that some of the character lines are either much sharper or appear to be missing altogether on this unibody. Could be an early development and tooling mule, what appears to be a chopped front frame structure certainly suggests that was potentially what this chassis was used for at one point, or it could just be a side effect of lighting and picture quality.

Still, a Mustang in a Lincoln video is, IMO, an interesting inclusion.

AndrewL said:
The Larger sedan comment has me scratching my head... since when?

I am starting to wonder if ANYONE knows what these new models will be
And Ford seems to like it like that. That said, I don't think a larger sedan is really a surprise as there will be a MKS replacement one way or another. The real question is what that replacement will be and, will it be the largest sedan in the fold.
 
#49 ·
The Larger sedan comment has me scratching my head... since when?
I'm thinking the person who wrote the article got it wrong. I just don't see how with the recent update to the MKS that they're going to somehow fit another model in between it that the MKZ, and further don't see how they go larger, not with current platforms.

What frustrates me most is the fact that there is so much build up from Lincoln, yet never really are we wowed by it.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top