Lemming

Anyone have one of the new 2015's with the twin turbo 2.7L engine?

I'm in the market for a truck and am impressed by the tq/hp numbers as well as the reduced weight and fuel economy. The truck will be used 99% of the time for a DD and 1% of the time to tow an open trailer with race car. All told, trailer, car and gear is about 6k, not more. Current tow vehicle is a Yukon XL, I like it but miss having a truck for many reasons.

Please don't tell me that I need a super duty Had a few of them, they were great when I was pulling a 28' trailer loaded to the hilt. I don't plan on doing any of that in the future.

http://blog.caranddriver.com/2015-fo...-3-5l-v-6-too/

linzman

I have a 2011 3.7 L TwinTurbo, and the engine has been great. I tow a 24 foot enclosed trailer with it and the engine has never been a problem. I never did get anywhere near the advertise gas mileage even when not towing though. The issue I had was with the transmission, butyou shouldn't have any issues with that towing an open trailer.

Lemming

A good friend has a similar setup with the 3.5L and he likes it. I'm interested in the 2.7 for it's MPG, since it will be a DD the vast majority of time.

I test drove one yesterday and it has surprising grunt down low, definitely pulls off the line better than my 5.3 yukon.

Frank 993 C4S

I wouldn't worry so much about engine power and torque when it comes to towing but engine and transmission cooling and braking performance. That being said, what you are looking at should tow 6000 lbs very nicely where you probably don't even feel the trailer is back there. I'm a big fan of diesels when it comes to towing - but that wasn't your question. HNY!

TXE36

I've heard good things from the guys towing with them, but I'm waiting until I hear about long term reliability. I've also heard that you don't buy them for gas mileage, but power. These were the 3.5L motors. I would be concerned the 2.7 is too small. I've also heard the 5.0L V8 is very good - better than the 5.4 Triton.

I bought the last gen Triton 5.4 V8 in my 2010 Ford Expedition (Expy). It tows my E36 fine on an open aluminum trailer, but truth be told, I wish it had a bit more power on the hills, which being in TX, aren't that severe. After 2009 they worked all the Triton bugs out. Around town mileage is about 16. Highway with the cruise on 70 is about 19, towing with the cruise set on 70 is about 12.

I bought the race car and trailer first and went through buying the tow vehicle. I looked into F-250s as well as Excursions (all diesel). Decided that I wanted a SUV rather than pickup and took a SWB Expy and Excursion home the same day. Didn't even make it around the block with the wife before she flatly said "no" to the Excursion as it rode like a truck. Ended up with a LWB Expy and it has worked out well. It doesn't tow most of the time and it is a real comfortable vehicle. It is probably the best highway "car" I've ever owned and doing 600-700 mile stretches are fine. My long winded point is that it is possible to buy too much truck.

I really like the Expy and may buy another one - the 2015+ ones only come with the 3.5L turbo. I really hope Ford didn't mess up a good thing.

ETA: Make sure you get the heavy tow package in any case. It's wired for the electric trailer brakes and has the bigger transmission cooler.

-Mike

BlueBarchetta

Like others, I have a 2012, 3.5 equipped with the max tow package. For reference, I have about 15k towing miles, without problems so far (85k total). My normal load is about 8k, towing an enclosed 24ft InTech trailer. I have occasionally towed 10k. I have also towed 5-6k open trailers.

The truck, (suspension, brakes, etc) handles the 8k load well, but is not as happy with 10k.
Towing open 5-6k trailers is as effortless as towing can be. So the platform can certainly handle the weight.

These guys do some interesting towing tests. Given this, I'd think your towed load, with a properly equipped 2.7 would be handled quite well.

Two comments
First, get the truck equipped as much as possible for towing from ford. It's much cheaper than adding on later. This includes the 3.55 axle. Be VERY AWARE that the gas mileage quotes are based on a base 2wd truck, with a 3.31 axle. The 4wd, with options and a 3.55 will likelt get at least 2 mpg less than advertised. My truck (3.73 axle) gets 1-2 mpg less than a friends with the 3.55. They are nearly identically equipped otherwise.

Second, consider an extended warranty, at least on the power train. You would be among the first to adopt the 2.7, and use it for regular towing. Might be worth the piece of mind. I did this with my 3.5. There are many ford dealers steeply discounting the policies on the Internet.

Generally, I think you would enjoy the truck and it would fit your stated purpose quite well

tcsracing1

i went with the 5.0L F-150. The fuel mileage is great.
I have heard stores about the ecoboost timing chains.... But they might very well have corrected it by now.

asamhall

OP: If this is going to be a daily driver would you consider a Ram 1500 Ecodiesel. Not trying to start this brand versus another, but have you considered this option? I have a 2014 Grand Cherokee ecodiesel that has been a daily driver I average 27 mpg with a 60/40 highway to city driving. If driving pure highway can get 31/32 mpg. Towing 5K pounds with car and open trailer would average 20 mpg.

I am however picking up a Ram 1500 ecodiesel in the next 2 weeks to replace the jeep and also so I can tow an enclosed aluminum trailer. I think my target load will be between 7-7.5K lbs.

Lemming

I did consider, but the price differential is just too great for my needs. I just bought my daughter a brand new car two months ago and don't need a large payment on the truck

ExMB

All the recommendations for "Diesel" are great but may not take all unknowns into the equation. There are enough states where diesel actually costs more than premium. Add that to the initial cost increase, the resell history and for a lot of people it will not be a viable option.

Frank 993 C4S

Diesels make no sense from an economic perspective for the reasons you cite but they are great tow vehicles.

TXE36

Reliable diesels have great resale, i.e. the 7.3 Powerstrokes. Troubled diesels have horrible resale, the 6.0 and 6.4 "6.Blow" Powerstrokes. This is what makes finding a diesel Excursion so problematic as the 7.3s were only in the 2000 to mid-2003s, thus a 13 year old young one is a tough find. A year ago, a 2003 7.3 Excursion in good shape and "low miles - 150K" was a $25,000 truck. A 6.0 was much less than that and a gasser in like condition is a sub $10,000 truck.

Maintenance costs on a diesel are a lot higher as well. Sometimes when I tow I wish for the torque of the diesel, but frankly, I don't tow enough far enough to justify the cost.

The new Powerstrokes sure are nice (and quiet), but Ford sure is proud of them $$$$$.

-Mike

surlynkid

Buy a Cummins with a manual trans and 3.73 gears. The motor and drivetrain will last a bazillion miles - far longer than the rest of the truck. A 2.7 liter? Isn't that almost a Miata motor?

tcsracing1

the 2010-2012 Cummins dodge are a great buy. Non DEF.

Lemming

As I said in the opening, I'm not interested in a super duty, I've been down that road before (2002 F250 Lariat 7.3 and 2008 F250 King Ranch 6.4). And yes it made sense when I had a 28ft enclosed trailer and was pulling to Sebring, VIR, etc, although I still disliked as a DD.

I am mostly interested in hearing from those with real world experience with the ecoboost, hopefully the 2.7, but since the 3.5 is not out of the question, info on that engine is appreciated.