Lincoln president expects further dealer consolidation, doesn't plan buyout offers in EV pivot

DETROIT — Lincoln Motor Co. expects a continued winnowing of its dealer network in the coming years as it pivots to electric vehicles, but the brand has no plans to offer a formal buyout program like some of its rivals.

Lincoln President Joy Falotico said in an interview Wednesday she expects the luxury make will end 2022 with under 600 retailers, down from the 685 it had as of the latest Automotive News dealer census. About five years ago, Falotico said, Lincoln had more than 1,000.

"I think there's opportunities for us to continue to consolidate the network, but it will be in a voluntary situation," she told Automotive News on the sidelines of the Detroit auto show.

About a third of Cadillac's retail network elected to take a buyout instead of investing in electric vehicles, and Buick is also offering its retailers a chance to bow out.

"We don't plan to have any specific buyout program," Falotico said. "We continue every year to work on the network and say 'do we have the right dealers in the right markets with the right focus?' Certainly as we go to EVs and we see that concentration, that will create another opportunity for dealers to decide if the investment makes sense for them or if it doesn't. It will be completely up to them if they want to proceed with the Lincoln brand."

The Ford brand on Wednesday rolled out new sales requirements for its retail network in order to sell EVs in the future as part of its national dealer meeting in Las Vegas. The requirements include choosing one of two different investment levels to become EV certified.

Lincoln plans a similar meeting with its network in early October but is not expected to follow Ford's model.

"We're not exactly where Ford is on it," Falotico said. "I don't see us needing to have a multiple-tiered approach because we're a smaller brand."

She also said Lincoln's certification program will likely have a different timeline than Ford's. Ford dealers must choose by Oct. 31 whether to become EV certified for a period that will run from 2024 until the end of 2026.

"We're still working on the exact timing," Falotico said. "We do expect we'll need to be getting on with it as well given the lineup we've said we'll have coming. We're not exactly tied to the same time frame as Ford."

Lincoln has said it plans to offer three battery-electric vehicles by 2025 and a fourth by 2026.

"With EVs, no matter how you look at it, that's going to be an investment for our dealers," Falotico said. "So it's a choice they have to make."