It's simple, V8 Ecoboost

The axle ratio difference and 4x4 vs 4x2 make this pointless. Disappointed

You should do a ‘10 year challenge’ Ike gauntlet. Compare a 2009 truck to the 2019 with the same equipment. It’d be cool to show people how much better trucks have gotten over the last 10 years.

Living in Colorado and having towed up this route with a GMC v8, an expedition with an Ecoboost and now a f150 there is frankly no comparison. The Ecoboost has incredible power. If you get behind a slow truck or car while climbing a 7% grade at 10,000ft with the v8 it struggles to get back to the speed limit. With the Ecoboost you can race up to the tunnel passing slow trucks along the way.

A cowboy, Canadian, and Russian walk into a bar...

Great videos as always. Would have liked to see the identical gear ratio and options/weight, but thanks for the video!

Anyone who has pulled with both trucks knows that the 3.5 will out pull the 5.0 in the mountains all day every day regardless of rear end ratio or any other specs. The 3.5 blows the 5.0 out of the water on low end torque, The 3.5 develops most of that torque around 2500 RPM, and if your towing that is where it is at. Simply put the 3.5 tows like a diesel and the 5.0 tows like gas.

You guys are doing all the tough tests everyone wants to see. You got my subscription with this one! Keep up the good work fellas, keep showing us who's building the best trucks!

From what I have seen, the new 10 speed transmission is pretty awesome! I think that really helps the V8s for both Ford and GM.

How difficult would it have been to just get two 4 x 4's?

Great review, however, with over half a million tfl subscribers I think the manufacturer's better start sending you the trucks with the spec's tfl requests!

Just got a 2019 f150 with the 3.5. Haven't towed yet but the power and fuel economy is waaay better than my previous 2011 with the 5.0. The 10 speed is smoother than the old 6 speed too.

I have a 18 coyote with 3:73 rear crew long box. I tows amazing. Night and day to my previous 2 rams

The Coyote, modular 5.0 in that truck has nothing to do with the windsor 5.0 except similar displacements.

I came through your test miles twice this year,,heading for Utah and then the return. 4.2 liter NA 6 , F-150, Full bax about 1,000 pounds, large canoe on the roof. It did fine,, and my mileage from Grand Junction to Julesburg was 17 mpg. A little higher than I expected,, but likely the high altitude valve was leaning it out a bit.

The no sunroof more headroom tip was some good information.

Tfl is one of my favorite KZfaq channels. Of course the EcoBoost can tow in cold weather, but in the heat it doesn't do so well. My old EcoBoost struggled in the heat up mountains! I would love to see you guys do some Towing torture tests in hot weather!

The EcoBust is like the little guy at the gym who benches 500 lbs. He's on the juice, veins popping out everywhere, and isn't natural. People just stare as he throws the weight around. The Coyote is like the big guy at the gym who benches 475 lbs. He doesn't break much of a sweat, looks healthy, and it just comes natural to him. No flash, no show, just gets it done. Nobody pays much attention. Technically, the little guy benches more and is a little stronger. But, he's going to die at 38 from over-stressing his body with steroids and growth hormone while the big guy lives to be an old man and keeps puttin' in the work. Moral of the story: Pick your partner wisely. There's more to a truck than numbers on paper.

Great video. Thanks! At high load the EcoBoost may be more fuel efficient if you keep the revs higher. At low-mid RPM (high load), the ECU may dump more fuel into the cylinders than Stoichiometrically needed in order to avoid Low Speed Pre-Ignition (LSPI). I'd be curious if 4th gear at the same speed all the way up the hill (lock out 5th) would yield better fuel mileage. In my 2017 EcoBoost Expedition EL (3.73), I also notice Exhaust Gas Temps to be higher (up to 1700º F !!) at lower RPM with load, which is not good for the engine, so I try to keep higher gears locked out, especially under load/when towing. A $25 OBDII Bluetooth module (Amazon) + $5 Torque mobile app would allow you to monitor EGT unintrusively. Not sure why Ford has their transmissions so strongly preferring higher gears with the EcoBoost, even in Tow/Haul mode. Unless load is almost nil, there seems to be very little benefit to keeping RPMs below 2-3k RPM.

For all of you who just look at the rear gear ratio, you seem to forget that this 2wd F150 has a 29.5 inch tire (265/60/18) whereas the 4wd F150 has a 31.9 inch tire (275/55/20), so when you take this into consideration, the 3.15 gears on the 2wd are the equivalent of 3.40 gears on the 4wd which is only a 4.3% difference with 3.55 gears, so not enough to make a significant difference. The 700lbs weight advantage that the 5.0 has does make a huge difference though, much more than a 4.3% longer effective gearing ratio. My point is, in this test, the 3.5 easily beat the 5.0, fair and square (even with a major weight disadvantage that easily outweighs the tiny gearing advantage the 3.5 had).

