Ford makes a variety of pickups, big, small, powerful, or efficient. But there used to be a time when it also made the Lincoln Mark LT, a luxury pickup from a company known for making the Town Car. It was discontinued, but we got to check out the 2024 Lincoln pickup envisioned by a digital artist, and it makes sense.
Lincoln was founded in 1917 by Henry Leland. The company made aircraft engines during WW1. In 1922, Ford purchased the factory, but Lincoln continued to operate separately until around 1940. Fast forward to the beginning of the 21st century and we get the first pickups.
It started with the 2002 Lincoln Blackwood, followed by the 2006 Lincoln Mark LT. Both are considered failures, with sales well below Ford’s expectations. However, things have changed in the past decade, and we have reason to believe another Lincoln pickup would do better.
First of all, why do people walk into a Lincoln dealership? To buy a practical, powerful crossover, most likely equipped with an EcoBoost engine. By contrast, the most popular Lincolns in 2002 were sedans, the Town Car, the Continental or the LS.
And as you can tell, today’s car market is a lot more varied. Not only does Ford make dozens of cars, but the ever-popular F-150 comes in a variety of configurations. Depending on your budget or needs, the front end, interior and bed can be wildly different. So just like the F-150 Tremor has a slightly different grille, Ford should easily squeeze out a Lincoln variant.
How to separate the Lincoln pickup from the F-150
To help us visualize what a new Lincoln pickup might look like, we have a crip Photoshop rendering from Abimelec Design. He’s found a simple way to add the trademark chrome grille. Other elements appear to be inspired by the Navigator, which rides on a truck platform and could thus share parts.
Abimelec also created a Mark LT Raptor, the performance version of the luxury truck. It honestly sounds like overkill, since Lincoln has no Baja heritage. But it makes this concept of a luxury Lincoln truck more palpable. The rendering is based on the last Mark LT which was only sold in Mexico from 2010 to 2014. So that’s why it looks like a Mk1 Raptor.
In reality, these renderings are only half-baked, but the idea of a Lincoln truck has merit. The F-150 remains the most popular vehicle in America, so only a fraction of its sales would put the Mark LT on the map.
But how can Ford ensure it doesn’t feel like a simple rebadging? Well, they could do what do what Acura does and offer a slightly better tune of the existing EcoBoost engines, or a nicer exhaust. Pickup owners might also want a more advanced suspension system or autonomous driving on the level of Cadillac’s Super Cruise.
When in doubt, just copy the Germans. Of course, the real luxury vehicles of this next decade are going to be electric. Maybe the new Lincoln pick needs to take on the GMC Sierra EV and the Hummer EV.
