I have been test driving Super Dutys for about a week now. My salesman insists that the 5.4 V-8 has been boosted for 03 to 290 hp on the SuperDuty. Is he confusing it with the upcoming 3 valve enigne? Anybody heard anything about this.

I am replacing my Tundra with a Super Duty. I bought a new 6X12 cargo trailer and the Tundra is too light to tow much with. I am up in the air on what engine to get. I would like some input from crew cab Lariat owners with all engines. Especially you guys that tow 3-7000 lbs. I have test driven a 5.4, and the new PowerStroke but not yet the V-10. the salesman says the V-10 is not worth getting 8mpg with. I am not sure if the diesel is worth the extra $$$ with the automatic.

Also has anyone seen a Lariat Crew Cab 2WD with a moonroof?

I am desperately trying to make a smart purchase this time. Your help is greatly appreciated.

 

My grandfather has a SD with the 5.4 and tows cattle with it. It struggles a little and he wishes he hadnt gotten it for the loads HE tows. I would recommend either the V10 or the Diesel if your going to be towing often. I obviously am a DIesel man and wouldnt have anything else. I love the mileage, the power and the longevity. I think its definatley the best buiy for those who tow often.

 

Seacrow, you check this site out for information on the Superduty Trucks. http://www.fordvehicles.com/trucks/superduty

Now, if I understand you correctly. You are looking at purchasing a crew cab superduty and I would have to assume because it wasn't mentioned that it would be a short box as well. Personally, I would stay away from the 5.4L unless you are getting the Reg cab, long box version (smallest & lightest Superduty configuration). It has 260@4500 HP and 350@2500 TQ, the V10 has 310@4250 HP and 425@3250 TQ. The new 6.0L powerstroke has 325@3300 HP and 560@2000 TQ. As you can see by the figures, the 5.4L may get you better gas mileage but the V10 & powerstroke makes it easier on themselves to get the truck plus whatever you are towing/hauling with the truck moving due to the greater torque. If you are concerned about the cost of the powerstroke, there was a guy on here that made an Excel spreadsheet to calculate the cost difference when everything was taken into consideration. Cost of gas & diesel, oil changes, mileage travelled, cost different, etc. If you do a lot of driving the cost of the powerstroke verus the gas engine will cover itself in fuel economy over a certain number of years. For me, I am currenly travelling about 34,000 kms (21,219 miles) per year. If I purchased the 7.3L a year ago, it would take me about 8 years for the cost of the diesel option to equal the amount of gas purchased on the V10 engine. Just some information for you to think about, these are big heavy trucks. The smallest engine isn't always the best option.

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
Dean

 

I just switched from a 02' 5.4 to a 03' SD with 6.0L Powerstroke.

I think I will never have a gasoline engine again! ~The 6.0/torqshift package is expensive, but worth every penny!

I tow 7500-8000.


BTW, I filled up yesterday. Diesel #2 was .11 cents cheaper than regular unleaded and I averaged over 16 MPG and my motor isn't even broken in yet! (I used to have to use premium in my 5.4 so thats like a .35 cent savings per gallon!) Not to mention the longevity of the diesel!

 

Hi Seacrow

Its like Dean says...03 SD w/5.4L..hp..260 @ 4500rpm tq..350 @2500.

Thats in Fords 03 brochure. So...unless something has changed i think the salesman is confused?

Anyhow...you got two choices on the newer models...V10 or PSD. I know..i learned the hard way. Forget the 5.4L JMO!

Have fun.

Good luck...OT

 

Sounds like the salesman had a 5.4 on the lot that he wanted to sell.

The current 5.4L is still the 260hp/350ft-lb 2V engine. I have seen on blue oval news that the SD's would be switched to 3V engine early this year as a mid year change, but that was an old document that showed this. I haven't heard anything more to back this up. Most likely the '04s will have the 3V engines and a version of the Torqueshift tranny.

If you are towing anything of size, you will probably appreciate the V10. Most accounts I've heard is the V10 will do 10-15mpg unloaded and 8-11 loaded, depending on configuration. You may get a couple mpg better unloaded with the 5.4, but when towing you will be in the same range.

The diesel pretty much speaks for itself. Like IE said, if you drive a lot of miles and tow heavy loads, it makes a lot of sense. If not, you just have to justify it with your self.

 

I would go with the V-10 or the diesel. The 5.4 is a nice motor for F-150's, not crew cab superduties. The gas mileage issue is not as bad as some people make it out to be. I am getting a solid 12.5 MPG with my V-10 unloaded. Thats not much of a difference between the V-8. The difference comes when you need the power and don't have it. I don't tow enough to warrant the diesel, otherwise I would have one, no question about it.
Good Luck with your choice.

