New boat puller

[Palomar22]

Gents,


Currently towing my 201 pro XL with a 2017 5.3 Silverado. I’m starting to approach the mileage where lifter failure is a real concern, and the 6l80’s indecisiveness on what gear to be in has me scratching my head. Not sure if a tune would clear things up with my current ride or not.

Looking at possibly upgrading. Right now the 3.0 Duramax, 3.5 Ecoboost, and 5.0 with the 3.73 gears are my front runners for a tow vehicle. I’ve looked at 3/4 tons but cannot justify it as this next truck will also be a daily driver.

Does anyone have real world experience with any of these trucks?

[84rickygreen]

I have a Skeeter 20i that I pull behind my F-150 with the Ecoboost. Love it.

[Rubrail]

Personally have an ecoboost and a 5.0 right now. No issues with either and they both tow very well, the tow/haul mode on the ten speed has engine braking also. Its nice to have.

[Bullet[BS]]

My wife picked up a Suburban 4x4 with the "Baby Duramax" in it. She let me drive it yesterday, it has good power and with cruise set at 75 mph got 30 mph unloaded, but it feels like it would pull pretty good. It's got a 10 speed transmission so it keeps it in the power range pretty consistent.

[fishnfireman]

I've got 37k on a 3.0 Duramax in a 4 wheel drive pickup and love it.
It easily gets 50% better fuel mileage than my last three 5.3 ltr gassers. No way I can justify a 3/4 ton diesel anymore so this is the ticket for me.
PS I had a drag race phone app and did a 0 to 70 test with and without my boat. The Duramax was faster in both tests than my 2016 5.3 ltr

[JohnM64]

Gents,


Currently towing my 201 pro XL with a 2017 5.3 Silverado. I’m starting to approach the mileage where lifter failure is a real concern, and the 6l80’s indecisiveness on what gear to be in has me scratching my head. Not sure if a tune would clear things up with my current ride or not.

Looking at possibly upgrading. Right now the 3.0 Duramax, 3.5 Ecoboost, and 5.0 with the 3.73 gears are my front runners for a tow vehicle. I’ve looked at 3/4 tons but cannot justify it as this next truck will also be a daily driver.

Does anyone have real world experience with any of these trucks?

I like the ecoboost. Currently have 2018 2.7 L, previously the 2011 3.5 L, both in F-150 4x4.

The ecoboost twin turbo makes max torque at low rpm, around 1500 rpm, basically same torque curve as the diesels, and feels that way when pulling. Torque is paramount in towing.

I pull a Tr-20 and the 2.7 L handles anything easily - the 3.5 was almost overkill if that's possible.

[krindgen]

Had a Yukon with the 6-spd tranny, a BlackBear tune did wonders for that setup. Eliminated AFM and stopped the gear hunting. Have a 2018 2.7L EB that I'm really liking. With the 10-spd tranny don't think the gearing is such an issue.

[PowerFish]

I have a 2019 F150 with the 5.0 and 10 speed transmission. Honestly hard to beat, the 3.5 is a great puller also, had one of those. I traded off my 2015 5.3 Chevy at 105k and won't go back after the issues with that thing... Lifters, 6L80E Transmission, Torque Convertor, AC, Locks...

[99R93S]

I don’t know much about the Duramax, but the Fords I do. I would have either Ford if I wasn’t going to keep it past 60-80k miles. You might look into a tuner for yours, or a custom tune. As mentioned above, kill the AFM and clean up the transmission.

[CJ1]

I would have either Ford if I wasn’t going to keep it past 60-80k miles.

Why? And what is your experience with them? CJ

[bassdge]

Buddy has the f150 with the 2.7 eco and it tows his 19 ft with ease. I opted to get the 3.5 eco in mine since my Legend V20 is a big boat. Also tows with ease. Even when I trailer through the ups and downs of Pennsylvania on my way to Champlain, it barely has to shift around to stay at a steady speed. I could care less about performance and did it for the gas mileage when not towing. However, if you want the performance, the eco’s have it. I also love how quiet they are when running. If you are one of those that think the loud trucks are cool, it’s not for you.

