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I have a 2017 3.5 Eco boost. I drive 65 MPH and get 23.5 to 25 MPG on the xway, depending on the terrain. I live in Michigan. Slow down and the miles go up.
My two cents after having owned three very similar super crew F-150’s (one with a 5.0, and then two with the 3.5Ecoboost V-6) is to buy a motor based on performance capabilities, not the louder sound of a V-8. The 3.5EB continues to outsell the 5.0 as it’s better at everything except for the obnoxious noise of a V8 in a truck which I no longer care for after having owned the twin turbo V-6 EB motors. You will get slightly worse fuel economy than a 5.0 when towing, but you’ll benefit from noticeably better torque and power. To me, the benefits of the 3.5EB far outweigh the little worse gas mileage that I get while towing. If I was after good fuel economy under towing conditions, I would buy a three-quarter diesel, but I don’t pull frequently enough to justify the extra expense. You should be able to get 20+ miles per gallon very easily with a 10 speed trannny if you keep the stock tires. Good luck on the decision.
Also, I can’t comment on the hard shifting as haven’t ever experienced that in my trucks.
The Eco Boost outsell V-8"s for one reason. The dealers spec them that way. They're the most profitable for them and Ford. I get a kick how folks imply they special order their trucks when in fact 99% of Fords are dealer spec'd and bought off the lot.
Just had my 16 in for the recalls and a tune up. (more on the tune up below) They gave me a new loaner, a 2020 XLT with the V-8 and ten speed. I don't understand your noise issue. At least with stock exhaust. Sounds the same to me. If you rip the system off for the sound effects or promised performance (which never happens) that is a personal issue. I agree though. I like them quiet. That engine (V8) really performs! I was impressed and the mileage for the three hundred miles I drove it was about 20.5 at the pump.
The ten speed? I really didn't see the value in that. Shifting all the time and it seldom actually hit the highest OD gear. It was very smooth. But a person could get dizzy watching the numbers change on the dash. But that's the latest thing in all pickups these days. I can only imagine how often it shifted with a tow load. Hopefully they hold up with all that busy stuff going on.
As for the tune up. The 16 had 115,000 miles on it when I finally took it in for the recalls and they suggested new plugs which I agree to. ($600 bucks to install $45 dollars worth the parts. Next time I do it myself!) To my surprise, it does idle a bit smoother but the mileage seems to have gone down. It was a solid 19.5 over the last 5000 miles and I now struggle to get 19 since the tune up two tanks ago. Too early to tell I guess. But a bit disappointed as I was expecting something else. By the way, it's 3.5 NA. I too stay away from turbo's if at all possible. Thankfully Ford is now again offering something without those things.
Filled up this morning. Must have gotten some really good gas.
Hey! This page of the so called "lie o meter" is not instantaneous. 17 miles on a fill don't count. I sometimes fill at a station which sits on top a very high hill. By the time I get home I can still have around 80 MPG. Joking aside. I keep one of trip meters for long distances. It's currently at 4800 miles and some change and that pages registers 19.5 mpg which by the way is exactly what shows up on the cute instantaneous page. That would be as all around as it could get. The average speed on that page is 44.3 mph. As I mentioned several times before I did adjust this setting in the maintenance page and it is virtually dead on. I can guess the amount of fuel to a half gallon on each fill. Anyway. I can't overstate how happy I've been with this truck. 20 MPG is good enough for me.
Got one for yas... prolly already been discussed, but I found it interesting and didn't feel like sifting through so many posts to find if others have experienced this...
2019 STX 4x4, crew, 6.5 box, max tow, 3.5L Ecoboost...
I have 17k on the clock and have never reset my 2nd trip odo so I know the overall MPG... Fluttering between 18.9 and 19 for the last ~10k mi... With few exceptions, I've always ran in eco mode. No towing, 80/20 highway/city... Italian tuneups every now and again, but mostly I baby it.... nice finally having a truck with enough power than I'm not in it all the time.
Anyway, on my last tank I was like, "let's test how well this eco mode works"... and I ran the whole tank in standard mode. 19.9MPG... literally the best mileage I've ever gotten... about 150mi into my current tank, mostly highway, and I'm at 20.5. So, maybe it's a fluke cause I'm focusing on it, but I always kinda focus on it... like a game to see how high I can get it. I don't feel like I'm doing much, if anything different.
Goal has always been to get 700 miles from a tank and it looks like I might get there with this one. Best I did before this last tank was ~650. I wonder if eco mode is BS or if it's just my commute/driving style.
@STX2019 If you haven't already go to the first post in this thread and look at the information available there. As for Eco mode, I only use it in very light traffic, highway situations. Driving "in traffic" I found it retarded my response too much. As for getting 700 miles on a 36 gallon tank there should be no problem as long as you don't put your foot in it. Staying local is a challenge for sure. Since reading your post I filled up and reset one of the trip odometers. The computer says I am at 20.1 mpg. I am more than halfway through the tank....all local (55 mph speed zones). I have not reset my Trip 1 odometer since taking delivery. If memory serves me correct I am at 20.3 or 20.4 mpg. I have 29xxx mile on the vehicle at the present time. My 2015 got better mileage after 35000 mile
Last edited by D_D_in_KY; Aug 4, 2020 at 12:37 PM.
2018 Lariat FX4 3.5TT 3.55 -- bone stock with Bakflip bed cover. 600 lbs of passengers and cargo, little to no wind for entire trip. On the interstate, cruise set between 68 and 70. I-40 was shut down for construction on Friday night so some 55-60 mph state highway driving definitely helped the numbers. Family trip with young kids so lots of rest stops along the way. Three day total trip with two "cold" starts and only 50-60 city miles.
Gauge is consistently 5% optimistic. I always confirm and keep records, but in this case I started with approximately 1/4 tank, so the best I can calculate is about 22.8 actual MPG. I was pretty excited about the numbers until I did the math and realized this was only a little better than my average.
Screen shot taken upon arrival back at home:
By the way -- This was after my final fill up in Nashville on the way home. New personal best for DTE number:
I too am infatuated with the numbers on the display although they have now become so routine and steady that the entertainment aspect is long gone. I wonder if the Ford (auto) engineers had any idea what they started when they decided to display this info right in front of the drivers face? I think it was a plot to to get folks to slow down!
Just another observation which many others seem to overlook. Where you buy your fuel has more to do with your mileage than you may think. I make the two thousand mile jaunt to Minnesota quite often taking different routes. And without fail, the farther north I go, the less I get out of a tank. Some brands I simply avoid as I know it will knock off 50 to 75 miles off a tank. There are so many variables involved with fuel mileage such as weight ,wind, humidity, temperature, road surface, tire pressure, terrain, traffic, speed,quality of fuel and of course the "nut behind the wheel"..But most seem to expect the miles to E to be dead on every time. Not happening folks. And Damn those Ford folks who are intentionally deceiving us!
Guess what folks! It's a computer and as they say in the business, "garbage in, garbage out"! .
