Did Lincoln sponsor ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ on Netflix?

Mere hours after its July 2023 debut, the second season of legal drama The Lincoln Lawyer quickly shot into the top 10 most-watched shows on Netflix – and stayed there.

RELATED: Taylor Swift's choice of car is as low-key as it gets
RELATED: What's that cool car in Succession season four?

The book-turned-movie-turned-TV show has proven popular fodder for voracious television audiences, who can't seem to get enough of Mickey Haller – the Los Angeles defense attorney known for conducting business out of his car.

The car – or cars – in question are exclusively models from Lincoln, the luxury division of American car company Ford.

The first season of the show debuted in May 2022 and was based on a 2005 novel of the same name by crime writer Michael Connelly.

In the original book, Mickey Haller travels in a Lincoln Town Car, the brand's now-discontinued large luxury sedan.

In the subsequent 2011 movie adaptation starring Matthew McConaughey, Haller travels in a black 1986 Lincoln Town Car – and Lincoln is on the record as saying they "didn't spend a dime" on product placement for the film.

However, the Netflix series starring Manuel Garcia-Rulfo not only features an envy-inspiring 1963 Lincoln Continental convertible, but a newer model from the brand: the Lincoln Navigator.

In fact, the eight-seater large SUV that features in the 2023 show is currently on sale in the United States, which begs the question....

No, according to a Lincoln spokesperson, the carmaker did not contribute money to the Netflix series.

"We were aware of the project but did not sponsor," a representative for the brand told Drive.

As for whether the series has had an impact on Navigator sales?

"We don’t track that separately since we obviously have our own marketing efforts to support Navigator and also launched the new 2022 early last year," the spokesperson said.

"But the buzz around the show and Lincoln’s inclusion has been notable over the last two seasons."

The TV version of Mickey Haller has three main cars: a 1963 Lincoln Continental convertible, and two separate Lincoln Navigators.

The Continental wears custom plates that read "NTGUILTY", while one Navigator's plates read "DISMISSD" and the other's say "IWALKEM".

The 2024 Lincoln Navigator can seat up to eight people and measures 5.3 metres long, almost 2.4m wide and 1.9m high.

It's not cheap either – priced from $US82,765 ($AU128,908) for the "entry-level" Premiere model. Clearly that lawyer's salary is paying off for Mickey Haller.

Author Michael Connelly was inspired to write his original book by real-life lawyer David Ogden.

Ogden told Connelly he didn't work out of a traditional office, but out of a car driven by a former client.

Connelly also drew inspiration from another lawyer, defense attorney Dan Daly, who would share stories of his cases with Connelly over after-work drinks.

“There is nothing at all absurd about working out of the back of a car,” Daly told Netflix.

“I took cases in Fort Myers years ago. Although I drove myself, I listened to audio tapes of statements and recorded events, such as drug deals. I also made phone calls that I needed to make. There was very little time that wasn’t billed while I was driving.”