[Skeeter1999]

I have the GMC AT4 6.2l carbon pro. I highly recommend this thing for towing. It sucks from an economic standpoint.

[99R93S]

CJ, while there are a lot of good Ford trucks out there with no issues, I see an awful lot of them. More than I would like if I were keeping one long term. The turbo’s on the 6cyl trucks fail too often for my liking. On the 5.0 the phasers and timing sets also common. Both are fairly costly repairs. There are a number of smaller things as well. I will grant you, I’d have a hard time trusting a Chevy or Dodge either. If you put a gun to my head and said go buy a new truck (or newer) truck, I’d buy a Tundra. Even tho by me rust can be an issue on them. So yeah I don’t like any cars lol.

So as the op was asking about replacing a truck due to potential issues, I don’t see the Ford being any different than where he is now. As mileage goes up there will be a chance he would need a costly repair. Not really an upgrade imo.

As for my experience I have not owned a Ford truck. I am a Ford technician at a Ford shop. I have been a technician for more than 30 years. I do not claim that makes me an expert. It’s still just an opinion.

[bassdge]

CJ, while there are a lot of good Ford trucks out there with no issues, I see an awful lot of them. More than I would like if I were keeping one long term. The turbo’s on the 6cyl trucks fail too often for my liking. On the 5.0 the phasers and timing sets also common. Both are fairly costly repairs. There are a number of smaller things as well. I will grant you, I’d have a hard time trusting a Chevy or Dodge either. If you put a gun to my head and said go buy a new truck (or newer) truck, I’d buy a Tundra. Even tho by me rust can be an issue on them. So yeah I don’t like any cars lol.

So as the op was asking about replacing a truck due to potential issues, I don’t see the Ford being any different than where he is now. As mileage goes up there will be a chance he would need a costly repair. Not really an upgrade imo.

As for my experience I have not owned a Ford truck. I am a Ford technician at a Ford shop. I have been a technician for more than 30 years. I do not claim that makes me an expert. It’s still just an opinion.

serious question. As a technician, you see vehicles that are brought in for repairs. That is why you have a job. Of all the f150’s sold, what is the actual % that needs the work done to the # of actual F150’s sold?
lot is kind of like someone working in a IT support job saying everyone I talk to has an issue with the system. Well, the people without issues do not call in….

[99R93S]

serious question. As a technician, you see vehicles that are brought in for repairs. That is why you have a job. Of all the f150’s sold, what is the actual % that needs the work done to the # of actual F150’s sold?
lot is kind of like someone working in a IT support job saying everyone I talk to has an issue with the system. Well, the people without issues do not call in….

I have tried to not let that bias get into my posts about vehicles, I try to keep in point with the topic. I have no idea what the % is. I totally agree tho which is why I try to be careful about not making too strong a statement. There are literally millions of f150’s out there. That said there are also thousands of shops like mine too. I do believe it’s a small %. But just like the Chevy 5.3 afm issue that this post is about, I believe that falls into the same category. That’s why I thought my point was valid, that it’s close to an apples to apples swap. Your point is absolutely valid though. I’m sorry I can’t answer your question though.

[jb882]

You may well be right but since we don't have percentages for either maker we have to go off what we see. Personally i think you are taking way less of a chance for long term problems with a Ford vs a GM. Look at forums like this one. Lots and lots of posts about lifter failures from lots of people its a frequent and common post. Its a lot more common of a post than say a turbo failure from a Ford owner. Take that into real life. Of the people i know that own trucks and thats quite a few since i'm a bass fisherman. Almost 100% of the guys i know that own or have owned 08 and up GM's have had a lifter failure at some point. I myself have had 3 in two different trucks. Out of the the Ford guys i know( which are more than the GM guys) i know of only one with an EB that had had a turbo failure and he is the guy that never maintains anything and then complains when it breaks, he's the guy that just adds oil and never has it changed etc, i'm sure you know the type....

