Dealer Makes Lightning

[bill25]

http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/for ... spartanntp

This is kind of cool. Almost makes you wonder if there are other opportunities to take a new car, sell the drivetrain and upgrade it to what an enthusiast would want.

Like maybe an ATS-V with a V8 (probably pretty complicated with all the caddy computer stuff. It is an interesting idea since the original drivetrain should be worth some money. Unfortunately, trucks are the best option since they are already RWD.

Best case is probably not brand new, so you can get the depreciation advantage but almost new so the drivetrain will be worth the most. Having 20K on the drivetrain probably will not depreciate the return much vice having 100 miles on the drivetrain.

[kevm14]

I think that makes sense. These will be very low volume (perhaps lower than it would have made sense for Ford to offer it) I bet. On the other hand if it proves popular enough, I would think Ford would make it official.

The time is right if there is a market for it. Economy doing better, gas reasonable, Coyote proving itself (Ford's first high performance mass produced, naturally aspirated V8 since...a long time).

[Bob]

If Ford made this official, it would probably feature an ecoboost engine instead of a V8. Better the dealer did it the right way.

[kevm14]

Yeah that's true. I mean they could shove the Raptor's new EB into some low trim of an F150. That engine puts out 450 hp and 510 lb-ft. It moves a 5,661 lb Raptor through the 1/4 mile in 13.9 @ 97 mph. You pull 1,000 lbs off that platform (should be pretty easy) and that should be in the low 13s if it retains 4WD and trapping 105-107 mph. In other words, it would get my CTS-V from a launch and I'd never catch up through the 1/4 mile. But it would sound like a vacuum cleaner.