The 2009 Ford Flex crossover is an SUV that seats up to seven people and was built to take the place of the minivan lineup that Ford is accustomed to making. Ford was planning on giving the Mercury a chance to get the same design as the Flex – but it seems that Lincoln is next in line.
Sources say the Flex will bow first, allowing it to have its moment in the sun before the Lincoln version is added to the lineup, perhaps a year later. It is in keeping with a strategic plan going forward to place more emphasis on the Lincoln premium brand than on Mercury. At the recent L.A. auto show, Mark Fields, Ford president of the Americas, said Lincoln will take over as the volume piece of the Lincoln Mercury franchise.