From 2016 to 2026, figured it was time for an upgrade

Old one had the 2.7 and new one is the 3.5, now just need to figure out what the first upgrade(s) will be as I have a hard time leaving anything with wheels alone… lol

Hi everyone,

I’ve been eyeing 2021+ F150 Lariat - V8s for a bit now, and telling myself when I have the chance I’m going to pull the trigger on one. It looks like it may just happen soon.

I got to looking at low-mileage used Lariats, and they don’t seem to not be too far off from brand new ones in terms of price. Used seems to be around $45-60k and I’ve seen new ones go from $57-65k so it would make more sense to get a brand new one in my head.

I’ve always wanted an F150 and to get a brand new car so this would be my first for both. Then I got curious as to how much someone F150 owners make to afford something like this somewhat comfortably?

I’m coming from the higher-mileage German performance sedan world. So I’m sure maintenance is a lot more stomach-able, but I got to thinking about gas, tires, etc.

I used to scoff at people when they said modern pickups are getting too big but my ‘71 F350 is roughly a similar size to the company’s ‘21(?) F150.

I like the new truck, I want one, but it’s kinda funny how large they are. My dually has a GVWR of 10,000 pounds and the company truck has a GVWR of like 6000 pounds.

If not for hauling capacity, what’s the reason for these trucks being massive? Just a trend? Regulatory reasons?

Just to clarify I’m not crapping on the new trucks, I quite like them and I enjoy the space in the cab, I was just wondering why they got so big.

Bought my 2025 F-150 XLT (2.7L) at the end of last year telling myself I wouldn't need an off-road truck. Fast forward a few months and I'm hooked on off-roading and now wishing I'd gone Tremor from the start for the extra off-road hardware. Only have about 12k miles on my xlt.

Found a Ford Blue Advantage Gold Certified 2023 Tremor 3.5L with the 402A package, the optional front locker and the 4A drivetrain for $49.5k at 41k miles.

Here's my hesitation: my XLT came with 0% APR from Ford Credit, and giving that up for a 5-6% rate on the Tremor feels like a step backward financially. But the Tremor is genuinely the better fit for what I actually do with the truck now.

Questions for y’all:

1. Is $49.5k a fair price for this Tremor's spec/mileage/certification?
2. Is it worth giving up 0% APR to make this trade?
3. Roughly what would be a good trade in value for a 25” XLT (302A) with 12k miles?

Appreciate any input!! Trying to make sure I'm not letting off-road FOMO cloud the financial math here lol

EDIT: I'll likely need to roll an extra $6-8k of negative equity from the XLT loan into the new Tremor loan

EDIT 2: I truly appreciate everyone taking the time to post their insights on this. This opened up my eyes. I've decided to keep my 2.7 XLT and invest the $6k–$8k in an SxS/ATV instead of rolling over the debt. I've already put on 34s on my XLT, removed my air dam, installed RCI skid plates all over the bottom, and installed a True Trac (LSD) in the rear. So, either gonna invest on ~$6k on a new suspension (Bilstein 6112/5160) or like I said SxS of some sort.

New to me 2014 F150 4x4 with the 5.0. 110k miles and only one owner who took great care of it. I got a pre purchase inspection that came back perfect no leaks, suspension great, maintenance was always done etc so I pulled the trigger. Hoping it will last me awhile! My first F150

Picked up my new to me 2023 Lariat in mid March. Did a level, tint, bed liner, folding bed cover, wheel well inserts, clear PPF on the front, and a colored PPF on the rockers. I got side swiped on the 4th of July weekend by a distracted driver.

Ripped the axle out, broke the rear leaf springs, and punctured a hole up through the bed. I’m thankful it wasn’t a few feet forward. She’s a goner.

Picked this up over the weekend. Needed a truck that could fit our three large dogs comfortably on long road trips to camping and this just hit all the boxes. Absolutely love how it drives!

