What are the good engines in some of the later models?

The good ones are the ones that start when ya turn the key.

when i was looking at fords a few years ago, a ford mechanic i knew said the 5.0 was still the best engine they made for the 150. i ended up with a 250 and it has a 6.2 which is great except for gas mileage.

I read the newer ones all have dual fuel injection(port and direct) which I'm guessing they added for a reason.

The 4.6 L OHC V8 was/is a POS. 1/4" (maybe 6MM) valve stems that carbon up and get sticky, then the cam followers fall off. Ford was replacing complete engines on warranty rather than do a valve job.

Thanks all!

I have a 2015 with the 5.0 and I am very happy with it but the most I am ever likely to tow with it is a 3200 pound boat & trailer, and only occasionally at that. If I was going to tow heavier loads or more frequently I'd shop for more cubic inches.

They are all good, reliable, engines. Which one is best for you depends on yout wants and needs. The 3.7 Ecoboost is the best seller, and will get awesome mileage, 23-25 hwy, the 3.5 Ecoboost has the most power, and will tow the most. The 5.0 V8 is very strong, and a good option for all around use.

How much towing power does the 3.7 Ecoboost have?

the 2.7 is supposed to the be most reliable, currently. the 3.5 has had cam phaser issues, if they have that fixed its a great engine. It remains to be seen if they have actually fixed that problem all the way. the new 5.0 some say burns oil. the pre 2018 5.0's where probably the most reliable of all the recent engines.

I have the 5.0 Coyote 400 hp AND 20 mpg smooooth and powerful .I love the sound of a V8.

Have one with a 2.7 eco-boost one of my guys drives. We took it to Hatteras fishing right after I bought it. No issue with power.
Fuel mileage is nowhere near what they claim though. I hate ford but it’s a sweet little truck.

As garddogg56 said, the 5.0 is powerful, smooth, and fuel efficient. It would be my pick were I buying a newer F150. I have an older Ford with a 5.4. It runs ok, but gets about half the mileage of the newer 5.0s.

2015 to 2018 5.0 were pre direct inject and lower compression. Very good engines except for the water pump. It was guaranteed to go out about 90-100k miles and not gently.

Pre 2015 the 5.4 was bad about phaser problems

My 4.6 with 230,000+ miles has been flawless. Not a whole lot of power, but very reliable.

I have a 2011 ,270K miles, uses some oil, still very peppy . 365hp , if towing a lot the eco boost has more torque, Think the oil issue was corrected , some time ago on the 5.0. I am not convinced the smaller EB will hold up with a lot of pulling or lead footing it. Time will tell

Son has a 2012 ecoboost and has towed a 9000 lb trailer across the country, from California to Texas to Colorado, to Maryland. Only issue during towing was the transmission getting hot. That truck is still running strong with no issues with exception of hail damage. Insurance company actually totaled it from that hail damage, so the son bought it back from the insurance company with a clear title for pennies on the dollar. Replaced the windshield and did the necessary repairs to the topper.

He ordered a F250 which is in the build process at the moment.


I have a 2016 150 with the ecoboost. No plans on replacing it any time soon.

The ecoboost is the 3.5 l turbo.

My 2013 truck has the 3.7 l flexfuel non aspirated engine. With 3.73 gears and 6r80 trans I bet it would tow 2 1/2 tons easily, that isn't much compared to what the 3.5 l turbo, 5.0 l or the 6.2 l can tow. Yet that 3.7 l puts out more horsepower at higher rpms than my the old 351 windsor with a four barrel. And I believe that's the trick to the 3.7 l. When you need power, it's there and you're not wanting for the lack of, in that if you really need to hit the gas petal it will drop a gear, shoot the rpms up and the next thing you know that v6 engine is putting out 300 horsepower.

Be somebody here that knows for sure, my 2016 has steel cyl sleeves in the 5.0 v-8 . I have heard they no longer do they are some kinda wonder coated aluminum. 18 or 19. The f series in 17 went to a10spd auto tyranny instead of the 6 mine has. I remember looking at a 17 and asking the sales guy what the axle ratio was and he said" don't matter it's a 10 spd" well does to me and that's why mine is 3.73 ratio.

