My dads looking into upgrading from his 1995 F150 to a 1997-1998 F150. He has a question/concern about the differences between the 4.6L and 5.4L V8s. Right now his F150 has a 5.0, and it feels underpowered. And another problem is most of the 97-98s he likes (hes looking at ext. cab sb XLT 4x4) are mostly 4.6Ls. Can anyone compare the 5.0 to the 4.6 and if so does the 4.6 have more power than the 5.0? His main concerns powerwise are acceleration onto highways/interstates/passing, and moderate towing (up to about 6500LBS). Also we've noticed the 5.4s seem to cost a lot more and are harder to find than 4.6s. Is the 5.4 that much more strong to pay a few hundred extra bucks for one? Mainly he just wants a truck with more power than his 5.0. Thanks for any help

 

just my opinion, but if you tow 6500 lbs more than once a year, I would go for the 5.4. I have a 95 f150 with the 351. Just my opinion. If you don't tow that much, go with the 4.6, but if you want power for towing, 5.4 it's worth the extra couple hundred bucks.

 

the reason most of the used ones have 4.6's is because they were traded in on 5.4's. not eaxactly a joke. tell him to go drive a new one with each engine and then decide what to look for used.

i test drove a 4.6 for 3 blocks, then took it back, and tried my new 5.4.

 

a 4.6 will suit you if you are just using it as a truck, hauling, boats, general truck stuff. If you have a big load like a big trailer or boat, youd want the 5.4 but for everyday truck use, the 4.6 is plenty. No it wont throw your head back into the seat or smoke any sports cars/trucks on the road, but it will give you sufficient power. You can always put an intake and chip on a 4.6 to improve gas milage, acceleration, torque and performance. I have a 98 4.6 and i love it. I do my share of work with it and its been a great motor. Some say the 4.6 is one of the most reliable V-8's ever made, but i dont know how to judge that. Some 4.6's have 300,000+ and are still tearing up the roads.

for everyday use and good hauling/towing capabilities, a 4.6 will suit you just fine, and will get 15mpg in town and around 18 on the highway (thats driving it nicely though). A 5.4 will get around 13 in town and 16-18 on the highway.
thats my .02--take it for what you want

 

Hi Colo

Go with the 5.4L. Remembering that the a/t will rob more h/p than the manual tranny. Your gonna have even less with a stock 4.6L a/t. I know, i learned the hard way.

Good luck...OT

 

The 4.6 is about the sme as that 5.0 I highly suggest he go with the 5.4 . I like to live by an old saying and it goes something like this: IT'S BETTER TO HAVE IT AND NOT NEED IT THAN TO NEED IT AND NOT HAVE IT!!

Richard D.

WHILE YOUR HERE CHECK OUT MY GALLERY:
https://www.f150online.com/galleries....cfm?gnum=2479

 

I vote for the 5.4, but I'm partial!

 

HI!... Get the 5.4. You won't regret it.

 

The 4.6 has a higher HP output than the stock 5.0. If you are going to be using the truck for everyday commuting and light hauling, a 4.6 will be more than enough. After all, the 4.6 is the more dependable. I know of several people who have over 200,000 mi. on an original 4.6. Right now we have two in the family, a 97 with 177,000mi. and a 01 with 17,800 mi. If you are going to be using the truck for industrial/heavy duty hauling or pulling, you might as well spend the extra $1000 for the 5.4. The only difference between the two engines as far as HP is 29 HP. I think the 2004 is rated at 300 HP (5.4). I have taken my 4.6 up through the Sierra-Nevada Mountians with no problem. I can take anything on grades just by downshifting. Over all, the 4.6 has plenty of power for everyday use, but the 5.4 would be better for heavy duty hauling and pulling. They are both excellent engines!

PS-- I have smoked some sports cars with my 4.6. I've also smoked other trucks, too (Dodge 4.7, Bronco, Dorengo(sp?), Chevy 99 burban w/350, and others.). I've even kept up with a newer full size BMW off the line. The driver was pissed!!! The 4.6 is no joke and shouldn't be denunciated.

 

if you arent towing a huge boat or a big camper or something, a 4.6 will be just fine, I drove the 4.6 and the 5.4 and the 4.6 was fine for me, the 4.6 towed my boat just fine as well and I tow a 2200 lb boat. I think the 4.6 gets a little better gas mileage and is cheaper by a few grand. The only reason I got a 5.4 is because it was the last 2000 they had left with the .09 financing, but its more than what I need.

 

OK, I happen to own the truck per my signature. It has a stock 302 with true duals and no cats...only modification besides the custom intake that did absolutely nothing but make noise. This truck is resting on 33" mud terrains. At work I drive a 97 or 98 F-150 with the 4.6. It is a tiny little 4x2 reg cab so its very light. After driving my truck and getting into the 4.6 you can definately tell a diff in throttle response and a little more in top end power. Unloaded the truck runs great, but with a heavy load it bogs down BAD. I personaly don't think I would want any version of this engine in a extended cab 4x4 truck that is going to be used for medium towing. However, this truck has 147,xxx miles and no mechanical problems to date as far as I know. So it has proved it self well.

 

I would agree. If you have a 4X4 application you will be toting another 1000lbs (an extended cab is 600 lbs. heavier). In that case you will need all the HP you can get. In my situation I have a "City" truck...actually a "city with hills" truck and in my case it's sufficient. I adopt Mike Troyer's attitude when it comes to HP...he says (to paraphrase) that it's all a matter of what you (the consumer) want to do. In other words, there is no limit to what you can do to these engines to gain HP and torque. For instance, In a recent truck magazine, there was an article about a SC'ed 4.6. The darn thing was pumping 450 rear-wheel horses!!! I admit that if your going to pump up an engine you might as well start off with the larger (5.4). It's all a matter or taste and what you are going to use it for. The 4.6 is not a V6 engine...I've even heard that the V6's aren't that bad!!!

Interesting thread!!

 

Used to own a '91 F150 standard cab 4WD with 31x10.50 BFG's and got terrible mileage and so so power. Have a '98 F150 4WD XCab and only average about 15 MPG. Next one is going to be a 5.4l. Towing 2000lbs only avg 11-13 MPG now. The 4.6 really struggles at 55MPH up a steep grade, with RPM'S around 4500 towing that.

 

M-150 has got it right. I personally have raced 2 people and beat them both. a '99 Tundra 4.7 V-8 and a '00 Dodge with the 5.2 V-8.
These 4.6's are great motors! You wont be dissapointed with one i can 99% guarantee it. These trucks arent made to race but they have decent power, anyways so thats why i dont get on mine much, but i do like to hear those pipes roar every now and then!

If you want a truck to race around in, get a 5.4,,if you want a good reliable truck that will get the job done wtih better milage and more reliability, get the 4.6. Its not what all of us think that matters, its what youd be happy with.

 

Is there such a thing as Enough engine?