[Shotimes] OT - 2006 Mercury Milan

[Ron Porter]

Actually, the same with the SSR. There's a 6-month supply out there.
Apparently, there's also a few REALLY clueless dealers who are trying to get
above-sticker prices for them!! As I understand, they are putting in the
bigger motor next year to try to give that pig (4,700+ #s) more performance.

And, now that GM let it leak that the GTO will have the 400 HP motor next
year, they will have to GIVE away the current 350 HP model. I can still see
why.....every time I see the front of one, I assume it's a Grand Prix or
even a Grand Am!!

Ford was a bit smarter with the new T-Bird, and planned on sunsetting it in
a few years. Same with the Ford GT, that will only be built for a few years.

Ron Porter

-----Original Message-----
From: shotimes-admin@autox.team.net [mailto:shotimes-admin@autox.team.net]
On Behalf Of Leigh Smith
Sent: Saturday, August 28, 2004 11:30 AM
To: '_ShoTimes'
Subject: Re: [Shotimes] OT - 2006 Mercury Milan


I second the "move the metal" mindset at dealers. My brother in-law is a
finance manager, and they get additional finance incentives for moving the
cars off the floor plan very quickly, as well as incurring almost no floor
plan (finance) charges. A winner is a car line that moves out in 30 days. It
basically costs the dealer nothing.  A loser is one that sits around for a
few months, they have to keep discounting them to sell them, and the floor
plan charges keep racking up, so they actually lose money on each unit sold.
Now that line is a "lemon" in their eyes. Then word spreads, dealers don't
order them, factory inventory backs up, and the factory resorts to blackmail
and makes them take x number of those models to get x number of the hot
selling model.

The SHO was definately a sales "lemon". And we know that, we say that it was
"under-appreciated" by the public.

The current GTO is having the same problems. They have only sold 6,000 units
in 6 months and have another 9,000 already produced and in inventory, giving
them over 9 months of inventory. A long way from their 30-60 day target.
Cool car or not, some business manager is having a hard time keeping it
alive and not pulling the plug.

A lot of cool high-performance cars wind up with this problem, because of
low sales potential, which is why performance cars have earned a bad rap in
general with dealers even though they may be very good cars.

Performance cars I can think of that fit this category are the SHO, GTO,
Fiero GT, Cosworth Vega, Corvair, late model Camaro/Firebird, and many other
stick-shift models. Ever see a five speed Grand Prix or Lincoln LS?
Appreciate them quickly while they last, because they probably won't be
around long.

Lee



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ron Porter" <ronporter@prodigy.net>
To: <alfitz@alfitz.com>; "'_ShoTimes'" <Shotimes@autox.team.net>
Sent: Saturday, August 28, 2004 1:52 AM
Subject: RE: [Shotimes] OT - 2006 Mercury Milan


> This is looking at it from the perspective of a dealer who has to move the
> metal.
>
> IIRC, they had leftover SHOs just about every year they were out. Even my
> current '94, which was built in 10/93, wasn't titled until 1/95-2/95 (it's
> on the Carfax around here somewhere).
>
> Dealers aren't into whether cars are good or not.....rather, they have
their
> own definition...."good" cars sell because buyers want them, "bad" cars
sit
> on the lot sucking up finance charges.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: alfitz@alfitz.com [mailto:alfitz@alfitz.com]
> Sent: Friday, August 27, 2004 10:51 PM
> To: Ron Porter
> Cc: _ShoTimes
> Subject: Re: [Shotimes] OT - 2006 Mercury Milan
>
>
> Ouch !!  Pinto, Edsel, or Vega?
>
> I would like to think we are in better company than those dogs. Like maybe
> Stutz Bearcat or Packard V12....
>
>
> Al Fitz
> alfitz@alfitz.com
> _______________________________________________
> Shotimes mailing list
> Shotimes@autox.team.net
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