View Poll Results: Are Lightning's worth it?
Yes
17
62.96%
No
5
18.52%
Lightning's are not real trucks!
3
11.11%
What the hell is a Lightning?
2
7.41%
Voters: 27. You may not vote on this poll
1994 Ford Lightning
#1
1994 Ford Lightning
I only have an 88 Bronco, but after winter ends I plan on buying my buddy's 94 Lightning, I've rode in it quite a bit, driven it a few times, and also driven other Lightning's, I really really love this truck for the power it has, the 351 has a lot of kick, especially this one, being modded...but I had wanted to know is, is it worth it? I don't plan on driving a Lightning in the rain or snow or any of the such, thats why I got the Bronco, but is $10,000 for a 94 Lightning (Oxford White, mint!) with the 351, and mods (borla exhaust, eibach suspension setup, brand new hooker headers, emissions stuff has been killed for hp, and just minor things like that) worth it?
#3
Well, IMHO that sounds a bit high. You can go to www.kellysbluebook.com and get the retail value.
#5
I also forgot to add that it has ported heads, and a pair of $4,000 20' rims...its just for looks, don't look that bad though...obviously if I were to employ them for racing, I would sell the 20's and go with something like stock 17's or such...also BlueAngel, generation 1 Lightning's (93-95) were not supercharged. But yes, I would love a supercharged Bronco, lol
#6
then don't get the truck and spend the money on the bronco. $4000 rims or not i wouldn't pay $10k for that truck. just the fact that it is used drops the value a heck of alot. not only that its a 94'. your wasting your money if you buy this truck for $10k, if you want a gen 1 lightning really bad i would buy it from someone else. personally im thinking of getting a lightning for my next truck, but if i do its gonna be 01 or newer, those are supercharged.
#7
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#8
#9
There are several but not many GEN 1 in East Texas and AutoTrade.com lists them occassionally. Many were modded for drag racing by adding Paxton or Vortec charger, switching to C6 trans and getting a 408 stroker from Arkadelphia, ARK. I have also seen twin turbo MAF converted trucks. They look/sound/run great but aren't very practical for most of my uses. If I wanted to run I'd get the Cobra or Saleen. Possibly a Roush Racing truck. By the way I followed GEN 1 thru 90's and a company in CA could modify your GEN 1 to an extended cab version then for ~$1600. They cut the frame, extended it (it has HD/supercab frame thickness), added a new cab, used your interior pieces, added a back seat and painted the cab. So you can possibly find something never even made. Seen DeTomasa Pantera while back for ~$21K on website. It would be a fun Vette/Ferrari spoiler and had 5.8L/ZF 5 speed. Looks similar to GT40 for anyone unfamiliar with it.
BTW I asked local dealer about a new GEN 1 years ago and he told me no one would buy a short bed half ton with that bad mpg. Every dealer had access to one when they first come out but he let someone else have it. I drove 150 mi. to test drive 2. Most here were red, some black but I wanted WHITE LIGHTNING. I gave up went to college, got married, kids, divorced, normal routine. Now I just work.
BTW I asked local dealer about a new GEN 1 years ago and he told me no one would buy a short bed half ton with that bad mpg. Every dealer had access to one when they first come out but he let someone else have it. I drove 150 mi. to test drive 2. Most here were red, some black but I wanted WHITE LIGHTNING. I gave up went to college, got married, kids, divorced, normal routine. Now I just work.
#10
#11
They weren't from factory but many added blowers. The GT40 did not have that much power. I can look up specs later. The engine is complete different. It is 5.8L Windsor but bearings and tolerances were different. It had different cam, heads, intake. It was still speed density so the pcm was also specific to this truck. What impressed me most was the handling. It was as responsive going around curves as a turbo T-bird. It was quick through the 1/4 because engine was tuned for performance, breathed good and went to a 4.10 rear. Gas mileage was only slightly better than 454SS. The GM truck most comparable though was the S-10 based Typhoon. The Lightning could still carry a load in the back. While payload was reduced, no short half ton is rated very heavy. Most don't have the power or gearing this truck does. It still wasn't practical for me because I have to put my money and truck where I work. Other high performance trucks including the newer Lightnings have very little towing capability, light payloads, very little ground clearance, etc.. In order for a truck to go fast you must find a way to get weight and air resistance comparible to a sports car. Or get a very large amount of power. If your friend bought his truck new with a supercharger it possibly came from a high performance oriented dealer or was modified by a customizer for the dealer. Tommie Vaughn Ford in Houston sponsor race cars and also sell Vortec centrifugal blowers for trucks. I would not doubt someone like them could've sold a new truck that was blown but Ford did not produce such a truck. They did offer a charger later on in the SVO catalog that would fit. I believe PowerDyne made it for SVO in a kit form but I could be wrong on manufacturer. It was low pressure (~6-8 lbs) compared to some available but would not require premium fuel or o-ringed head gaskets. Different air filter was generally used and they had to provide for engine management because the Lightnings then were speed density. As I said before several did get a MAF conversion generally with a modified Cobra pcm. At least 1 year the SVO Cobra had the 5.8L instead of the 5.0L engine. It was a very limited Cobra R.
#12
#13
ecarter50 - I thank you for the link to that National Lightning Club for sale and all, but what I was looking at is all the Gen 1 Lightning's for sale (even the few white ones, like what I hope for) have over 100k miles....now, I know people say they baby em but come on, you don't buy a Lightning to baby them...wouldn't 100+k miles for a lightning be serious stress to the engine/drivetrain/suspension?
Looking back on it now I see that I didn't list that my buddy's 94 only had 60,xxx miles on it...this is a little less than half on a lot of the gen 1 lightnings listed?
Looking back on it now I see that I didn't list that my buddy's 94 only had 60,xxx miles on it...this is a little less than half on a lot of the gen 1 lightnings listed?
Last edited by Blade_62; 12-05-2003 at 02:50 PM.
#14
if the truck was well taken care of and kept in good shape milage shouldn't be an issue. those miles are highway miles, a lightning isn't made for offroading. so why in the world are you worried about 100k? if you really think spending another 4k on your friends truck just because it has 40k less miles is a good idea go ahead. but i sure as heck don't. are you considerin gthat you will save 4k if you buy another lightning with 100k miles you will have$4k to spend on making that sucker fast. and in generally moding it you will be replacing that which might cause you problems. heck you could easily rebuild the engine so its faster than it was with $4k, so your still wanting your friends overpriced truck?
#15
They are all out of warranty. Some probably were abused but they were made for that. I would look at owner now and try to find a truck that appears to have life left. Whatever the mileage, essential overhauls may have already been paid or complete restoration. If you want a modified truck. I would look for one already supercharged or stroked with a stronger trans or possibly a cheaper high mileage truck that could be built as you like. Everyone has a certain amount of potential but my willingness ends at a certain price.