TO THE POINTSelling Points: Real pickup bed, real towing and hauling capability, available four-wheel-drive, ultra-luxe interior Deal Breakers: No expanding mid-gate like Escalade EXT, looks plenty like a Ford F-150 Our Advice: Forget the Blackwood. Lincoln’s first real truck is the 2006 Mark LT. MEET THE COMPETITIONCadillac Escalade EXT GMC Sierra Denali
We’ve seen this before. A Lincoln pickup truck, that is, but you could be forgiven if you don’t remember it. Lincoln’s first – and last – foray into the land of pick’em-ups was the ill-fated, short-lived Blackwood. That 2002 entry had faux wood sides, a fixed hard cap over the cargo bed, and a fifty-large price tag. It stuck around the marketplace just long enough for a cup of coffee, departing after a brilliantly brief, one-year production run.
The Blackwood never kindled much interest with buyers, but chalk it up to the wrong execution of the right idea – too much fashion, not enough function. Now, Lincoln is back with the 2006 Mark LT: a new truck with a different slant on the pickup segment, and with a much better shot at taking a piece of the market for high-end haulers.