SVT spokesman quoted in Autoweek - Lightning is Shelved - Perhaps permanently
 

http://www.autoweek.com/news.cms?newsId=101065

I guess this is both good and bad news. This gives us a chance to see how well Chevy drops the ball on a real sport truck. It may also lead to 2nd gen Ls holding their value even better. On the other hand, no new lightning. :(

I'll bet it makes the aftermarket parts business better from a consumer side of it. Instead of mfr's making new parts for the Gen III, they'll have no choice but to concentrate on more new Gen II parts.

Also, the prices of used L's won't crash like the C5 Vettes did. The value of our L's will hold.

I got a call from a buddy a couple weeks ago. He's a ford mastertech and he said the last shipment of shop manuals came in and there was no SVT stuff in it at all. This is the 05 manuals.

Lightning's Forever!!
 

I'm the person Steven Cole Smith quoted in the AutoWeek article: http://www.autoweek.com/news.cms?newsId=101065
(Steve is the current editor of the automotive section of the Orlando Sentinel and the former editor of Car and Driver magazine, as well as a frequent contributor to AutoWeek, C&D, Motor Trend and others.)

Steve knows I own a Lightning, so he contacted me a couple of days ago with the news and asked if I'd like to comment. (He swore me to secrecy until the article was published.) He agrees with all of us that this is a stupid decision on the part of Ford and when I asked about John Coletti's and Tom Scarpello's role in the decision, he indicated that they are very upset about it.

Mike Philpott

:(

Sad but not the end of the world for me,
personally I think the new Body style is fine for a Truck,
BUT NOT for the fastest Beauty on the Planet.

AMOF I see no beauty in it at all as a Performance Vehicle,
(although yes they did a good job with the Proto Type)
I'm kind of glad they wont try to make something big square
and fugly look good.

Now the Gen 2, THAT KNEW HOW TO Represent :rocker:
Looks Comfort + Speed, all in one serious Kick Ass Package :banana:

Hmm, this just might be what A LOT of us needed,
to go built Motor :D

The value of my 02 with 12,000 miles is already in the toilet. Nowhere near the $32K I paid.

Hell, there are new 04s on the lot for $25k.

Newspaper Article
 

Here's today's Orlando Sentinel newspaper version of the same basic article that appeared in yesterday's online AutoWeek, with a little additional info:


COMMENTARY: STEVEN COLE SMITH
At Ford, Lightning fails to strike twice
Steven Cole Smith

October 21, 2004

In 1998, as the executive editor of Car and Driver magazine, my central responsibility was to come up with good cover stories -- preferably stories the competition didn't have. For the January 1999 issue, I stuck my neck out and put a test of the all-new Ford Lightning pickup truck on the cover.

This was risky on my part for two reasons: One, Car and Driver had never featured a truck as the main cover story. And two: January is the magazine's annual "10 Best" issue, traditionally one of the best-selling editions, because of the heat generated by the announcement of what we selected as the top-10 vehicles -- or often as not, what we didn't pick. But the 360-horsepower Lightning, the second generation of Ford's F-150 high-performance truck, was the best and fastest pickup I'd ever driven, and I had it exclusively.

Luckily for my career, that January issue sold well, but we did get the obligatory, "If I wanted to read about trucks, I'd buy Truck and Driver, not Car and Driver!" letters to the editor.

Anyway, I've been a fan of the Ford Lightning since and consider it the best all-around product from Ford's Special Vehicle Team, also responsible for the Mustang Cobra and Focus SVT. And because 2004 was the last year for that Lightning model, I've been looking forward to the next-generation Lightning, due next year, and based on the all-new F-150 platform introduced for 2004.

Won't happen. Ford has canned the next Lightning.

Is this a surprise? You bet. Ford already had shown a concept version of the next-generation Lightning, back in 2003. The concept had a supercharged V-8 engine with more than 500 horsepower, in answer to the Dodge Ram SRT-10, which eclipsed the Lightning as the world's fastest production pickup in a test I attended last winter. Ford was eager to regain the crown, but has decided to deed the performance-pickup-truck market to Dodge.