I drive a '96 F150 XLT 302. V8 5.0 liter engine. Love the thing, has almost 207k miles on it and still hauls 3 tons of hay with no problem. I would go V8 5.0 if I ever got a newer truck. I feel I have less engine problems with my old truck than my brother does with his newer V6.

What cracks me up is all the people bashing the EB are usually the same ones who knock half tons and says everybody should be driving a diesel Super Duty or HD. BUT, all those diesels are...wait for it...TURBOCHARGED!!! So which is it? Turbos last or they don’t. Can’t say they are s**t in a V6 but then praise the Turbo Diesels. And really? I’m paying for sound? Give me real world performance any day over sound! The performance of that EB is real. And, oh my, I will have to tap my brakes a couple extra ones. The horror! Haha. I would MUCH rather have that power reserve ONLY available with the EB when going uphill (I hate being pedal to the metal and unable to accelerate any more). Anyway, fun video but not sure very useful after all the testing you guys have already done with these trucks

I've been waiting on this guys, thanks for getting it done. I love the 5.0 with 10 speed in my 2018.

Great vid guys! I always check here first before i buy a car / truck, been watching for years! The v8 is my favorite and I do think in the long run more reliable, but the eco is a beast!

As far as the sound, I actually like the ecoboost. I came from from a Silverado with a 6.0 liter so it sounded pretty tough, but it also sounded like it was screaming towing up hills, where now my eco boost just pulls. Also, since we tow a camper, it's nice to be able to pull in late and not disturb anyone because it is SO quiet at idle speed. Also I can remote start it early for work and not wake up my neighbors. Just feels much more collected and I love having that low end torque without the drama. And if you WANT the sound, it does sound pretty cool if you stand on it.

2 wheel drive vs 4 wheel.Still not a straight up comparison so why bother.

2017 4x4 5.0 with 3.55 here, love it, came from a ram with the 5.7, better power management love the power, reliability and of course sound, pulled campers back from PA to TX with my brother-in-law, power and gas mileage the same but 5.0 didn't struggle at all.

PLEASE TEST THE 5.0L with 3.73 axle ratio vs the Ecoboost I think the results would be more interesting and more viewers would appreciate it love the videos keep up the good work

Just bought a camper to tow with my 2017 ecoboost. (that I bought after watching hours and hours of your videos) Cant wait to take it to the Smokey mountains! Thanks for all your videos and hard work gentlemen, you’re the best! 🤷🏻‍♂️

I love how powerful and quiet my 3.5 ecoboost is. No more headaches from towing all day with a noisy V8

Hey guys I love these ike videos, definitely want to see more of them. Great content

Awesome review, guys! I love the Ike Gauntlet!

Need a twin turbo V8!

A survey on a Ford tech forum asked the techs which engine they prefer in their truck if they were the buyer and it was overwhelmingly the 5.0 Coyote! The main reason cited was reliability.

Your video in 2016 when you did the V8 Ford up Ike is what sold me on the Truck. Purchased a XLT V8 this year.

I've had both, I used them for pulling, but mostly as daily drivers. My last F150 was a 2.7 ecoboost, and it was impressive, especially, like the video said, performance at high altitude. Living in AZ I do have a lot of high altitude passes. I will own another F150 again. If I was to leave things alone or mildly modify them, I'd go with another ecoboost. Throw a tune, intake and exhaust and the ecoboost is crazy good fun. However, my next one won't be left alone; and will have a coyote... It will get a whipple under the hood, and that'll solve the high altitude "issue". It'll also make for one helluva fun daily driver. If I can find a reg cab short bed (can only get the 3.5 in a reg cab long bed), I'll be set. I do hope to not have to buy new as regular cabs hold value like milk. If you're gonna leave it alone or minor mods, ecoboost. If you're gonna add boost, or live in the midwest where there's no elevation, coyote.

3.73 in that 5.0 would make a huge difference in both uphill and downhill towing. Guessing it would change the mpg’s too.

Love the review.. love my 5.0

One of my favourite ways to use the Tow/Haul mode for downhill descent is to set the cruise control, and then lower the cruise control speed to nearly 10-20 km/h below the speed limit I want to achieve. It does a great job then of controlling speed without need for much braking. Experience from a 2020 Ford Transit 350 fully loaded with the 3.5L Ecoboost.

