tarheelbball412

I see many people having problems with thier engines breaking after using many performance mods on thier L's.This has make me worried about getting performance mods. My L is my daily driver. Is there anything that I can buy/ do to help protect my truck from breaking after performance mods?

Thanks in Advance

PS. Should I be safe with getting a chip, #3 pulley, line valve mod, and JL ram air?

CHIKIN1

Exhaust is a good mod for these trucks because of the forced induction. Its also a safe mod & will add a good amount of Hp.
It will also make way for future mods allowing you to see more Hp & Tq from a pulley, chip, or especially Nitrous.
Personally I would go w/ JDM's Full Exhaust.
Call and talk to Justin or Jim.
Their # is 732-780-0770.


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Black '01
Born on 5-3-01
#3603 of 6381
K&N Box Filter
Sean Hyland Pulley(don't get it, pain in the)
Panhandle Performance Chip
JDM Boost Bypass
380 RWHP @Normal Temp.
476 RWTQ @Normal Temp.
JDM Full Exhaust(Next Week)
JDM Fan/R Pump Kit(Next Week)
JDM 4# Pulley(Next Month)
Tranny Mods(Next Month)

GreazedLightning

I've got 24K on mine and don't baby it all the much. Usually make it to the track twice a month and put on a good smoke show from time to time and not one problem yet. When I take it in for the intercooler recall it will be the first time it's been back to the dealer.
- Rick -

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- Rick -
00 Black Lightning
#3395 on 5/30/00
JL Stage II Ram Air, DiabloSport chip (JL Programed), Stull billet grill, Clear Corners, Line-X bed liner

Kerrdogg

Modifications are safe on these trucks if they are well thought out and done in moderation. I try to keep this in mind because my L is my daily driver also. My future plans include what I happen to think will make a very effective mid 12 second @ 110mph daily driveable truck are as follow.

Cold air kit- Your choice, check around and ask other L owners what they like, many options here.

Throttle body- This will probably be the last thing I do in my series of mods because I don't know if it offers enough bang for the buck for me personally but it will improve performance and drivability.

Flip chip- Get a nice street program and a more aggressive program for running the truck when you are able to make full use of the power. Example- at the track when you can cool the truck down.

Long tube headers- They seem expensive but they offer an impressive HP / Torque gain over stock and in reality reduce the load on the motor by freeing up the back pressure and exhaust flow. Almost free horsepower, I said almost .

Lower Pulley- I wouldn't go crazy here, I am hoping to go with a 4# in the future but even the 2# offers a great performance increase. I would stay away from anything larger than a 4# if you are relying on the truck for daily transportation, not that more boost won't make more power it just does it at the expensive of more heat and that leads to detonation which will hurt your motor.

Cooler thermostat- I haven't tried this yet but would think if you live in a warmer climate the truck will benefit from it.

Electric fans- Several vendors offer these or you can fabricate your own. Might even want to look at the intercooler heat exchanger as a another place for a fan to reside.

Breather/Pcv mods- Anything that will vent internal engine pressure is a good thing on a forced induction motor. Also the PCV system has been known to allow oil to get into the intake and intercooler which reduces the effectiveness of the intercoolers heat transfer abilities, not a good thing.

These are just suggestions that will give you the best bang for the buck safely and basically what I plan to do on my truck in the future. One thing I will also suggest is after doing any mod take the truck out for a nice SLOW ride. Listen for detonation at tip in throttle, put a load on the motor and listen some more, if any thing feels weird / sounds strange check it out. This applys to any modded vehicle actually check it out throughly before abusing it! Good luck.

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Thanks,
John Kerr

01 White Lightning
"Stock and Smokin!!"

[This message has been edited by Kerrdogg (edited 01-06-2002).]

tarheelbball412

Thanks for your help all. Kerrdog, that stuff is now in my checklist of mods.

tarheelbball412

Any other things?

JJ's SVT

A change of spark plugs would also be a good idea as well as a boost bypass kit.

The NGK TR5's or TR6's are a good upgrade over stock.

The boost bypass kit will keep the computer from dumping the boost and will not set a trouble code in the computer as it does when you just disconnect the solenoid, its also cheap and easy to install.

I sell and install JDM products because in my opinion JDM has done the research, development and the engineering on every product they sell, and it is all of the highest quality.

All the tuners offer great products for our Lightnings, but I went with JDM because I believe them to be the best.

Let me know if I can help you. I am always available.. JJ

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JJsSvtPerformance
Contact me at jjssvt@jjssvt.com and check out my site.
JJSSVT.com

Lightning performance parts specialist.
01 Lightning
JDM Tuned

CATMAN

Hey CHIKIN1,this is not a flame I promise but exhaust is not a good mod for these trucks because they are super charged.The headers and exhaust mods that most guys have tried do help with the sound and thats about all. In some cases it even hurt dyno numbers. I know it sounds crazy but you can spend that money on a lot of other mods that will help more,I promise and I'm sure there are other guys that will say the same.

NozeBleedSpeed

Read posts on the boards and carefully consider what ever you do.These are great trucks but they arent indestructible.The more spastic the mods,the greater the failure rate.Even the stockers brake if you dog them all the time.Ford designed a street truck.If you try to bolt on a bunch of crap to the stock platform,don't expect the same reliability.These trucks werent designed to be "race cars".I havent ever seen a pro stocker with A/C and lighted vanity mirrors.Modify in moderation.If you are making payments on your truck,you probably still want it to be running when you make the last payment.Just some advice from an old geezer.

