Can a V8 Still Compete in a Turbocharged World? We Tune & Drag Race Three Trucks To Find Out! 

2.7 ecoboost (6.15 standard. 4.83 tuned) 3.5 ecoboost (6.32 standard. 4.36 tuned) 5 liter v8 (6.94 standard 5.44 tuned)

I’ve owned 6 Ecoboost engines spanning 2011 to 2019. Not one failure. Not one repair, just normal maintenance. Good engines.

I got gapped by a 2.7 f150 and I'm here to wonder why haha. Really impressive engines actually.

Just bought a 2.7 Ecoboost. Has MORE than enough power. Drive it around in ECO mode every day because it's really really fast for a truck. Getting 24 MPG highway, 19 city.

I’m not a Ford fan, but drove my friends 2014 eco boost gen 1 3.5 eco boost and I literally forgot I had a 3000 lb trailer behind me

Now Ford needs to turbocharge the 5.0!

I just bought a 2020 3.5 ecoboost and this video is a big reason why. Thanks to you and 5star

The 2.7L is actually a very heavily built motor. Four bolt mains, compacted graphite iron block (the only production gasoline engine to use it), an aluminum ladder frame block skirt , that basically makes it a deep skirt block (and directly supports the main bearing caps), forged everything (pistons, con rods, crank, and cams) semi-open engine deck ( I call it semi-closed deck because there are 6 support points instead of the conventional 3 with semi-open) as opposed to the open deck 5.0 and 3.5 ecoboost, monolithic head and exhaust manifold (which means the exhaust manifold and turbos have coolant journals, which both speeds up engine warm up and reduces turbo and combustion chamber operating temperatures) and is just physically more compact (which inherently adds strength) with a very high lubricant capacity per displacement (2.22 qts per liter of displacement in a shorter block design vs 1.6 qts per liter in the 5.0l, and 1.7 qts per liter in the 3.5 [2.24 qts per liter in the 6.7 powerstroke] )

4.3 0 to 60 was the time for the Ferrari 430 not to long ago

"i don't want the electronic nannies to take any power away from me" -Andre

Turbo a V8 for best of everything WHOS WITH ME

I'll give up the 1+ second for the smooth power and longevity the V-8 provides.

Little unfair with the 2.7 being ext cab and 5.0 being 4 door

I didn't know racing on drag strip was the most important thing about having a truck. I used to think it was pulling a trailer with 16,000 lbs of rocks up an 8% grade in top gear all day every day without breaking a sweat.

I'm planning on ordering a XLT supercab soon and I'm definitely going with the 2.7 with 3.73 gears. I've done a ton of research on the ecoboost engines and they are truly impressive, especially the 2.7. Most people don't know it but the 2.7 is statistically the most reliable engine sold in the F150. It has fewer warranty claims than all the others, likely due to the stout CGI cylinder block. That alone plus excellent fuel economy and ample capability, it's the perfect fit for my needs. I don't think I'd even bother tuning it. Great video!

Finally someone did this video!! Had been looking for one where all 3 engines were put on the track with and without a tune!! Thank you!

What an amazing time we live in!! These 0-60 numbers were supercar territory in the late 1990's/early 2000's; not all that long ago... These are full-size pickup trucks!! Their respective powerplants generate impressive output for their displacement, and go about it efficiently; smoothly even. Fuel economy has improved quite a bit just in the last 6 years as well.

Excellent video good job on tbe comparison. I was very surprised on the results. I have least and plan to purchase a 2019 xlt crew 2.7 eco boost and it is a impressive engine 23.5 mpg yesterday morning fill up. The computer claimed a little higher than that but. 87 octane. Loved the video, my first ford in over 20yrs so far so good..

This video made me appreciate the 2.7 more. My pops has a 3.5 ecoboost in his F150 and I really want the Coyote 5.0 but this video just opened up new doors for when I buy an F150. Great video

All good information to know. Thank you to the sound technician having you wear a wireless microphone. To many videos overlook quality audio.

For those talking about the weight difference between the Supercab and the Supercrew... the 2.7 4x4 supercab is actually only 62lbs lighter than the 5.0 Supercrew 4x4. The 2.7 Supercab 4x4 is actually 7lbs HEAVIER than the 5.0 Supercab 4x4?!? Not what I expected. And I have a 2018 Supercab 4x4 with the 5.0. The weights are from Fords site.

2.7L converted me from Silverado 5.3 to f150. That thing is tuned from the factory to run like a sports truck. Have 152k on my 2.7 now trouble free its a great motor

I like my 5.0 just for the sound alone.

Very good comparison video! My 2018 F-150 Standard Cab SWB FX4 2.7L is really quick!

That 3.5L sounds very good. The filming is top notch, always love watching Andreys videos.

