F150 Ecoboost towing 14K up 6% grade

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For a small engine, the 3.5 Ecoboost tows rather well. Plenty of RV guys are using the Ecoboost F150's with good results. In fact it compares favorably with a conventional, high output V8.
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: Bud_One
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
The question in my mind is how many times can you do it before something blows.


+1 - Exactly


My thoughts exactly. He compares it to a diesel. I'd be willing to bet the diesels he referred to will outlast the EB making repeated runs up that grade.
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Of course the F150 was 3K over the recommended wt. Oh! How many Ecoboost engines have we heard of that are Blowing up? Blowing up seems to be the criteria for performance here on BITOG.
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Those FLT tests are always performed on cool days and are only 8-10 minutes in duration. More horsepower can tow faster until the cooling capacity is maxed out, then the nannies kick in and reduce power, or the engine WILL blow up or squeak to a stop. FLT should perform those towing tests on the hottest days of the year in heavy slow moving traffic. I would never tow up hill in drive or tow mode with my foot to the floor just to prove a point. Instead I would put the selector in manual and go up between 3,000 and 4,000 rpm at part throttle. Faster trips up the hill will use more fuel for a given engine and weight combination, so the MPG comparison is flawed too.
Instead of more power, the 4.3L could use the V8 max trailer cooling capacity, an 8 speed 8L90E and 4.1 - 4.56 gears in the diff, and climb the hill @ 45 mph instead of 60 or 70. Try the same trailer and truck package on a hot day up and down a 13% grade and report back how it worked out for you.
 
Originally Posted By: tig1
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: Bud_One
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
The question in my mind is how many times can you do it before something blows.


+1 - Exactly


My thoughts exactly. He compares it to a diesel. I'd be willing to bet the diesels he referred to will outlast the EB making repeated runs up that grade.
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Of course the F150 was 3K over the recommended wt. Oh! How many Ecoboost engines have we heard of that are Blowing up? Blowing up seems to be the criteria for performance here on BITOG.
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It isn't about blowing up for me, it's about lasting. I'm still willing to bet the diesel engines he referred to will outlast the EB in heavy duty towing and/or plowing applications. One run a few minutes long is hardly a durability test. Impressing the audience was the goal there, it worked. FTR long term Ford owner/lover here, although things are slowly changing.
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My 1995 F150 with the 2.73 rear end cant even keep speed on flat land facing a headwind going down to the coast. Terrible. I have to floor it and downshift to stay at 65 or 70. What these new engines can do is pretty remarkable.
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex

"Apples to Oranges" - - - take apart the engines you mentioned and look at the size, heft and robustness of the engine internals.

Pretty amazing what the "little V6" can do and STILL LIVE considering they're maybe 1/3 the heft of a Cummins!!!


Considering it has 1/2 the torque of the latest crop of Diesels I'd say having less weight is fine.

The EB 3.5 weighs 449 lbs dry, makes 375 hp/470 lb-ft.
The Powerstroke 6.7 weighs 990 dry, makes 330 hp/925 lb-ft/

The Diesel makes almost 2x the power and is 2x the wright. Seems about right to me.

I think you need to read up on how the EB 3.5 is made. It is a very stout design and uses lots of high strength technology under the hood.

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Turbos aren't "prejudiced" - they'll be more than happy to blow up any engine you bolt them onto if you don't have your engine tuned properly.


Sure and every indication over the past 7.8 years is that Ford has designed a solid engine in the EB 3.5.

It manages heat well, and there are plenty of examples out there with many miles on them.
 
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Originally Posted By: E150GT
My 1995 F150 with the 2.73 rear end cant even keep speed on flat land facing a headwind going down to the coast. Terrible. I have to floor it and downshift to stay at 65 or 70. What these new engines can do is pretty remarkable.


I had a 3.00 rear in an E-150 many years ago, horrible was an understatement. Some of the newer engine transmission combos are a tremendous improvement, there's no doubt about it.
 
Originally Posted By: Bud_One
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
The question in my mind is how many times can you do it before something blows.


+1 - Exactly


Any modern engine that's well maintained should be able to do it more times than you would have opportunities. Engines blowing up in modern vehicles is very very rare if they are maintained well. The engine was designed to run between idle and redline and as long as your not on the redline constantly and the engine isn't cold it will last a long time at high RPM. Advances in cooling, oil, and fuel management have made the modern engine incredibly durable.
 
