1999 Lightning with 2300 Miles

[heavenly]

Hey fellas. Just need some input. Found a 99 Lightning that has 2300 miles on the clock, 2 owners, never been dragged, only mods are Billet Specialty 20" Wheels and Air Ride Suspension. The owner would like to get 20k for it? Thoughts? PS. All maintenance completed to repair faulty issues with this year model...intercooler etc. Super clean but was curious what other Lightning owners thought/would suggest. Thanks!

 

[Dr. Matt]

If you can confirm that is the actual mileage I'd say it is a good deal. The '99 is not as desirable as the '03-4s but still it is really hard to find a L of any year with such low mileage. Too bad they put the air ride system on it. I think it would be worth more to me if they did no mods that were difficult to put back to stock. A low mileage L like that would be good for a collector more than a DD though. Make sure you get a Carfax.

 

[nastynivek]

2300 miles? Wow. At least you're not trying to buy mine, it has 151,000 miles and some change. I bought mine with the intent of driving it. lol.

I'm not sure what a 99 is worth with mileage that low. Maybe you can check Kelly Blue Book (New Cars, Used Cars, Blue Book Values & Car Prices - Kelley Blue Book). I bought my 99 when it was 2yrs old with 22,000 miles on it for more than what he's asking. But, I figure the owner can ask pretty much whatever he wants for that truck in a reasonable price range...all things considered. Good luck.:beer:

 

[heavenly]

If you can confirm that is the actual mileage I'd say it is a good deal. The '99 is not as desirable as the '03-4s but still it is really hard to find a L of any year with such low mileage. Too bad they put the air ride system on it. I think it would be worth more to me if they did no mods that were difficult to put back to stock. A low mileage L like that would be good for a collector more than a DD though. Make sure you get a Carfax.

Good advice. I work at a performance shop performing paint correction/car detail work. This happens to be one of the shop's customers. The truck I believe was purchased by Air Ride Technologies and served as their product demo truck, sitting in a showroom for 9 or so years.(Explains the low mileage) The new owner bought it at a car auction and has had it in storage. I am definitely interested but have a few things to check on. This would serve as my daily, but I also would be using this to haul some of my detail supplies around. Just wondering about the load capacity on the Air Ride suspension. Not going to be carrying alot of weight, but want to check anyways. Thanks for the input guys!!

 

[BlueOvalBolt]

You can add the tail lights to the mod list. Those aren't stock '99. ;-)

 

[oilwell1415]

I would be hesitant to depend on it as a daily driver. Sitting is harder on a vehicle than being driven. How often has the oil been changed? Sounds like a good candidate for a lot of things to go wrong once it starts getting driven.

 

[heavenly]

That is a good point. I plan on having the owner bring it up to the Performance Shop I work for and having the mechanics go through everything. That would be my number one reason not to buy it though...reliability issues. But I also tell myself I could get into some of that if I was looking at Lightnings that are cheaper but into higher mileage. Regardless, I know I will have to replace parts here and there. Just the name of the game. Interesting though, I researched the value on this truck on kbb.com, and they are saying it is worth somewhere in the 12.5k-14k range depending on who's buying(minus the mods)! I thought it would be valued higher than that for some reason.

 

[heavenly]

You can add the tail lights to the mod list. Those aren't stock '99. ;-)

Your right....I am a newb in the Lightning club. LOL

 

[oilwell1415]

The benefit of a higher mileage truck would be that much of the crap that usually goes wrong on a 10 year old vehicle will have already gone wrong and been fixed. Belts, hoses, shocks, AC, fluids, etc. all deteriorate over time whether you drive the truck or not. You will probably end up spending extra money on a low mileage truck only to spend even more fixing things that would have already been fixed on a truck that was driven regularly, and they will probably all need done about the same time. The truck has been neglected for a decade. I can't tell you how many prepurchase inspections I've done on super low mileage vehicles that ended up being money pits.

 

[heavenly]

The benefit of a higher mileage truck would be that much of the crap that usually goes wrong on a 10 year old vehicle will have already gone wrong and been fixed. Belts, hoses, shocks, AC, fluids, etc. all deteriorate over time whether you drive the truck or not. You will probably end up spending extra money on a low mileage truck only to spend even more fixing things that would have already been fixed on a truck that was driven regularly, and they will probably all need done about the same time. The truck has been neglected for a decade. I can't tell you how many prepurchase inspections I've done on super low mileage vehicles that ended up being money pits.

Gotcha! Thanks for the advice. I guess I will have it inspected and go from there. I have a 08 F150 (Cough-V6) as my daily right now and the power is just not there. I bought the truck cause I basically got a deal I could not refuse. Really wanting a Lightning so i may keep looking around for one that is not so low in mileage. Thanks again for the shared info!!

 

[Dusten]

If i was going to buy a DD and spend that much i'd probably buy a low mileage 03 or 04, but thats me

 

[SID297]

I'd be wary of a truck that has sat that much.

 

[fuelonempty]

I agree with Sid, especially if your depending on it to be a DD... but a damn good find anyway! Doubt you can find any L's with that low of mileage anywhere.

 

[AkGirl]

What are the faulty issues with the 99?

 

[oki]

That is really low miles and if it is confirmed to have just sat and used as show only...then a good once, twice, three times over is definitely needed to insure that it is going to be good to go when you start driving it. In todays market, even for that low mileage the price is a little high...not saying its not worth it, but you can get a fully built L with around 35-45K miles on the clock for $16,500...then you have the best of both worlds...really fast when you want and able to do all the other things you need...just need to look around. It has amazed me what some people are selling thier trucks for lately.

What are the faulty issues with the 99?

Other than having 4 thread heads...leaky intercooler if I am not mistaken. I believe there was a recall issued on the intercooler.

 

[laidback01]

its only money. spend it.