Lincoln Town Car Replacement?
Posted by Bill Faeth on Fri, Feb 24, 2012 @ 12:38 PM
Leading up to and now following the ILCT Show two weeks ago, here is the biggest question on everyone’s mind in the limousine industry “What vehicle is going to replace the Lincoln town car?”
The replacement of the town car will be the biggest fundamental change the limousine industry has seen in years.
After talking to several operators and manufacturers at the ILCT Show, there currently is no clear cut favorite. This is disappointing for limousine companies that need to make a purchase now. The medium and small sized companies are waiting for the large operators to dictate what the next industry standard will be. If the small guys purchase the wrong vehicle type and provide affiliate services to the large company, they could be in jeopardy of losing that inbound business.
I spoke to Doug Schwartz of Executive Limousine in Long Island about this topic a couple of days ago. Doug is the President of the Long Island Limousine Association and he brought up a great point about gas prices. We are on the verge of $4.50-$5.00 per gallon gas prices. None of the new vehicle options are hybrid, propane or CNG powered, so he believes the best option is the new Chrysler 300 which has the highest MPG. Doug’s point is well taken, as our industry typically passes a fuel surcharge onto the client that currently averages between 7%-12% nationwide.
Most of the manufactures that have a sedan in the livery game were on display at the ICLT Show. My personal favorites were the new BMW and the Hyundai Equuis until Doug brought up the gas mileage. Other sedans that the industry are considering are the Toyota Avalon, Lincoln MKT, Mercedes (various models), and of course the Chrysler 300.
Right now we will wait and see what our clients say. I am not sure that clients will except a Hyundai even though the amenities are on par with the BMW or if clients will even choose a Toyota Avalon. I think Doug is on the right track with the Chrysler 300.
What do you think?