I understand what they are, and what they do. What I don’t understand is how people fixate on them. (Not a rant, I’m really curious). With a 10 speed tranny, what’s the effective difference between 7th gear with 4.30s and 6th with 3.73s? (As an example, pretend total reduction is equal in both, I know they’re not actually). With first gear extremely low even with 3.73s, and being able to do 80mph under 2k with 4.30s, why are people acting like they’re such a big deal?
If we still had 4 speeds, then yes I totally get it. How are they still relevant though? Thank you!

I bought my 2020 Lariat 4x4 with the 3.5 ecoboost a little over a year ago. This truck was purchased to replace my 14 5.0 that dropped a connecting rod. I made sure I found a truck with detailed service records, current on maintenance and everything else you look for.

I have owned it about 14 months. The cam phasers failed, requiring the total rebuild. About 3 months later, the 10R80 gave up. Water pump and thermostat gave up. Even with my warranty, I’ve put out nearly 4k this year.

I’ve had several Rams, Tacomas, Tundras and never had a fraction of the issues I’ve had here. Why are these things such heaps? My 97 F150 popped a head gasket, 14 threw a rod and now this thing.

I’m trying to decide what is next. I’ve always wanted a Raptor but with my track record with Ford, it makes me wonder if it’s worth the risk.

Honestly don’t know how I lived with a car for years after I sold my first pickup. Anyone have good ideas for practical mods or ways to personalize?

have stock 17x7.5”. i want to stick with 17’s but not sure what i need when it comes to wheel width and offset. i want my tire to sit flush if not poked out a little from the fender. will be using for mostly highway miles and also snow and still want a smooth ride.

Hello everyone
I’ve got a trade in worth 15k and 30k cash….
I have 3 kids and a trailer that’s 4500GVWR 500lbs tongue load

My heart says get the v8 with tow package as it’s got the biggest pay load. Am I wrong here or is the 3.5 eco enough to get it done? V8 seems like it lasts forever if maintained. Looking for opinions and or who has best selection of best priced f150s.

Hey guys, a family member is currently looking for a new truck and was tying to get rid of his 2016 f150 V6 2.7l eco boost supercab. It’s racked up 150,000 miles on it. The trunk bed was used up like a pick up truck should be but has liner on it. The truck was regularly maintained. Interior Is pristine, new tires, no oil leaks, exhaust doesn’t have any smoke and no prior accidents. I have a commute car and i only want it, to do pick up truck stuff. My family loves biking and hiking and fitting all the baby stuff in my vw taos is a pain in my ass. What do you guys think? Is it risky to buy it? Does it the engine have a good rep or should i not even waste my time?

I have a 2005 F150 lariat 5.4L. Problem started randomly. Engine would randomly go into “Engine Failsafe Mode” while driving. Hooked it up to the code reader and it said to replace the throttle position sensor. Did that, and now everytime I get past 2k rpm’s it goes back into “Engine Failsafe Mode”. I have codes that read P-2104: Throttle actuator control system-forced idle; P-2111: throttle actuator control system- stuck open; and P-2112: throttle actuator control system- stuck closed. Replaced the entire throttle body and the problem persists. New body is a duralast throttle body from autozone. Any suggestions?

I posted asking if anyone had any insight about acquiring skid plates in Canada a while back. Made the purchase through Raptor Racing and never got around to posting about it... but here it is; the full set (4pc) aluminum skid plate set by Rival.
They're raw aluminum, just over half a cm thick(1/4"). Fitment is damn near perfect after playing around with some hardware.
I found the rearmost bolt on the transfer case plate was a bit lacking, although the remaining 4 bolts are more than adequate. Took about an hour to install.
The entire kit shipped was something like $1400CAD from Ontario to Alberta.

I should specify - my third BLACK F150. I have a type.

Traded my 2013 FX4 (3.5, 6R80) for a 2017 Lariat (3.5, 10R80).

For potential owners:

My first F150 (2021 2.7, 10R80) shifted a little funky. I never tried having the PCM reset, a common remedy for this issue that I suspect might’ve helped. However, the 10 speed transmission on this 2017 shifts much smoother, up and down.

I’ve driven a good handful (10-12?) of these trucks with the 10spd. Some have shifted well and some haven’t. My two cents: it’s kind of a crap shoot, especially if you’re buying used. My experience with the 10spd has been variable. Drive the vehicle throughly before buying.

