Missmy06

Lol at this, I'll take the response of an N/A V8 over the turbo lag of my Eco any day. It does okay towing but isn't that impressive. I haven't driven a 5.0 but can't imagine it would be any worse than my truck.

Mike94ZLT1

My 3.73 geared Ecoboost would walk my 3.73 geared 5.0. With a tune, it isn't even close.

marshallr

If you want to tow 5000 lbs or less the 2.7 EB or 5.0 will easily handle that much weight. The local Ford dealer had a new 2017 4X4 Supercrew XLT with the 2.7 advertised at $38K in the paper a few days ago. You'd be hard pressed to find a used 2014 with the 3.5 EB for much less. The 3.5 wouldn't be much of an advantage until you start towing over 7000 lbs.

People have been towing trailers for 50-60 years with MUCH less powerful engines than the 5.0. It doesn't put out torque at low rpm's like the 3.5, but the difference in what you can tow is pretty small if the trucks are equipped the same. And it certainly out performs most engines from even 10 years ago, much less 40 years ago.

Why is this supposed to be a problem? The 1st 4 gears in today's trucks are geared essentially the same as 4 speeds from the 1970's. 5th and 6th gears are BOTH overdrive. You shouldn't be towing in overdrive anyway, and dropping down to 3rd or even 2nd gear is perfectly normal when pulling hills.

The 3.5 EB with similar loads will pull hills about 1 gear higher, about 1000 rpms slower and at a slightly faster speed compared to the 5.0. While the 5.0 may take a little longer to reach the top of the hill, it is stressing the engine less by running at 3500 rpm's vs the EB's 2500 rpm. It is less likely to overheat and will get better fuel mileage.

Unless you need to pull 10,000+ lbs I don't see the 3.5 EB as an advantage. But if you do, then it is the right choice.

jdunk54nl

Cplyons,
I see you have met the forums bias either for or against the eco. The eco is fine, 98% of them have 0 issues just like 98% of the 5.0's have 0 issues.

Both engines will pull what you need and in reality if you are pulling to the max of either engine you are probably getting into superduty range just for stability.

Don't worry about ford certified pre-owned. That is a gimmick that makes Ford money. Most used vehicles that were maintained properly never use it. If it is the same price as one that isn't CPO then sure why not.

If you have researched than you know about 2% of eco's have timing chain rattle on cold start after sitting overnight. Check that. Some may have a shutter caused by spark plugs or condensation in the CAC. Both are easy to fix. Weep hole takes all of 5 minutes and spark plugs and boots cost $50 and an hours worth of time if you are semi handy.

You can find plenty of vehicles well under 38k used. My 14 limited was $25k with 70,000 miles. One with less miles topped out around 33k (~30,000 miles). Less optioned trucks will be cheaper. I just did a search in my area and, besides a few crazy dealerships, only raptors were over $33k and I limited the mileage to 30,000 miles.

rmdailey

My BIL and I have the same truck his with the 5.0 and mine with an EcoBoost. Nothing wrong with either but I'm glad I got the ecoboost, I love it.

I picked it up recently. 2013 Screw 6.5ft bed from CarMax. I probably could have found a better deal, but the experience was nice and the extended warranty was very fairly priced. It's like buying CPO. I found the truck and configuration I wanted in my budget, handled everything online, and set up an appt. Showed up. test drive, paperwork and on my way home in an hour. If you find the truck you want accross the country they'll bring it to you for a fee.

cplyons

The input I received from this forum has been terrific. It helped me pull the trigger on my first big truck and also reduced any buyers remorse I may have had. If you are interested in how this turned out, check out the thread titled "What I Bought".

Thanks again,
Chris

NASSTY

Congrats on your purchase.
Here it is. > https://www.f150forum.com/f38/what-i-bought-396862/