F150 owners -v6 enough?

I am a cable installer and I carry around 1500-3000 lbs of crap in the bed of my truck at any given time. My old truck was a 2010 f150 with the 4.6l v8 and my current is a 2013 with the v6. Both are automatics, single cab, long bed trucks and I got better millage (18 average v8 15 average v6) with my v8 than I did my 6.

I do think a good bit of that has to do with the amount of stuff I carry with me but that being said when I was pricing an F150 for my personal truck I was finding the smaller v8 (4.6L) was only a couple hundred dollars more than the v6 was which would be a worthy upgrade imo.
 
PatrickKnight said:
I do think a good bit of that has to do with the amount of stuff I carry with me but that being said when I was pricing an F150 for my personal truck I was finding the smaller v8 (4.6L) was only a couple hundred dollars more than the v6 was which would be a worthy upgrade imo.
Click to expand...

If I remember correctly, they had 3 in a row with the same STX package- looked identical except color. The regular v8 was almost $2000 more than the v6....and the bigger v8 was almost another $2000 higher than that. I will check into that when I buy.
 
I still say to go with a V6. There is really no reason for anyone to be driving a V8 pick up truck, if they don't intend to haul any heavy loads.
 
Last edited:
You know what? Forget what I said above. If it's an F150 that you want to get then I suppose it would be best to buy the V8 version. Allow me to explain my logic as to why.

Technically the F150 is considered a "full sized" pick up right? With all that extra weight the V6 version will work harder to move all the weight thus burning up more fuel. However the V8 has more than enough power to move the weight faster and more EFFICIENTLY! This creates less strain on the engine and doesn't burn up as much fuel. This is the reason why the MPG ratings on both trucks are almost the same.

So basically if you want a full size truck like the F150 get a V8. However like I said beforehand, I find it completely unnecessary for people to buy such large and powerful trucks if they don't have anything heavy to haul.

So if you still want the V6 the I would suggest getting it in a mid size truck. You already said the Taco was out of your price range. How about the Nissan Frontier? If I'm not mistaken that one is a bit less expensive.
 
Last edited:
The old V-6 is a great engine, if you dont plan on towing. It certainly will carry maximum bed load with reasonably good MPG and aceleration. I would stay away from the new Eco-boost V-6. It is closely engineered to give a diesel-like torque curve, but with two turbo-boosters, it is very complex engine that could be extremely expensive to repair if major problems arose; un-proven in the field despite what ford says about their testing. Plus there do seem to be mixed opinions about performance and MPG. My wife just bought a new F-150 but it has the old V-6 which is still available as the Flex-fuel option. My old F-150 has the old V-8 Triton 5.4 L and it will run out from under you it is so powerful.
 
MajorLonghorn said:
I have a 2012 F-150 with the Ecoboost V-6. It has plenty of power and thusfar has been problem-free (bought it in January 2012). However, it doesn't give good mileage. I'm averaging about 12.3-12.6 MPG, and I'm guessing the V-8 would be in the same ballpark. Mine is a Platinum trim with 4x4, skid plate, tailgate step, grill guard, tonneau cover, etc., so I imagine the added weight probably offsets the MPG benefits of the V-6, but I was still hoping for better mileage.
Click to expand...

This is about the same milage I get with my '01 F-150 5.0 EFI V8 longbed. It has diamond plate aluminum tool boxes across the bed front, down both sides and two in the bed, all loaded with tools and repair/replacement parts for work. The automatic overdrive transmission helps the milage and doesn't hurt the towing.
 
OHALLUM said:
I think Ford just had a class action suit brought against them from some new V6 owners claiming stalling when accelerating, and other power problems. Might want to re-search that before making a purchase.

Blessings,

Omar
Click to expand...

I think he's talking bout the NA 3.7 V6. Ford may have an issue as there have been reports with the turbo V6 3.5L Ecoboost.

I had the old 4.2L V6 and it was a little weak. The new one has almost 100 HP more and feels very very strong in a V6 mustang I drove. I say drive one and see for yourself.
 
MajorLonghorn said:
I have a 2012 F-150 with the Ecoboost V-6. It has plenty of power and thusfar has been problem-free (bought it in January 2012). However, it doesn't give good mileage. I'm averaging about 12.3-12.6 MPG, and I'm guessing the V-8 would be in the same ballpark. Mine is a Platinum trim with 4x4, skid plate, tailgate step, grill guard, tonneau cover, etc., so I imagine the added weight probably offsets the MPG benefits of the V-6, but I was still hoping for better mileage.
Click to expand...


You have a MAJOR problem with your Ecoboost Major...12.3-12.6.. thats AWFUL!!

I get 18-19 around town.. I got 24.6 with my Harley in the Bed going to Stugis (A/C on).. I went on a Black Bear hunt to Northern Minnesota last fall.. I average 24.9!!

First thing you should do is go buy some fuel injector cleaner, run Synthetic oil helps also..

The Ecoboost is tame under normal driving conditions... It is a BEAST when you get on the throttle..

I love the motor.. great truck.. the seats suck for long distances.. but it is an awesome truck with tons of power and great MPG..
 
