In a country that has a thirst for buying big, expensive vehicles largely because of ego and not a functional need, you’d think a 4-passenger, full-size luxury pickup prioritizing form over function would be a huge hit? — Wrong. In the case of the Lincoln Blackwood it certainly wasn’t.
You see, even in the world of $60,000+ leather-lined quad cabs, pickup truck are still largely purchased for their cargo and hauling capability, much unlike that of their SUV siblings. With neither impressive seating capacity nor cargo space/access from the Blackwood’s virtually useless bed, Lincoln produced just 3,356 Blackwoods for a single model year.
Photographed: West 6th Street and Normandie Ave, Koreatown, Los Angeles, CA – February 2017
There is one of these on my block. I new they weren’t a hit, I never realized how few were built. These are only slightly less absurd than the ” ElCamino” Cadillac conversions of the ’70s.
I too have seen them in my area. I work for a major auto parts store, and noticed it. But looked different. It was an F-150 in Blackwood clothing. Very neat conversation. Wish I’d taken a pic!
What you saw was probably a Lincoln Mark LT, a Lincoln version of the F-150 that they made for a couple years:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Mark_LT
Likely they were Mark LTs, The Blackwood has a unique front clip (I think…99% sure) from it’s Ford counterparts. (Not being a Ford expert, YMMV). If I were in the market for such a vehicle, I’d try for an actual Blackwood, Just for the rarity. Still, if I want a big luxo vehicle with “-wood” in it’s name, I’m gonna get a Cadillac Fleetwood, Or if cargo is the thing, a Chevrolet Kingswood wagon ?.
The Cadillac you speak of belongs in this category?
Or you just don’t like it?
If I had a Cadillac “El Camino” I would really enjoy it.
Don’t forget the mess that was the LT. It was a rebadged F150 and it flopped, too. It seems that unlike GMC customers, Ford and Lincoln customers saw the minor change as not worth the extra money.
And then they resold that same Mark LT as an F-150 Platinum in the next generation with a few more options, and it’s been a success.
Saw one of those just this week
At least the Blackwood used Lincoln sheet metal. The LT was an F-150 with a Lincoln grille and pretty much no other changes. Versailles-level shameless rebadge hack job.
It was. They didn’t even change out the front headlights on the Lincoln version.
The numbers of Platinum and King Ranch F series trucks I see driving around are astounding.
The idea at its core was a success, just not this execution.
I always thought the Blackwood managed to combine the drawbacks of a luxury sedan and a pickup truck with the advantages of neither.
Several model years of King Ranch and Harley-Davidson models in both the F-150 and Super Duty lines had “quad captain’s chairs” (4-passenger seating) either optional or standard, but the last MY to have it optional was the 2010 Super Duty. It seems pickup buyers are more than happy to have front bucket seats, but the rear seat must be a 3-across bench.
Question, and meant with no ill will, but why do so many people buy $60K pickups when a $20K work truck and a $40 sedan would be a better option? Same money, maybe more for insurance, but seems a better deal. As it is, you never see the $60K truck with anything in the bed, never offroad, and rarely ever towing something. I get the projecting a lifestyle thing, but what is the attraction to driving a pickup? And yes, I have driven one, for years, albeit a Ranger.
Damned if I can figure it out. A luxury pickup is akin to gardening in a tuxedo. I grudgingly “get” the luxo SUV thing as they (to me ) replaced luxury wagons. To me a truck is a tool, I’m good with a working heater and AM/FM radio.
Luxury trucks are in demand because they’re the perfect non-pretentious luxury vehicle. Post-recession rich folks got pretty insecure about owning an Audi or a BMW and saw these as a decent alternative. The new trucks are so refined and stuffed with so many gadgets that its hardly a step down from their 5 Series or E Class. People don’t assume you’re a haughty one percenter if you’re cruising around in a Silverado. I had an Audi S6 owner test drive an EcoBoost F-150 and he couldn’t believe how refined it was.
