Ford F-150 with the 5.0-liter V8 turns in stunning quarter mile times without forced induction.
Ford hasn’t offered a proper street performance truck since the SVT Lightning was discontinued several generations ago. But the 2018 F-150 with the right modifications is considerably quicker even without the supercharger. In the video above from the YouTube channel of Maurice Cooper, a new half-ton Ford truck takes on a Fox Body-era Mustang and gets the win, but more importantly, this full-sized pickup runs well into the 11-second range with relatively simple upgrades.
11-Second F-150
The details included in the video information on this Ford F-150 are relatively short, but in reading through the discussion in the comments section, we get a better idea of what has been done to get this truck into the 11s.
The description explains that this 5.0-liter-powered F-150 has “Full Bolton’s Little bit of weight reduction”, but we don’t know what that entails. In reading through the comments, we see that the person who posted the video states that the truck has the Boss 302 intake manifold and a set of headers, along with a good tune from 5 Star Tuning. It is also pointed out that the truck has a set of traction bars, helping the rear-drive pickup make the most of the available power.
We can also see that the F-150 has aftermarket wheels and we are guessing that it has some variety of drag radial tire to get off of the line so well, but we don’t know for sure.
What we do know is that for a new truck that doesn’t have nitrous oxide, a supercharger or turbochargers, and it is still really quick.
Battling a Mustang
In the video above, the 2018 F-150takes on a Fox Body Mustang in what appears to be a bracket race. We can’t see what the Mustang dials or runs, but we can see that the truck dials an 11.87 and it gets a head start, so the pony car has dialed something quicker than 11.87. We do get a quick glimpse of the Mustang’s dial board and it looks like an 8.63 or 9.63, but in either case, it is running single-digit quarter mile times.
The truck gets away from the line well, taking a big lead with the head start and by the time that the Mustang launches, we can see that the six win lights clustered around the timing boards for the F-150 lane are lit up. This means that the pony car red lit, giving the truck the win. It is fortunate, too, as with an 11.81 on an 11.87 dial, the F-150 would have lost had the car run over its dial.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
