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With the electric revolution upon us, many enthusiasts are seeing their old dream cars or favorite performance models reborn as silent, quick, and efficient electrified models. And that is subjectively better than how some nameplates have returned as completely different models - think Mitsubishi Eclipse. No matter if an enthusiast embraces or scoffs at past nameplates being used for electric models, there are also those that may not be aware some new car actually carries an old moniker. Case and point - the Ford F-150 Lightning. Before this pickup was electrified, the nameplate was used to signify the ultimate in V-8 muscle trucks.
The SVT Lightning Was The Last True Muscle Truck
Long before the current F-150 Lightning, with its electric motors and insane quarter mile acceleration, was the Ford Special Vehicles Technologies (SVT) Lightning, which in the fan-favorite second generation received a supercharged V-8, Sparco seats, only two doors, and all the tire roasting capabilities you could ever hope for in a truck. Competition in the sport truck world was fierce, so the Lightning needed to be fiercer.
The Supercharged Triton V-8 Made The SVT Lighting Seriously Quick
The SVT Lightning competed against the likes of the Chevrolet Silverado 454 - a big block two-door pickup designed for the strip, as well as the Viper-engined Dodge Ram SRT-10. The Ford was the smallest, making it more agile and capable on both the street and the track, and the 360 horsepower supercharged engine was more than enough power to throw it down the drag strip on the heels of serious performance cars. The simple V-8 also made it easy to improve horsepower, sound, and driving experience with many opting for MagnaFlow exhaust systems to wake up the trucks more. The combination of parts, while often done in sports cars, turned the F-150 SVT Lightning into a serious animal to drive.
Factory "Upgrades" Made The SVT Lightning A Hot Rod Of A Truck
The short bed and short cab combination was the best setup to make a lightweight sport truck without moving to a smaller model - like the GMC Syclone, the sport truck that started it all, or the Toyota Tacoma X-Runner - that also improved handling by making the turning radius smaller. The Lightning, out of all the other sport trucks, is the only one to make a cameo as the work truck for "The Racers’ Edge" speed shop in the first Fast And Furious movie. This brought the truck into a new light among buyers who may not have known they existed at the time, but as a result, has definitely made the value of these trucks increase dramatically.
These SVT Lightnings Are A Hard Find Today
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The rare, powerful and movie-famous SVT Lightning is hard to come by, however, one recently listed on Cars And Bids might be your way into one of the best sport trucks of all time.
With these trucks getting older and with fewer being roadworthy as a result of poor maintenance, this may be your best shot at getting an SVT Lightning before they’re all gone. They had all the workings for a true performance vehicle unlike the “spiritual” successor found as the Tremor model. The new Lightning, while definitely much faster in the straightaway, does not come close to the SVT model in rarity, all-around performance, or obviously sound and appeal. While Ford has since created the Raptor, it is focused more on tackling sand rather than a city strip, making the second-gen SVT Lightning its last true on-road sport truck.