Lincoln, Cadillac Struggle to Get Luxury Groove Back

Business is looking up for GM, Chrysler and Ford but the big three US automakers are still lagging behind in the luxury car market.

Published

4 months ago

Categories

Technology

Places

Detroit

Companies

Daimler Ag, Bayerische Motoren Werke Ag, Ford, Gm, Ford Motor Co., Porsche

Transcript

SCRIPT: A fancy entrance for an even fancier car. This is the Lincoln MK-C, the latest addition to Ford's luxury brand. SOUNDBITE 1 Alan Mulally (man), CEO and President, Ford Motor Company (English, 12 sec): "We are excited to serve our customers with a luxury car they want and they value. Lincoln is the brand that will re-ignite those opportunities for growth at the Ford Motor Company" Oppportunities that are hard to come by for US auto makers in a luxury market dominated by Europe. Germany's BMW and Mercedes are the top two luxury cars in the world, with Japan's Lexus firmly in third place. Lincoln lags far behind with sales in 2012 dropping by 4 percent. GM's Cadillac has fared slightly better, but its performance pales in comparison to the German powerhouse. Britain's Bentley rounds up Europe's domination. Its latest model costs more the $200,000 -- but has been flying off showroom floors. SOUNDBITE 2 Christophe Georges (man), President, Bentley America (French, 13 sec): "The US remains our largest market. We sold 2315 cars last year, which is 23 percent more than the year before." ["Les US restent notre marché le plus important. En termes de volumes de ventes, nous avons vendu 2315 voitures l'année dernière, soit une progression de 23 pourcent par rapport à l'année précédente"] Ron Edwards has been following the auto industry for years. He says that, despite Lincoln and Cadillac's efforts, American brands have got nothing on Europe. SOUNDBITE 3 Ron Edwards (man), chroniqueur automobile "The Edwards Notebook" (English, 9): "In my opinion they still have a ways to go, even as far as design. I mean I have not yet seen a Cadillac that compares to the car we're sitting in" The US has lost on home soil to foreign brands and is now turning to China, in the hopes that the world's largest market would finally give American luxury cars a much needed boost. ------------------ SHOTLIST: DETROIT, MICHIGAN, JANUARY 14, 2013, SOURCE: AFPTV - VAR of the presentation of the Lincoln MK-C Concept car - SOUNDBITE 1 - VAR of the Lincoln MK-C Concept car - MS of the BMW X6 - WS of the Mercedes display - WS of the Lexus display - CU of the Lincoln logo - MS of the Lincoln MK-C - CUs of the 2013 car of the year, the Cadillac ATS - shot of Christophe Georges opening the door to a Bentley GT8 Convertible - VAR of the Bentley GT8 Convertible - SOUNDBITE 2 - VAR of Ron Edwards inside the Bentley GT8 - WS of the Bentley display - CU of the Bentley logo - SOUNDBITE 3 - VAR of the Porsche display - VAR of the Lincoln MKZ