New Lincoln Mercury Manager

Deborah Wahl, 36, former car and truck advertising manager for Mazda North American Operations, Tuesday was appointed marketing communications manager for Irvine-based Lincoln Mercury. She replaced Ian Beavis, who resigned last month to join New York-based advertising giant Bozell Worldwide as a global account director. In her new job directing national advertising and events marketing programs for Ford Motor Co.’s upscale brands, Wahl reports to Jim Rogers, marketing general manager for Lincoln Mercury. Part of her new job will involve establishing a new identity and customer base for Mercury--which is trying to shed its image as a retailer of face-lifted Fords for customers who can’t quite afford Lincolns. Wahl also is charged with changing Lincoln’s profile and helping it attract younger buyers and buyers who previously preferred import luxury and new-luxury cars. She spent two years at Mazda, also headquartered in Irvine, as group manager of brand strategy and marketing. Previously, she was a marketing liaison and brand manager for Ford in Brazil for two years.