Ford F150 Lightning Buildup - Street Scene Gen 1 Front Valance

Ford F150 Lightning Buildup Expedition Front Clip

OK, let's just get it right out there in the open. The '97-'03 F-150s aren't the best-looking trucks on the planet. There we said it. Before all of you Blue Oval die-hards have a fit, let us clarify. It's not that the trucks are bad, it's just that they look tame compared to the bold looks of '04 and later models. Their curvy bodywork garnered a lot of criticism when the body style debuted, but there's a simple way to get a totally fresh look; an '03-'06 Expedition clip. Thanks to the fact that Expeditions and F-150s share door and firewall designs, their front sheetmetal is interchangeable. Well, almost.

There are a few issues, as we'll point out, but for the most part, the more modern, masculine front clip just requires years of bodywork skill, or time, one or the other. We opened up LMC Truck's catalog and got everything we needed for the swap. We then delivered the parts, along with the truck, to South County Auto Body, a local shop that's done several front clip swaps and custom work for us over the years. We also couldn't just have a stock Expedition front clip, so we visited Street Scene's website and ordered one of their bumper covers to set the truck apart even more. Check out how we got an entirely different look on our decade-old truck.

Here's the Lightning when it rolled in at South County Auto Body. The paint was in surprisingly good shape, but the graphics told the story, it was 10 years old and needed a change.
Here's the Lightning when it rolled in at South County Auto Body. The paint was in surpris
Javier began by unbolting the hood and removing the headlights. Next, he climbed under the truck to remove the bumper and drop the intercooler, exposing the frame horns.
Javier began by unbolting the hood and removing the headlights. Next, he climbed under the

The wiper cowl was unscrewed and was removed in two pieces. The fenders were unbolted from the firewall and from the inner fender structure. Here's the stripped Lightning, you'll notice we've swapped on a fleetside bed, part of our plan we'll reveal to you in a future Truckin'.
The wiper cowl was unscrewed and was removed in two pieces. The fenders were unbolted from
Javier and Jesse used the factory F-150 hinges on the lightweight aluminum Expedition hood from LMC Truck.
Javier and Jesse used the factory F-150 hinges on the lightweight aluminum Expedition hood
The fenders mounted right up and used the same bolt holes. We only needed to elongate one bolt hole in the new LMC fender to match.
The fenders mounted right up and used the same bolt holes. We only needed to elongate one

The under-body structure of F-150s and Expeditions are extremely similar, but not identical, as these shims can attest. Javier spent some time tweaking the shims until the panel gaps were nice and uniform. In one bolt hole on each side we used so many shims we needed a longer bolt. Here's the result of Javier's work, a tight, even gap between the hood and fender.
The under-body structure of F-150s and Expeditions are extremely similar, but not identica
Here are the major components we needed to finish the conversion. From the foreground: the Street Scene lower valance, factory Expedition bumper cover, headlights, grille reinforcement panel, and bumper reinforcement-all from LMC Truck.
Here are the major components we needed to finish the conversion. From the foreground: the
The bumper reinforcement included brackets that would normally bolt on, but the F-150's frame horns were about an inch and a half too narrow. They were welded on using the supplied brackets to center the bumper reinforcement. That was the only real fabrication necessary to complete the swap.
The bumper reinforcement included brackets that would normally bolt on, but the F-150's fr

Javier then bolted the grille reinforcement panel to the core support.
The Street Scene lower valance has tabs that fit into slots in the factory grille surround. Javier cut the tabs down a bit and then pushed barbed trim clips on them to make sure they stay put. The Styrofoam insert was also reshaped a bit to clear the recess in the Street Scene valance. A few passes with a disc grinder was all it took.
The Street Scene lower valance has tabs that fit into slots in the factory grille surround
The bumper cover/lower valance/grille surround ties into the fenders and grille reinforcement panel. Javier had to position it correctly to get the right gap at the lower edge of the fender.
The bumper cover/lower valance/grille surround ties into the fenders and grille reinforcem

What about our fresh, new factory replacement grille we got from LMC? We hacked it up to make way for the Street Scene grille. Here Javier has already cut the center out and is smoothing it to prep it for the brushed aluminum speed grille insert.
What about our fresh, new factory replacement grille we got from LMC? We hacked it up to m
With the grille and headlights installed, the test fit is almost complete. Check back in an upcoming issue as we will add Street Scene side skirts and get the Lightning painted to complete the transformation.
With the grille and headlights installed, the test fit is almost complete. Check back in a