FINALLY ran my Lightning!!!

D

dconnor

Guest
As per the post title, only took me 6 months to make it to the track in the Lightning! It's an '01 with the following mods:

Pulley: unkown variety.. 11~12lbs of boost by the probably not too accurate stock guage (goes a bit past the 10lb mark)

Chip: Unkown variety... and actually may still be stock, haven't hunted the ECM down yet (yeah I know SHAME on me!) just going by what the salesguy said when I bought it.

Cat-back exhaust: I THINK it's a Bassani but not 100% sure

Nitto DR's: 305-45-18 @ 22psi

Accel Kool Blue filter in stock airbox

Ran VERY consistently, all runs were made from a ~1500rpm launch, temp ranged from 83 to 79° & there was a 10~12 mph headwind... here's a breakdown in order:

60' ----- 1/8th ------- 1/4 -------

1.902 / 8.368 @ 84.60 / 13.061 @ 104.42

1.894 / 8.409 @ 84.25 / 13.113 @ 104.19 (hot lapped)

1.908 / 8.382 @ 84.73 / 13.068 @ 104.64

1.879 / 8.350 @ 84.71 / 13.035 @ 104.76

1.883 / 8.352 @ 84.51 / 13.044 @ 104.37

I was pretty happy with the times, but MAN was I looking for a 12.xx pass once I saw that 13.06 on the FIRST RUN! I usually go a couple of tenths faster as the night goes on & get settled into race mode.... Oh well, at least it's pretty dang consistent even when hot lapped! Now if I could only get my reaction time down there too!!!

Doug C.
 
not bad for a truck eh?

It looks like the 12's are there for the taking. If you have a chip its not stock. The Lightnings don't come from the factory with a chip at all. How cool was it at the track...these trucks love cold air. If you drill out a few holes with a 3"hole saw in the bottom of the airbox you should drop a couple of tenths;) . I have an 02' and was able to get a 1.860 short time on the stock tires. Those Nitto's should have a better 60' in them. So practice your launch and pop a few holes in that airbox and go back and get your 12.xx slips. Oh yeah, let it cool down between runs....that can make a pretty big difference. Have fun.:)
 
Congratulations Doug, I see you don't want to rush into going to the track hehehehehe

It looks like it will be a great bracket racer for the car club bash :)

Take Care
 
Sweet :)

I ran my 03 a few weeks back. The track wasn't prepped so the traction sucked but still managed a 13.52@102 with a crappy 2.11 60ft. Totally stock with 1500 miles on it :)

The ECM is in the Kick panel like the GNs, or at least thats what I have been told. Open it up and see if there is a chip in there.
 
Wow, that's impressive for moderate mods. Damn thing would be TOUGH in a bracket race by the looks of it, you were really consistent. Just some practice and I'm sure you'll be all over 12s.

Just curious, did you install the Cool Blue filter yourself? If so, how do you like it compared to say a K&N? Pricewise and whatnot. I am gonna replace my filter this year, and saw a Kool Blue ad watching Car & Driver TV on Saturday. Looks cool, and sounded good. Thanks and congrats on the awesome times.
 
NW, IF it doesn't have a chip yet I'm considering that Diablo Predator & if it does have a chip, I'll probably go ahead & upgrade to a flip-chip setup. Luckily there is a big local club here in Houston (HALO, I hit them up for the lowdown BEFORE I bought one) & a few good local vendors. I was taking it pretty easy on the launches the track wasn't prepped too well & I wanted to get some USEFUL seat time in, not put on a smoke show! These Nitto DR's behave almost opposite from the way they did on my Z28. In it I could hammer the gas anytime on he street with no spin, but could only manage high 1.9's at the track. With the Lightning I have to feather it pretty good on the street or it'll just boil 'em down, but the track it just stuck with those mild ~1500rpm launches even on a half-a$$ prep job by the track people. Airbox mods are pending, ( I'm actually planning to run some 3" hose down behind the bumper for a poor man's cold air setup, ) just want to pick up a spare to leave unaltered first, just in case I have to head to the dealer for service... I also have a set of Lakewoods waiting to go on as soon as I have some spare time. :)

Neal, unfortunately the way my work schedule is I can only make the CCB a couple of times a year... I need to get the Buick inspected so I can make the ~100 mile trip in it on those times my off days coincide (heh or buy a trailer & let my wife run the Lightning!) ;)

Mike, SWEET man! From what I've seen & been told you can expect another couple of tenths once the motor is nice & broken in. I think with a harder launch (say ~2000rpm) & no headwind my L would have squeeked out a 12 no prob.... Oh yeah, ECM check is taking place after I finish lunch, I shouldn't have let that slide for the last six months! :eek:

Weazel, The filter I got is a stock replacement that just goes in the factory airbox. From what I can tell Accel doesn't have a wide choice of cone "universal" filters yet. The S&B Powerstack filter works great & is what I run in my Turbo-T, may want to give them a look.

Doug C.
 
Halo won't steer you wrong.

Sounds like you got all your apples in a row....or is that oranges in a row? Anyway...I'll be looking into the Diable Predator also if its ever released. You may not have a chip in there. It sounds like you have a 2lb pulley and that really woundn't require a chip. If you got those short times on a poorly prepped track then my hats off to you. Later.:)
 
Originally posted by dconnor

Mike, SWEET man! From what I've seen & been told you can expect another couple of tenths once the motor is nice & broken in. I think with a harder launch (say ~2000rpm) & no headwind my L would have squeeked out a 12 no prob.... Oh yeah, ECM check is taking place after I finish lunch, I shouldn't have let that slide for the last six months! :eek:


Doug C.
Click to expand...

I think if I can get the track on a day when they prep the track and can get in the 1.9s 13.30s should be simple totally stock.

BTW, Just picked up a trailer last weekend. Lightning Tows good :cool:
 
Mike, how much can your Lightning tow? Im looking for a tow vehicle and it would great to have something that fast.
 
Tow rating is 5,000 lbs, I've used mine to haul a pair of jet skis ~200 miles several times no probs AND it hauled a 20' low boy trailer loaded down with just about everything from my wife's townhouse after we got married without breaking a sweat.

There is a guy in the local club that has a 2000 L & he used it to haul his GN to Bristol from Houston a couple of years back.

Doug C.
 
5000lbs is the Class 3 hitch rating as I understand it, you can extend the rating to 7000lb by adding a different type of hitch/sway bar setup to the trailer or something.

I was towing around an 18 foot (24ft total) full deck trailer that weighs 1900lbs and my 98 LS1 Trans-Am which is around 3300 without me in it.

I had the cruise set to 75 on the highway and it was fine, hit a hill and the thing doesn't even kick out of overdrive, although it does drink gas. :eek: But what do you expect from a low 13 second tow vehicle :cool:

The Lightning has 12 Inch Front and 13 Inch Rear Rotors, The trailer has brakes and I kept the brake controller down pretty far.

Ford did a really good job with this truck, does everything well.

I am taking the Lightning to an SVT Auto X on Saturday to throw it through the cones. Love this thing!! :D :D
 
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