It just seems to me based off what i see, my own personal experience, and talking with people i know a GM is probably the worst bet if you plan to keep it long term by a lot. For me if i had to choose between a GM and a Ford today it would be the Ford every time. Given the pick of any half ton truck if i had to buy a brand new one I would probably get a Tundra, they have issues just like everyone else but they seem a lot less frequent and a lot less severe/costly.

Just to address "bias" this is coming from a former lifelong GM guy that currently drives a RAM and who's next truck is going to be an F450....

[99R93S]

JB882 I would not disagree with anything you have said. I would just say my experience differs from yours a bit. Maybe it’s region, maybe it’s just that I don’t get out much, or read online much. Neither are recall items so to me either gm or ford issue probably isn’t all that bad. It’s too bad we can’t really know the numbers. That said I would be willing to concede the gm issue is bigger, but by how much is hard to say. As far as personal bias I came from a 02 ram 1500 with a 4.7 that did 300k on original motor and trans (which everyone said those transmissions were junk too) that I sold running good. I now drive an 08 Silverado 1500 with a 5.3 (afm) and 200k on it. All original engine and trans with 0 issues. Like I mentioned earlier if I had to change I’d get a tundra, but I won’t get rid of my truck anytime soon. I genuinely appreciate the differing opinion and discussion. I’m not too old to learn new things or have my mind changed.

[mactlman]

Gents,


Currently towing my 201 pro XL with a 2017 5.3 Silverado. I’m starting to approach the mileage where lifter failure is a real concern, and the 6l80’s indecisiveness on what gear to be in has me scratching my head. Not sure if a tune would clear things up with my current ride or not.

Looking at possibly upgrading. Right now the 3.0 Duramax, 3.5 Ecoboost, and 5.0 with the 3.73 gears are my front runners for a tow vehicle. I’ve looked at 3/4 tons but cannot justify it as this next truck will also be a daily driver.

Does anyone have real world experience with any of these trucks?

cannot tell you how many new ones with less than 5k miles have been torn down for new lifters just in my dealerships this yr!! lots!!! one today even

i would get the 3.0 baby duramax if not the big one currently but hurry before the new 3.0 arrives in 2023

[CJ1]

CJ, while there are a lot of good Ford trucks out there with no issues, I see an awful lot of them. More than I would like if I were keeping one long term. The turbo’s on the 6cyl trucks fail too often for my liking. On the 5.0 the phasers and timing sets also common. Both are fairly costly repairs. There are a number of smaller things as well. I will grant you, I’d have a hard time trusting a Chevy or Dodge either. If you put a gun to my head and said go buy a new truck (or newer) truck, I’d buy a Tundra. Even tho by me rust can be an issue on them. So yeah I don’t like any cars lol.

So as the op was asking about replacing a truck due to potential issues, I don’t see the Ford being any different than where he is now. As mileage goes up there will be a chance he would need a costly repair. Not really an upgrade imo.

As for my experience I have not owned a Ford truck. I am a Ford technician at a Ford shop. I have been a technician for more than 30 years. I do not claim that makes me an expert. It’s still just an opinion.

The only thing I can say is we have at present at least 25 of them and no issues with any timing components. BUT they are serviced at 5-7k. now that being said we did loose a 5.0 at 40k miles or so. That truck had never had the oil changed or checked as it was basically empty and the employee that was in our other location is now gone. We have seen very minimal repairs and keep them to 225-250k miles. No turbo issues and the 5.0's all use about a quart or oil in 2500 t0 3k but that is nothing compared to the GM's I used to drive. Any way I also upfit trucks so I have to make good suggestions to my customers and I have had 0 complaints on these and the superduties. Once ford got away from the 6.0 and 6.4 diesels. CJ

[99R93S]

I would say CJ that a lot of the issues I see on the fords are ones that are not maintained as well, primarily the oil changes. If I had one I would change the oil every 4-5 k no matter what the meter says. I think that would alleviate a lot of the issues. But people don’t, so I just call it as I see it. I’m not saying it’s a crap load of them having the issues, but me personally I haven’t seen that many Chevy lifter issues either.