2003 Ford SVT F-150 Lightning Concept - One 'Cool' Performer
Synchronized with the launch of its all-new 2004 F-150 line of light trucks Ford teased Detroit auto show onlookers with the sinfully omnipotent SVT F-150 Lightning concept. A much more daring exterior design than previous Lightning pickups is all too fitting when the realization of just what lies under the hood hits home.
Its 500-hp supercharged V8 sends power down to the rear wheels via a short-throw Tremec T-56 6-speed manual transmission, the same as used in the current SVT Mustang. The engine is no OHV lump either, but rather a sophisticated 32-valve DOHC powerplant featuring Manley connecting rods, two fuel injectors per cylinder and high-performance heads much the same as those used in the limited edition 2000 Ford SVT Mustang Cobra R's supercharged V8.
Its 5.4-L's of displacement provides a hefty 500 lb-ft of gut wrenching torque, ample for bullet-like acceleration - the current 380-hp Lightning manages 0 to 60 mph (96.6 km/h) in a scant 5.8 seconds so do the math and figure out how an extra 120-hp might help. The concept also provides the throaty rumble only a large displacement V8 funneling waste gases out of a pair of free-flowing headers to dual side pipes can.
It's obvious the SVT engineers have been hard at work, but Ford's patented SuperCooler takes the cake. It's a new kind of intercooler, using the Lightning's air-conditioning system to pre-cool a small storage tank of coolant to approximately 1.1 degrees Celsius (30 F), prior to dumping it into the system's intercooler. Why didn't anyone else think of that? The result is reportedly 'whack-in-the-back' acceleration.