無懼經濟寒冬 福特瞄準中國市場力推豪車

DETROIT — Last April, Ford Motor announced with fanfare that it would reintroduce its storied Lincoln Continental luxury sedan, with an eye on sales in the expanding Chinese market.

底特律——去年4月，福特汽車公司(Ford Motor)高調宣佈，將重新推出林肯大陸(Lincoln Continental)豪華轎車，瞄準不斷擴張的中國市場。

But now, as Ford prepares to put the Continental on the market, it faces a far different economic landscape.

但現在，就在福特准備將大陸轎車投放市場之際，它面對的是一個完全不同的經濟格局。

While the car is expected to bolster Ford’s efforts to reinvigorate the Lincoln brand in the United States, its prospects in China are clouded by an upheaval in the stock market there and a general slowdown in auto sales.

雖然這款轎車將推動福特在美國重振林肯品牌，但它在中國的銷售前景因爲該國股市的動盪及汽車銷售的總體放緩而變得暗淡。

At the unveiling of the production version of the Continental on Tuesday at the North American International Auto Show, Ford executives said they were undaunted by the economic troubles in China and were pressing ahead with their plans.

週二，在北美國際車展(North American International Auto Show)公佈林肯大陸的量產車型時，福特高管們表示，他們，他們不畏懼中國的經濟問題，依然在推進相關計劃。

“We are in China for the long term,” said Kumar Galhotra, the Ford executive in charge of the Lincoln division. “It’s a very vibrant economy that’s going to have short-term ups and downs.”

“我們是要長期在中國發展的，”負責林肯品牌的高管庫馬爾·格赫特拉(Kumar Galhotra)說。“這是一個充滿活力的經濟體，會出現短期起伏。”

He said Lincoln sales in China had grown steadily since the brand entered the market in November 2014. Last year, sales topped 11,000 vehicles, but Lincoln had limited recognition among most Chinese consumers.

他表示，自林肯品牌於2014年11年進入中國市場以來，其銷售量穩步增長。去年的銷售量超過了1.1萬輛，但林肯品牌在大多數中國消費者中的認知度有限。

And despite the fluctuations in the Chinese stock market over the last six months and the ripple effect on wealthy car buyers, Mr. Galhotra said he had not seen any effect on the pace of sales.

儘管中國股市在過去六個月出現波動，在富有的購車者中激起了連鎖反應，格赫特拉表示，他沒有看到這對銷售步伐造成什麼影響。

“We are ahead both in our volume targets and our dealership targets,” he said.

他說，“在自己的銷售目標和經銷商目標上，我們已經超出預期。”

In the United States, where it will also go on sale this year, the sedan has a long history, having epitomized elegance in the 1960s before it faded into obscurity and went out of production in 2002.

在美國，大陸轎車有着悠久的歷史，在20世紀60年代曾是優雅典範，後來漸漸變得默默無聞，最終在2002年停產。福特今年將在美國繼續出售這款轎車。

Ford sold 101,000 Lincolns in the United States last year, an increase of 7 percent from 2014.

去年，福特林肯汽車在美國的銷售量達到10.1萬輛，同比增長7%。

The model will be a notable addition to the brand’s American lineup, but it is meant to be a linchpin in Ford’s broader ambitions for the Lincoln in China.

這款汽車將會大大加強該品牌在美國的產品陣容，而它也註定成爲福特實現在中國擴大林肯市場的雄心的關鍵。

So far, the company has 33 Lincoln dealers in China, with a goal of 60 by the end of the year. With the addition of the Continental, Lincoln will have five models available in China, which Ford’s chief executive, Mark Fields, called “meaningful progress” for a fledgling brand.

到目前爲止，該公司在中國有33家林肯經銷商，福特計劃在今年年底前擴展至60家。加上大陸轎車，福特在中國銷售的林肯汽車將達到五款。福特首席執行官馬克·菲爾茨(Mark Fields)稱這對於一個新品牌來說是“頗有意義的進展”。

Because Ford dropped Continental from the Lincoln portfolio more than a decade ago, the company’s designers had unusual freedom to update the vehicle’s styling and image.

由於福特在10多年前將大陸轎車從林肯系列中去除，該公司的設計師擁有非同尋常的自由，可以修改這款轎車的款式和外觀。

To that end, Ford chose to create a car designed as a quiet sanctuary from the outside world. Its designers went to great lengths to include creature comforts that distinguish the Continental from others in the crowded luxury sedan market, like seats that have individual leg adjustments and can provide a massage with the touch of a button.

爲了實現目標，福特選擇打造一款能夠隔離外部世界以享受安寧的轎車。其設計師不遺餘力地突顯物質享受，使其有別於豐富多樣的豪車市場中的其他轎車，比如大陸轎車的座位設有腿部調節器，按下按鈕就可以享受按摩。

Mr. Fields said the car would find its own niche among more established models sold by BMW and Volkswagen’s Audi brand. “We are not trying to out-German the Germans,” he said.

菲爾茨表示，相對於寶馬(BMW)和大衆奧迪(Audi)旗下更受市場認可的車型，這款轎車將會找到自己的細分市場。他說，“我們不會去比德國人做得更德國。

One analyst said Lincoln could benefit from carving out a new identity in the luxury market.

一名分析人士表示，林肯品牌可以通過在豪車市場中開創新形象而獲益。

“There is absolutely a place in the market for a vehicle that promises quiet luxury,” said the analyst, Eric Lyman of the research firm TrueCar. “The challenge for Continental will be awareness and perception of the Lincoln brand.”

“能夠讓人安享奢華的汽車在市場中絕對會佔有一席之地，”研究公司TrueCar的分析人員埃裏克·萊曼(Eric Lyman)說。“對於大陸轎車來說，挑戰在於人們對林肯品牌的瞭解和認知。”