Swift transplant to Powerstroke F-150 complete

[Frstnflt]

Goodbye Tacoma. You were fun and nimble to drive but I want POWER and fuel mileage. Just completed the transplant to the new beastly F-150 powerstroke. Even with a mild uphill grade loaded it just purrs along in 10th gear. Getting 20 mpg with cruise on 74mph. Will likely drop when I level and put some more aggressive tires on it. LOVE THIS TRUCK. Thanks Hodakaguy for advice.


View attachment 33671View attachment 33672 View attachment 33673 View attachment 33670

 

[bsharp007]

Diesel is about 40 cents more per gallon in my area, why not go with the 3.5 EcoBoost? More horsepower and about the same torque.
Also more towing and payload. I'm not impressed with the smaller diesals from any of the half tons trucks.
And then there's the DEF fluid and the increased maintenance, all this for about 1 mpg difference.

 

[Ohpyramids]

I just got a 2018 5.0 FX4 supercrew short bed and I’m really digging your setup. I think the flush mount of a swift looks great on the short bed. The Hawk overhang looks goofy to me. Did you have to do anything special to get your swift to clearance?

You mentioned suspension and tires, what are you thinking? I’m super happy with the stock FX4 suspension, but I haven’t hauled anything or gone offroad yet. My truck is only 2 weeks old.

 

[Frstnflt]

1 mpg? That is not accurate. The difference is substantial. The 3.5 would would probably be around 15-16 under the same circumstances which is still good. Before the camper it was running about 27mpg at the same speed and the 3.5 I tested topped out around 20-21 (using onboard computer, not hand calculating). In the Winter yes that is a typical difference of fuel price but it gets closer in the Summer. The DEF cost is negligible and so easy to do.

However, given the cost premium of the engine, about $4K, the maintenance, and the lack of support I will probably have as this thing ages you are right. For essentially everyone, the 3.5 is a better choice. It is better in every other way. I just love diesels.

Diesel is about 40 cents more per gallon in my area, why not go with the 3.5 EcoBoost? More horsepower and about the same torque.
Also more towing and payload. I'm not impressed with the smaller diesals from any of the half tons trucks.
And then there's the DEF fluid and the increased maintenance, all this for about 1 mpg difference.

 

[Frstnflt]

I just got a 2018 5.0 FX4 supercrew short bed and I’m really digging your setup. I think the flush mount of a swift looks great on the short bed. The Hawk overhang looks goofy to me. Did you have to do anything special to get your swift to clearance?

You mentioned suspension and tires, what are you thinking? I’m super happy with the stock FX4 suspension, but I haven’t hauled anything or gone offroad yet. My truck is only 2 weeks old.

Cool! You can't beat the V8 for the music it makes. Yes, I prefer the flush mount and also the narrow models do not have the big rig running lights, though it would be nice to have a little more width inside. Another thing to consider is that since it is shorter, the top rises more so you can sit up higher in bed. I built a 3.5 inch platform which will eventually be some sort of storage. As you can see in the photo I also needed some jack extensions which I had a buddy fab from Al. Not sure on the suspension yet. Probably a 3/1 lift/level or an icon stage 1.

 

[bsharp007]

3.0L Power Stroke V6 Diesel 3.5L EcoBoost V6 Gas Power 250 HP @ 3,250 rpm 375 HP @ 5,000 rpm Torque 440 LB-FT @ 1,750 rpm 470 LB-FT @ 3,000 rpm Transmission 10-speed Auto 10-speed Auto EPA MPG (4×4) 20 City/25 Hwy/22 Comb 17 City/22 Hwy/19 Comb Max Towing 11,400 LBS 13,200 LBS Max Payload 2,020 LBS 3,270 LBS (5.0L V8) Fuel Tank 26 GAL. (5.4 Gal DEF tank) Avail. 36 GAL. Engine Warranty 100,000 miles 60,000 miles

Payload matters when you're hauling a FWC, mine weighs 1500 lbs dry. And you're right the diesel gets about 3 mpg more than the 3.5. But you could go for the 2.7 Ecoboost which gets 1 mpg less than the diesel and produces more HP and 400 lbs of torque and has a payload of 2250 lbs.
Also another factor at least in my case is if you plan to take your truck/camper to Mexico it might be difficult to find the right diesel fuel. My post is information only for people who might be considering a Ford F150 with a FWC and the tradeoffs for each engine offered.
Btw the Magma Red of the truck is stunning.