1/4 mile times would have been nice to have. I think I need this in my life.

Good video, and moved right along, exciting! Keep up the good work.

I've had the V8, the 3.5L and now the 2.7. I believe the current 2.7 is Ford's best engine, especially for me as I never tow anything.

Great video, I'd like to see all three of these on the 100 mile loop stock from the factory without a tune please (and then maybe tuned and looped 😊👍)

Those 2.7 and 3.5 motors are impressive. I'd love to see a follow-up video comparing them to a tuned supercharged 5.0.

I'm glad I went with the 5.0 liter V8 Coyote motor in my 2016 F150 Crew cab instead of the turbo V6 or the 4 cylinder. I bought this truck new and plan to own it a long time, probably 20+ years, I think the 5.0 liter Coyote V8 is a lot more likely to last that long than the 6 or the 4 cylinder version's. I prefer to buy new vehicles and baby the hell out of them. I don't plan on drag racing my truck, pulling a trailer or hauling a load is more in line with what I have a truck for. The truck is 3 years old now and has 17,000 miles on it and has always been regularly maintained and garaged. My wife's 03 Cobra is 16 years old now and has 41,000 miles on it. I don't commute so that saves a lot of miles on my vehicle's as well as time and frustration dealing with traffic. I've always thought the 2+ hour commute back and forth to the burbs 5 days a week is nuts and not worth it.

Took my wife truck shopping with me last fall. Showed up to buy a 2018 F150 w/ 3.5. Couldn't convince her to spend $3000 more for the 3.5. Ended up buying the exact same color and model with a 2.7. Fast forward to now, I love that little 2.7. Tows my camper with ease and gets better gas mileage then the wife's Explorer.

I would still choose the 5.0 every day of the week and twice on Sunday!

My son has a 2016 with the 5.0 at 150k miles no issues, no problems. Just normal maintenance. Very reliable engine. Great ride.

Imagine a factory twin turbo 5.0😳

I am really hoping the TFL crew does a full stock comparison of each engine option between each manufacturer. Towing, Mpg, 0-60 that sort of thing. Ford (3.3l vs 2.7l vs 3.0l vs 5.0l vs 3.5l vs 3.5l HOP) GM(4.3l vs 2.7l vs 5.3l vs 3.0l vs 6.2l) Ram (3.6l vs 3.0l vs 5.7l) Toyota (4.6l vs 5.7l)

I drive a ‘18 with the 2.7. The engine is no joke! It feels quicker than the 3.5, which I’m currently driving right now (a rental while my truck is at the auto body). It’s fun to drive in normal mode, but when you throw it into sport, it’s awesome.

Still dont know why Ford doesn't "Ecoboost" that Coyote? It would crush them all and sound amazing!

The 5.0 coyote is an awesome motor. My buddy's 5.0 with a Ford Power pack 3 kit & an E85 tune put him upwards of 500 rwhp.

Big surprise to me was the 2.7. 3.5 is of course the powerhouse but that 2.7 did better than I thought, especially after the tune. I’m with Andre though, I’d take the Coyote.

That little 2.7 is impressive

I'll keep my 5.0. It is smoother, and the power comes on strong in normal situations. V8 rules.

I had a 2019 F150 with a 3.5 turbo, 3.73 axle. Used it to tow a 4800 lbs(dry wt) Winnebago Micro Minnie, with gear was about 5500 lbs. Used a reputable weight distribution hitch. Plenty of power whenever needed, BUT engine temp ran up to the red line whenever pulling up a modest grade, without over accelerating (60 mph). Often the turbos would shut down until temps returned to the normal range. Dealership and another shop could find nothing wrong, just saying "turbos run hot". To me, it felt like not if there was going to be a major overheating problem, but matter of when. Moved to a 2021 F250 with a 7.3 gas (non-turbo), with great luck. 25,000 miles so far towing a larger trailer (5800 lbs Winn. 2529RG with a lot of cargo in the truck bed, tons of power AND the temp gage has never even wiggled, even when towing in Montana hills this summer in sustained 100+ degree weather. Loved my F150, not sure the turbos are the best option when a lot of long distance towing is in the picture.

This is important for all those times I drag race over a 1/4 mile in my truck.

This is my new favorite video of TFL truck

These tests are why I love this channel

Easy answer to all this....put a procharger on the Coyote! The Ecoboost trucks are maxed out with factory equipment, but the Coyote can handle a power adder. If you are going to leave the truck with factory equipment, then the 3.5l is the best. If you are going to mod it, then the Coyote!

I would choose the 5.0 and the F150 for the work week, and the Mustang with the 5.0 for the weekends, than ''I could die a Happy Man''

Wish the stock dyno results were done on 93 as well. Only reason to do them differently is to inflate the gains on the tune.