Fun test to watch and I love you pitted two Ford’s together. However throw another 1500 lbs on that test and the EB will win hands down. As an 80K mile EB owner, I consistently tow 9500-10K lbs with my EB with no sweat.

Grandpa, dad, and son doing the Ike Gauntlet. Watching him sit in the middle with the seatbelt on screams family road trip hahaha 😂😂

From towing and daily driving a 2013 5.0, I can confidently say that it has more power than a half-ton needs. Plenty of juice and I rarely go over 3k rpm towing a 7,500lb enclosed trailer. I still have passing power with that trailer going 75mph on the interstate. No experience yet with the ecoboost but I tell ya, that 5.0 has been a honey.

"more power than you need " !! that's the best way to describe the Eco boost ! I've had 2 now and I love them. I live at high elevation and they are wonderful. If I lived in Louisiana, the V8 might make sense?

Good comparison at altitude. I'd like to see a follow up on these two trucks 10 years from now to see which one is still on the road.

7:54 Uh, no. This is a much newer engine introduced in 2011. The displacement may be 'old' but the engine itself certainly is not.

Different gears. And 2wd vs 4wd. Test is useless.

Been waiting for this!!

Both are good. I started tuning them recently and they respond well to tuning.✅

Hello again gang! But I have to add having two very different gear ratios on an uphill towing test, that I bet if equal the times would favor the V8 in time, but maybe not as high with the mileage. I would personally go with the V8!!!

The altitude this test is conducted at gives the Turbocharged Eco Boost a big advantage, driving that route in any normally aspirated engined vehicle leaves you really feeling down on power due to the high altitude and thin air, I'm amazed the 5.0 did as well as it did.

Boss is still driving his 2012 3.6L ecoB with 175k without a problem. For work I'm now driving a 2017 XL STX 5.0L 2wd with 6 speed. It diffently needs a set of taller rear gears.

I have a 2013 5.0 lariat crew cab 4x4 short bed and just recently pulled 6,000lbs and it didn't even care at all. Didn't even use the tow haul mode. 3.55 rears I do believe, was pretty impressed

Tfl's results make total sense. Although turbos can compensate for power output, they cannot do anything to increase engine braking performance. A higher displacement engine will by design have more vacuum resistance, because it has to try to ingest, compress, and expel more air then its smaller turbocharged counterparts. Likewise, the mpgs, although surprising at first, also kind of make sense. The 5.0 makes less power, and although power is not _directly_ proportional to fuel consumption, it does _generally_ mean less power = less gas. Also, the ecoboost makes a lot on torque low in the rpms, so it doesn't need to run in low gears to make hill-climbing power... BUT. Because it's spinning at a slower speed, it actually has to push harder than the 5.0 does, and to do that, more fuel is required. In fact, that's exactly how turbos are supposed to work: compress more air into the engine so more fuel can be injected to compensate for a lower displacement. With the ecoboost you really can only have either the "eco" or the "boost", but never both. I'm not an engineer, but this is really kind of interesting

I believe the 2.7 EcoBoost is the most popular engine choice, kinda disappointed that it has not been tested since 2015.

Andre + Mr Truck + Canadian Dude = great video!!

I'm all for the 5.0L V8, I own a 5.0L F-150 and love it! But all you people in the comments calling the 5.0L ''simple in design'' sound ignorant. Its a duel injected four cam 32 valve V8 with twin independent variable cam timing and stop/start technology on the latest iteration, Its not simple by a long stretch lol. The only major difference's between the 5.0L and the Ecoboost are displacement, cylinder count and one is forced induction.

I stopped watching the moment you said one is 4x4 and the other is 4x2.. You already spent so much effort making the video.. Why not spending a bit more to make it perfect comparison.

I wonder if "Mr. Truck" realizes this 5.0 V8 is completely different from the 302 engine that existed in the 90s and previous years.

I've driven and towed with both and I like the ecoboost over the V8. BUT if your pulling hills and not using cruise control the turbos do lag and make it feel like its searching for gears at the higher speeds. still keeping my 3.5, hopefully they could get at least a 3.55 and a 3.31 axle ratio at least that doesn't really make a difference. and obviously the 2wd is going to get better mileage especially with taller gears

I agree with the majority of commenters, I know you guys can only test what you're given, but parity is the only way to make true comparisons. There should be more emphasis on the overall effects of 4wd and axle ratios as well, and I'd also like to see you guys test power programmers to see if their enhancements are worth the money.

