6 cylinder tow vehicle

[Nitro 882]

Looking to replace my 2016 F 150 w/5.0 V8. 

I have found several potential candidates at reasonable prices and mileage but it seems they all have 6 cylinder engines.

I'm an old fart and it seems that years ago a 6 cylinder engine could hardly get out of its own way let alone tow a load.

Every January for years I've loaded my 800lb. motorcycle into the bed of my truck, hooked on to my 18 ft. bass boat and headed to Florida (1500 miles) for 3 months. I am continually impressed with how easily the 5.0 V8 handles the task and I won't settle for less.

I've heard some good things about the new technology V6's and would like to hear from those of you who have experience, good/bad, towing with a 6 cylinder F 150.

Thanks in advance for your consideration.

[gim]

14 minutes ago, Nitro 882 said:

I am continually impressed with how easily the 5.0 V8 handles the task and I won't settle for less.

I had a 2014 F-150 with that exact engine for 5 years. It handled everything I asked it to with ease. My one gripe was that the mileage was always the same, basically 17 mpg all the time, towing or not, city or highway. The newer V6 eco boost engines get better mileage overall. They can add power when you need it and lower the power when you don’t, saving on gas mileage.

[volzfan59]

I used to have an S-10 Blazer that I towed my old Tracker P/T 185 w/ a Mercury 90. Never gave me an issue at all. Even on steeper ramps, never touched the 4WD button. Pulled that thing all over east and middle TN along with north AL and GA.

 

When I first started racing stock cars in 1982, I pulled my race car on the trailer, spare tires/wheels, tools, etc with my old 1972 Ford P/T with a 300 inline six, three on the tree. Only trouble I had was trying to leave Tazwell Speedway (super high banked dirt track in east TN) after the races were called due to rain. I wasn't the only one, track was slick as owl ?.

[flyfisher]

I don't but a parent on my son's soccer team has a ford with eco boost they use to tow an RV trailer.  He said it does as good if not better than his expedition with an 8cyl.  

 

[slonezp]

6 cylinder Ecoboost has some problems but it seems to be a good engine. The 4 banger not so much. That being said, there is no replacement for displacement.  

[Scott F]

I have a 2019 F150 with a 6 cylinder(no turbo). I tow a 17ft fiberglass bass boat with it. I don’t notice much difference towing with the 6 vs the old 5l V8. I’m also not a speed demon. Pushing hard on the accelerator killed my gas mileage in the V8 and does the same in the V6. The old V8 got 19 mpg on the highway not towing, and 16 with the boat behind.  The V6 gets 25 on the highway and only 18 with the boat. Bigger drop in mileage withe the 6, but 90% of my driving isn’t towing so I like getting the better mileage the 6 gets than the 8 all the days I’m not towing.

[GReb]

I have a F150 with the 2.7 eco boost and it tows a 20ft bass boat with tandem axle fine. I live in a fairly flat area so take that into consideration but it’s rated at 10k lbs which is double most bass boat rigs. The 3.5 eco boost will tow better than the 5.0
 

The truck itself has been great. I bought it new and it has 165k miles on it now. The only mechanical failure was a water pump at 155k miles. Lifetime mpg is 21.2 according to vehicle. 

[Glenn]

After 20 years, I replaced my 1998 F-250 V10 with a 2018 3.5 V6.  The specs said it had more torque, more HP, and 3x better mileage than my F-250.

 

I didn't believe it.  But I bought it anyway.

 

They were right.

 

I often tow over a major mountain pass, and I had to "time" the spots just right going uphill in my F-250 so it wouldn't downshift and slow down.  That's not the case with my F-150. It powers up and down giant hills and mountains with ease, and with much better gas mileage (9mpg vs. 15mpg towing, 12mpg vs. 19mpg without towing).  That 10-speed does the trick.

 

I'm an old fogy like you.  I really didn't think a V6 could compare to a V10. I honestly didn't think a F-150 could out-perform an F-250. Boy was I ever wrong! 

 

Technology has come a long way.

 

 

[ElGuapo928]

My 2017 Ram with the 3.6 V6 tows my heavy Ranger over the hill to Roosevelt with no problems whatsoever. I’d go so far as saying it’s the best tow rig I’ve ever owned.

[PourMyOwn]

I bought a new Ecoboost 3.6 v6 in 2013-with the max tow package which is mirrors, gears, and a tyranny cooler. It hauled my bass boat all over New England and my snowmobiles 8 hours round trip to Canada. It was better than any V8 truck I've owned, including the Tundra sitting in my driveway now. 

[Dwight Hottle]

8 cylinder would be my choice but I did tow a heavy 20’ StarCraft STX with a Toyota 4-runner after they dropped the 8 cylinder in favor of the 6. The 6 cylinder 4-runner handled it well just not as strong as the 8 cyl.

[Nitro 882]

Thanks to all for the prompt replies. You gave me the confidence to take the next step. I'm going shopping. ? I'm going to insist that, if I bring my boat to the dealer,  I can tow it with the new truck a couple of miles before I commit. It wont take much for me to know if the 6 banger will satisfy me. As I said in my original post, I won't give up the comfortable feeling on a 1500 mile trip that comes from the ease in which my 5.0 ltr pulls my toys. I have to look in the mirror occasionally to see if the trailer is still there.