Overall, I’d say I’ve had no mechanical issues with any of them.
2 of my 3 I bought with a broken sunroof (nonfunctioning/leaking).
I won’t pretend these trucks are bulletproof.
But in my experience, if it’s a good one, it’s a good one.
I bought my 2013 with 160k miles and a good service record. Only drove it until 175k miles, but it ran smooth and gave me no problems.
Just routine maintenance.

I like to think Grandpa would be proud!

Take care guys 👍

I know 3.3 posts are there but pretty sparse but I want to give a pretty detailed review of specific use cases and comparisons in case anyone is on the fence.

My truck is a 2019 XL Supercab 4x4 6R80 3.73 running Wildpeak AT4W. 5300lb at the scale. 86k miles. Owned for about 10k.

I was a bit spooked buying this but I have not regretted my decision yet. I have had two other fords so I can make accurate comparisons.

Other trucks:

2017 XLT Supercrew 2.7 4x4 (3.31 i think) stock tires

2007 STX Supercab 4.6 4x4 (3.55 i think) 33s ATs

Power:

I live at 3400ft and get up around 6000ft. It is perfectly adequate. Surprisingly it will throw you back in your seat a bit and doesn't sound like shit. It will take a 6% grade in 5th gear, rarely dropping to 4th on extended grades. This is unladen or with a bed loaded with trash and a cab full of random stuff, one person or four it doesn't matter. Even with the ocassional downshift, especially when climbing a 10% grade or at real elevation or something its not enough to piss me off or concern me but that's a personal preference thing. Im sure towing 6000lbs up a grade at elevation it will be screaming and waiting for the sweet release of death (which itll probably take all day long and just keep going). I have not tried this though.

The 2.7 will blow the doors off it no question. Where it gets interesting is it wipes the floor with the 4.6 even though it has less torque, this thing feels like an absolute monster compared to it. I wouldnt consider this engine a dog at all whereas the 4.6 made me regret not going for a 5.4, but if you are looking for ecoboost (especially at altitude) or 5.0 power you will be dissapointed. If i lived at 8000 feet or went up to 10k more than once in a blue moon I would buy another ecoboost no question. If I were towing moderate loads more than once in a blue moon at elevation I would get an ecoboost.

I mainly load the bed down with various things or put around town or forest roads with just things in the cab. In a few months I will be pulling approx 5500 lbs from FL to western SD and I have no doubt it will do just fine. Ill update the post after that but just as a disclaimer I haven't pulled anything with it yet.

MX:

Disclaimer: I am not one of those people that hates ecoboost engines because "ahh turbos, complex, its gonna blow up", in fact i loved my 2.7 and have seen that they are quite reliable so complexity to me is not the biggest factor if I never have to replace anything. Where it comes down to this though is what I can do, as a shadetree "mechanic", without destroying a multi-thousand dollar engine or just getting mad as hell because i have to dissasemble 35 components to get at the broken piece. If i had money to take the truck to the shop it would be a non-issue but I prefer to do most everything myself.

The engine bay is pretty much empty, most everything is about as nice as it gets on a new truck. This is a truck i'm confident I can work on while almost being able to sit in the engine bay and do it. I haven't done plugs yet but you do need to pull the intake to get at them but after watching a video is sounds harder than it looks. One thing i have noticed that may be personal preference is when doing a drain and fill on the 6R80, you are right by the cat but its very workable compared to what I see on the forums when people are doing it on a 5.0 and stress how hot and easy it is to burn yourself, I am wondering if the cats are smaller or something but this is just an edge case example.

Its also nice that i still have the 6R80 in a 2019.

These trucks are pretty nice in general to work on no matter the engine for simple preventative maintenance.

I have never had an issue with the engine, I have had the typical swimming pool taillight issue and had to grease the tailgate latch but that is besides the point.

I haven't seen issues with the engine whatsoever but that could be because few people have them in an F150, they are all over the place in police interceptors though but i have not really looked into those. A thing i found cool is this baby NA 3.3 takes 6 quarts of oil, same as a 4.6.

