Ford Again Offers Special Model Sold Only Via Neiman Marcus

It worked last Christmas for the new 2002 Thunderbird, so once again Ford Motor Co. is teaming up with Neiman Marcus Group Inc. to offer a special-edition vehicle through one of the upscale retailer’s seasonal catalogs.

This time, it’s the Irvine-based Lincoln Mercury division’s Lincoln Blackwood--the luxury four-door truck that mates a Lincoln Navigator cab with a short, fully carpeted and wood-paneled pickup bed topped with an electronically controlled tonneau cover.

The Neiman Marcus Edition Blackwood will be offered at $58,800 in the 2001 Neiman Marcus spring gift catalog. Only 50 will be sold.

“It’s a terrific combination,” said Mark Hutchins, president of Lincoln Mercury.

The catalog edition Blackwood was to be announced this morning at a preview of the New York International Auto Show.

The special-edition version’s leather headrests feature a Neiman Marcus stitched logo and the leather-wrapped rear-console lid holds a DVD, video and CD player with a 7-inch liquid-crystal-display screen. Inside the console is an insulated compartment that can cool or warm drinks and snacks.

The Neiman Marcus catalogs begin arriving the last week of April, and orders for the Blackwoods will be taken by phone beginning at 6 a.m. May 4.

Last year, Ford sold out a special edition of its new Thunderbird, at $41,995 each, in just a few minutes through the Neiman Marcus catalog.