50ford

I've driven the 3.7/3.5/5.0 in a supercab 4X4 with a 3.73 rear end several times now. All very short drives, 15+ miles, but I've done the same on each, each time and honestly I can't really see much difference in gas mileage between the three. Actually I got the best out of the 5.0 on one trip and the worst was the 3.5.

The 3.7 is cheaper up front but sounds like my 6 cyclinder Toyota
The 3.5 will throw you back against the seat, it's impressive for sure!
The 5.0 has plenty of what you need and sounds good

I hear little about the 3.7 and they are rare in the 4X4 community. I've heard several negatives about the 3.5.
- knocking
- misfires/engine lite
- rough idle
- steam rolling out from under hood on raining days
Only negative I've heard about the 5.0 is the tensioner on the timing belt and that was only early on.

Considering I can pretty much get the same gas mileage on all three if I drive it easy, the 5.0 seems the best choice. Should I go with the 3.55 for best gas milage since I seldom ever tow anything or the 3.73 since some say its the best rear end for all around. Some say there really is no MPG savings on the 3.55 due to downshifting, some say 1-2 MPG difference unless you tow. the Eco is an impressive motor but I really don't need what it will give you, the 5.0 gives enough but there is a big feel of the pants difference between teh 3.5 and the 5.0, from a get up and go standpoint the 3.5 kicks butt but will it kick butt for a long time without costly fixes......

fordjamie

I have a 5.0 with 3:73 and love it. The truck is fun to drive. It sounds great and when I tow it does a great job. The truck gets about 3 mpg better than my 5.4s.

superccs

Isn't it annoying when a automobile company gives you 3-4 awesome engines to choose from...? Thanks a lot Ford. I picked the turbo as it should give the best of both worlds (mileage when not standing on it and power for when you are).

There should be a shopping cart worth of performance parts coming out soon for all 3 though, the 3.7 v6 could be the sleeper of the century :P

ecotow

Go with the ecoboost as it should get the best mpg and towing capacity.

Scrappy Doo

iTrader: (1)

For me I would get the 5.0 in a 2011. I just don't put on enough miles to make up for the price difference of the eco. And I like the option of e85 fuel if I want to.

adkhunter

I chose the Eco...coming from a 2010 Dodge cummins..it was the only gas engine out there that could feed my inner torque demon!...it drives so much like a diesel I just had to have it when I first test drove it...the 5.0 seems to be a good motor but I dont tow alot so I chose the Eco because it gets better mpg when not towing...seems to be when towing the turbos are working more and sucks a little more fuel than the 5.0...but it will also tow more and will get you and your load up and moving much faster

Its a tough choice they are all good engines and would suit almost everyones true "needs" but hell ya only live once right...and having the Eco just makes my drive that much more fun when I got some kid in a lil ricer or a chevy 5.3 wanting to race me off a red light...just cant resist making his ego deflate =p lol

Im also not sure why so many people doubt the Eco's reliability...its not like this technology is new by any means..its been used for a long time now in diesels and farm equipment...so it runs on gas and not diesel..big deal..its not like they thought up this stuff a year ago and slapped it all together and said here ya go folks!..Ford has spent a few years now designing the Ecoboost engine..I know theres always a few lemons that come off the line..but I highly doubt it will be like the 6.0L diesel fiasco that Ford/International is still dealing with today(Biggest POS motor ever in my opinoin)

p38fln

They're all good. Even the base 3.7 can get up and go, if you don't mind winding it up a bit.

OlderThanSand

I tow, but not that often and that's why I got rid of my 7.3 diesel. I chose the 3.5 because I liked the idea of the flat torque curve for towing but mainly because I pull a long uphill grade on my way home every time. Also the test drive just blew me away. But with all that said I ended up with the 3.5 because of the color/option combo was more to my liking than what was available with a 5.0. Very scientific reason yes?

blackknight87

I like my 5.0. Never drove an EB tho.

brulaz

I too love diesels. Got one in my VW Passat Wagen. So I'm used to turbos. They're in every diesel made these days, and over 50% of European cars are diesel.

But I don't need a monster diesel in an F250. And they don't make a smaller one for the F150 (apparently they were planning to but dropped it).

But the EB comes close with great torque! It lacks the better mileage you can get out a diesel, but, instead you get great horsepower (for all you horsepower junkies). It's a trade-off, and good enough for me.