Crossing the Blues

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Lincoln Mark LT could be axed

The Ford Motor Company plans to phase out the Lincoln Mark LT pickup after the 2008 model year because of slow sales. A report in Automotive News, the industry trade publication, cited dealer and supplier sources as saying the truck has never lived up to Ford's sales expectations. Introduced in early 2005 as a successor to the short-lived Blackwood, sales of the Mark LT peaked in 2006 at 12,753 units. In two and a half years, total sales have amounted to only 28,000 units — well below the company's target of 20,000 units per year.

The Mark LT had been scheduled for a major face-lift in fall 2009, but suppliers say the makeover has been canceled. The Ford F-Series pickup on which the Mark LT is based is getting a significant overhaul for model-year 2009.

Automotive News said the 2009 F-Series will add a high-end model called the F-150 Platinum.