Good point, but why a pickup and not a SUV? And with most people now knowing you are spending big money on the truck, you are no longer hiding behind the wall of pretense. If you want to ride in a luxury vehicle, you can get any sedan decked out (almost) as nice as any Audi or BMW, and for less. People used to do that “back in the day” by stepping down from a Cadillac to an Oldsmobile, or from a Lincoln to a Mercury, but never from a car to a truck. A body on frame truck, no matter how well designed, will never ride or drive like a sedan. In the end, I guess I am of the mind that very few tools are multipurpose, at least any good at doing several things well. Thank you for your answer, I had not thought of that possibility before.
Because an SUV (body-on-frame or otherwise) doesn’t give off that same blue-collar vibe that a truck does. Plus they’re harder to see out of.
Because $40K sedans don’t have huge interiors with tall seating, and a $20K work truck would be a regular cab and couldn’t haul the family. And you have to have a place to park both of them.
Personally, I’d never spend $60K on any vehicle. But if I was going to, I’d want something capable of doing a lot of things well. Luxury pickups do for people who don’t live in a cramped urban environment.
I actually disagree with the statement that sedans don’t have huge interiors and tall seating. my folks have a 2009 Taurus (aka Ford Five Hundred with more chrome and fake wood). The car is classified as a fullsize sedan. It can seat 5 large adults (my dad is 6 foot tall and he puts the seat all the way back and I can still sit behind him in good comfort and I am 6ft 1in tall) The car has a large tunk (I think it had one of the largest trunks in cars that year). If more space is needed the back seats fold down and the passenger front seat folds down also.
You can adjust the seats pretty high and still have plenty of head room.
Also as it shares a platform with the Volvo XC90 it has a pretty high clearance. (if you ever look at the 2008-2009 Taurus/Sable front struts you can see they have some of the most massive springs that are seen on a car. They look like truck springs)
The car sits tall and has a very large greenhouse so visibility is great
It does everything they need it to do, from home depot runs to dump runs
Plus my folks bought it brand new in 2009 for less then $26,000.
The Five Hundred/Taurus is the exception, not the rule, and it’s not a new vehicle. The 2010+ Taurus did away with most of that headroom, and much of the visibility as well. When it comes to sitting six large adults with room to spare and swallowing all their cargo, nothing beats a full-size pickup.
If all you’ve driven for pickups is a regular or SuperCab Ranger, a full-size 4-door is an entirely different experience. It’s a vehicle that can do it all.
Well, I have driven larger, 4 door pickups, but not for any length of time. I owned the Ranger and it was a DD for years. I really did not feel any significant difference in either. I also remember real full size cars, and the new trucks are just taller, and not by much. As I mentioned before, the idea a truck can “do it all” just does not fit in my mind. If you need to haul tools to the worksite and the kids to soccer practice, the truck may be an alternative, but not a real solution. I still think a work truck and a separate car would be the better option for most. YMMV, of course.
What “real” full size cars are you talking about? Because modern full size trucks are over 6′ tall. Regardless, no modern sedan comes close. I’m also not sure why you think a truck isn’t good at doing multiple duties. The bed is big enough for most hauling and the cab has more people space than any other 2 row vehicle on the market.
I spent a lot of time in regular cab Rangers 20 years ago, there is no comparison between them and my current F-150 Crew. My F-150 (XLT) does just about everything better except long loads. New full size trucks even get better mileage than the Rangers I drove. If you can’t tell much difference, I don’t know what else to say.
“Question, and meant with no ill will, but why do so many people buy $60K pickups when a $20K work truck and a $40 sedan would be a better option? ”
who are you to say it’s “better?” Up until the end of 2015, I had two vehicles, a Ranger and a Mustang. It got old fast; my limited parking situation meant juggling the two on any given day was a needless hassle. I’d rather have one “do everything” vehicle.
He is not saying it is better. There is a question mark after that statement which means that it is a question he is asking and it is a good question, I have heard many folks ask questions like this.
