There aren't a lot of people coming to this forum giving their impression of the 3.7 V6 in the F150 yet. I took delivery of one a week ago. I have to admit, I haven't had a chance to drive it much. I haven't even made it through a half tank of fuel yet.

In the coming days, or weeks, I will give my opinion of the F150 with the 3.7 V6. In this first post of the thread I will give a little bit of my vehicle history. If you just want the low down on the 3.7, skip ahead to the post where I get into it.

My first new vehicle was a '94 F150. 4.9/5-speed. Manual roll up windows and a bench seat. It was new and I was happy. I drove that for a short time and realized that I wanted a little more.

I ended up in a '97 Contour. 2.0 ZTEC/5-speed. Had power options and a sun roof. Fun car but felt like a tin can . I drove it for three and a half years and I felt that I needed a truck. I also felt like I needed to slow down.

I got a '00 Ranger 3.0/auto. DOG, DOG, DOG! I couldn't stand the lack of power. It slowed me down for sure, but drove me CRAZY!. After nine months I traded to the '98 F150 STX that had been on my dealers lot for the entire time that I owned the Ranger.

4.6/5-speed. It was nice having a V8. The trouble was the speed limiter shut the truck down at about 95mph. I needed more. That's when I found F150 Online and Troyer Performance. I caught the mod bug after getting a chip. I ended up bolting a Magnacharger to that 4.6. When 6psi wasn't enough I got the 9psi pulley. That truck was a blast and I learned a TON about making a motor fast. I had that truck for a while. I actually paid it off. It wasn't long before I wanted more. I traded that truck in on a '04 Lightning.

It was used, but only lightly. The previous owner had already done some mods so it was over 400hp when I got it. Awsome! Brute force! Loud, headers, high flow cats, wife complained, constantly, about LOUD. Then it wouldn't pass MA state inspection. Round and round and eventually it was easier to get rid of it. I wanted power AND utility so I got the '06 Expedition.

Good SUV, untill gas was four bucks a gallon. Then it was a liability, or so I though. I dumped it for the '07 Edge with the fuel sipping (comapratively) 3.5 V6.

The Edge is a great crossover, but not a truck.

When I saw that Ford was doing the 3.7 in the F150 I was paying attention. I followed the progression of production. When they started to hit the showrooms I needed to check them out. When I drove one I realized that it was a pretty good compromise. A peppy V6 in a solid pick up.

So, now, after having the truck for a short time, I need to drive it so that I can tell you all what I think. That's to come because I haven't put more that 250mi to this point.

Stay tuned!

 

My basic 6 cyl 2003 had 200 hp .Now they've gone back to a basic 6 cyl , a little heavier but at 300 hp !! My 2009 8 cyl 3 valve has 300 hp. Engine efficiency certainly has been improved !

 

What are the specs on your new ride? 2whl or 4whl? What model, package, gear ratio..........?

 

It's a regular cab STX, 4X4 w/3.73's. Pretty basic set up.

 

I am most interested in hearng about the 3.7 L. I am thinking about buying a '11 4x2 XLT Supercab or Supercrew with the 3.7L. I currently drive a '94 SC with the 302. I would like a little more throttle response, but don't need another Mustang GT, my fun car, vehicle type performance. To be able to get 20 mpg for my daily driving instead of 14 mpg would be great.

 

I would hope that you already have your opinions on it seeing that you already bought it. I guess you are saying you will give a more in-depth review?

 

So does it feel like a more peppy V6 or a soft V8?

Or in other words, does it have some low end grunt?

 

Well, I do have an opinion, sort of.

You might remember when a political figure once said of the ObamaCare bill, "we've got to pass it to find out what's in it" ? Well, this is somewhat similar to that.

I did an initial test drive for about twenty minutes. I liked the way the truck drove, though I was driving a Ford Edge so it was a completely different feel. I wasn't sure that the V6 was going to have enough get up and go. I took the truck for an extended day long test drive. I felt then that it would suffice. Now I've got to drive it through every day situations so that I can let others know what I think.

So yes, I will give a more in-depth review.



