Posted on 05/27/2010 9:11:13 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
Ford Motor Co. is preparing to phase out its 71-year old Mercury brand, adding to the list of storied Detroit nameplates that reached the end of the road in recent years as the industry has become more competitive.
Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally and his top lieutenants have won the backing of key members of the Ford family and are expected to seek approval from the car maker's board to kill Mercury after years of dwindling sales, a person familiar with the matter said Thursday.
Mercury was created in 1939 by Edsel Ford, the son of legendary founder Henry Ford. It was prompted by General Motors Co.'s strategy of building a "ladder of brands" that included Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick and Cadillac. That allowed GM to appeal to a wide range of customers and move them up the brand and price ladder as their incomes rose, enabling GM to pass Ford as the world's largest auto maker.
Mercury would be the latest Detroit brand to die since 2000. As part of its bankruptcy restructuring last year, GM shut down its Pontiac and Saturn divisions, and Hummer appears to be headed for the same fate. Earlier this decade GM phased out Oldsmobile and Chrysler Group LLC killed off Plymouth.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Not at all. Always glad to know more American heroes.
You need to fire the guy that mows your lawn. ;-]
Lawn? HAH! This is Seattle where’s more about moss with a few leafy things thrown in for good measure...;)
Go green! Collect those carbon credits!
Seattle is the most beautiful worst city I’ve been to.
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