Hey Guys,

I have a 2004 Ford F150, XLT Supercrew, 2WD, with the 4.6L, new body style not the heritage one. Sorry I am obviously very new to this, but I should say it is not my first time modding a vehicle. Last time I did it I was kind of "young and dumb", and just did the cool thing but I was able to install things.

Now that the intro is done. I just got a boat its 18.5 feet long and I was looking to add some power to my truck to make things a bit easier to manage, and of course add a little bit of flair when not hauling the boat.

I was looking at adding a K&N 77 series air intake and a flow master force 2 dual pipes. Both seem like decent upgrades for a good price, but Im hoping some of you more knowledgable folk can help me. Im not really into trying to max out my truck but I would like to get the most out of it for a good price but also keep it lasting. Its treated me well and I would love more my son in 10 years to be able to take it over since he is attached to it too.

Thank you in advance for your time!

 

Here is a must for you..... A gryphon tuner, do it before your k&n an these trucks run rich with a cai. The custom towing tune from php is great!! I tow my 24' campers through the mountains with no problem, also their tunes compensate for all other mods. It will help shift points as well.

 

A tuner should defiantly be first. Best bang for your buck hands down and will really help with towing the boat. Then you can add the intake and exhaust if you want a little more rumble down the road!

 

I've heard horror stories about tuners; for example ruined transmissions, engine breaks down quick, etc. etc.
I've noticed there are many tuners with what seems like an endless amount of people creating custom tunes, with varying costs per tune.
Is there a thread or post that details stock performance vs. an engine tuned with the various custom tunes. If it's available what about a professional site that reviews this stuff. Thanks again for the help!

 

You've heard horror stories? Well sir you've been looking in the wrong place.. Tuners are essential to having a tolerable truck that runs optimal.. I suspect the bad experiences must be with people who think routine maintenance is Fords fault... Search around here for info on em, you will see that tuners are highly regarded.. SCT or Edge. For the custom tuning or canned..

 

Check out power hungry performance

 

Mav,

I put a Gryphon on my 2006 4.6L 4x4 about 5 years/60K miles ago and have no negative issues. The throttle response and transmission shifting were noticably improved. I left it on the tow tune and have hauled scrap trailers, firewood, and various other stuff as needed.

I opted to make the "gotts mod" and saved a bundle on not buying an after market intake. I spent it on the Gryphon instead (and got better results for the $$).

Just about everyone who actually bought a tuner has been happy with the results, whether or not custom tunes were on it. I believe any who had bad issues either had a truck about to croak already, or perhaps "fiddled" with manual settings beyond their ken.

 

I currently have and Edge on my 07 5.4 and love it, zero "horror" also. Further proof is the Edge I had on my 01 5.4 Superduty that I ran for over 120,000 miles on very aggressive shift points, sold it with 175k miles and not a single engine or transmission issue. Only thing that ever "broke" on that truck was the starter.

 

Yep, get yourself a tuner. I have a bully dog gt that for some reason, no-one really likes around here. But then again, that's because they have an Edge, and never ran a different tuner to compare it to. The performance tune is pretty impressive and it has a lot of options.
I have an Edge sitting on my workbench that I have to send in to get unlocked so I can compare, and then maybe jump on the Edge wagon. We'll see.