Lincoln Dealers Grappling With High Inventory Levels

As Ford Authority previously reported, Lincoln dealers have been dealing with high inventory levels for months now, closing out Q3 2023 at levels that were more than double the national average before ending December at more than a 90 days’ supply – the eighth most of any brand – which was also more than double the overall average in the U.S. That trend continued in January before finally easing up somewhat last month, though Lincoln’s inventory levels still remained at an incredibly high 133 days’ supply versus the national average of just 76 days. That decrease was driven by a healthy 38 percent sales increase in February, which also helped keep average transaction pricing stable. Regardless, Lincoln dealers are still grappling with these high inventory levels, according to Automotive News.

At the end of February, Lincoln have enough inventory to last it more than four months, even with the aforementioned improvement, which means that Lincoln dealers are sitting on a large number of 2023 models at the moment. In fact, roughly one-third of the inventory currently sitting on dealer lots consists of 2023 model year vehicles, with gross stock sitting at around 33,000 units in the U.S. As a result, Lincoln has ramped up incentive spending by 65 percent in the first two years, rolled out special financing deals, and loosened rules related to its loaner car program.

There are a number of factors that have contributed to this glut, ranging from ramped up production following years of challenges stemming from supply constraints, a stop-sale pertaining to rearview camera woes, software issues, and the UAW strike chiefly among them. “It was kind of a perfect storm for the factory to have to get through,” said Chris Poulos, chairman of the Lincoln National Dealer Council. “We’re dealing with it on a day-to-day basis. All in all, yes, inventories are up, but I look at it as an opportunity to get some volume.”

“We’re going to do what we need to do to clear out the old models as we need to, and so far it’s going well,” said Lincoln President Dianne Craig. “The last couple months we’ve made some really good progress. We’ve got to be really disciplined on the inventory. Especially as a luxury brand, you’ve got to be really mindful of when you’re putting on incentives because we’re watching residual values and it’s all connected.”

We’ll have more on Lincoln’s inventory levels soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Lincoln news, and non-stop Ford news coverage.