Is "made in China" a good medicine for Lincoln?

During the 2019 Shanghai Auto Show, Mao Jingbo, President of Lincoln’s Asia-Pacific and China Region, said in an interview with IIA: "Whether localization is a "curse" of luxury brands depends on whether the manufacturer is making the brand and whether it is Improve customer experience."

A year later, Corsair, Lincoln’s first Chinese-made model, hit the market. With its high product power and cost-effectiveness, it attracted the attention of consumers. It is reported that even during the epidemic, customers entering the store are still incessant. So, has Lincoln broken through the so-called "localized curse"? Does domestic Corsair have a substantial increase in overall sales?

According to the latest sales data released by Ford China, Lincoln has achieved a month-on-month increase in monthly sales for three consecutive months in the second quarter. The quarterly sales reached 13,897 units, an increase of 12% year-on-year and an increase of 128% from the previous quarter. At the same time, the monthly sales in May and June each exceeded 5,000 units.

It is reported that Corsair sold more than 3,000 vehicles in June this year, and at the same time set a record for the highest monthly bicycle sales in Lincoln's history in China. In fact, at the beginning of the car's launch, He Lun, IIA's Co-Chief Content Officer, Deputy Head of IIA Academy of Auto stated: "Corsair is the first model to set the price of a compact luxury SUV below 250,000 yuan. , which is consistent with Lincoln's consistent pricing strategy in the Chinese market."

Corsair's main rivals are the Volvo XC40 and Cadillac XT4 in the second camp of luxury brands. Mr. He also believes that it will be a huge success if Corsair's monthly sales are between 2000-4000 units. In fact, as expected by Mr. He, Corsair has achieved great success in the market, and has become the main model supporting Lincoln brand sales, accounting for up to 60% in June, which can be described as a veritable "high sales" model.

   Although Lincoln achieved year-on-year sales growth in the second quarter, the author found that sales in June were basically the same as the same period last year. This data is obviously not great, and compared with Cadillac, Volvo, and other luxury brands. Relatively at a disadvantage.

However, it should be noted that Cadillac and Volvo have been in China for many years, and many of their models have been produced in China. This year is the first year of Lincoln's Chinese production, and there will be many domestic models next. We can see from the current excellent market performance of Corsair that localization has become a medicine for Lincoln to increase sales in China. I believe It is only a matter of time before catching up with competitors in the future.

First, let’s first look at the first half of 2020. Lincoln can be described as frequently moving to achieve “new cars every month and month”. Corsair, the MONO series of cars, Navigator 2020 and the Presidential and MONO limited-edition models have been launched one after another.

As soon as the second half of the year began, Lincoln launched the second Chinese-made Aviator on July 8. The car is equipped with a 3.0T V6 twin-turbocharged engine, and the price is only more than 500,000. It can be said that Lincoln has shown enough sincerity to consumers in the Chinese market. In addition, compared to imported models, 6 configurations have been upgraded and improved, including 12.8-inch large screen, 22-inch wheels, iACC adaptive cruise, etc., and rear seat cushions. Lengthening and widening can be said to have taken into account the Chinese consumers' car usage in all aspects.

For the future market performance of domestic Aviator, Mr. He Lun also made a prediction. He believes that currently only 500,000 to 600,000 large and medium SUVs are Volkswagen Toureg and Jeep Grand Cherokee. Chinese-made Aviator broke into this price as a luxury brand. Interval. Its power level is the highest, but the price is lower than them. Therefore, Aviator, as the most cost-effective medium and large luxury SUV, coupled with first-class after-sales service, is expected to have a good market performance.

Summary: Many luxury brands have not escaped the "curse", such as Acura, Infiniti, Jaguar Land Rover. The reason why Lincoln insists on producing Chinese products is on the one hand because of the confidence in the product, on the other hand, the Lincoln brand has a hundred years of history, and the design concept is more in line with the aesthetic perspective of Chinese consumers "Big is beautiful." Judging from the current sales situation, Lincoln really got rid of this "curse" and believes that it will definitely occupy a place in the Chinese luxury car market in the future.