Living life to the fullest
Ford calls the 2006 Lincoln Mark LT a "full-size" pickup truck.
Judging from the looks it got from others I shared the road with, perhaps it should be called an "oversize" pickup truck.
Those weren't looks of envy because I was driving Lincoln's first-ever pickup and they weren't. They were looks of puzzlement, disdain even, as to why I'd be at the wheel of such an obvious gas guzzler in these times of fuel shortages and volatile prices.
"You could almost read their minds from the expressions on their faces," said my wife, Connie. "It was like they were saying, 'What can you be thinking, driving something THAT big?'"
Sometimes I wondered myself. But when I scheduled this test drive a few months ago, who could have predicted a couple of hurricanes named Katrina and Rita would wreak such havoc on U.S. Gulf Coast oil rigs and refineries?
With the resulting ravaging of drivers' wallets.
Yes, I know that Cadillac has the big and successful Avalanche-based Cadillac XLT. I know Hummer has a whole lineup of monster and mini-monster SUVs. And I know Americans have this whole macho thing of "mine's bigger than yours" when it comes to trucks. (And maybe something else?)
"Lincoln luxury enters a new territory," says the big type on the cover of the Mark LT brochure.
Indeed. However, in hindsight, one must wonder if it was wise to go there. Nowhere in that same brochure does it mention fuel usage numbers.
Perhaps if you've got to ask, you shouldn't be looking in the first place?
And, no doubt about it, the Lincoln pickup will test not only your credit card's limits, but also your patience. With a 114-litre fuel tank, it takes a while to fill it up. And with prices at more than a buck a litre -- and a $100 limit on most self-serve pumps -- if you let it the fuel level get too low you may not even be able to fill it on one transaction.
So you may be stopping at the pumps more than you like.
On the highway, with the cruise control set on 120 km/h, the Mark LT slurped back gas at the rate of 13.9 L/100 km (20.1 mpg). Oddly enough, those were delicate little sips when compared to cruising the hilly two-lane blacktop roads with the cruise set on 90, where I averaged 14.5 L/100 km (19 mpg). And driving through the remnants of Hurricane Rita, I averaged only 15.8 km/100 km (17.8 mpg) at the same speed on the same roads. The Lincoln's big, boxy profile didn't like the wind and its BF Goodrich Rugged Trail T/A tires may be all-terrain radials, but they didn't like the waterlogged roads.
And in city driving fuel usage zooms to dizzying levels -- 21.0L/100 km (13.3 mpg).
The Mark LT is happiest on the open road and in situations when you don't have to parallel park it, or put it in an underground parking garage.
Remember former Dallas Cowboys lineman Ed "Too Tall" Jones? Well, meet his automotive counterpart.
I had to back up the curving ramp of one such garage in downtown Toronto because, at six feet, four inches in height, the Mark LT simply was too tall to fit.
But at least our test truck came equipped with an optional rear parking sensor that beeps when you're about to crunch something behind you. Vision through the big windows of the tall cab is pretty good in most directions, aided by oversize outside mirrors, but seeing straight back can be a bit of a problem.
The Mark LT has only one power train -- a 5.4-litre V8 matched to a four-speed automatic with overdrive. That makes it capable of hitting 100 km/h from a standing start in 9.8 seconds and of 80-120 km/h acceleration in 6.5 seconds.
The SOHC V8 produces 300 hp at 5000 rpm and peak torque of 365 ft.lbs. at 3750 rpm. That's especially useful when starting out with a big payload and our 4x4 test truck can carry 1,460 lbs. of cargo or tow an 8,600-lb. trailer. Towing and carrying capacity of the 4x2 version of the Mark LT is even more impressive.
Our test truck even had one of those neat flip-down bed extenders that, by utilizing the tailgate, increases the length of objects that can be carried flat in the box (which is only 67 inches long with the gate up). And you can't back into something by accident, because with the extender down a warning sensor beeps continuously when the transmission is in reverse.
Even though it's a truck, the Mark LT has all of the luxury convenience items associated with Lincoln: plush leather surfaces, heated power captain's chairs up front, electronic automatic temperature control, power adjustable pedals, real ebony wood accents, a first class stereo system with six-disc CD changer and MP3 playback capability, speed sensitive wipers and power everything.
The ride, however, is not very Lincoln-like and might horrify fans of the marque's venerable Town Car.
With its skid plates and shift-on-the-fly electronic 4WD, the Mark LT is capable of going off-road, but to pretend anyone in his right mind is going to do that is just plain silly.
I'll let Connie have the final word. Like most vertically challenged ladies, she loves big 4WD rigs like this, and the day after I brought it home she was keen to take it on a 150-km round excursion with our elder daughter.
When they got back, I asked for her impressions.
"Well," she said, "at first driving it was fun. But then it just became a lot of work."
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2006 LINCOLN MARK LT
Base price: $53,650
As tested: $57,505 (includes a package comprising a bed extender, 18-inch chrome aluminum wheels, reverse sensing system and in-vehicle entertainment centre, $3,295; chrome box rail bars, $295; power sliding rear window, $165; federal A/C tax, $100)
Destination charge: $1,150
Fuel economy: 16.5L/100 km (17.2 mpg) in combined highway-city driving
Fuel required: Regular unleaded
Layout: front engine, 4WD crew cab pickup
Warranty: 4 years/80,000 km comprehensive; 4 years/80,000 km no-charge scheduled maintenance; 4 years/80,000 km roadside assistance; 5 years/unlimited corrosion perforation
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REPORT CARD
Performance: B+
Handling: B
Ride: B+
Front seat: A-
Rear seat: A-
Cargo capacity: A
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