Pursuits
Ford's Lagging Lincoln Luxury Line Puts New Face Forward on MKZ
- Slow-selling sedan gets gaping grille similar to Continental
- `People just immediately connoted it as a premium luxury car'
Ford VP Galhotra: MKZ Very Important Product for Us
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Ford Motor Co. is performing emergency surgery on its slow-selling Lincoln MKZ, giving it the gaping grille that won praise on the auto-show circuit earlier this year on the luxury line’s Continental concept car.
Touted as Lincoln’s comeback car when it debuted in 2013, MKZ has struggled to connect with luxury buyers who found its eagle’s wings-inspired grille design to be “polarizing,” Matt VanDyke, global brand director, said in an interview. MKZ sales are down 13 percent this year, and it’s outsold 3-to-1 by BMW’s 3 Series in the U.S.