I like the tuner testing, but again, the extended cab is going to weigh less than the crewcabs. We don't know what the axle ratios are as well, we need those and truck weights for comparison. Just imagine what an ecoboost 5.0L would do in this test!

I love my 2017 2.7 Ecoboost XLT Super Crewcab.... its quick...no problems passing on the HWY...almost 80K and zero issues other than a bad brake caliper that Dealer found and replaced under warranty the 2nd year I had it :)

I love the 3.5L Ecoboost ... it’s an absolute beast.

You gotta love that little 2.7s gas mileage. I am looking at buying one of these and drove the 2.7 and 5.0 and this confirms what I thought. That 5.0 is kinda sluggish and rumbles a lot without going anywhere while the 2.7 is quiet and quick.

I wrote off the Expedition because of the 3.5l. I got one as a rental and drove it for a week. I got home and bought one. You will never miss those two cylinders and better low end torque.

I want to comment before I even start watching the video, that longevity is going to be far more important to me than 0 to 60 time if I'm buying a truck

Amazing job! Doing the aftermarket tunes on each really gives this a real world comparison. Tuning is becoming much more mainstream often times is the first thing done to the lower cylinder cars/FI cars. Any info on qurter mile times? More vids like this please!

We need to see the 2019 Limited with a tune so we can see what the difference is between the normal 3.5L and the high output one.

The 5.0 comes with a 3.15 ratio, the 2.7 a 3.55. Unless your opt for the 3.55 on the 5.0, this ain't a fair test. Ford offers a 3.73 on either but who knows how these were equipped for this test.

4.3 sec and 4.8 sec on a full size truck is crazy, I remember my bolt on ls1 z28 doing a 4.7 sec 0-60 and I thought that was quick

As a Ford tech, The lack of oil leaks from the V8 says everything. Turbo engines love to leak from the turbo and the plastic oil pans.

I have the 2.7 and the thing is a tank for how small it is. Yeah yeah yeah it may not last as long but with regular maintenance there is no reason why this engine would fail. I had a 2016 f150 with the 5.0 with the 2018 I have now with the 2.7 is very close in power and acceleration. I've also gotten 25.6 mpg on the freeway while on vacation with 3 other people in the truck as well as a bed full of luggage. Very impressed with the little 2.7. I like it way more than I thought I would. If you haven't driven one, drive one and you will see what I mean. Great comparison video!

This was a great review. This is the kind of real-world stuff we want to know.

Turbos are the way! Great video keep um coming! Loving the race at sea level!

I would like to see those same engines 200k miles later see how well they do.

I love the tuned content!

That 3.5l was hauling a load with “Josh” at the wheel 🤣

2021 2.7 STX is the shit! Sport mode ftw! Having 10 gears and selective limit shifting is amazing.

Great vid, all engines are great, but I'm stickin with the five oh.

3.5EB all day anyday.... Josh and his tunes KICK ASS!! I've been running his adaptive octane tune for almost a year in my 2018 Lariat SCREW 3.5EB.... my best tank was 22MPG and i hit 0-60 in 5s using 91. Winter drivability has been excellent and the transmission shifts butter smooth after a few thousand miles after it learns your driving style.... great tunes and customer support from Josh @5star...

Just bought a 2020 3.5 and can’t wait to get it tuned by 5 star.

the 2.7 had a advantage with the smaller cab lighter weight. all in all good testing. thanks for the info.

I know the 2.7 had a bit of a weight advantage being a SuperCab, but still, what an impressive engine. It costs thousands less than the 3.5 and it gets better gas mileage so you'll save thousands more over the life of the truck, yet it is very close in performance. If you don't need the payload and towing of the larger engines, it's a no-brainer. No surprise it's Ford's most popular engine.

Impressive, think I need to open an axle and drive shaft repair shop

I own a 2017 2.7 f-150 . The love is real the ride is amazing . She’s super quick

These have to be made every year! Great job

Love technology! Vehicles have gotten so much better over time

Thank you for slaving away on the drag strip to make this video.

The 2.7 is impressive. I'm not a V8 freak so much as I do have an old camaro to drive to get my fill of the sound, but I like the ford 2.7 6 cylinder. I can deal with a 6 cylinder sound on a full size truck but I cannot deal with the 4 cylinder sound on a gm truck. i'm in my 40s though. 4 cylinder is for cars and small trucks. full size trucks have always had 6 cylinders, even before they had 8 cylinders. but I cannot do a 4 cylinder full size.

I heard powerstroke division designed the 2.7 ecoboost. I have that same truck in a 2015 and am very impressed with it at 235k miles and running strong 👍 maybe a air intake might of made it closer to the 3.5 ?