 

When I towed with the 5.4, my mileage dropped from 14ish down to 6 mpg!! DAMN that hurt! The Diesel pulls my 8000 lbs. and still gets 12-13 mpg and doesnt even seem to be working

Gas mileage is why I didnt get the v-10 gasser over the PSD, but You can save alot of $$ getting the 10 if it suits your needs though. Another thing is just all the parts in that 10, ~scares me

 

That's BS. I've been getting between 10 and 11 with my V10 F250 this winter due to cold weather, running in 4wd and alot of extra idling. Last fall before it got cold out I was getting 11 to 12 mixed driving and a little over 13 on the interstate. Towing 3 or 4 thousand lbs dropped it down to about 10 interstate. I've never gotten 8mpg!!

If you need the power and can pay the extra 5 or 6 grand then get the diesel hands down. The extra diesel mpg can be enhanced or hurt by the local price for fuel. Tonight here in WV diesel is $1.69 and 87 octane at the same station was $1.57.

I would guess the total max weight of your trailer loaded would be around 3500lbs if it's a single axle and the 5.4L will handle that easily. But the V10 is only another $600 and gets about the mpg as the V8 and in return you get an extra 50hp/75lb-ft and an engine you won't outgrow anytime soon if you buy a heavier trailer in the next few years.

 

Wow, I've got some thinking to do.

while I will be towing the trailer maybe 40-50% of the time, I also have times when I pull TerraMites and Bobcats. The Bobcats were a real strain on the tundra and the F150's I had. I've also had to pull them on rural roads 100 miles round trip.

The Tundra will tow better than the F-150 did powerwise but the Tundra weighs less than a lot of the loads I towed with it. I did not realize how light they were when I bought. It was a real handling challenge. The cargo trailers have too much wind resistance for the Tundra to overcome as well.

I've had the tundra for 7 months and just rolled over 15,000 miles. I am guessing I will be in the 25-30K per year range. Maybe diesel is the way to go.

 

Your salesman is an idiot! I get 12.5 in my V-10. I love this engine!! The V-10 is very powerful! Drive the 5.4 and then drive 6.8 V-10.

 

I tow bobcats and rocksaws...Do your self a favor and throw out the choice of the 5.4...Get at the least a V10...If you do this alot the diesel is the way to go...

Bikenut, you only get 16, it better go up after break-in...It better get up over 20mpg...

 

Let me go ahead and chime in here. My '00 supercab had the 5.4, which did fine in that cab configuration, and towing the load I needed at that point in time (~3000-3500lbs max). However, when I moved up to the crew cab, I decided that that it didn't make sense to not spend a little more and get the V10. Mileage wise, the V10 gets on average 2 mpg less unloaded than I did with the 5.4. Towing a light load behind the 5.4 was not a problem - mileage dropped a little bit (maybe 2-3mpg), but performance was not noticeably impacted. With my V10, the load I tow has at least doubled - and yes, you can get 8mpg (or worse) towing 7000+ lbs behind it - especially if you throw some mountains into the mix! However, I have never felt underpowered with the V10, like I felt I would with the 5.4. Would I like the PSD? Sure - but my driving habits didn't really fit with a diesel, and I didn't want to shell out the $$$ for something I didn't absolutely need.

 

Of course all of this sounds great, but I have to get rid of the Tundra first. Ford offered me 17,500 on a 2002 fully loaded Limited TRD. I put it on Ebay and it has flatlined at $19,001. The used car market totally sucks right now. I paid $28K for the Tundra, it only has 15,000 miles on it. I may have to beef up the Tundra a little bit and be happy with it.

 

Seacrow, I don't know what you have done for looking around in your area. But you should try different dealerships and make sure that you know the value of the truck when you go in. Sometimes, once they find out that you are not a "dumb ***" sitting in the car across from them, they change their tune some. My buddy just bought on Escape and he talked to one dealership here and they were only going to give 2/3 rds of what he wanted. Talked to another dealership and they offered one price and he said another, they told him to be here in an hour and sign the papers and they had a deal. Remember, you don't have to get warranty work done where you bought the truck, any Ford Dealership will do warranty work.

I have a gift for you and others that wish to do some calculations ...

Excel Fuel Mileage / Cost Spreadsheet

It does contain macros inorder to do the calculations, I did not make this spreadsheet. Fill in the red locations and have fun.

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
Dean