I was curious if anyone knew of any handling mods. I have a 01 with belltech lowering kit. Besides that it is 100% stock as far as performance parts. I love the ride and the speed but as far as high speed off ramps it needs some work. I almost had an off the road experince when I sat the truck in for the turn it wouldnt bit ,till i scrubbed off a ton of speed. So if anyone knows of any products or tunning tips HOOK ME UP PLZ!

 

You know its a pig that up bought, a very fast one. its just that pigs dont turn that great. Keep it between the lines, plz! We dont want to see you dead! IF you going to race it make it form 0-110 mph , and no turns


1/8 8.713
1/4 13.55

01L Silver chiped and stage II air (JL)

pulley and Nos on the way.

 

YZ you should check into the Hotchkis kit. Also depending on what year look into new shocks. If you are 99-00 the shocks are junk from the get-go. If you are 01 you should be ok. Also have you had your truck aligned? I have found that running 1/16" total toe in helped the cornering tons.

 

I beg to differ on that one,I have shown alot of vettes vipers and the such my tail lites as I pass them on the track! As have a few others on this board.The Lightnings handle good from the factory stock and with a few suspension mods will handle awesome.I have gained the respect of more than a few so called corner carving cars! Stan

 

GJ!
I totaly agree that it could handle great I know its not a Modena but it feels good and i know with a few adjustments it could go 100% better im just looking to see who has done what so far and how well it has gone just so i dont have to work backwards

 

Ruslow you are my hero. I love the fact that you and a few other guys road race your Lightnings.

I would love to do it myself, if I ever get over treating mine like it is a collector's item.

 

He is a animal isnt he! We have to race ours now or we are just babies I saw so many cars at the track that you just know your L could hang with.

 

Getting a vehicle to turn and accelerate is a game of weight transfer. The weight has to be on the tires that you want to do the work.

In the case of these behemoths called Lightnings, you need as much weight transferred to the front tires as possible to make them stick.

To get the Lightning to corner, I drive it into the corner under braking as hard and fast as possible, doing as much braking in a straight line as possible. This keeps the weight on the front tires. As I turn in, I lighten up my braking (trail braking) and head for furthest point in the turn (apex) that possibly can.

Once the truck is pointed at the apex, I can get on the gas hard. Since the truck is basically pointed in a straight line at that time, I can transfer the weight to the rear wheels (accelerate) without inducing power oversteer.

L8apex, Ruslow and Spike Engineering can give you some pointers too.

Remember, don't try this at home. We are trained professionals

 

I did the first day. This truck is just so much fun.

yzfr6 - try Hotchkis then. You said you have belltech, is it the 3/3(4) drop? If so the hotchkis springs are a 2" drop and those wouldn't mix to well. You may be able to use the belltech hangers, hotchkis rear springs, and stock hangers. Ruslow or spike could answer that better.

If your daring you could make your own stuff like Ruslow.

OR if you have lots of $$$ check out this thread and it's links:
https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...threadid=46535

 

The reason that I make the items that I do is two fold first because I enjoy doing it [and seeing if it works] and also because of the type of events that I do,to my knowledge there is not a manufacture of the items that I NEED to compete in Open Road events.I do some compromizing since I do drive the truck on the street too.But I still favor the track settings even if they are a little harsh.Its a give and take.Stan

 

Jay, very nice explanation.

Thanks.

 

The single biggest handling mod you can make...is improving your driving skills. And I dont mean that as an insult... but you have to learn how to extract all the handling your vehicle is capable of. If you're serious about "making your truck handle"... you must get yourself into some autocross and/or road race events, get some in car instruction, pay attention to what the fast guys are doing, etc. Learn how to make your truck handle.

And Spike is going to be testing the Hotchkis suspension on a real, live road-course in about a week... we will then see if it lives up to it's hype Hey Spike, can I drive your L??.Dreamin'

 

Thanks for the input you road racing pros. Iam ready to spend the bucks $1500-$2000 for a lowering kit that puts the trucks handling above my ability. In other words, the truck will handle high speed curves faster than I want to drive them. I am leaning towards Jack Roush because, well he's Jack Roush.

 

Fast Gator,
Do some homework if your are looking for handling. The Rousch kit does not address one of the weak links in the L's suspension. Sway bars. The rousch kit is an improvement over stock but I think it is still leaving a vital area untouched. The Rousch kit is springs and shocks only. The Hotchkis kit covers everything except shocks and control arm bushings. I plan to try the 01 L's Bilstiens first and if not satisfied switch to the adjustable Koni's. I have the control arm bushings coming from Quickor Suspension. My next step will be to improve the brakes, wheels & tires.

 

Fast - I'm doing Hotchkis front and rear springs in august, and if I can get my hands on them the swaybars in Sept. So if you can hold out about a month you check it out on mine.