hey there, im thinkin about trading in my 2000 Tundra for an 2002 Lightning and jus had some questions. What I have read about the L so far is pretty impressive but the thing im mostly concerned with is reliability. I know of Fords reputation of making pretty unreliable cars and wanted to know if the Lightning falls in there with the rest. All of the cars I have previously owned have been imports (Toyota and Lexus) actually, and so far I have had zero problems with them. Also, when I checked sites like Consumer Reports and stuff, all the top reliable cars are imports and all the low ones are fords and other domestics. I just dont want to give away my Tundra and then get a Lighting thats gonna be breaking down on me all the time. i would appriciate some imput from other L owners about any kind of problems they ahve had or if they know anything about the reliablility of and L thanx a lot

 

You should probably stay with the Tundra, unless you want to buy an L and then do you not only have poor reliability but you would have to visit the Emergency Room to have the permenant smile surgically removed from your freakin face

Seriously if you are looking at CR before you buy a Lightning I would say that you are not the type of driver that would be happy in the Ford family. Just my .02

 

lolz alright, maybe i did sound stupid mentioning all that CR crap, but hey, im only 18 and i just dont have the money right now to down into repairs n such, i jus wanna know if a lot of L's go bad or is it just flukes like with any car? i just really really dont wanna get screwedwith ahvign my car in the shop cuz i wont be able to afford it >_<

 

Here's my advice:STICK WITH THE TUNDRA AND STOP SKIPPING ENGLISH, CLASS BECAUSE YOUR GRAMMER SUCKS!!!!

 

Alright. Fair enough. Just thought I would ask a simple question thats all. Plus, reading those posts about how Ford puts the wrong number piston in is making me have some second thoughts about getting one.

 

Stick with your Tunda!

Btw.......my Lexus went thru 2 trans, but the dealer did make good on them. So you see, ANYTHING can give you trouble, especially if it has t*ts

 

Alright. Thanks a lot guys, oh btw what lexus u have? My dads is the 2002 GS430 and I have so much fun driving that thing I figured I'd get a truck that goes just about as fast. Plus the tundra isnt really wowing people at the races

 

Lightnings are very reliable, but like anything else if you push it to far you will have problems.

Larry.

 

Take it easy on the guy, it is not like we are here to impress strangers with our spelling skillz g funk.

Get the Lightning, of course if you do mod, you are taking the risk.

 

hmm I think I will go test drive one and deside, just thought I would just ask on a forum about reliability because I wouldn't trust a dealer to tell me how I'm not going to ever have problems with it So now I'm stuck between $3500 for a charger for the Tundra (and still be slower then an L) or trade in and get an L. or just be content with my fairly slow yet flashy car.

 

Don't know about the Tundra in particular but Toyotas have a higher reliability rating than Fords in most of its classes. Let's not delude ourselves here. Toyota is top-notch quality-wise and I believe Lexus beat out the venerable Mercedes Benzes in quality and reliability this year.

I still love my Lightning and believe its positive elements grossly overshadow its negative ones.

 

Hey Surge,

I know when I bought my L they wouldn't even let me test drive it until they had all the papers filled out ready for me to sign(before I actually signed the papers otherwise I wouldn't have bought it). I believe that's a common policy with SVT vehicles, at least at the Ford dealers in my area. Maybe someone here has been able to just simply go up and test drive one, but I got a big NO from every dealer I asked. As for your question of reliablilty, I believe a lot has to do with the way someone treats their vehicle. I always make sure the oil is changed every 3,000 miles with a quality synthetic (Mobil 1 5W-30) and I haven't had any unusual problems with my L. NONE. You can read all the posts that you want, but you'll most likely hear the bad stories rather than the good ones. I believe Ford has made a good truck in the Lightning, but it does have some flaws (plugs shooting, weak rods than can fail if you increase the boost too much). What I can tell you as a definite is that many dealers WILL try to void your warranty if you come in for repairs and they notice mods (especially chips and pulleys). If you want an L and you're just going to keep it stock then enjoy the best sport truck made today, BUT if you plan to mod then you will be taking on a risk.

 

i drive my 410rwhp daily driver to work about 3-4 days out of the week. i put 8,000 miles on it in about 5 months and runs like the day i bought it. That includes racing it and and driving like it was built to be driven.

 

I have a 2001 Tundra 4x4 TRD Limited and a 2001 Lightning. I like both trucks a lot. Each has it's benefits over the other. I have 40,000 miles on the Tundra and 5,500 miles on the L, and so far, neither of them have given any problems (both are bone stock). The L is my weekend vehicle, while Tundra is my daily driver and long distance trip vehicle. Even though I haven't put significant mileage on either one, I believe that the Tundra will eventually be the more reliable truck. There are a few Tundra owners with nearly 200,000 miles on their trucks, and haven't had significant problems yet (and they came out in 1999). I've owned a Toyota Corolla and a Ford Escort in the past, and the Toyota was much more reliable, with no major breakdowns in 70,000 miles (the Escort had 8 major breakdowns in 99,000 miles). Both were bone stock and maintained regularly.

Since I'll be buying a house next summer, I'm gonna have to let go of one of these vehicles, and although I hate to mention it here, I'm probably gonna sell the L, and keep the Tundra. In the long run, I believe the Tundra will be the more useful and reliable truck. When I drive through the open, desolate expanses of Southwest Texas, reliability becomes the most important thing, for good reason. Theoretically, if I had a Tundra with 150,000 miles and an L with 150,000 miles on the clock, and had to take a long distance drive, I'd rather be driving the Tundra.

So I guess it all depends on what you're looking for in a truck. I think the Tundra is the more reliable truck, but the Lightning, in my opinion, is also reliable, as long as you take care of it, maintain it, don't over-mod it, and don't abuse it. From what you've written, I think you'll have more fun with the L, especially if you don't need off-road capabilities. The L looks great and runs great, but doesn't have as much interior room (unless you have a reg cab Tundra), and gets a little less mileage. If you want a more practical truck, stick with the Tundra, if you want a sport truck, go with the L.

 

Yep I agree with that completely.

BTW guys, lets not start sounding like those ****y corvette guys. Surge is just trying to get some info.

Andy