I bought my Trans Am in October of 2001, it is a red 2001 TA WS6, very nice car and very fast (13.5 @ 105 mph bone stock with an automatic) Ive put 20,000 highway miles onb the car and they have all been one head ache after another. The LS1 is a great, strong and reliable engine... I have never had a break down and Ive made about 18 passes on the drag strip plus several long road trips. But ever since day 1, Ive had the common LS1 piston slap (which is due to over boring of cylenders # 1 and 2) and now recently, my engine is burning over 2 qts of oil between oil changes (3,000 miles) and think GM wants to help me and the thoudand others that have this problem? Well you thought wrong... I am tired of fighting them, all I want is a fast vehicle that is also reliable and trouble free for everyday commuting and long road trips as well as good performing at the track. I wanted a new vehicle with new vehicle reliability... no engine should give you any problems until at least 100,000+ miles. I used to own a 96Mercury Cougar XR7 with the 4.6 V-8, I bought the car with over 90,000 miles and drove another 50,000 miles! Never had a second of trouble with that car, was still running, smelling and looking brand new and got perfect compression numbers out of every cylender at 145,000 miles from that 4.6 V-8. Only reason I traded it in was because I wanted something much faster (the stock Cougar/Thunderbirds only had205 hp stock) and I liked the looks of the Trans Am. I have always liked the F-150 Lightnings.. especially after I saw the 2002s with the freshened up front end and tail lights, but most of all the POWER and usefulness of a truck! This coming week I want to take a drive to my local Ford dealership and unload this Trans Am for a true blue F-150 Lightning.. my question is, are these trucks as reliable as the original 4.6s are? How are they on the highway (Ill be doing a lot of highway driving) and can they tow a boat, etc...? Any info and or advice will be greatly appreciated, thanks guys.. Ill keep everyone posted.

 

You can start here:

https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...threadid=79458

If you're looking for the perfect,problem free vehicle, IMO, the L ain't it. Every type of vehicle has its share of problems. Maybe you'll get a good one, maybe not. Either way, welcome to Lightning Land.

 

Well I can live with small problems here and there that are simple to have repaired under warranty... what I dont want is for the engine to be shot and need replaced at 20,000 miles because its burning oil at the rate of 1 qt every 1,000 miles and the cylenders over bored causing a serious piston slap. I know that there may be a couple of Lightnings that have had major problems, as a lemon is bound to slip through... but these problems with the LS1 engine is COMMON. Just about every member on LS1.com with an LS1 has been fighting with GM over these faulty engines.

 

Welcome!

My 01 L has been trouble-free. I drive it daily to work and now have 28,900 miles on it. It's been to the 1/4 mile track many times too(see sig.) No measureable oil useage and 14+ mpg.

I love those WS6s. I had a 1979 WS6 with the last of the high-performance big-blocks. Never raced it though .

Dan

 

Go for the new 2003 Cobra, 12.90's bone stock and should be reliable atleast before you mod it to death!! I believe Ford has made several improvements to the engine to make it more reliable! Funny thing..they stole the lightning engine for the stangs.. I wonder if that motor will make it back in a Lightning???

 

Nah, the new Cobra will be a nice machine, but I was never impressed with the Mustangs interior quality and performance and the new square style never grew on me. The true blue Lightning, that has to be one of the most beautiful vehicles beside the Trans Am and European sports cars, that I have ever seen. Cant wait to go down and order mine... just hope they give me at least half of what I owe on the Trans Am. Ive been reading up on these trucks a lot today, seems as though they are just as reliable as any other new vehicle, can tow 5,000 lbs, smooth on the highway, and can run mid-high 13s on the strip with 5.4 second 0-60s. That is everything I want, none of this engine replacement BS in a brand new car with only 21,000 miles GM has really bitten the dust lately. Over bored cylenders that cause severe piston slap and oil burning at the rate of 1 qt every 1,000 miles, this is flat out unacceptable and I cant keep a vehicle with this kind of reliability... especially since half the time im on the highway over 700 miles away from home. thsnks for the links, info and advice... keep em coming

 

The Cobra is a DOHC 4.6, not a SOHC 5.4.

 

I traded in my 2000 Z28 for a lightning. The Z was faster, especially accelleration after 70mph... but I love the room in my truck.
And the recognition the truck gets... especially people who have only heard of it and are left totally in awe... is amazing. I haven't seen another L driver (actually, I've only seen 4 other Lightnings in person) who hasn't honked and waved with a giant smile on their face when we see each other...
No regrets. Though, it only has 2100 miles on it.... heh

 

I sold my 98 Trans Am WS6 to get in to my 01 Lightning and am glad that I did. I never had a problem with the WS6 and had great service from GM, but this L absolutely rocks

 

Like the others said.....there is no "perfect" vehicle. I hope that you fully realize that before you drop $30K on this truck.....otherwise you may be setting yourself up for disappointment. If you don't have the proper mindset, 6 months from now you may be over on the Honda forum saying "Dumping the Lightning and buying a Honda".

I understand what you're saying regarding the PCV and oil usage of the LS1 (although mine has never used a drop despite all that I've done to it)...but the L's have a few skeletons under the hood as well. (Do a poll on how many have blown engines, how many shoot spark plugs out of the head, how many have leaky intercoolers, or how many have alignment problems). Most of these are simply a nuisance and can be repaired fairly easy....but it's still an example of how no vehicle is perfect. Especially very powerful vehicles that walk a fine line between performance and reliability, such as the LS1 and L'.

I'm not trying to dissuade you (quite the opposite)....just giving a fellow LS1'er a friendly heads up. I encourage you to buy a Lightning...just come in with realistic expectations.

BTW....if you think that Ford service managers/dealers are gonna be any more generous than their GM counterparts, you're gonna be in for another rude awakening. (Ford is in serious financial peril right now....they ain't giving away free parts/labor if they don't HAVE to).

Having said all that.....Good luck and welcome aboard.

 

Youre TA sounds killer...I would die for a car like that. Actually I am now saving, since I bought my 97 F150 w/ ORP that I wanted, so that I can replace the camaro I had to sell with a 98 or newer Camaro SS. Now that I have been looking, I would love a 98 or newer WS6 and either choice would have to be red just like yours.

Ebbnsflow...sweet looking car. Like posted above, I hope to own one some day in the future.

It is a shame that Chevy killed the most affordable best performing sports car on the market! P*ss on them!

 

I'm NOT trying to discourage you either. My L has been basically trouble-free since new! Had the I/C recall done at 15K (and my original was NOT leaking BTW), and I just turned 20K, which means it's 'bout time for a new set of F1's. I'd buy another.

 

Quote: have leaky intercoolers --not an issue in the 01/02s but I agree, none of them(Ls, LS1s, etc.) are perfect.

Dan