All engines/vehicles have a Duty Cycle. The Ecoboost engines run well, and generally will in stock form for longer then most people will want to own the vehicle. But towing beyond the trucks rated specs, AND modifying the engine for even more power, like the guy in the video, will have consequences for longevity.
 
The F150 Ecoboost trucks are impressive, too bad they're made of aluminum, I'd never own one.
 
Pickup,Van & 4WD magazine back in 1979 bemoaned the new "downsized" F series and Broncos for their lack of real downsizing and the use of the same gas hogging engines as in 79.Ford claimed to have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to produce the 1st new truck of the 80s,but the magazine wondered where the money was spent.They wanted to see a 6 cylinder turbo engine as a peppy,gas saving alternative.Took a few decades to live up to that wish.
 
Originally Posted By: E150GT
My 1995 F150 with the 2.73 rear end cant even keep speed on flat land facing a headwind going down to the coast. Terrible. I have to floor it and downshift to stay at 65 or 70. What these new engines can do is pretty remarkable.

My first "car" was an E150 with the 300 and a C6. That one felt quicker than my truck. Probably the 3.08 gears.
 
Originally Posted By: Miller88
This is something they started on FTE a (7?) few years ago. Pretty cool to watch that the 3.5 Ecoboost is quicker than an old 7.3 super duty!

There was word that a BRO with his Cummins on a smoke tune tried it and blew it to pieces. Can't tow 14K up a steep grade on a smoke tune without EGT monitoring.
But the 7.3 gets better MPGS. My wife and daughter towed their horses. 4,800 trailer 2, 1350 ish lb Warmblood horses and an 1180 lb Quarter horse plus the tack room full of their stuff as well as the 8" bed full of hay and the back seat of the P/U filled up with cloths etc. from Palo Cedro Calif. to Idaho and averaged 14 mpgs by doing the gallons / miles driven math. Not too bad for a 2002 7.3 with a manual.
 
That's some fine MPG's there. I get 6-10 MPG with the Ecoboost when we pull the camper and it's a big one - 35', 10k, 8ft wide. It all depends on if it's uphill, flat or downhill.

Only thing about the better Diesel MPG's is the fuel cost where you are. Where I'm at in PA regular is $2.32 and Diesel is $2.89. Yes, the EB will tow fine on regular, even in the heat.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
The F150 Ecoboost trucks are impressive, too bad they're made of aluminum, I'd never own one.


Because you enjoy seeing your vehicles rust as time goes by?
 
Originally Posted By: cb_13
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
The F150 Ecoboost trucks are impressive, too bad they're made of aluminum, I'd never own one.


Because you enjoy seeing your vehicles rust as time goes by?
Any car could be 100 years old and they wouldn't have a spec of rust here.

If I get a door ding I'd rather not pay an extreme amount of money to have it fixed.

Plus the doors are all wavy on the aluminum Fords.
 
The aluminum panels are thicker than the steel they replaced so they should be more resistant to minor dents and dings. Of course if it really gets nailed it'll be dented. I have a '12 F150 and would like one with an aluminum body. My problem is I want something that's been out awhile and they keep changing them! New body in '15, new 10 speed in '17 and gen 2 3.5 EcoBoost in '17.

I wish we could keep vehicles for more than ten years rust free around here. Maybe one day MODOT will learn that something other than a salt mixture can treat roads!
 
I dare say any of the big three's diesel trucks of the same vintage as the F150 in the OP would tow 50% more (21K) up that gradient almost continuously and not suffer. The Ecoboost may be very well engineered, but even being a little 3.5 apparently fuel economy can dip into the single digits. IDK how much you have to put behind a current 1-ton diesel truck to get economy down into the single digits, but it's one heck of a lot and I'd venture to say with good maintenance that truck would tow said load for many thousands of miles without major problems.

The Ecoboost is really good for what it's intended for - a powerful engine, small enough to be economical when not loaded, in trucks that aren't otherwise heavy duty enough to see basically commercial hauling duty.
 
Originally Posted By: Alex_V
just don't try to tell me my '85 GMC C3500 can't do it with equivalently moderate mods, too


Your '85 Chebby can't do that. Also, you're comparing a 1ton to a 1/2ton. Honestly the biggest problem is you're comparing trucks that are separated by 30 years.
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