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2001 Silver
#621 of 6381
Raised from Hell:2/6/2001
Sold my soul:2/19/2001


NozeBleedSpeed

[This message has been edited by NozeBleedSpeed (edited 01-06-2002).]

Reddawg

I agree Catman, thats all i've heard too, ecxhaust is not the area to gain any major ponies. I also agree strongly with Nose Bleed, i want, but don't have performance mods other than an air filter kit. Call me chicken, but:

I like my warranty and don't want a hastle.
The truck goes way fast enough already.
You push it hard enough, it will break.
And no offense, but anybody who talks Nitrous is lookin for burn down or burn out at the least. Unless you own a garage i'd steer clear of that kind of advice.

hey, i haven't made it to a track in the year i've had her and ya know what, fine. If ya want to really race your truck then you assume responsibility for it. If your an everyday driver with enormous class, style and HP, then the trucks are great off the showroom floor. Ya want to help an L, put your $$$ in some good sounds.

Just another IMHO, lol!


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2000 Silver Lightning. The fastest so far, i love it.
#3962 of 4966, DOB-6/16/00, Ontario Canada.
21k miles, I love this truck!
NLOC #627.

http://www.angelfire.com/oh/ClubDread/reds.html

God Bless America!

tarheelbball412

Spark plugs sound like a good idea. How much are they? Whats better NGK TR5's or TR6's? Can I order them from you JJ? Ill look into the boost bypass kit. Thanks for your help all. Im not gonna mod a ton, just to get into the 12.6-12.8 area.



[This message has been edited by tarheelbball412 (edited 01-06-2002).]

Kerrdogg

Catman & Reddawg, Kerrdogg here (Sounds like a Disney Flick ),

The exhaust mods I am speaking of are the long tube headers currently offerend by JL (Lighnting Performance manufactured) and through JDM (Kooks manufactured). Both of these header designs replace the stock restrictive manifolds and Y pipe and show power gains of around 40 rwhp @ 50 ftlbs of torque. While I agree that the current cat back products offer little performance gain the long tube headers basically replace a bottle neck and reduce backpressure which in turn produces more HP. The funny thing is that this is basically free power, the engines work load is reduced and I would bet the engine temps drop a little after the long tube install which will help curb detonation. Just my opinion.

Nozebleedspeed,

I realize that these trucks are not "Race cars" but Ford does promote them as high performance vehicles and know what the average hot rodder is cabable of destroying. As you claim to have been around the block a few times so has Ford, they know what happens to their vehicles after they leave the factory and shame on them if they cannot withstand the abuse of a few add ons. If you look at the 01 L brochure John Colliti brags about the truck at the drag strip and how wonderful it cuts 60fts. A page or two later the same truck is shown smoking the tires around a sharp right hand turn on a road course, then on the last page a white L )the common work truck ) is shown towing a decent sized boat. So if my L's motor and tranny fail because I was towing my 4,800lb camper up Grandfather Mountain Ford should be able to void my warranty? Then why is it acceptable to void the warranty of those trucks that have been to the strip. Now don't get me wrong blantant abuse is not acceptable in my opinion. If you runs slicks and the driveshaft breaks shame on you, if you shoot 150 shot of nitrous and melt 5 pistions shame on you, if you add a perfomance chip, air filter and lower the back end 2" and Ford wants to void your warranty because the water pump failed then shame on them. Porsche has a rule of thumb that any component they manufacture for use in a production car has to be able to withstand twice the amount of HP than what it is rated to. I used to own a 930 turbo and let me tell you that car could take a beating without missing a tick, ran flawlessly even in the South Florida heat, heck the doors shut so soundly on it you would never know it was 18 years old and had 80,000 miles on it. See my point? If Quality is still job one don't complain when we break the product step up the quality so it won't break.

BTW - If air conditioning helped a NHRA Pro Stocker run a .05 better ET in the 1/4 mile you can bet that everyone would have it in their car, even the guys spraying nitrous, opps was that out loud?

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Thanks,
John Kerr

01 White Lightning
"Stock and Smokin!!"



[This message has been edited by Kerrdogg (edited 01-06-2002).]

CATMAN

M-I-C-K-E-Y MOUSE LOL

CATMAN

Kerrdogg,basically Free? Have you priced that stuff? Free horsepower is the way our exhaust tips are cut to scavenge gasses out of them(old racers trick)shoot they still cut them that way. I have spent hours on dynos with race engines and there is horsepower to be gained there. I have a set of straight pipes with a cross over that I gained a tenth with but the cost of the systems that are out now I think theres other mods that would be better to buy.If you have new cams and head work then you really need them.

JJ's SVT

I run the TR6's in my 12 sec Lightning, and I have a 2lb lower pulley and a 1lb upper. So I think you would be fine with them, and yes, you can get them from me, they are 32 bucks a set and I have plenty in stock, just go to www.jjssvt.com to check them out and for ordering information.

Talk to you later.. JJ

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JJsSvtPerformance
Contact me at jjssvt@jjssvt.com and check out my site.
JJSSVT.com

Lightning performance parts specialist.
01 Lightning
JDM Tuned