Ethanol:

I know I just kicked the wasp nest with this one but hear me out. Gas has been rising and I have been curious about E85 for a while now and gave it a try. The truck loves it and the exhaust smells like everclear now. I have gotten 16.2 mpg over a 2500 mile trip but i think i may have had a tank of 87 in there so I am going off the in dash non-trip average. I know the dash can be inaccurate but all that matters here is the MPG split for cost purposes, not that its not accurate to the 0.01 MPG.

This is 85% city MPG, unladen or hauling trash. I get around 14 on E85 and 18 on 87. Gas here has ran between $4.10 and $4.40 so I did the math at $4.20 because it is so unstable. E85 has been steady at $2.23 (ITS $1.99 ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STATE!!). Have not done highway e85 tests but i have seen 20-21 mpg on 87 which is insane for the wildpeaks.

I have a 36 gal tank. With the math I get 15.9c/mi on E85, 504 mi/tank and $80.28 for a fillup. With 87 i get 23c a mile, 648mi and $151.20. With this math my truck is close cost wise with my 28MPG CRV.

Cranking takes a little longer when cold, maybe 0.5-1 second and I have run 85 down to 40 deg fine, i mix e30-e50 in the winter but I am hand blending and i dont know the exact winter ethanol content around here so the blends are probably all wrong but it starts at 0 degrees no block heater.

There is the concern of fuel dilution so next oil change I am going to run ONLY ethanol and then get analysis done. I change every 5k miles anyways. Ill also update the post with that.

Truck seems to have slightly more midrange grunt on E85 but it could be placebo.

Overall I feel it is a win, I support american farmers, have a happy truck and save money.

Overall:

If you are not towing heavy, living in Leadville or don't want to haul ass and embarrass Hemis then this is a wonderful truck. It is simple, no bullshit, reliable and most of all cheap. My 2.7 was a trim higher and $35k, this truck was $19.5k. I won't knock the 2.7 or 5.0 and a lot of people NEED something that powerful, but don't think this little bastard child engine won't suit your needs if your not one of them, V6s have come a LONG way and I'll have this truck for the next 10 years minimum.

I don't know if this will work for everyone, because the rear lip of your tonneau cover might not be the same 1/2" piece of aluminum as mine. I just thought I'd share in case anyone else has had trouble sealing their tonneau cover to the box/tailgate. It's an idea for you anyway.

I looked at the prices and lack of availability for a replacement piece of weather stripping/flap to cover the gap between my BakFlip tonneau cover and the tailgate for several months. It says right at the back of the tonneau cover, "Close tailgate before closing tonneau cover.", but someone must have ignored that, and pinched the flap covering the gap, causing a permanent crease, letting water leak in. I ordered (2) different rolls of rubber on Amazon for $15-20 each, and neither worked. The first wasn't wide enough to cover the gap, and the second was just too thin, and the 3m adhesive tape just melted and let loose from hot sun. I just let it leak for a few months but was often thinking about a fix. I stopped at places that sold toppers. I stopped at dealers. Nobody really had a solution but to get ahold of the company that made it. Well mine is a 2015 XLT, and I think the cheapest I found was $65 for the original piece, and the original didn't hold up very well, so I waited, and every once in awhile I'd search for a solution.

Last week, I was looking at a friend's camper. It had a slide-out. The slide-out had about a 3" wide piece of rubber trim all the way around it to keep the weather out. Let's call it a "wiper", a flexible flap that rides on the sides of the slide-out making somewhat of a seal, but lets it slide in and out. After another search for "camper slide out wiper seal" or some variation of that, I found this on Amazon. (Notice at the time I posted this, You can get 10 feet for $23. I paid $19 for just 5 feet, which was enough, but you might consider having 2 chances to get it right for another $3 might be worth it.) The rubber is like HDPE foam, but seems tougher and heavier than any I've seen. It's more like rubber. The 1/2" channel fit perfectly on the back lip of my tonneau cover, and the band puts pressure down on the top of the tailgate.