And that test was immediately ruined when you chose 2x4 against 4x4 🤦🏻‍♂️

Do people really consider the Coyote, "that old 302 Ford has put in everything" - Lincolns etc lol? These guys are always hilarious. Good reviews, but always just off the mark of accurate. Mix a few facts up here and there. Maybe that's why people like them?

You guys have too much fun!

Awesome video gents!! Thank you

When reliability and longevity matter, you always choose the naturally aspirated 5.0 v8 F150 over EcoBoost

Really depends on what you do with the truck, if you tow heavy and get a new truck every 2 years than get the ecoboost, if you don't tow a lot and keep your truck longer, get the V8. The 5.0 is more reliable and more fuel efficient, but the ecoboost is more fun and tows more.

I have a 2019 3.5L Ecoboost that I just pick up. I am sold big time on this set up and engine!!

Well all I know is that I traded my older 5.4 v8 off for a 3.5 turbo and was very happy with the power of the 3.5. Towing is a joy now, the 5.4 always struggled on California mountain grades - no problem now with the 3.5. say what you will about the V8's but the 3.5 turbo 6 is great in my books.

I wonder how many people commenting here live in Colorado where these tests are conducted and understand the effect that elevation has on power? The 5.0 truck (and the 5.3 or 6.2 Chevy and the 5.7 Hemi) feel like you are driving a worn-out 4-banger at this elevation when compared to the EcoBoost. You literally have to drive those V8 trucks like you stole them to get any type of power from those motors. The EcoBoost is effortless power at low RPMs. I drove all of the trucks back-to-back when shopping for a new truck. The EcoBoost was in a class of its own.

If that 5.0 had a 3.55 or 3.73 itd be a totally different game

The 3.15 ratio of the V8 truck is not great for towing. I bet that it would do even better with a Ford 3.55. Still, the V8 truck did surprisingly well in spite of the elevation. It proves that you can still get the job done with the V8. Great video, Guys!

WOW nice job Coyote!! I would get the V6 TT, but Im a Mustang Ecoboost owner But I am proud of the Coyote on this test! Turbos by their very nature burn more fuel by design! The fact that they do burn more and this test showed how close they were in MPG, the Ecoboost Technology wins! Not only that, but an aftermarket tune for the V6 would totally change the outcome of this test! 2 or 3 more psi would burn more fuel while pulling the mountain, but it would do it faster! Nice job Ford! You have 2 winners! They both performed admirably!

I’m with the Canadian on this one. I’d rather have more power than I need than to have an NA engine hanging out at 6,000 rpm in the lower gears. A boosted small displacement engine is the way to go at higher elevation, especially with a 10 speed transmission.

Typical comments from the peanut gallery, I love how quiet the EcoBoost is. You cannot even feel it shift under normal acceleration and the turbo makes a soothing sound when you floor it. I love the luxurious feel and quietness of the EcoBoost.

Not apples to apples! Two wheel drive? No way, unless you’re living south Florida. Always great to watch your episodes though. Love the Colorado mountains, especially near Lily Lake and Estes! 🇺🇸

3.15 on the V8 is not a good towing combo, for 2018 F-150 you exceeded the towing max 9100 minus the altitude adjustment. VS 3.5l with 3.55 with Max tow is 12.7k, minus altitude. Sadly, this compare was VERY misleading. details matter guys!

I don't care about the 4WD because it's not a HUGE difference in parasitic drag these days but those axle ratios make this completely unfair to the 5.0, time wise. Still not a big enough difference to matter day to day unless you climb this daily with a tow. In which case you should probably have a Super Duty anyway.

I'll take the raw power of the EcoBoost over the sound, I've drove both engines and you could floor the V6 it wouldn't even scream.

Thank you for the auto start eliminator info!

I was buying used, and I went to buy a 2013 F150 4wd CC w/ a 5.0. They sold it before I got there, but they had a 2012 F150 4wd CC w/ a 3.5L ecoboost with sames miles and price. I bought the ecoboost. 4 years later, I love this truck. I tow a 6,000# boat with it, and it pulls like a beast. Low end torque is key to towing. Most domestic pickups used to have real low end torque. Nowadays, the only gas engine with actual low end torque is the 3.5L ecoboost. When I am cruising at hwy speeds @ 2,000 to 2500 rpms, I get 95% of my 420 ft lbs of torque. No crazy downshifting. No 4,000 rpms to get me power. With the 5.0L, you are geting 200 ft lbs @ hwy speeds. You have to put it in 5th gear to get your rpms high enough to pull with confidence.