He very much is saying it’s better, at least in his opinion. The question mark is linked to the word “why”? The answer is, “because in many cases two vehicles are out of the question, so it’s better to get one that can do it all.”
JFrank, I personally would advocate for your option, especially as $40K sedans offer far superior driving dynamics than any pickup truck no matter the cost.
However, the sad truth is that it’s an ego thing. Most Americans like buying the biggest piece of metal their wallets will allow to stroke their own egos.
It’s not always an “ego thing.” Many buyers want to fill all their needs with a single vehicle. And what does “driving dynamics” even mean to the non-enthusiast? Modern pickups drive like old land yachts without the floatiness.
That’s what I ask too. And, that’s why I never took the “luxury pick up” seriously. I like my big sedans, everybody here knows that, but I could accept a high end SUV if the opportunity presented itself. But, the question would be asked, “Could I use the space and capacity in a car this nice without wrecking the interior?” The answer would be, “for the most part, no.” But, I could find a way to maybe use an SUV in a different role or capacity.
A pickup truck, is just a pickup truck. It’s something you haul stuff in, it’s something you abuse, it’s something that can take anything and keep on going. But, when you place a 60K price tag, I doubt people are going to do that. Take the Range Rover for example, even after all this time, it still is a very good off-road SUV, supremely so. But, the new ones are equipped with quilted seats, white leather dash pieces, and wood grain everywhere. Do you really think that people are going to take a vehicle with that stuff equipped to a place where it’s going to get caked in mud and wet grass? No. So, it’s the same thing with pickup trucks, why are you spending 60k on a vehicle that is never going to be subjected to the punishment expected of it. This may go against my beliefs, as I feel that regardless of how stupid it is, if people want to spend their money however they want it’s their right to. But, I just don’t understand it here.
If you want a big vehicle, fork over the extra cash and buy an upscale SUV. At least the SUV has more interior space and doesn’t require a grappling hook to get in and out of.
Luxury trucks? Now I get them. Quad cab trucks? Ditto, best things around. Carry your family comfortably inside, with dirty or bulky loads in the bed, tow anything that won’t fit in the bed. Big truck based SUVs? Better if you need three row seating and enclosed cargo space. Easier loading than a truck, Can get either of these vehicles with four wheel drive if desired. Performance? As they said in the old days, can pass anything but a gas station! Actually are not all that bad. Status symbol? Sure. Everyone knows that these things cost a lot of money. More than most of those “entry level” luxury cars. The focus is the term “Luxury.” The buyer is buying something that is an extravagance to some, as it is quite expensive to own and operate but rewards the owner with comfortable travel and the ability to handle just about any contingency. When you can afford it, you buy what you want and enjoy. It’s the difference in staying in a luxury vacation condo as opposed to a Motel 6.
But I’ll admit that the Blackwood was kind of silly.
What will they be used for 20-25 years down the road? If even existing. I know my ’72 Dodge 3\4 ton was still working hard 40 + years later until I sold it in 2014. Wish I never had sold it.
Luxury items do not affect the vehicle’s reliability, nor its ability to do “real work.” Strip away the leather and all the bells and whistles, and you’ve still got a full-size truck under there.
If a few things had gone differently I would easily see myself buying a strippo white RCLB F-150 and a Fiesta ST at the same time, and keeping the former parked at the shop. And I’d probably get a lot of “why not just get yourself a really nice pickup?”
Here’s another option. One very practical and all-round mid-size wagon can do it all. As we all know a horse can tow more weight than it can carry on its back.
Johannes, the disease has reached the EU. I went to Ford’s Austrian site and specced up a Ranger Wildtrack. €43,000 ($45,9976 at the moment). And people do buy them, although not in the same quantities as the equivalents sell in the US. Owner profile would be I think slightly different too, most I’ve seen are of the would be mountain climber / extreme sports fan or the head of say a successful building contractor.
