The 2001 Ford Lightning Rod concept is for sale on Craigslist

Good news, fans of obscure early 2000s pickup truck concepts: now’s your second chance to purchase the Ford Lightning Rod concept that recently sold at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction. The show vehicle, which is not street legal, is up on Craigslist in the Phoenix area with an asking price of $27,000. That’s $500 less than its sale price just a month prior.

The one-of-a-kind Lightning Rod show truck was a hint at what the Lightning could look like if it was built on the upcoming 11th-generation F-series that debuted for 2004. You can see a bit of the next F-150’s shape in the concept, but the whole package got a smoothed-over, custom street rod look (hence the clever name). Ford chopped the top, trimmed up everything flush with the body from the headlights to the door handles, and it had roll pans front and rear. The interior had piles of red leather and brushed aluminum accents, with seats upholstered in a tribal flame pattern that matched the custom tread cut into the tires.

For all the effort on the truck’s exterior, under the hood things are rather unimpressive. A naturally aspirated 5.4-liter V-8 surrounded by a tangle of factory wiring doesn’t really match the sleek and smooth exterior. It also doesn’t have the power of the supercharged beast that powered the factory Lightning, even though that mill had been in production since 1999.

All that doesn’t matter too much though, as the truck never had EPA or DOT certification and therefore cannot be registered for use on public roads in the U.S. At this point it’s a fairgrounds cruiser. Still, how often do you get the chance to own a concept from a major automaker? Scoop it up now if the Lightning Rod strikes your fancy.

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