I really haven't had a chance to put it through it's paces but with 275mi on the ODO I would say that it's a peppy V6. It doesn't have the lift the nose of the truck up low end grunt. I'm not saying that it's a slouch though. Like all of the reviews say, this is a rev happy motor. If you want to get moving in a hurry, you just have to hold the pedal down and it'll wind through the gears in a hurry.

It's not a rocket, but it's got what it takes to manuver in real world driving situations. I think that for people who aren't towing, don't carry heavy stuff and generally drive around in an empty truck the V6 would be a good option. I understand the need for speed. You can see that by the other F150's that I've had. People who want their truck to be a rocket, you have some good options. For me, the 3.7 is decent power and better fuel economy. When the fuel prices climb, I don't want to be forced to park the truck to save money.

I've got to say that the 3.7 is not like the V6's of the past. It does have what it takes to get a heavy truck moving at a decent pace. I do think that it's a good choice for people who don't want or need to spend a ton of money on a truck. I do believe that it will get markedly better fuel economy than the 5.0 if driven consiously.

 

I plan on buying a bunch of 3.7's very shortly here for our company fleet. I believe they will make a great fleet truck. Base model......bare bone work trucks.

 

Great review so far, cant wait to hear more.

 

I'm in your same shoes as well.

I get F150 XLT crewcab 2wd's. Coworkers currently have that weak 4.6L 2v in them. I will exchange 2 of them, don't know if I need to get them the V6 or the 5.0L

They might haul some heavy stuff very seldom or tow something less than 1,500lbs maybe a couple times a year.

 

My 3.7 is plenty peppy and keeps up with traffic fine. It seems to hunt a little between 4/5 gears.

Very interested to hear your experience on fuel economy. I'm disappointed in my 3.7L since it is no where near as efficient as the 5.0L guys posting on the web. But, like you I only have barely over 200 miles on the truck and don't want to be too rash with forming an opinion.

2011 3.7L XLT Supercab custom 4x2, 17 inch wheels, 3.73 rear

Results based on the on board computer's readings.

Total so far on odometer B: 15.6
First 100 miles: 20.6
Best round trip on the freeway: 21.6
Around town: 17.7

 

I believe that the 3.7 is going to be a fine engine for the F150 work truck. I drive an '07 E250 for work. It's got a 5.4 but it's carrying some weight and by no means feels "fast". Not that going fast in a van is a good idea anyhow. I really think that the 3.7 in a pick up that isn't hauling too much weight is going to be at least as good as the 2V 4.6.

My truck may not have the low end grunt of a V8 but once it's moving it pulls hard. I've been driving pretty mellow since I took posession of the truck. It's pretty dangerous driving around here lately with huge snow banks blocking everyones views. People pulling out of side streets and driveways can't see if traffic is clear for them. They have no choice but to get the nose of their vehicle into the roadway so they can see. I've got to take it easy on the surface streets till some snow melts.

The highway is a place were I can get moving a little better. I've been trying to see what kind of fuel economy I can get, according to the onboard readout, so I've been taking it easy on the highway too. Today I decided that I'd open it up a bit. Honestly, this V6 has got some pull on the highway. I had an '06 Expedition with the 3V 5.4. This V6 pulls on the highway like that did, partly because the V6 is mated to a 6-speed. There is a marked change, like a boost, when something changes in the variable timing.

I'm not going to try to convince people to get this motor. It sounds like the old 4.9, untill you get in the upper rpm's when it sounds like a GM V6 with dual exhaust. It's not going to sound cool. It's probably not something that there is going to be a lot of mods for. It will cost less than an EB or a V8. It will use less fuel than either, if driven appropriately. It's worth looking at for some, and I believe that it will be a worth while investment for companies in need of inexpensive, adequate, reliable transportation.

 

Please elaborate on your mileage, with numbers.

As for the sound of the engine, I like it A truck with the heart of a sports car.

 

So far my average MPG is at 17.9. I haven't reset it since I picked up the truck.

I don't know what the onboard readout uses to come up with the average MPG. I would be interested in knowing. What I found is that if I keep the tach under 2k rpm MPG goes up. That's not hard to do around town but on the highway that means going 70 MPH or less. I'm used to setting the cruise at 75. 70 feels slow.

So far it appears that this regular cab, 4X4 pick up is getting about the same fuel economy as the FWD Ford Edge that I traded in.