Born in 1973 , the advances in vehicle output in the last decade have been incredible, especially compared with the 80s and 90s where almost nothing happened for so long.

CNN just picked up TFL series for their network - They said they've never seen more accurate statistics or fair testing.

Have a 2018, pretty sure its 3.5l but i could be wrong. Already have experience with ecoboost and i loved it in the fusion. Way better in the f150 though. Never been so happy with a vehicle. Mines an xlt so no features but thats ok. My dream vehicle. Love the grille on my truck too. The 2018 line had the nicest looking grille hands down. That screams ford tough. Looks like its a super duty. Got the nicest color too, its like a navy blue but a bit brighter. Gonna black out the rims and get black running boards and pushbar.

I have the 2018 3.5 my cousin borrowed it and couldn't believe it was a 6 love this engine

4wd is so nice for traction !!! if my 68 Charger and my hellcat would be 4wd I could get 3 seconds off 0-60 and 1/4 mile without any tune/mods !! Turbo engines were always quick,back in the late 80's I had a 1985 2.2 Turbo 1 (not the Turbo II with more power from the factory) so my 146 factory rated 2.2 Turbo Dodge Daytona Turbo with a Mopar computer and I messed with the turbo/more boost etc and I ran high 12's with that car in the 1/4 mile...Even with stock turbo and just a Mopar ecu I ate every 5.0 5 speed Mustang around(automatic 5.0 Mustangs used a different cam and heads and lost 20 hp as the engine was different than the 5 speed engine,even Ford guys dont know this !)....These cars stock had turbo lag under 15 mph you had no turbo,then it kicked in and went ! You had to brake torque it to get low 15's froma bone stock 2.2 turbo ,otherwise you ran high 15's..these were tested running 15.9's to low 16's just off idle..brake torque low 15's,ecu ran low 14's raise the turbo boost you got 12's..We even ran a low compression 1978 400 big block we put a stock turbo on it and we never track tested it but it would lay down serious rubber,and it was a low compression,non performance 2 barrel engine from a wrecked,rolled over,78 Gran Fury..The engine went into a 74 Satellite (Road Runner clone) ..The car felt like a low 14 second ride with the 2 barrel and under 8.0 compression lol..We built a 451 stroker and ran low 11's non turbo but we had fun back in the early 90's !

9:41 wow!! Nice launch 🚀

You blew that start vs the 3.5..should have raced again

The 5.0 might not be the fastest but your 2.7 or 3.5 will never sound as good as it or outlive it🤷‍♂️

Snapping the Driveshaft 14:45

4 out of the 5 F150 engine options make at least 400lb-ft and are mated to the great 10-speed. Chevy? Just the 6.2 which starts around $55k.

It would have been nice to know the gear ratio of each truck. 3.31 is really common and I would say 3.55 is the runner up in how common it was used especially in the 2.7 trucks. Few 3.73 out there too.

If you bought your truck for drag racing or fuel economy then all three motors are pretty close. If you bought it for the sound it makes then the 5.0 was your best choice. If you wish to effortlessly tow a heavy trailer up a grade then the 3.5 is head and shoulders above the others regardless of diff ratios and all other factors!

He said the 3.5 was hella quick! I didn’t think they said hella in Illinois! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

The tune improvement for both the 2.7 and 5.0 were the same ~21.5%. The 3.5 improvement was ~31%.

I own 2019 F150 2.7L V6 Ecoboost, Supercrew, with Lariat trim. Spoke with many well known mechanics, and they all said, they've never seen any post 2015 2.7 Ecoboost came in for serious repairs, just usual maintenance. They are good engines, good on gas comparatively.

Perfect example of project and deflect. The Most Common Gear Ratio in 2.7 is 3.55 next 3.5 EcoBoost is 3.73 and last 5.0 is 3.31. The 5.0 was definitely handicapped but will help support the EcoBoost narrative. The 3.5 my be tuned to 450+ hp but if I'm going to have to burn premium fuel and like low end torque I would spend the extra 10k on a supercharger for the 5.0 that would push the hp over 700hp and torque over 600lbs.

Why didn’t you show the 1/4 times?

Sorry, most people aren't going to tune their trucks. A stock race would have been a proper test. It's not hard to push a turbo engine to create the power and acceleration you want. The question is, how long will that engine last compared to the V8?

I’m sold haha I need to get one of these tunes!

would be curious to see what mpg would be on these towing the same trailer on the same route. Also unloaded mpg test would be nice to see, but I'd really be curious about towing mpg between all of them towing the same thing.

I am guessing the dislikes are people who can't handle an engine with forced air induction is better than naturally aspirated. You could put a super charger or turbo charger on the 5.0 and it would be significantly better than stock. I don't under stand why anyone would want a less efficient engine.