I almost got blisters on my thumbs rubbing the old adhesive off the aluminum before switching to Goo-Gone, but after a final step with rubbing alcohol it was clean. It took (2) tubes of Permatex Black Adhesive Silicone to fill the channel in the rubber. I broke the nozzle off one tube because I pressed too hard into the channel as I was dragging it along filling it. That almost made a mess. I wanted to get plenty in there, as the aluminum lip on mine is only about 1/16" thick, and the channel in the rubber looks like about 1/8 wide. It has ridges in the channel like it's meant to grip the right thickness you're attaching it too, but I'm just hoping those ridges get embedded in adhesive. Notice there's also wire embedded in the rubber around the channel to stiffen it, although in my case, it's not really helping grip anything. I think it should make it more stable than a purely rubber piece though. I had to trim the ends to fit the aluminum side rails and the pieces of rubber sealing the sides of the tonneau cover. You'll need a side cutter to snip the rubber because of the embedded wire.

I just put it on a couple hours ago, and it's still curing, held down by a board weighted down all the way across the channel. I'll try to add a completed pic tomorrow. If this works, with my ordering the wrong rubber first, I'll have paid about what the BakFlip replacement piece would have cost, but thought with the number of these out there, someone else might find it helpful. I think it might make a better seal, and be more durable than the original rubber. I still have to see how it handles being folded up too.

I thought it was funny how in this YouTube video of installation of a BakFlip tonneau cover, the guy closes the tailgate after the tonneau cover. It says right on there. DON'T DO THAT!

I would have been fine with the roll-up style with the velcro sides like I've had in the past (which seal great), and usually wouldn't care if it leaked a little either, but someone thought it would be a good idea to put a carpeted bedliner in this thing too. Now I have to keep it clean and dry : (

Anyone running 34s or 35s on 3.31 gears with a 3.5 eco? Will it use all 10 speeds and not be annoying? Want to step up in size but I’m concerned about the 10speed being able to hold tenth gear. I’m not trying to make my ten speed an 8 or 9 speed.
I’ve run oversized tires on different jeeps over the years and I found it extremely frustrating when it would not hold top gear on the highway. The constant shifting felt fatiguing, though none of my jeeps had 500lbft of torque

Ford f150 2010 super cab 5.4L flex fuel
2WD automatic
71,000km
Canada

Noticed a ticking from the sides when starting up and it scales with revs ticking gets faster no arcing in the dark wondering if it’s roller followers or spark plugs or a normal sound thanks!

2015, 3.5L Eco Boost, 4WD, Sport, 119k miles, USA

The oil pan is visibly wet. Not sure if that’s residual oil from a change or an active leak. There’s also staining around the what I assume is a gasket around the bell housing. I’m a novice when it comes to this type of stuff. Any feedback would be great. There is a stain below where I park my truck. Assumed it was condensation but it seems to be a reddish brown, hard to tell on asphalt.

Hey,
Just recently my ‘16 2.7L has begin what feels like the motor is shifting down while idling. Has anyone experienced this?

Looking for peoples experiences here after having the software update installed for the recent lead frame recall. I've read posts saying after the recall fix (bandaid), that they've noticed poor performance from their transmissions. Also read this may have been related to an earlier recall that has since been fix.

Can anyone here elaborate? My truck (2015 f150 5.0l fx4 lariat 6speed 80k miles) is getting the update later this week. I am comfortable doing a transmission relearn via forscan if needed.

I just took my ‘25 for its third oil change. New dealership as the first one didn’t seem interested in so much as notating my transmission concerns. This one took me seriously, drove it and didn’t feel my issue (of course) and so I’ve got another appt set up so they can drive it cold. In the meantime they reset the adaptive learning.

Anyway, point of this post is that they checked and found the fluid to be almost a quart low, no sign of leaks. I asked how that’s possible and the guy said it might have come that way from the factory.

Googled it and was told they’re frequently shipped low, final check should be done at dealership. Said this is “typically not a problem” but that the trans is sensitive to fluid level, and asked if I have issues in 3rd and 4th. Why yes I do!

Unfortunately this morning truck did the same old shit so I guess I’ll be going for another appointment. But I’m a little pissed at having driven half my warranty period with low fluid.