I've been happy with my 2014 and the 5.0. But I think the newer versions (2019 and up) are potentially even better for 4 reasons.

#1, they found a little more HP and torque with newer engines.

#2, the newer trucks with aluminum bodies are up to 700 lbs lighter depending on which cab style you choose.

#3, When I bought mine most of the 4X4 versions came with 3.55 axle ratios, with some 3.31's out there. The 3.73 was an option, but I was buying used and couldn't find one. I'm seeing a lot of them now with 3.73 gears. My 3.55's have been OK, but there are times I wish I had 3.73's. Especially when towing.

#4, The new 10 speed transmission. The 5.0 comes pretty close to the 3.5 EB power and torque wise but needs to run about 1000-1500 rpm faster to get the power. The combination of lower axle gears mated to the 10 speed keeps the rpm range where it needs to be.

That said, I may well go to the EB in 2-3 years when I'm ready for a newer truck, but I'm really torn at the moment. We bought a 2020 Explorer about a year ago with the 2.3L EB 4 cyl. After driving that car for a year I've been impressed by the power. I can go from 40-80 mph in just a few seconds if I need to when merging onto an interstate. The 2.7 will probably pull anything I'll ever tow, it gets the best fuel mileage, and it costs less initially. The 3.5 provides diesel like torque and is less effected by altitude. But then again, the 5.0 has proven to be good to me and with the improvements should be even better. If buying today I'd get another 5.0 in a 2019 or newer truck.

I'm pretty sure the 2018's were the only year they had oil consumption issues.

I had a 2011 3.5 and a 2014 5.0. I really like the ride, features and comfort of Ford trucks. Neither truck was what I would call reliable. Both trucks were well maintained and not abused. The 2011 was sold with 65,000 miles and one transmission replacement and the last 10,000 miles spending more time in the shop than out for various engine issue. The 2014 went away at about 70,000 as its second transmission was going out and with various engine and cooling issues. While neither was reliable in my short ownership, I would put my money on the 5.0 if I had to do it.

I have a 2015 F150 with the 3.5 eco-boost and it has been a good one.

I have towed my tractor with disk,it is a 175 Massy/with calcium in the rear tires with out any problems.

After hauling 2 trailer loads of household goods from Waco to Lubbock the only thing i could say is i wished the millage was a tad better but with the gas we get around here it's not bad for the load.

It got 10-11 mpg on the return trip in tow mode.

If it ain't aspirated, it ain't running.
Naturally aspirated? (No turbo, blower, supercharger)

2020 with 3.5 EB, 3.55 gears. It tows way better than any V8 I've ever had. Max torque is equivalent to Coyote 5.0 but it's max at under 3000 rpm, vs V8 which is at 5200 rpm. Much more pleasurable towing experience.

I grew up just a few miles west of Plains and live NW of Waco a little today. I go to Lubbock area a few times a year. After 20 plus years and multiple vehicles, I generally find I get 3-5 mpg better mileage going east than going west on that trip but not all ways if I end up in a strong head wind. I attribute the mileage difference to predominate westerly winds and gaining altitude most of the way on the Westbound route.

My 2018 f150 with ecoboost 3.5 was nothing but serious trouble

23000 dollars in warranty work before 60000 miles. Never again will I buy a Ford

Both Turbos replaced. Intercooler replaced. Exhaust manifold replaced.

Camphaser took them 3 tries to fix

The truck actuated 4wd low going 65mph as a vacuum solenoid switch had a pin hole in it. They had to rebuild the front end and differential. The truck had 4200 miles at that point.

Locking rear diff went out first time I used it

Cab developed a leak between drivers side cab and bed. They had to replace carpet and a part of wiring harness. Except they didn’t actually fix the leak and had to replace it again. Ford sent a gasket that was defective again

Wheel speed sensor went out twice on drivers side

Last but not least the auto start stop would sometimes stop the truck but not restart it. Took two visits for that one


So good luck to you with your fords as that was my experience

Sounds like it qualified for lemon law.

