Two old adages are still true today:

"Speed costs money. How fast do you want to go?"

and

"Racing breaks things."

 

is that a canopy on a lightning - ha ha

Any way prove a chip causes damage - first on the trans hook up a pressure gauge - out of ford spec - damaged front pump - not to hard to prove as ford has taps on the trans to hook up a gauge

pcm - o2s lower voltage, timing increased, not too hard. People have even stated their tunners used a ngs to watch o2 sensor readings to make sure they weren't running lean, ngs is old technology -not to hard to prove its been leaned out

btw - not all air filters are the same some aftermarket ones, especially on blown engines allow dirt to pass through (dont seal with the housing properly) wich not only dusts the engine but also the blower or turbo

 

tallimeca posted:


Maybe we should suggest to the newbies when they start asking about mods.....are you gonna race or not? If so, your first mods should be internal upgrades and go from there............Sunday afternoon.....just thinking.


That is the best advise anyone could give someone just starting out. I have a 351 engine for my 91 Mustang capable of handling 1000 FWHP and not one part inside it is Factory and it was built by a professional engine shop. The question is not how much HP can a stock engine handle but rather how much can it handle and be reliable. Most people know a stock 302 block is capable of handling up to 500 fwhp and be fairly reliable but not bullet proof. Go over that and the reliability factor starts going way down.

The engines in our lightnings for the most part handle HP pretty darn good for the cost. Could Ford make them better? Of course. I just think some of us are expecting far too much out of a mass produced engine that you can buy for around 4-5000 dollars including the blower. Just as tallimeca said, if you are going to race upgrade the internals first. Not looking to flame anyone just my honest opinion.

 

Whose comment are you refering to with this post?

 

1- canopy = looks gay especially on a lightning - only an opinion - some may like the look

2- air filters = people wanting ford warrenty to cover damage caused by aftermarket parts

 

Isnt it, "How fast do you want to spend?"?

 

I just read through all the pages of this thread and havent gottin any clue to what to expect from these engines I am ne to the Lightning mine is a 2002 with like 400 miles on it I want to mod it but who wants to spend 3-4k on a engine internal upgrade I don't know who wrote that FORD should offer a better engine package is correct maybe a LIGHTNIG "R" version and I would have bought it someone else said they wouldn't be able to afford another 2k is the engine was better GET REAL you paid 29k-34k on a 2 wheel drive truck should have bought a nissan with a blower then , that is nuts we all bought these to go fast but on the downside everything has a weak link it seems to be rods so I hear but I dont think anyone really knows why this is happening including ford just as another said in the mustangs was bad transmissions borg warner t-5 who didnt blow one I know i did 5 times yeah I missed a few gears but it was just a bad trans but a easy fix so no one complained now its a whole motor that we are gonna have to eat if we blow it up with mods so i guess what i want to know what is the bottom line what mods are RECOMMENDED SAFE
from the tuners no offense i know alot of you have alot of knowledge but they have the big shops and fancy equipment and hell they make are trucks faster so what is it let me know
please
thanks
SLICK

 

Punctuaution?

That's nearly impossible to read or comprehend slick....

 

I am sorry I am not a school teacher and write in perfect form

All I was trying to say is that NO ONE still has giving a answer or atleast a well educated one to me it is all what if's or personal opinions no real proof is what I was trying to say

So I am sorry once again for my bad writing skills maybe they should off grammar check on threads being it is so important to so many in this forum


Slick

 

Here is a list of safe lightning mods:

1)Seat covers (although with the right combination of cover and pants material, you may be subjected to an unexpected slide out of your seat.

2)Billet a/c *****. If you can't replace these without damaging anything, you shouldn't be able to own sharp implements of any kind

3)Aftermarket grills. Just make sure they are fastened correctly. If not, they may come off and through your windshield at that point, I may be forced to removed them from the list. (Plywood is not recommended)

4)Bedrug. Please don't try to vaccuum it in the rain....

5)Replacement lighting, i.e.-99/00 -01/02. Just remember to use spacer washers when converting. And look out for pedestrians when you drive up next to a store front window and try to check out your new goodies in the reflection.

Anything else is up in the air. Feel free to add to this list.

 

Sorry Slick... Didn't mean to sound gruff, or to flame you...

Obviously, you know a little something about the issue, or else you wouldn't have commented...

It's just that since YOU know what you are trying to say, it is easy for you to read and understand your own writing, but others cannot.

For example-

OthersREADINGyourpostnotknowing whereyoursentencestarts andstopsmakesthholethingconfusing andthereforeyourcontributiongetsoverlookedIREALLY aminterestedinwhatyouhavetosay

Translation:

"Others READING your post, not knowing where your sentence starts and stops makes the whole thing confusing and therefore your contribution gets overlooked....

I REALLY am interested in what you have to say."

It's not like I or we (all others pardon my assumption please) expect college level grammar or anything, but some indication of sentence structure makes the whole thing easier to read and understand.

Please?

 

thank you.

People need to realize that when they do mods they are going "where no man has gone before". When you change your L you are now entering the realm of R&D. If things go your way, great - discovery! The checkered flag is yours!! Just because Ford releases a 380hp monster does not mean they have tested it at 450hp. They are selling a Lightning, not a modded Lighting. If you see a failure at +6psi - well, another "don't do this". It gets VERY expensive to do R&D in a hurry.

If you want to mod your L, you are following in the tradition of hot rodders of previous generations. Don't expect factory support. You are blazing new trails. If you document your work and achieve success the glory is yours alone. If not, well, it's the cost of R&D. CYA.