Pickup trucks are workhorses, and the Ford F-150 has been the reigning bestseller for decades now. That said; now and then, companies do make a limited edition run of a special pickup truck that can more than pull its weight workwise but stun with performance, speed, and everything track worthy.
A lot of these gorgeous trucks debuted in the '90s, at a time when sedans were falling out of favor and everything bigger was better, so long it was faster. Think GMC Syclone, Dodge RAM SRT10, and, of course, the Ford F-150 SVT Lightning.
The Ford F-150 Lightning was one special vehicle, the precursor to all the fantastic F-150s that came after it like the Raptor and now, the Tremor. It's not that Ford needed to bring out special models to bump up its sale, for it was already a bestseller.
But Ford wanted to “polish the oval” with specialized vehicles that created ripples in the car bazaar and the Ford F-150 did just that in the form of the SVT Lightning.
Here's why fans still remember it, even though the Raptor and the Tremor have everyone spoilt for choice!
The Birth Of The SVT
SVT stands for Special Vehicle Team, and it all was conceived in 1991 when the powers that be at Ford thought it would be advantageous to make some niche segment, special edition vehicles. A separate team to focus on those vehicles was best and thus the SVT was born to make SVT Fords.
Ford dubbed them “halo” vehicles with major hallmarks to keep in mind: Performance, Substance, Exclusivity, and Value.
SVT truly came into public view at the 1992 Chicago Auto Show when it raised the curtains on two gorgeous vehicles that everyone in the audience wanted right then and there. One was the 1993 SVT Mustang Cobra and the other was the legendary F-150 SVT Lightning. Sales began in 1993, February for both.
Presenting: The Very First Ford F-150 SVT Lightning
The Ford F-150 SVT Lightning was introduced on Ford F-150's ninth generation, lasting 1992-1997. Originally offered in black and red, and later also in white, only 11,563 of these were made from 1993-1995, which marked the first generation of the Lightning.
The only engine offered for the Lightning was the same F-150 5.8-liter Windsor big-block V8 that in the Lightning made for 240 horses and 340 ft-lb torque. This happened because of high flow rate GT40 heads as well as hyper eutectic pistons that gave their best to the power mill in terms of response, output as well as durability.
Plenty of other performance parts also went into making the SVT Lightning special. An automatic transmission was the only way to go and it came equipped with Firestone Firehawk tires as well as plenty of other design and feature changes to make the Lightning stand apart from the rest.
In 1995, the SVT Lightning took a break to let Ford introduce the all-new 1997 Ford F-150 in its tenth generation.
The Second And Last Lightning
The second generation of the Ford SVT Lightning debuted in 1999, riding on the tenth generation of the Ford F-150.
Now it carried a 5.4-liter Triton V8 along with an Eaton supercharger. In 1999, the SVT Lightning made 360 horses and 440 ft-lb torque which increases to 380 and 450 in 2001.
Paired with an automatic transmission, again, this time the production numbers nearly tripled to stand at 28,124. It came in more colors this time, but 2004 was the last year for the Lightning, and it gave way to the Raptor in 2010.
There were also plans of a 500-horsepower and torque third-generation SVT Lightning, but they never materialized and soon this gorgeous truck became more of a memory and a collectible.
So why did they stop the Lightning? Some things are best left in smaller numbers. Also, the eleventh generation of the Ford F-150 simply became too large for it to wearing racing shoes. There were plenty of other technical issues as well that Ford at the time could not solve and thus the SVT Lightning retired.
Lightning Fast
For a while, the SVT Lightning was the fastest production pickup in the world with an “Off the showroom floor” Ford SVT F-150 Lightning reaching over 147 mph, entering into the Guinness records.
Caranddriver tested the 1999 version to report that it shot off like a rocket, going 0-60 mph in a flat out 5.2 seconds.
Today, the SVT Lightning is a collectible that many still hanker after. Those who did buy the 40,000 odd trucks were pleasantly surprised to see that while the SVT Lightning was track ready and raring to go, it was also as capable a work truck as the Ford F-150. While it was pricier than the F-150, the SVT Lightning continues to grow in value, both monetary and as a collectible. The rumble of the Ford SVT come to life is still unmistakable and unforgettable.
Sources: Caranddriver, MotorTrend, HowStuffWorks