Why? "It's a business decision," said Alan Hall, who handles public relations for the SVT division. For now, Ford has decided to put all of SVT's eggs in one basket, and that's the 2006 Mustang Cobra, which will be built on the platform of the all-new 2005 Mustang. Hall says the official line is that the Lightning has been "postponed," and not killed, but if it is revived, it will be 2008 or later before we see one. Maybe that isn't quite "killed," but it's mortally wounded.

This news will not be popular with Lightning loyalists, such as Mike Philpot of Heathrow, who paid full-sticker price for his Lightning in July 1999. "My '99 Lightning has been a fantastic vehicle," he says. "It has about 54,000 miles on it, and it runs better than new. Never any problems. I bought an extended warranty from Ford, but I could have saved myself the money. It has it all: good looks, comfort, good handling and, of course, all that incredible power. Hardly a day goes by without at least one positive comment on it from someone.

"Hopefully, Ford will change its mind. If they want to keep the F-150 the most popular truck in the world with all the competition that it has now, they had better continue with their halo vehicle."

Personally, I think it's nuts, too. The Lightning sold very well -- without big discounts or rebates, unlike most other F-150 models -- and it served as an effective centerpiece for all of the company's trucks. Lightning owners are rabid fans of the model and of the brand itself. The idea that the Lightning could not be developed and sold at a profit -- which is pretty much the basis of every corporate decision in the automotive world -- seems unlikely. But then, I'm not a Ford stockholder.

But I do know a good truck when I see one. When the handful of leftover 2004 Lightnings leave dealer lots, it'll be a shame that we won't get another for a long, long time -- if ever.

Sentinel Automotive Editor Steven Cole Smith can be reached at scsmith@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5699.

hmm
 

maybe the engine they wanted to use was not a good fit for the truck, especially with the weight of the new trucks. :confused:

I think they'll be worth a lot of money if we wait a little while. Its like someone said the other day... supply and demand.

The value of your truck will NEVER go UP in this market - Its decline might slow but the value of your truck will never go from the 17k its worth up to 20 k for example..

For that to happen the popularity would have to be so high the new ones would be selling for above MSRP. Which we KNOW isnt happening

Doug

Couldn't have said it better! I was afraid we would be the beaten stepchildren if the genIII's happened. Don't get me wrong...it makes me sad and angry...but I think it is good for us gen-duecer's!


Doug....I think you may be wrong....to a degree. Our trucks may never (or not for many many years) sky rocket in price, but I think the value may go up some. Remember, once they stop making new ones, these trucks are worth what we want them to be worth. If everyone treats them as ford pickups, they aren't worth chit. If we treat them as the greatest sport/muscle truck to ever roam the streets, then we can sell them for what ever we want. Why is an old porche expensive? Because the snooty owner believes it is an engineering marvel, and an exclusive exotic. When in reality it is a POS and the engineers ought to be locked up for ignorance, and fleecing the public. What is an old porche really worth? Not much, when you consider a brake job is going to be a four digit price tag. Not to mention all the other work you will have to do.

Soooo, in short....this is good for ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

well....if it even comes out in '08...I wouldnt buy one until probably 2010 when .... looks like our Gen2s will be "it" for a while

And I agree and disagree with you, whip.

On the first point, I agree completely. No new Lightning means not being second class citizens.

But on the second point, I disagree. "If everyone treats them as ford pickups?" Dude, it is a Ford pickup. It just has a big engine, some fancy seats, and some plastic bodywork.

That's why the comparison to vintage sportscars falls apart. Porsches have always been limited production, expensive vehicles. There must be 10 gazillion 97-04 F150s (and Explorers) out there.

While the absence of the Gen 3 L will probably help our resale value, I think that the collector car value of Gen 2's (especially anything other than low-mileage, bone stock garage queens) will be virtually nil.

" The greatest sport/muscle truck to ever roam the streets"

:thumbsup: