Unrestored 1982 AMC Eagle looks like it hasn't been on the road for even half of its 111,000 miles
08/18/2022
Perhaps what's most amazing about this 1982 AMC Eagle listed for sale on Hemmings.com isn't its uncommon two-door coupe body style, its sunroof, or even that entire bolt of vinyl used on the roof. Instead, given its mileage and its Rust Belt location, we'd have expected it to look far more worn, tired, and dejected. Instead, the interior's about as pillowy as new, none of the easily damaged trim or plastics have taken a beating or a powder, the sunroof hasn't leaked, and all the power features still appear to work. The engine bay's grimy, but that's typical for Eagles; more importantly, nobody's attempted to eliminate the emissions equipment while tracking down the all-too-common vacuum leaks. Kudos to all of its prior owners for preserving it in this shape while exercising it at apparently every opportunity. From the seller's description:
You are looking at a 1982 AMC Eagle 2 door Limited Coupe. Only made for 9 years, this car was way ahead of its time and very hard to find in this condition - good solid original car, great body & original paint, nice clean interior. The Eagle is recognized as one of the earliest crossover models, with body styles inspired by the AMC Concord, but featuring four wheel drive and a more rugged platform. The Eagle was offered with a selection of inline four and inline six engines, and was in production until 1988.
Exterior: White paint with burnt orange trim and a white vinyl top in excellent condition. This car also has a sunroof. Interior: Interior is upgraded tan vinyl, as there was no leather option for this beautiful car, vinyl and carpet on doors, very trendy in it’s day. Engine and drive train: 6 Cylinders C 4.2L 2BL OHV 258 CID Inline 6 cylinder engine (most rare of the 3 models produced), 3-speed automatic transmission, 4-wheel drive. Accessories: Air conditioning, Power locks, Power steering, Power windows, tilt wheel, power brakes (disc in F, drum in R), air suspension, AM/FM Cassette stereo with 4 speakers.
See more AMC Eagles for sale on Hemmings.com.
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Boosted Powertrain
At the heart of this SVT Lightning is its iron-block 5.4-liter SOHC, 16-valve V8 with a supercharger and an intercooler. The blower helped it deliver 380 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque in 2001, up some 20 horsepower and 10 lb-ft from the ’99 and 2000 models. The Eaton supercharged engine delivered peak boost of 8.0 psi and the engine featured an 8.4:1 static compression ratio, down from the standard 5.4 V8’s 9.0:1, which was rated at 260 horsepower and 350 lb-ft.
Power reached the rear 18-inch cast aluminum-alloy wheels via a four-speed automatic, an aluminum driveshaft and a beefy 9.75-inch, limited-slip rear axle with an acceleration-friendly 3.73:1 final-drive ratio, another upgrade for 2001. Car and Driver magazine reported a 0-60 mph time of 5.2 seconds and a quarter-mile in an E.T. of 13.8 seconds at 104 mph—impressive numbers for a 4,600-pound truck. Top speed was a drag-limited 142 mph.
A Truly Sporting Truck
Trucks generally require a suspension that can handle a full load in its bed while also providing competent driving while empty. But if you fancy one designed to a sports-car standard, then something has to give. In the case of the second-gen Lightning, Ford dropped its payload capacity to a mere 800 pounds. A standard 2001 F-150 Styleside carried a 3,180-pound payload rating, while an F-150 Flareside was rated at 2,005 pounds, some two-and-a-half times the Lightning, which featured the short-bed Flareside body. Towing capacity, likewise, was reduced from 8,800 pounds to 5,000 in the Lightning. But the Lightning’s strengths were never its payload or towing capacities, but it’s ability to perform like a sports car.
As a 21st century performance vehicle, however, the second-gen Lightning was also equipped to handle. A half-inch drop at the front was accompanied by SVT-specific coil springs and Bilstein shocks along with an exclusive 31-mm solid anti-roll bar. SVT’s influence continued at the rear with Lightning-specific five-leaf springs and a 23-mm solid anti-roll bar. The Bilstein setup at the rear included the right-rear shock staggered toward the front of the truck to reduce axle hop under heavy acceleration. The four-wheel antilock disc brakes were cribbed from the three-quarter-ton F-250, with 12.1-inch front rotors at the front and 13.1-inch discs at the rear.
As the years go on, fewer and fewer clean, unmolested low-mileage examples are out there, which is why this 2001 Ford SVT F150 Lightning now on Hemmings Auctions caught our attention. Showing just 5,525.5 miles on its odometer at the time of submission, it is said to be in “mint” condition and have an “immaculate” finish in the seller’s words. No modifications are noted to any part of the vehicle. The 18-inch factory alloys don’t appear to have any curb rash, though the Goodyear performance tires may be original. About the only deviations from stock are the tinted windows.
The latest electric-only F-150 Lightning is certainly a quick vehicle in its own right, but this 2001 edition from the engineers at SVT was built for excitement, not range. It was made with an old-school muscle-car vibe along with modern handling and braking. Which Lightning would you look good behind the wheel of?
Take a look at this second-gen Lightning on Hemmings Auctions before the bidding ends.
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