Ford’s latest F-150 EcoBoost has had one of the most radical changes for the F-Series lineup in recent memory. The body is now aluminum, and the EcoBoost V6 has scaled down, from 3.5L to 2.7L. Barely larger than the Mustang EcoBoost’s 2.3L four cylinder, the new motor makes 325 hp and 375 ft/lb torque, or, as Ford claims, an improvement of 15% power to weight ratio over the 2014 5.0L F150. During a test at the Davis Dam, the same one the SAE uses for their J2807 towing standards, they pitted the new F150 EcoBoost against a Ram 1500 with the new diesel, a Toyota Tacoma with a 2.7L four and a 5.3-powered Silverado. Any guesses as to who won?
The EcoBoost series and the aluminum F150 begs a question: Is Ford taking the right direction? While GM is reliving every sin of the 1990s and 2000s with each recalled car and Chrysler is seeing red, making the kinds of motors that somehow are keeping AMG tuners awake at night, Ford’s engineers and tuners have taken a turn for the smaller and lighter…and unlike when the party was over in the early 1970s, the four and six cylinders aren’t lifeless boat anchors dragging around the kind of vehicles that would make you want to bike to work. The Mustang EcoBoost four cylinder looks to be a riot, the Fiesta ST has been praised as a well-rounded small car with a sporty leaning, and rumor is that the U.S. will (FINALLY!) get the psychotic Focus RS with AWD and a snotty motor underneath.
- With the upcoming CAFE regulations set to impose a 54mpg rating for passenger vehicles, it seems that Ford is earnestly trying to make an effort to meet the guidelines. From where we stand, we don’t know if Mopar is just throwing a huge party before it has to end or has finally embraced the insanity that they last saw about 1970, and GM is the kid in the corner eating paste compared to either, with the Corvette and Camaro keeping things interesting and the trucks and SUVs keeping the company afloat. We know that it’s one hell of a party as far as the automotive world goes, but where does the future actually lie? Larger motors that don’t have to work and gearing, or smaller boosted engines and less weight?
Sadly, when all of the big “party motors” are effectively legislated and priced out of existence over the next ten years, Ford’s current insistence on acting “quasi-Japanese” (e.g. smaller and lighter) is going the leave future junkyards filled with awful-sounding, small-bore stuff most hot rodders won’t buy.
But much smaller mills, more gears, lighter bodies, and high-voltage electric assist are all inevitable in the current regulatory climate. 500 Vipers or Hellcats a year won’t do anything to change that . . . .
Easy with the broad statements about what hot rodders will buy out of a junkyard. I have been itching for some of these engines and platforms to age a bit and see what shakes out as the best bang for your buck. I don’t need a honking V8 to make really great power. Doesn’t mean I don’t like a SBC engine but I like making power with what is around.
I said “most” not “all” . . . And “past performances does not predict future results.” 🙂
On the other hand, the number of fours and sixes you’ll see in staging lanes across the country, except in a handful of special events, is relatively tiny in comparison to their OEM percentages. That probably means something.
The new mpg mandates may actually get the manufacturers to take a hard look at their grossly overweight vehicles if they want to compete. The average light duty pickup truck owner always complains about the lousy mpg. Especially the guys who drive them daily. Eventually, they will have to choose whether they want big horsepower or good mpg. The guys who need to tow heavy things move up the super duty classes of trucks anyways.