Ford to drop Mercury line
In February, members of the Lincoln Mercury National Dealer Council asked Ford executives to outline their strategy for Mercury. If it has a future, they want to see the products. If it does not, they want to know now so they can manage their business accordingly.
According to dealers, Ford agreed. The Dearborn automaker told them it would discuss the fate of Mercury at a dealer meeting that was then planned for April in Las Vegas. Company sources say no such commitment was made.
Either way, Ford canceled that meeting. The company is now planning a September meeting in Detroit — a meeting dealers hope will provide a definitive answer to their question.
"The company is in (the) process of developing a strategy and has committed to communicating this plan to the Lincoln Mercury dealer network in the fourth quarter," the council said in a letter to its members dated April 28. In private conversations with The Detroit News, several Mercury dealers said they have grown weary of carefully nuanced statements from Ford executives like: "We have no plans to kill Mercury at this time." But they acknowledge that Ford is in a difficult position. Detroit News