Thanks again to all.

[A-Jay]

1 hour ago, Nitro 882 said:

Thanks to all for the prompt replies. You gave me the confidence to take the next step. I'm going shopping. ? I'm going to insist that, if I bring my boat to the dealer,  I can tow it with the new truck a couple of miles before I commit. It wont take much for me to know if the 6 banger will satisfy me. As I said in my original post, I won't give up the comfortable feeling on a 1500 mile trip that comes from the ease in which my 5.0 ltr pulls my toys. I have to look in the mirror occasionally to see if the trailer is still there.

Thanks again to all.

Good Luck ~

I'd be looking for a long steep incline/decline 

(insert Big Freaking Hill)

Evaluate going Up & coming down which is good part of my drive with the boat trailer going just about anywhere here. 

btw - I'm a 6.2L guy. 

A-Jay

 

[Dwight Hottle]

56 minutes ago, Nitro 882 said:

Thanks to all for the prompt replies. You gave me the confidence to take the next step. I'm going shopping. ? I'm going to insist that, if I bring my boat to the dealer,  I can tow it with the new truck a couple of miles before I commit. It wont take much for me to know if the 6 banger will satisfy me. As I said in my original post, I won't give up the comfortable feeling on a 1500 mile trip that comes from the ease in which my 5.0 ltr pulls my toys. I have to look in the mirror occasionally to see if the trailer is still there.

Thanks again to all.

 You have got a good plan in place. When I went from the 8 cyl to the 6 cyl at my local Toyota dealership I voiced my concerns. The salesman told me to take the new 6 cyl 4/runner home for the weekend & try it out towing my boat. This happened before I bought the new vehicle. I found out afterwards Toyota recommends not towing with a new vehicle until you have 500 miles on the odometer. 

[Catt]

Another consideration should be how is the rear end geared.

[guitarplaya39]

I can't even feel my 17ft bass boat behind my V6 4Runner (2006). My buddy has a 2019(?) F150 Ecoboost and it'll still pin ya to the seat towing his 18ft deep-v.

[Darth-Baiter]

i went Sandhill crane hunting with a guy with the Ecoboost ford. the bigger motor according to him.  it was PEPPY!  

 

he said it got awesome MPG unloaded but it got awful anytime he towed anything.  

[Bankc]

They've made some HUGE changes to engines in the last 20 years.  I wouldn't worry about the number of cylinders these days.  Instead, focus on the towing specs.  The transmission, frame, differential, and all of that stuff will have a lot to say about how much a vehicle can tow.  

 

Just look at the new Chevy Silverado 1500.  That 2.7 liter 4-cylinder engine puts out 420 lb/ft of torque and can pull 9,500 lbs!  

[Darth-Baiter]

i am friends with a Toyota Truck engineer.  

 

he thinks the reason the old Toyota motors are so ridicously long-lived is because they were so under-stressed.  take that sluggish big motor in the FJ80 as an example.  he is retiring and very curious how the new motors where they squeeze more from less are gonna last.  

 

 

[PourMyOwn]

55 minutes ago, Darth-Baiter said:

i am friends with a Toyota Truck engineer.  

 

he thinks the reason the old Toyota motors are so ridicously long-lived is because they were so under-stressed.  take that sluggish big motor in the FJ80 as an example.  he is retiring and very curious how the new motors where they squeeze more from less are gonna last.  

 

 

I've also read that the high nickel content in the cast iron made it last longer. How true that is I don't know, but I had a few 22R motors make 300K plus.

[Tackleholic]

13 hours ago, PourMyOwn said:

I bought a new Ecoboost 3.6 v6 in 2013-with the max tow package which is mirrors, gears, and a tyranny cooler. It hauled my bass boat all over New England and my snowmobiles 8 hours round trip to Canada. It was better than any V8 truck I've owned, including the Tundra sitting in my driveway now. 

I have the exact same truck.  I bought it because my F150 V8 was laboring while going uphill pulling my boat.  The V6 Ecoboost has considerably more torque and never sweats a steep hill.  I live in the Ozarks and there is no such thing as level roads here.

[Darth-Baiter]

1 hour ago, PourMyOwn said:

I've also read that the high nickel content in the cast iron made it last longer. How true that is I don't know, but I had a few 22R motors make 300K plus.

that motor is a marathoner!!  for sure.  gutless, but just chugs and chugs on and on.

[TnRiver46]

21 hours ago, Scott F said:

I have a 2019 F150 with a 6 cylinder(no turbo). I tow a 17ft fiberglass bass boat with it. I don’t notice much difference towing with the 6 vs the old 5l V8. I’m also not a speed demon. Pushing hard on the accelerator killed my gas mileage in the V8 and does the same in the V6. The old V8 got 19 mpg on the highway not towing, and 16 with the boat behind.  The V6 gets 25 on the highway and only 18 with the boat. Bigger drop in mileage withe the 6, but 90% of my driving isn’t towing so I like getting the better mileage the 6 gets than the 8 all the days I’m not towing.

Well, sounds like you’ve lived and charted exactly what the OP was wondering! 
 

one thing I didn’t see but may have missed, how big is the OPs boat motor (hp) ?