For the others, that’s what it looks like:
Well I basically used the configurator to create a fully-loaded version (which to me would be the equivalent of the Lincoln), I have a feeling if you did the same that the price Holland would be slightly lower but more than €34K (we have new car tax in Austria, the awful Normverbrauchsabgabe (NoVA) which I don’t believe you have).
As for the big US pick ups, yes, they are sold here by the grey importers too but are hardly ever used as work vehicles; rather, in buying them the owners make a statement, if you see what I mean. In Israel – where I grew up – the position was always closer to the one in the US. Generally no one buys them over there if they do not intend to use them for work, although, due to their high price, the people who buy them are well-to-do contractors and companies.
TT, I just checked the Dutch Ford website. The Ranger’s price-bandwidth is between € 24,900 and
€ 34,000. Available with Euro 6 diesels (4- and 5-cylinders), 200 hp for the most powerful one.
Yet only the Super Cab model with a registration as a commercial vehicle, and also bought and used as such. If you look at the prices for a private person, so owned as any other passenger car, you probably would get a heart attack right at the spot.
Towing capacity 3,500 kg though, well done Ford ! That’s the same as say a Land Cruiser 150-series with a commercial vehicle registration.
Well, they are hard to find, but I looked up a 2016 Ford F250 6,7 V8 TD
DKK 659.900,00 = $94,158.44
“Genuine” US pickups are actually quite common in the Netherlands, how about Denmark ?
Just like in the case of the (smaller) Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux, Mitsubishi L200 etc.etc.: bought, used and registered as commercial vehicles.
The RAMs (formerly known as Dodge) are the most popular, all of them gray imports. The Ranger is sold by Ford dealerships, thus officially imported. Unlike the F-150 and bigger US Ford pickups.
They were relatively common in the 1990’s but now not so much more.
This may be caused by the fact that annual tax on business cars, where you only use the front seat, has been raised considerably.
Here’s the “parking lot” of a well-known US pickup importer and specialist in my country,
20 years of experience in this line of business. Neat, isn’t it ?
The two vehicle solution also means registering, insuring, maintaining, and parking an additional car. For many, it simply isn’t feasible.
Part of the appeal may be for people who own businesses. If a vehicle is heavy enough and used for businesses 50% of the time, it can be expensed in one year instead of being depreciated over time. An F-350 would qualify for that. A fleet-spec F150 and a small benz wouldn’t.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-a-way-for-small-business-to-save-on-taxes-buy-a-heavy-suv-or-pickup-2016-05-17
I’ve heard Texans refer to the stereotypical Blackwood owner as “All hat and no cattle.”
Good find and I see the Cali climate is already fading the black paint on the bed cover; or is it a trunk lid? I never see these in Portland, OR, but someday I will.
The idea of LUXURY pickup is very unique to north america.pickups in most parts of the world trucks are coming with basic package and being used for what they aer built for,hauling stuffs.here you don’t see certain people drive pickups like doctors or teachers.idea of driving a pickup without hauling anything &using a truck like a CAMRY going from A to B is interesting to me.
The idea of using ANY pickup at all as everyday transport, luxury or no, would be pretty much unique to North America, I’d think. I can understand it in remote rural areas when your one vehicle has to be tough and able to haul stuff, but not in cities – unless the owners desire to project a ‘can-do’ or cowboy image.
Not criticizing, just bemused.
Well see my post further up. We now have a few of these (obviously smaller-sized for the EU market) here in Austria, offered by VW, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Nissan, Fiat and Ford and you would not get much in the way of change for €45,000 which is a lot for such a vehicle here. Of course they don’t sell anything like their equivalents in North America but as of late I notice more and more of them, so maybe it’s catching on here too (after a fashion).
Don’t forget, the Blackwood is also the only production truck in history not to come with the option of a 4×4. It was RWD only throughout it’s entire life. That’s like making a convertible that can’t put the top up, you sort of miss the point.
I will never get luxury pickup trucks, because luxury to me is more than just sticking leather seats and gadgets on what’s essentially a workhorse vehicle. I still think the Blackwood is the stupidest product to come from Lincoln (Say what you will about the Versailles, at least the idea was more or less sound), but I will say this in the Blackwood’s favor. It wasn’t anywhere near as stupid as the Escalade EXT.
