Is there any data, or any dealership mechanics/etc who have a feel for which engines seem to be needing more work? I think any of the four engines would serve me fine, but I'm wondering from purely a reliability standpoint where they would rank.
My use: not a daily driver except maybe a couple winter months when the GTO would be a bit too sporting. Only ~6000 miles per year. Towing a 3000lb boat 10 times per year. A little off-road - hunting/fishing and it has to get me up to the snowboard mtns.

 

Get the base V6.

 

3.3NA is your best bet from a purely gut feeling perspective, but nobody here is going to be able to really help you. This conversation isn't new, if you search it has come up a lot and always devolves into here-say and people talking about how a turbo engine from the 80s was problematic so they wouldn't bother, or some other nonsense.

Even if you get a Ford tech, their impression will be heavily colored by what they see most often which isn't necesarilly representative of what engine is most problematic. The Ecoboost engines make up over 60% of F-150 sales, so if it was slightly more reliable than the 5.0/3.5NA (combined), you would still find techs that see more EBs than the NA engines. On the reverse, non-boosted engines may be more popular in Texas (as a random example) which could mean techs there see them more often than EB engines, even if the NA engine was more reliable.

Really the only place that would have those details is Ford themselves since they see the warranty claims across the board and have definitely done the analysis on what engines have what problems as part of their effort to improve the engine and limit warranty claims. This also means the engines that would best tell you reliability, those over 100k miles, are likely very different from the engines sold right now (The 5.0/3.5L EB and 2.7L EB just went through refreshes, and the 3.3L is new).

So yeah, your question is basically impossible to answer without people coloring it with their own feelings. Even if, let's say, the 5.0L was the unquestioned leader in reliability, it doesn't mean the one you get won't be a lemon. If you are really worried about these things, get an extended warranty and have some money set aside for repairs.

My advice, and why all the above is important, is that you will make yourself very unhappy buying a vehicle based on potential reliability. None of the F-150 engines are bad for reliability. I think you will kick yourself more by not finding what engine you like driving more. The low end grunt of an EB, or the very, very nice sound of the 5.0. Or forget either of the popular crowd picks and go for the 3.3L and enjoy the great MPG and very respectable performance.

Whatever you get, hope you enjoy it.

 

Thanks for the replies. I'm just looking for more input as I make this big decision. And yes, I've been reading TONS of previous threads. Just getting a little more discussion going is always a good thing IMO.

 

Just like most things you purchase, you can get a good reliable "whatever", or not so reliable "whatever". Everyone takes a chance when you purchase something

 

Watch this video and maybe you might get the answer you're looking for....Enjoy

 

no doubt base v6 by far. efficient and reliable.

 

The discontinued 3.5 N/A is probably the most reliable engine in this gen F-150. It doesn't have DI like the new 3.3. The 5.0 is also reliable, but some people have had issues with them.

 

I would hope any informed consumer wouldn't watch that one video and come to the answer they are looking for. I have no answer to the OPs original question, and not sure the 2 million other posts have found the answer either. Again, I have no particular strong opinion on the subject, but have learned a few things while reading these threads.

Since these questions have been posted, whether cloaked in "reliability", "best", "faster", etc., somewhere there is a mention of this video being the holy grail of answers, and there hasn't been a single new thing I've learned since reading them. And I'm not even against new posts and new questions, and not one to bash someone for asking the same thing that has been discussed at nausea, especially if there is a new perspective out there, but one video and a ton of heated comments still won't answer this question with facts.

 

I'd welcome educated opinions, not JUST facts.