3.15 vs 3.55 plus the 700lb weight difference i think accounts for the mpg. Still comes down to what you like. V8 vs V6 is same decision as Chevy vs Ford vs Dodge. Just depends on personal likes, needs and wants.

I’ll take the V6 through the factory warranty period after that I’ll gladly go with the 5.0 V8!

The difference is mute between 4x4 vs 4x2. Not saying that the supposed 700 pound difference didnt effect the results because it probably does but the gear ratio come on is the needle in the haystack. Tfl you gotta find a way to at least match gear ratios. Of course the 5.0 worked harder on the climb. It has the worst gear ratio available for towing. Do a test with 3.73s and i bet it doesnt work as hard. Even the 3.55s would make a world of difference. Still a neat comparison, and im glad you showed it so thanks fellas!

I would like to see the 2.7 and 3.5 do the same test. I love my 2.7 I had a 17 5.0 and nothing but Engine issues.

I’ll take the 5.0 V8 with 4 wheel drive thank you 😂

Honest question: With a 10-speed automatic, why does the final gear ratio matter that much anymore? I mean, I'm an engineer and understand it... if you take two identical trucks and change only that final gear ratio there will definitely be a difference. What I'm getting at is, compare it to long ago with a three speed automatic. A lot more compromises needed to be made there. But with 10 gears, aren't they able to get BOTH low end torque and high end fuel economy, and just make all trucks, I don't know, 3.73 or 3.55 (midrange)?

I have the 2012=eco-boost 3:55 rear end with over 90k miles. Pulled Rv 6700 lbs dry weight up Raton pass and la veta pass in Colorado several time. Has plenty of power and no big issues. Will take eco-boost over v8/all day long

Would be really interesting to see a closer configuration matchup and also include the new Diesel engine in the mix. So three F150’s with closer features & truck weight. That would be the better comparison...IMHO. But love your vids!

That .5mpg advantage goes to the fact the truck was 2wd over 4wd. If you did it both 4wd or both 2wd i think the eco would of beat the 5.0... just my 2cents

I'll stick with me 3.5L Eco. I'd rather not red line my engine when towing up a hill. What I'd really love to see is a comparison of towing the same weight between a 3.5L Ecoboost, and a 6.2L F-250.

This was a great test. I would, however, like to see something more real world such as a 5,000 load on more level ground to see how the turbos react. It's easy to spool them up going up hill.

It would’ve been nice to see a comparison of the 3.5 Ecoboost and the 5.0 V8

That’s the totally wrong gear ratio for that 5 L come on guys you know better than that And it still did really well

3.55 vs 3.15 rear axle gearing affects the results and mpg. Odd that the V8 had less brake applications with a smaller rear axle gear. With a 3.55 it should be even less.

I have a 2011 3.5 ecoboost love it don't like all repairs but far as hauling or in snow driving it great but costly in maintenance

To all you bitching about the rear end ratio, the EcoBoost towed in 4th giving an overall ratio of 6.28:1 with its 3.55:1 axle ratio, and the Coyote towed in 3rd giving an overall ratio of 6.76:1 with its 3.15:1 axle ratio. So even though the axle ratios were different the Coyote still had a higher numerical ratio during this test which means more it had the "advantage" as far as gear ratios go.

The only reason there is a debate is because each person only has their own truck tmfor reference. Go talk to a fleet manager in the oil fields in Canada and they will show you how much more repair and maintenance cost the ecoboosts take. So yes simple is better for longevity and overall cost.

Another good video. After reading the comments I have to laugh at all the reliability comments. I’m on my second EB first one 120000 trouble free miles except an O2 sensor. Now my second at 32000 trouble free miles. I’m not an anomaly. I could say coyotes are junk cuz ford had to replace my buddies motor at 9000 miles. But I wouldn’t say that cuz that I’m sure was a rare case and it is a good motor too. If you want to tow and carry heavy loads with a half ton the EB is the better choice. If you want to tow 7000 or less pretty much both motors will do fine. Ive owned several Fords from 250 with 351s to 4.6 to 5.4 F150s and so on so I’m not young and appreciate V8s but I also respect technology and the power being produced by the EB. The only motor I don’t want is the 3.0 diesel. It’s just a shame it wasn’t pre DPF and EGR and the rest of the emissions crap.

Great video guys! Hard to beat the tried and true 5.0. Not everyone lives at elevation and needs twin turbos. Doesn’t the eco boost take premium gas?

Y ou can't beat that v-8 sound hammer down !