I had to deliver some huge brass heat exchangers to a shop to be overhauled. I took them in two loads, right at 10k each load. Our 1 ton was broke down so I checked a 150 out of the pool.

I have to say I was impressed with the 5.0. It would pull it as fast as you wanted and then some more, merging or changing lanes was no issue. If you wanted the power it was there. I’m a gas guy so hearing it spin up to 5k doesn’t bother me. I wished for a little heavier truck and brakes honestly but power was not a concern. Oh and it got 13mpg which I thought was pretty good since that’s about what my 3/4 gets.

Just changed the oil in my 5.0 yesterday. I miss when they all took a fl1a filter, and all the tali lights were an 1157 bulb. Simpler times

I have a 2019 F150 with the 3.5 ecoboost, fx4 and max tow package. 50,000 miles and so far, so good. Much better gas milage than the 5.7 Tundra it replaced and pulls much harder too. So far, I’m pleased.

John

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^That's it right there^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Ford engines are pretty good but the drive trains suck apples. I gave up long ago on fords and their transmissions.

Will have to wait and see about the reliability on my 3.5L EcoBoost (21k miles now), but the power and mpg is great so far. I like modern turbos if done right.

My 2005 is a dinosaur--Essex 4.2 V6 5 speed manual. The 97-98 V6s had some gasket problems. But once they worked that out they're stone ax dependable.

I have a 2018 f150 with a 5.0. The day I bought the truck I wandered into the service area and asked the svc Mgr which engine was the most trouble free. He told me the 5.0, so that's what I bought. Mine has approximately 77k miles and has been trouble free. Just one man's experience. Ymmv.

The older Modular engines, early as 1991 in the Lincoln Town Car, 4.6, 2 valve, were good.
F-150's got that engine in 1997 and the 5.4, 2 valve, 1997 through 2004, known several people who have put 300+K miles on them. One guy Gene, owners a residential vinyl business, 455K miles and the differential went out. Never changed the oil because the owner's manual says ''good for the life of the vehicle''.
Steer clear of the 3 valve engines.

Bristoe, a friend of mine had one of the year trucks that had gasket problems. He said the mechanic said the gaskets were shot, I said - what does that mean? reply > time for a new engine, $3000 installed, that was many years ago. Runs like a sewing machine now, says he's going to drive it until the wheels fall off or he kicks the bucket.

The intake manifold gasket problem caused coolant to leak into the cylinder. When the motor fired up it would bend the connecting rod.

People bought fleets of those V6 stick shift F-150s. I've heard of them running around with 300K miles on them.

Yeah I've heard that before now that you mention it.

I work at a Ford dealership and picked up a 2015 3.5L F150 Lariat with 95k miles for my son two years ago and it's been great. I just traded in my daily driver Tacoma last week on a 2022 Ford F-150 Tremor with the 3.5L. We both plan on taking these trucks to 200k and based on what I've seen that shouldn't be a problem. Pre-2015, I'd go with the 5.0L V8.

That being said, one of the best values out there today is a F250 Superduty XLT or Lariat with the 7.3L V8.....

2014 5.0 litre f150 xlt. I needed a narrower truck for my wheeling habit or I'd still have it. Little v8 pulled like a 16 year old with a stack of Penthouses.

200k on a truck should be a given. I expect nothing more than brakes, tires and oil changes til 200,000 miles. I wouldn’t make a lateral trade from a Toyota to a Ford for any reason.

What’d you wind up in?

Got a 2006 f150 with the 5.4. pushing 300k. Still runs strong. Also have a 2005. Same truck right down to the color but rusted frame. 84k miles. It's signed up for an organ transplant in case the 06 needs it 👍

I've owned three Toyota Tacomas and four Ford F150s. Tacomas are great for some things but I prefer the utility, performance and comfort of a full size F150 plus the corrosion resistance of the aluminum body.