LOL! Great analogy with the convertible!
Agree that this was the stupidest Lincoln ever, while the Escalade EXT was worse than the Lincoln and the second stupidest Cadillac ever (behind the Cimarron).
Totally agree on the Versailles, It was a CAR. Lincolns Cadillacs, etc are supposed to be cars. I love big cars, but I never got into SUVs because to me they were for families that enjoyed the outdoors, not middle aged single guys who’s idea of “rural” a neighborhood without side walks (me). A truck should be a truck. A sports car should be a sports car and a luxury car shoud be….Well Lincoln USED TO know……
Sorta like Lincoln’s equivalent of a Suzuki X90 then – the answer to a question nobody asked? 😉
There were a lot of trucks from 1900 – 1960 and many until 1970 that were never offered as 4 wheel drive. I don’t know where you are getting your facts but knowing your age I can pretty well guess. Not trying to an a** but you need to remember the world did not start in 1975 about 10 years before you were born.
Actually, I was born in 1996. Just to give you a frame of reference, and I probably meant to say 4WD. So, your snide and derisive condescension isn’t particularly welcome.
IIRC, part of the demographic this was aimed at was the “horsey set” – wealthy people who wanted something fancy to pull their horse trailers with. That’s a demo that probably didn’t really need 4wd.
This is a stupid vehicle…or maybe it’s a stupid execution of something that could have been revolutionary. It’s basically a Frankenstein version of something I’ve been silently conjecturing about for a few years: will we eventually experience a post-SUV/post-monster truck era? If so, might it feature a new interpretation of the three-box sedan?
So what if someone envisioned a vehicle like this as a “true” sedan? What if Lincoln had given it thoughtful proportions, and the elegance and presence of the ’61 Continental? Would such a thing have been possible?
I just can’t help but think that a lot of SUVs drivers will eventually get tired of driving and being seen in an oversized station wagon, and will crave something with a secure trunk. Ditto for at least a few of the macho men in their monster trucks.
Has any car maker built a sedan on truck proportions?
I’ve seen a late model Rolls Royce, don’t know the model, but that is a very truckish sedan. Big, brash and tall. Not at all like any modern Rolls, well, post 1970.
The Phantom, perhaps? It looks like a rolling brick, at least to me.
True, but it sure has ‘Presence’ like no other luxury car.
Well, always makes me think of FAB1 from the Thunderbird TV series, with torpedo equipment and everything.
To my recollection the design was not gracefully initiated by the British.
RR
FAB1
Another Ford Deadly Sin? I would say so
The Blackwood makes a nice companion piece to the Aston Martin Cygnet a couple of days ago. Lots of luxury slathered on a perhaps inappropriate platform for differing reasons but with similar sales results. Good case studies for future auto executives, maybe.
What an *awesome* find. I could probably count on one hand (one finger?) how many of these I’ve seen in real life.
The Blackwood is the perfect auto show turntable car. In 2002 at the Philly Auto Show, it had top billing at the Lincoln exhibit. The bed was open to reveal the brushed aluminum inside and the bluish mood lighting, and there were huge crowds oohing and aahing. There was no accompanying pitch, the vehicle grabbed attention all by itself. It was enough to actually scare the people over at the Cadillac area. They had an Escalade EXT on the turntable, with a guy FRANTICALLY, with an air of desperation and defensiveness in his voice, explaining (to a much smaller crowd) how the EXT was more practical than the Blackwood.
Maybe it should have stayed as a show car?
But then again, so often we bemoan show cars that didn’t make production. There’s no pleasing us enthusiasts, is there?
By the way, the idea of a Lincoln “Ranchero” (or “Cosmolero”?) has been tried before and I think the execution is very convincing. See more here:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/opinion-please-classify-my-late-50s-survivor-custom-lincoln.845882/