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Ford Motor Company president of the Americas Mark Fields has confirmed that Lincoln will sell the Ford Flex-based MKT crossover next year after a January Detroit show reveal. Lincoln showed the concept last January at Detroit. And Lincoln will unveil a refreshed MKZ at the Los Angeles auto show in November.
While an embargo prevents us from saying too much about these two models, we can say it looks like Lincoln will try to fill the price and prestige gap between Buick and Cadillac. While Lincoln would like to compete with Cadillac, it won't go after the European business the GM brand covets. Lincoln's reliance on front-drive platforms with AWD variants places it a half-notch below its American competitor.
Like the concept, the production MKT will have the 1941 Continental-style bow-wave grille first seen on the MKS and destined to become a Lincoln signature face, a chamfered surface parallel to the beltline and a thick C-pillar, with very little other than overall dimensions to hint at its connection with the Flex. It will come in six- or seven-passenger variants and will add a plethora of high-tech conveniences, including Blind Spot Monitoring and Cross Traffic Alert System. The latter uses two multibeam sonar modules in the rear quarter panels that alert the driver with an indicator light on the corresponding outside mirror when another vehicle enters the blind-spot zone.
Fields says the Mercury will go after less volume than Lincoln, with fewer models at lower prices. Alan Mulally's plans to bring in European Fords would seem to make badging the Mondeo as a Merc a natural, although Fields hinted against it. In Ford dealers, the smaller Mondeo would have to be priced above the Taurus in order to be profitable, but it would share the showroom with the Taurus and Fusion. In L-M dealers, Mercury could pull the Sable (which has no 2010 replacement anyway) and the Milan and use that space for the Mondeo.