Photo: jlord8 / Instagram
Right now, ultra-luxury and super-SUVs are all the rage, both across the OEM and aftermarket worlds. But in the past, automakers also tried the recipe for pickup trucks, and it did not work out as planned.
Today, everyone is accustomed even to Rolls-Royce Cullinans, Lambo Uruses, Aston DBXs, or AMG G 63s, among others. Not to mention the huge roster of models across the premium tier underneath them, from Range Rovers to Escalades and anything (including Porsches) in between.
Still, carmakers have walked this path while trembling in fear. This is because some of them tried the posh recipe on pickup trucks, and the world did not seem prepared to accept them. A recent example of such a failure is the Mercedes-Benz X-Class, but we can delve even deeper to around two decades ago.
Back then, both GM and Ford tried to sample the ritzy life to regular pickup truck users with the Cadillac Escalade EXT and Lincoln Blackwood/Mark LT. And they copiously failed! Chrysler, meanwhile, decided to refrain from such shenanigans, and instead of following suit, they chose the Aspen nameplate for a sibling to the Dodge Durango SUV.
Alas, what if the company did not go in that direction and instead morphed the Aspen into an Escalade EXT and Mark LT luxury pickup truck competitor? Many will not lose any sleepless nights over such a hypothetical question, save for Jim, the virtual artist better known as jlord8 on social media, perhaps.
This pixel master surely knows how to juggle our car dreams, and following a cool set of modern releases – such as the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500-H Shooting Brake or the Chevy Camaro ZL1 saloon that looked like an Impala SS heir – he is again probing the automotive past with such imaginative queries. So, does anyone think that Chrysler might have had a better pickup truck Aspen solution than Caddy and Lincoln?
Still, carmakers have walked this path while trembling in fear. This is because some of them tried the posh recipe on pickup trucks, and the world did not seem prepared to accept them. A recent example of such a failure is the Mercedes-Benz X-Class, but we can delve even deeper to around two decades ago.
Back then, both GM and Ford tried to sample the ritzy life to regular pickup truck users with the Cadillac Escalade EXT and Lincoln Blackwood/Mark LT. And they copiously failed! Chrysler, meanwhile, decided to refrain from such shenanigans, and instead of following suit, they chose the Aspen nameplate for a sibling to the Dodge Durango SUV.
Alas, what if the company did not go in that direction and instead morphed the Aspen into an Escalade EXT and Mark LT luxury pickup truck competitor? Many will not lose any sleepless nights over such a hypothetical question, save for Jim, the virtual artist better known as jlord8 on social media, perhaps.
This pixel master surely knows how to juggle our car dreams, and following a cool set of modern releases – such as the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500-H Shooting Brake or the Chevy Camaro ZL1 saloon that looked like an Impala SS heir – he is again probing the automotive past with such imaginative queries. So, does anyone think that Chrysler might have had a better pickup truck Aspen solution than Caddy and Lincoln?
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