I went to buy a V8 F150 but they kept trying to sell me the V6. I told them what they could do with there truck and went out and bought a fully load dodge quad cab truck with the 318 magnum engine in it. I love the V8. I should of got the bigger V8 but oh well. look into the future of what you may use it for. a V8 can do a lot more than the V6 can and if you read about the gas mileage they get very good. I believe around 25 on the hwy. it doesn't hurt to check it out.
 
harleyguy02 said:
You have a MAJOR problem with your Ecoboost Major...12.3-12.6.. thats AWFUL!!

I get 18-19 around town.. I got 24.6 with my Harley in the Bed going to Stugis (A/C on).. I went on a Black Bear hunt to Northern Minnesota last fall.. I average 24.9!!

First thing you should do is go buy some fuel injector cleaner, run Synthetic oil helps also..

The Ecoboost is tame under normal driving conditions... It is a BEAST when you get on the throttle..

I love the motor.. great truck.. the seats suck for long distances.. but it is an awesome truck with tons of power and great MPG..
Click to expand...

I only drive it around town; my wife doesn't like driving a truck so we always take her SUV when we travel. I'd probably get better mileage on the highway. I think the best I've ever gotten is something in the 15 MPG range. I've certainly never gotten anywhere near 20 MPG. Her SUV, a Land Rover LR4, doesn't get 20 MPG either, but she likes it driving it more.
 
Unless your going to be towing often the new v6 motors in all the full size pickups will do just fine. The v6 motors now are just as powerful as the v8s of past years in most cases.
 
Bunzo said:
...the new v6 motors in all the full size pickups will do just fine. The v6 motors now are just as powerful as the v8s of past years in most cases.
Click to expand...

Ford's new 3.7l V6 is rated at 302Hp. More than enough.
 
V6's generally get better gas mileage at the cost of a little power. To be honest, I wouldn't get truck without a V8. Even if you don't intend to pull a trailer, that doesn't mean that you won't. If you're going to be keeping the truck for a long time, I would get a V8.
 
I own a 2008 f150 with a manual transmission. It has not power at all. Also, the gas mileage is not great... About 16 mpg... I wish I had the v8...
 
JSMcustoms said:
...Even if you don't intend to pull a trailer, that doesn't mean that you won't. If you're going to be keeping the truck for a long time, I would get a V8.
Click to expand...

Or you could read last week's article about it:
2013 Ram 1500 vs. Ford F-150 V6 Pickup Truck Comparison Test

But there is one more participant, at least for a portion of this test: a 23-foot two-axle Airstream travel trailer. Specifically, it's the International Signature 23 FB floor plan, and with bedding, cookware, hitch hardware and full water tanks it weighs 5,765 pounds. Makes for a stylish chunk of ballast for our tow test up the Jacumba grade at the southwestern tip of California.
Click to expand...

The V6 is more than enough.
 
Metal Made Fox said:
You know what? Forget what I said above. If it's an F150 that you want to get then I suppose it would be best to buy the V8 version. Allow me to explain my logic as to why.

Technically the F150 is considered a "full sized" pick up right? With all that extra weight the V6 version will work harder to move all the weight thus burning up more fuel. However the V8 has more than enough power to move the weight faster and more EFFICIENTLY! This creates less strain on the engine and doesn't burn up as much fuel. This is the reason why the MPG ratings on both trucks are almost the same.
Click to expand...

I drove over the road 18 wheelers for about 15 years, and worked for several trucking companies. Most of them bought small horsepower (300 - 350) diesel trucks to pull up to 80,000 pounds of freight up and down the mountains out west. At best, they averaged 6 to 6 1/2 mpg. At an average of 100,000 miles a year, that is a lot of expensive diesel fuel. Some of the trucks were "streamlined" to get better fuel mileage. Generally didn't happen enough to measure. The last 5 years that I drove, I owned my own truck, and hauled the same type of freight and trailers that I drove for the companies. My truck was a Western Star, with a classic square blunt nose truck design. (non aerodynamic) It had a 500 horsepower diesel engine, with the same 9 speed transmission that the company trucks I had driven had in their trucks. With the extra 200 to 250 horsepower, my truck did not have to work as hard as the company trucks did to haul the same freight. My overall average fuel mileage was 7 to 7 1/2 miles to the gallon. Add that up over a 100,000 mile year, and it is a lot of money savings in fuel alone. Plus the added reduced wear and tear on the engine. Bottom line is that the extra power allowed the truck to do the job with less effort and reduced wear. The truck had over 1,000,000 miles on it when I sold it and retired. The guy that bought it drove it for another 4 years with the same engine in it, and without a major overhaul. YMMV. :D

Blessings,

Omar
 
Last edited:
I will be sure to soak up all this before anything crazy happens.
My beloved Jeep Liberty CRD is getting too small for all our stuff. If you guys want to talk about a powerful motor... That 2.4 4 cyl turbo diesel is a beast! "It makes V-6 horsepower (160 at 3,800 rpm) and V-8 torque (295 lb-ft at 1,800 rpm), and gets four-cylinder mileage. "
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top