brass0

That one depends on how much you are looking to or are willing to put into your current truck. If you were to consider that same money as a down payment on a new truck in addition to the current incentives, you might be pleasantly surprised at how far your money will go (see "what did you pay for your 2011" thread). It might be worth your while to go to your local dealer and see what they can do for you. If nothing else, take the new motor line-up out for a spin and see what you think.

69428SCJ

Here is my two cents. I had driven nothing but 1 ton diesels since 1996...mainly due to owning a couple different large 5th wheels. I drive 50-60K miles a year so the diesel "advantage" was part of the equation as well. I owned them all...96PSD, 99PSD, 01 HO CUMMINS, 03 HO CUMMINS, 04 PSD, 06 CUMMINS, 07 GMC and an 09PSD. All of the trucks except the 03 CUMMINS had over 150K on them when I sold or traded them. The 03 CUMMINS was stolen in Brownsville, TX. They were all pretty good trucks. When the 03 was stolen, I bought an 04 F150 Lariat 4X4 with the 5.4. My dad had recently passed and I inherited a 2000PSD with low mileage that I was going to use to tow. I was getting a little tired of driving 1 tons and diesel fuel was climbing.

I hated the gasser with a passion. It was a toad as far as I was concerned. It down geared at every hill and just drove me nuts. I put 12K on it...2.5 months and sold it to my son.....and traded the 2000 PSD in on a new 04. In March of this year we sold the fifth wheel and purchased a diesel pusher M/H. I no longer had a need for the diesel pickup so I started looking at the gassers again. I drove them all. The ECOBOOST reminded me of the diesel. It has an amazing torque curve and will outrun any stock diesel by quite a margin. I have not regretted the decision once. It never drops a gear unloaded and rarely does with a 6K lb boat behind it. It is not the heavy duty hauler that a 1 ton diesel is, but it gets the job done and gets a lot better mileage than any of the diesels I owned. It stays around 20-21 on the freeway at 72....the diesels were all around 17.5 -18. They were all 4X4 four door trucks with long beds. The 5.0 has great power compared to the old 5.4, but the torque curve of the EBoost is not there. If you are wanting that diesel torque go with the EB. The 750.00 upcharge was of no concern to me since the extra 10% in mileage will pay for itself in a year the way I drive them.

I've never felt short on power. I have an enclosed 24' we haul dirt bikes and 4 wheelers with that is horrible to tow....aero is horrible since it is a 7' walk in with a boxed front end. I towed the trailer twice to Colorado with the 09 PSD and averaged about 11-12 mpg. The EBoost did it getting the exact same mileage this summer and had no problem with numerous passes getting to the Crested Butte area.

F150's have come a long way in the last 5-10 years. They will conventionally tow what half of the diesels I have owned would. Your 5-6K lbs will be no trouble at all for any F150 with any of the V8's or the EBoost. I just think if you really want the diesel feel you should go with the EBoost.

Steppenwolfe

I had a 2011 ecoboost SCREW, 4x4 Lariat that was a complete P.O.S. Previous to that I had the same configuration in an 09, that I absolutely loved. Anyway, I traded the ecoboost for an 11 F250, screw, 4X4. The 250 is far superior in every way. I am getting 17.5 mpg around town, and pushing 20 on the highway. The power is incredible, and the ride almost as comfortable as the 150. The back seat is a bit smaller, but easier to use.And that 6.7 liter diesel is no joke... It is scary quick and fast. Not to mention it can pull a house down. My wife has her own 2010 F150 SCREW, 4x4 Lariat, and I still enjoy driving it. But no comparison to the 250. I say go for it.

76736

The new 6.7s are amazing. Not to mention they look damn good! If I had a need for a diesel id def be in one. But I don't pull much of anything just haul tools and supplies around. It would be impractical for me but it sounds like you may be better of with the diesel.

brass0

I enjoyed reading your write-up, very well written with a lot of experience. I've had diesels for roughly the last 6 years and feel the same way about the Ecoboost. To be totally honest, if the Ecoboost had not been an option, I don't know what truck I would be driving right now. But since it was, it was an easy decision!

F150orelse

Three words diesel exhaust fluid! Burns too damn much of it and a gallon is 12 bucks!

69428SCJ

Must come with gold plated caps up there in Arkansas. It's less than 3 bucks a gallon at every Flying J I have seen.

69428SCJ

It's too bad your ECOBOOST was a turd! Mine kind of started out that way...tranny leaks and an annoying front timing cover oil leak that just would not go away after numerous fixes. They finally replaced the cover and all is well. I ride/drive in a 2011 6.7 about once a month for 1K miles. Nice truck!!...way better engine than the 6.4 that was in my last diesel.

F150orelse

I haven't seen it at the flying J but that's how much it is at a autoparts store. Me personally I think the stuff should be free especially since the EPA is forcing it.

bgrd351

Thank you for all the info so far. Up to this point this thread has done just what I wanted...and that is rare on different forums I have been on. :-)

Back to the subject at hand...

F250/350 idea: as stated here many times, I don't pull or haul what most would say is worthy of an upgrade and I agree. But the problem lies in the fact that something must be done to fix my pull problem. The SD would have fixed this and yawned while doing it and would have lasted possible for ever. That being said, the best of them was the old 7.3 which have too many miles and abuse OR the new 6.7 which is out of my price range that I want to keep with in. So I think we can sadly remove the SD from the running.

5.4/other gas ideas: this started as what to do about my 5.4 to compensate for the lacking performance. Granted it pulls whatever I put behind it but it is about how it does it that aggravates me. Having to rev to hold a speed up a bridge in "flat" FL while pulling about 3k lbs including trailer is just wrong. Now this thread has made me think about daring to go near a stealership again to look at new trucks and see what kind of deal can be done.

Now that being said...

I would like to hear from people who own each of the new motors I like (5.0, 6.2, and eco) and see about the following..

1. Mpg...both hwy/city combo and towing. (I know it is not an econo box...but still curious about this as it may play in what I buy)

2. Performance in merging/passing/onramp

3. How is the towing experience? Does it gear hunt or bog to a slower speed causing the semi behind to hit his brakes going up a hill?

4. Any additional thoughts are welcome that helped you pick one over the other. I've heard alot from the eco group and some from 5.0 but not much from the 6.2 crowd.

Thank you again with your help with this. And I might be making a "side trip" on the way home tonight. ;-)