2004 Ford SVT F-150 Lightning

All truck?street and track-style

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There isn't another pickup truck like Ford's SVT F-150 Lightning. SVT stands for Special Vehicle Team. Translation: The guys at Ford who design and build the factory hot rods. Lightning stands for about how fast it feels when you cram the gas to the floor. If the notion of a hot rod pickup truck seems a little silly to you, then you are not the intended buyer of this vehicle. But if even the thought of such a device is what keeps you hanging around the "Transportation" section of the local bookstore's newsstand, then step right up.

The Lightning is based on the short-wheelbase, standard cab, flareside, two-wheel drive version of the F-150, hunkered down and all beefed up. Here's the basic description: The Lightning is based on the short-wheelbase, standard cab, flareside, two-wheel drive version of the F-150; in other words, the littlest one. Under the hood goes a 5.4-liter SOHC V-8, suitably pumped up with a supercharger and intercooler, and cranking out a not-inconsiderable 380 horsepower at 4,750 rpm and 450 lb.-ft. of torque at 3,250 rpm. It's fitted with a four-speed automatic, and the final drive is 3.73:1 with a hefty 9.25-inch ring gear working on a limited-slip differential. There are big vented disc brakes at all four corners, 12.1-inch diameter in front with twin-piston calipers, 13.1-inch in the rear with single-piston calipers (the rear discs are larger to accommodate a parking brake mechanism within the inner diameter), and ABS is standard equipment. The suspension is suitably lowered and firmed up, with big Bilstein shock absorbers and front and rear anti-roll bars. Wheels are five-spoke 18 x 9.5-inch, mounting unidirectional Goodyear Eagle F1-GS tires, sized P295/45ZR18.

Outside there are spoilers, rocker panel covers, fog lamps, custom-looking taillamps and not-humble paint colors. The dual exhaust exits in front of the right rear tire, through a recess in the rocker panel. Inside is a modified version of the Ford F-150 interior, with a bench seat that's split 40/60, but padded, contoured and upholstered so that, when the center armrest is down, it looks pretty much like a pair of bucket seats. As a result of this contouring, even though there is allegedly seating for three, you really wouldn't want to be the center passenger unless you have a good sense of humor. Upholstery is suede leather, with patterned inserts, and "SVT" logos in the backrests. The steering wheel is also leather covered, and some of the interior trim is kind of spiffed up. The gauges are white with black letters. There are dials for oil pressure, fuel level, coolant temperature and supercharger boost; the boost gauge goes to 10 psi, the specifications say the supercharger pumps out eight psi, and the boost gauge gets to that eight psi very, very quickly. This characteristic of quickly getting the boost up is one advantage an engine-driven supercharger has over a turbocharger. The tach reads to 6,000 rpm, with redline about 5,200, and the speedometer reads to 140. But according to Ford material, on the SVT portion of the www.ford.com web site, it will do 142 miles per hour. Even though we did not attempt to verify that claim, we have absolutely no reason to doubt this thing will make 142 miles per hour.

Inside is a modified version of the Ford F-150 interior. Upholstery is suede leather, with patterned inserts, and "SVT" logos in the backrests. And we will say right here that the Lightning is not for everyone. As a truck, it's kind of silly, because if you want to haul compost around the farm this is probably not your best choice. But if you want to haul asphalt, the Lightning will do the job. The engine is wonderfully tractable and responds quicker than a cat getting tagged with a cattle prod. Wiggle the gas pedal and this thing is on the move. Stand on the gas hard, the boost comes on right now, you can hear the supercharger whining, the exhaust is blatting out the far side, and whatever was little in the windshield starts getting a lot bigger. It just flat-out rips. And since the engine is so strong and broad-shouldered throughout its rev range, and it's working with an automatic, all you have to do is make sure there's clear sailing ahead and mash the throttle.

We will report that the chassis modifications do the job. The Lightning corners flat, sticks like yesterday's breakfast syrup on the kitchen counter and tracks around corners with precision and assurance. And the big brakes showed no reluctance to deal with the matter of getting rid of ill-advised velocity. Part of the handling equation is helped because the Lightning is lowered considerably in comparison to a normal F-150, so it doesn't feel as if you're perched up in the air somewhere.