When i moved to the country, I needed a 4x4 for hauling stuff, etc, etc, etc, so I sold my BMW 530. I bought a 2012 XLT Offroad 4x4 V8. I don't tow with my truck, but definitely use the truck bed quite a bit and use it as my daily driver.

While I know everyone raves about the Ecoboost, personally I prefer the V8 both from a sound perspective as well as how it feels and responds when I drive it.

I currently have 125K miles on it and am missing my 5-series. The 5-series drove so well and smooth, but interestingly and honestly...My family really loves riding in the F150 and in a lot of ways I actually prefer it now. The visibility and size on the road is very comforting. And, it drives very nice, as you all know. I still miss the sportiness, but am pondering...What could I do to my stock XLT to improve it? Anything? Nothing? For those that have done modifications, can you describe at all how the changes you made improved it?

On the other hand, maybe I should just save up for a Raptor or similar? I haven't driven one of them, and certainly don't have the money so it would be a while, but I also don't want to throw money at my truck for little to no noticeable improvement.

Appreciate your input!

 

Regear it to 4.10 and tune it. It will definitely move with authority.

A tune alone will really wake it up, well worth the price.

 

Appreciate the response. What specifically do you mean by "tune it", is there a thread or sticky that gives details, along with a general cost estimate? Hadn't thought of re-gearing it...will have to look into that, too.

 

Regearing will cost about $1200-1500 if you do it yourself (buying a kit that has everything you will need except the tools) and having it done will run between $2000-2700. This will consist of changing out the ring and pinion gear in the front and rear differentials.

Tuning is done electronically. You buy a tuner (there are several and you can research most of them on the fourms) and then you buy "tunes" for the tuner that go with your truck. You then plug the tuner into your ODBII port (under your dash) and use the tuner to load different tunes (performance, towing, economy, etc) into the trucks computer and it will change several engine variables to change the way it performs. These run about $350-500 depending on the one you get and the tunes.

 

The Boss 302 intake swap along with a tune would give you pretty good results. I'd look into some new shocks/struts to get the truck handling a bit better, maybe even a rear swaybar. Re-gearing will get you moving quicker but you'll definitely take a kick in gas millage.

 

Can't go wrong with a quality tune; SCT X4 programmer with 5 Star or MPT tunes are common on this forum.

I waited 30k miles to tune my 5.0 and wish I'd done it sooner.

 

What tune do you run?

Also, according to my axle code I have the e-locker 3.73 gearing. Is that decent? If I'm understanding all of this correctly that ratio is better that 3.55, but how much benefit would I get going from that to 4.1?

Also...engine performance is one thing, but I really like the idea of improving the ride and stability. Being an off-road model I think helps, but it sounds like shocks or struts would be a good choice. Right now thinking this is the priority and provides the best ROI:

1) Tune
2) shocks
3) struts / sway
4) gearing
5) CAI

That sound right?

 

Keep the 3.73, get an MPT Performance tune, High Flow Filter, Boss Coilovers. BOOM good to go!

 

I have the SCT X4 with (3) tunes from 5 Star; 87 Perf/Tow, 89 Perf/Tow, 91 Race. I run the 89 Perf/Tow daily. I recently went back to stock for half a day and forgot how sluggish it was! Doesn't help I have larger tires slowing me down.

Stage 3 Motorsports makes buying the tuner super easy.
http://www.stage3motorsports.com/701...ar-Tuning.html

Just my two-bits, but with 3.73s I wouldn't worry about a re-gear. I'd have loved to have the 3.73s, but I got a good deal on my rig with the 3.55s. So goes life.

If you're looking to improve ride, I'd look into aftermarket coilovers/shocks. Bilstein, FOX, and Boss (F150lifts) are all common here. I have the Fox 2.0s myself. They drastically improved the handling on my rig.

 

Thanks, great details. And appreciate the validation that the gearing upgrade won't provide a lot of ROI given what I have already. I also like that since it's a relatively expensive upgrade.

Regarding the Tuner...I went onto the 5-star website and saw a bunch of stuff. Appreciate seeing that you went with three tunes and what they were. I wasn't really clear on what I'd want to select so that helps. Are there any special handshakes or codewords I can use to buy at a discount? Not wanting to skimp on a quality device or quality tune, but would love to spend as reasonably little as possible...

Also, I run Michelin ATX 245/75R17s and obviously have the stock "lift". I mention this because whatever suspension work I do needs to NOT increase the overall height of the vehicle. I have about 2" of clearance when I pull into my garage and definitely want to keep it parked in the garage. If I update coilovers/shocks, can it be done while keeping the stock height? Honestly I'd like to consider upgrading wheels/tires at some point, but don't really care TOOO much about the looks, sorta like the idea of a stock-looking truck being a badass by comparison.