biscuit141

Just some history, coming out of a 1999 F250 Light Duty 4x4 Supercab. I am wanting to move up to a 09-14 body style crew cab with 6.5' bed. I have been reading a lot about the trucks and the engines, and I drove an Ecoboost about 15 months ago briefly, but now that I am serious I wanted to drive them both to see what I would like and if the engine choice would play a significant impact in my buying decision. Here are my thoughts:

Ecoboost: 2014 F150 Lariat with 12,000 miles
The engine was quiet and smooth, drove nice with normal pedal input, but if I mash it down I definitely noticed the slight turbo lag. However, once that turbo spooled the truck took off like a rocket. It was definitely fun to drive and is surprisingly fast for a truck that size.

5.0: 2013 F150 XLT with 24,000 miles
As soon as the salesman started it it was noticeably louder with the V8 rumble. Engine was smooth on this truck with no knock noise. Of course the salesman knew noting about the 5.0 knocking issues. The engine felt smooth and easy to drive, faster than the 5.4 in my 99 for sure but nothing like the Ecoboost felt. When I got on it while driving there was a noticeable lag while the transmission downshifted before the truck really took off. Similar delay as the turbo lag, but when it took off it didn't put me back in my seat like the Ecoboost did.

Thoughts:
The Ecoboost made the truck fun to drive. It FELT like a different truck than what I currently have, while driving the 5.0 reminded me of driving my current truck with a newer body on it. That my be a little extreme because the 5.0 did feel faster, but the Ecoboost seemed to have that "je ne sais quoi" that made it feel fresh/new/different than my last 6 years in my current truck. Granted the Lariat did add some pizzaz to the experience, and I told the dealer I was looking at XLT's only, thats how well they listen. The XLT 5.0 had the flip down jump seat, which seemed MASSIVE for the little amount of storage in the lid. My 99 has more storage and feels more proportional to the truck, but it does have a shorter jump seat back that the newer truck did. The center console would probably be a nice upgrade there. Anyway, both trucks were 4x4 with 5.5' beds and 3.55 gears for the record, I won't be buying either of those as they are not what I am looking for. I do think this has pushed me towards the Ecoboost, it just felt more fun to drive, and had a different feel to it from my current truck that would make it feel like a whole new driving experience. I think the only way I would get a 5.0 is if I found the right truck with the right options, color, miles and price, otherwise I will look hard for the Ecoboost.

Side note, what is with the squishy brake pedal feel?? Holy crap, that thing was soft. The truck stopped fine but whoever at Ford thought that brake pedal felt nice and firm needs a stern talking too about how a brake pedal should actually feel to a driver.

zx12-iowa

Wait until you get a tune. The difference between the two engines grows significantly. Note though if you want to extensively modify for power, the 5.0 has a Better platform....

TJPlatinumEB

Just a heads up, the turbo lag is only a perceived thing due to the way Ford sets up the drive by wire setup. The throttle response itself is what you are feeling that makes it feel like "lag". These turbos can be spooled at idle with virtually no load on them at all. If they can be spooled like that, there isn't lag.

Once a tune is done, that all goes out the window. You have the instant response and feel and aside from the noises the turbos make, you would never know you were waiting on anything or have any sort of lag.

Tom2012

There must be an issue with the brakes then as my brakes are amazing. When compared to my 2010 suburban I barely have to touch the brakes in the Ford. Where as in the Chevy I need to put my foot though the floor.

Sirikenewtron

^^^^Exactly!
I also test drove them both, was not even set on a Ford, after test driving them the Ecoboost is why I now own an F150. After I tuned it it drives like it should have, freaking extremely happy with my 5 star tunes, throttle response, torque, power and pull are now amazing. I tried other tuner but went back to my 5 star tunes, can't beat that low end torque.
That being said, now that I considered myself a "Ford guy" I would not be opposed to a 5.0.
Although next truck will most likely be a new ecoboost or new F250 turbo diesel.

biscuit141

Thanks for all the feedback. Good to know about the above, wouldn't mind a tune if that clears up that "lag" feeling. I don't plan on extensively modifying it, maybe intake (if it makes a difference), maybe exhaust, maybe a tuner. Who knows, that Ecoboost was fun and mods are a slippery slope. Is 5 Star tunes the best for this engine? I have read a lot of good things about their tunes.

NASSTY

They might have the best towing tune?? But there are better performance tunes out there.

SteveLord

Subjective.


But we can all agree a custom tune is better than no tune or canned tune right?

Sirikenewtron

That's a heated topic, it's like asking what football team to follow. As said, almost any custom tune is better than stock.
I'm not looking for a race truck
I just wanted better throttle response, shifting, torque and power for my daily driver. 5 star tunes delivered All that also they are the only tuner that offers a warranty, that in itself said a lot.
I tried another highly recommend tuner (not gonna name, pm me if want info) and was not impressed at All, even after 3 revisions. My 5* 91 tunes make my truck smoke my tires and get 2nd to 3rd gear scratch if I want and no revisions needed. Also at least 2 mpg better if I don't drive too crazy (keep my foot off the floor)

zx12-iowa

5 star is ok. Others give you more power. Pretty much all are safe....