2015 Ford V-6 Ecoboost vs V8

mhamershock wrote:

spoon059 wrote:
Still waiting to see if/when Ford puts the Ecoboost into the 3/4 ton trucks. I wonder if Ford feels comfortable with the duty cycle required in a F250. Seems the engine is pretty nice and rarely do you hear an EB owner complaining about it. It would certainly open up options in the F-250. The EB upgrade is quite a bit cheaper than the diesel upgrade.

Well, I'll complain. I have a 2011 and tow pretty heavy (8500) regularly. I have Max Tow but not HD, and I am right on limits. I did go E rated, bags, better shocks which helped the experience, but RAWR is not really where I need it.

I've had cooling fans fail, both exhaust manifolds warp, coolant leak at turbo (requires trans drop to get to the fitting), throttle body fail, hard shifts, and a few other things. 82K miles and not the most reliable motor I've owned. Thank goodness for extended warranty.

IMHO this little motor does not have the duty cycle to handle real work more than part time, especially if you do it in high ambient air temps. It can struggle to shed heat when the turbos are working hard.

All that said I don't think there is a more capable 1/2 ton than the EB 3.5, and when I get rid of this at 100K miles I will look at a MAx Tow/HD Payload version. I will also look at a diesel including the new Nissan 5.0 Cummins.

Mike

In my opinion if you're towing a trailer like yours very much, especially in less than ideal conditions, it pays to step up to a heavier duty truck. They are really a big step up in capability and the comfort penalty is extremely minor, and they don't cost substantially more. I actually prefer the way an HD truck rides and handles compared to a half ton because it feels like a real truck rather than a crossover SUV.

I actually had some interest in that Nissan Cummins as well but I was leery of an all new engine and when I looked at the price point I doubt I would have been able to get one for any less than I paid for my Ram. It is an intriguing option, though.