3.5 Ecoboost or not ?

[JPB3]

Considering a F-150.. What is the general consensus on the 3.5?

 

[GunsAreFun]

I very recently switched from a 2010 5.7 Tundra to a 2021 3.5 EB with 14k miles. I can’t speak to longevity or anything like that yet.

I will say the power difference is quite noticeable, especially going up hill on the interstate.

I am getting 18.5-19.5 in the city. I’ve had limited highway mileage and have only really done it with a Softopper on and it’s been very windy, which I know saps mileage at highway speeds. Winter gas doesn’t help either. The one sample I have is 19.5 mpg.

Driving home from the dealer for 2 hours on the interstate with some traffic (and no Softopper), the computer said like 23.5, but I couldn’t do a manual calc because it didn’t have an entirely full tank when I picked it up. I’ve put three tanks of gas in so far, and the computer has been exactly 0.5 mpg high each time so it seems consistent and within reason that I may have actually got 23 mpg.

 

[CorbLand]

Plan on replacing turbos around 150K.

 

[bergie]

I have a 2013 that I bought with 60k miles in 2018. has 159k now. No big issues but a bunch of smaller ones that I was able to fix myself, so that's good and bad I suppose. I have a 5000 lb or so trailer that we use 5 or so times a year to camp, it hauls it just fine. Gas mileage goes to hell when towing anything, and even drops about 1-2 mpg with the wheeler in the back. Overall I average about 16.5mpg.

Overall I am meh about the pickup. Don't hate it but don't love it. It is paid off and I am not interested in payments so I will run it until the wheels fall off.

 

[Snowwolfe]

2017 Expedition. 65K miles, Zero issues to date. Bought it new. Will average 21 or so on the highway and 17-18 around town in the winter.

 

[Huntindog45]

i have had two of them...and ehhh, gas mileage is terrible. power is great. but yah plan on having some problems. I honestly would kill to have my Triton V8 back.

 

[Lurch12]

I have a 2016 with the 3.5 with 83,000 miles on it. No issues with the turbo.

My work vehicle is a 2022 V8 with the 5.0, 100,000 miles on it.

I would take the 3.5 turbo over the 5.0 any day.

I often pull a 7000 lb trailer with my 3.5 and it will do circles around my 5.0 with 3000lbs behind it.

 

[prm]

If towing, the 3.5 is the way to go. Really like that engine.

 

[fisherman983]

3.5 over the 5 liter v8 all day and twice on Sundays.
If your buying it as an every day gasser it's great. Decent milage. If your buying a truck to tow? Get a diesel.
Mine has 33s, and gets 18ish mpg on the freeway doing 65. Any more it starts to drop. 15 ish around town. It's comfy, has power and rides great.
If it had stock tires and no leveling kit, I'm sure it would do better.. my only complaint is the f150 doesn't have aftermarket upgrades/support/following like the tacoma so buying cool, easy to install bolt on stuff is almost non existent.

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[GunsAreFun]

3.5 over the 5 liter v8 all day and twice on Sundays.
If your buying it as an every day gasser it's great. Decent milage. If your buying a truck to tow? Get a diesel.
Mine has 33s, and gets 18ish mpg on the freeway doing 65. Any more it starts to drop. 15 ish around town. It's comfy, has power and rides great.
If it had stock tires and no leveling kit, I'm sure it would do better.. my only complaint is the f150 doesn't have aftermarket upgrades/support/following like the tacoma so buying cool, easy to install bolt on stuff is almost non existent.

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Are those LT tires?

 

[fisherman983]

Are those LT tires?

Yes. 33x12.5x20 Goodyear wrangler duratracs. 12 ply..
I bought the truck lightly used and it already had leveling kit/wheels and tires. Came with bfg all terrains but they wore out and I replaced them with the duratracs. Good tire so far.

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[Luked]

Worked at a dealer for years. Still have good buddy's that work there.
I had a 2012 with the 3.5. Mine i bought it with high mileage.
Had 180k on it when I got it and had an file of everything that had been done.
All the typical things. Cam Phasers, Turbos, Turbo Oil lines etc.
When I got rid of it the AC had went to shit. The internals of the compressor came apart. Was about a 3k FIx.
So I got rid of it. Other than that when I had it it was pretty trouble free.

I however would not buy another. My buddy that is the shop foreman at the dealer says when people ask hm about the F150 he says got 5.0

If your really mechanical there are lots you can do to upgrade things like the turbos etc. So they can be made more reliable, but for the normal guy I wouldn't buy.

 

[wapitibob]

Considering a F-150.. What is the general consensus on the 3.5?

what year? late '20 and newer have few if any real issues

Mine is just over 4 years old, 117,000 miles, uber/lyft a few days/week and at least one 2400 mile round trip hunt/year, did two this year, WY and pulled a 4k trailer to AZ and back. zero issues

change engine oil every 3-5k
rear diff and tranny every 30k
transfer case and front diff every spring if you use 4x during winter
plugs and boots every 75k
belts every 100k

I lose 2.5 mpg going from factory 4 ply Michelins to 10 ply open country at's every hunting season/winter, 20.5 to 18

 

[dreadi]

I've been driving an 2013 F150 3.5 eco-boost for the past seven years and it's just a disappointment in fuel economy and turbo lag.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Seems like everyone one I come across needs cam phasers. I just stopped buying them out of warranty.

Sorry to say it but the 2010 tundra you traded will probably still be running when the f150 is at the crusher.

 

[RS_Non-Res]

2013 SCLB 3.5L EB 295k miles
Daily driver, occasional towing 3000#, lots of dirt dbltracks, few 2-3k mile trips per year.
Turbos finally replaced @290k about15k after replacing the leaking turbo cooling line. All that other stuff too…phasers, throttle bodies2x, one plug keeps cracking so often that when the truck goes limp and throws the code I’ll swap it out roadside, timing chain etc, intercooler, tranny.

I got my money out of it, but I won’t recover what I put into it over the past 5 years.

Just bought a 5L. My mechanic says he never gets to work on 5L’s.

 

[RDF1]

Those are so fun to replace the turbo coolant lines on.

 

[jonesn3]

I have a 2018 F150 3.5 Ecoboost XLT FX4 with 6.5’ bed and 36gal tank at 105k miles. Purchased used in 2022 with 62k miles. Did a 1.5” level and 285/70R17 LT tires (10ply) getting about 19 mpg hwy and 15 or 16 mpg city (maybe less). Did airbags on the rear for tow leveling. Has a matching fiberglass cap and decked drawers. Love the truck, super comfortable ride, makes out-of-state hunts from a truck base came really nice. That said, I’ve definitely had a fair share of issues and visits to the dealership for warranty service. Thankfully we got the extended warranty which was paid for itself more than a few times at this point.

VCT phasers (2x)
Timing chains, sprockets, guides and tensioners
IWE front fwd hubs
Fuel pump
Valve cover cracked (oil leak)
Moon roof
Occasionally alarm horn goes off when remote starting and cold
Infotainment screen is unresponsive at times, needs manual reboot

The issue I’ve dealt with are posted on these threads:

Ford F-150 reliable?

2016 super crew 4x4 with 5.0 Will break 200k in the next week or so. Transmission rebuild that I can’t rule out being the fault of the guy I bought truck from at 25k miles. He could’ve done some dumb things. Transmission guy said not common tranny to see in the shop. VCT solenoid cam timing...

rokslide.com

Ford Raptor Daily Drivers

Own a 2011,bought new, just bought the third set of tires, ko2s, got 70k or so miles per set. Second battery. Is on its third set of front brakes and rotors,second on the rear. Had a transfer case actuator motor, air conditioning line and drivers rear door window regulator and motor, window...

rokslide.com

 

[RS_Non-Res]

@RDF1 ~$2500 and the guy lost money on it. He couldn’t do it the easy way because he didn’t have the equipment to pull the cab off the top of the rest of the truck.

 

[Davyalabama]

Nah, the 7.3, why the 7.3, because they don't make an 8.5.