 

[Ohpyramids]

I don't get it, he already has the truck and loves it. Spilled milk.

3.0L Power Stroke V6 Diesel 3.5L EcoBoost V6 Gas


To anyone deciding on engines, I drove a 2.7 and it's a fun truck. Going by the numbers it's faster than my 5.0. I chose the 5.0 mainly because I got a great deal, it sounds rad, and I plan to have the truck for a long time. I love diesel engines as well, but doing turbo work on my 7.3 diesel van was not fun or cheap and I didn't want to have two turbos to think about.

@Frstnflt Can't wait to see what you do. Icon is high on my list. Also came across Falcon a few weeks ago. They have an f150 kit that gives you some adjustability on the rear shock dampening with a tow haul mode. Might be worth checking out as well.

 

[klahanie]

I'm digging it that he can drive into the garage ! Sure you want that lift, Frstnflt ?

Congrats.

 

[Frstnflt]

The rig is set now and a great weekend trip to Uwharrhie National Forest. Love it. Converted to 285/70/r18 ridge grapplers E rated, 2 inch leveling struts on front. Bags with onboard compressor on rear. The fuel mileage reflects a backroad trip usually around 55-60 mph and this does not even account for the non-calibrated speedo so should be MPG + 5%.

 

[Bill D]

Nice set-up and fuel economy.
Must be nice to purr up hills in 10th gear.
Looks much, much better with the new tires!

 

[patrkbukly]

Great setup.

 

[kmcintyre]

3.0L Power Stroke V6 Diesel 3.5L EcoBoost V6 Gas Power 250 HP @ 3,250 rpm 375 HP @ 5,000 rpm Torque 440 LB-FT @ 1,750 rpm 470 LB-FT @ 3,000 rpm Transmission 10-speed Auto 10-speed Auto EPA MPG (4×4) 20 City/25 Hwy/22 Comb 17 City/22 Hwy/19 Comb Max Towing 11,400 LBS 13,200 LBS Max Payload 2,020 LBS 3,270 LBS (5.0L V8) Fuel Tank 26 GAL. (5.4 Gal DEF tank) Avail. 36 GAL. Engine Warranty 100,000 miles 60,000 miles

Payload matters when you're hauling a FWC, mine weighs 1500 lbs dry. And you're right the diesel gets about 3 mpg more than the 3.5. But you could go for the 2.7 Ecoboost which gets 1 mpg less than the diesel and produces more HP and 400 lbs of torque and has a payload of 2250 lbs.
Also another factor at least in my case is if you plan to take your truck/camper to Mexico it might be difficult to find the right diesel fuel. My post is information only for people who might be considering a Ford F150 with a FWC and the tradeoffs for each engine offered.
Btw the Magma Red of the truck is stunning.

Diesel in Mexico is just about all ULSD now so that's not an issue anymore. We just spent 2.5 months down there in my Ram EcoDiesel (this is mainland Mexico) and not an issue at all.

 

[Bwht4x4]

I'm on my 3rd 3/4 ton diesel (over 313k mi total) and I'll never go back to a gasser. DEF is also never an issue...at all, and there is no "increased maintenance." My new 2018 Ram has 15k mi oil change intervals!!

Diesel is about 40 cents more per gallon in my area, why not go with the 3.5 EcoBoost? More horsepower and about the same torque.
Also more towing and payload. I'm not impressed with the smaller diesals from any of the half tons trucks.
And then there's the DEF fluid and the increased maintenance, all this for about 1 mpg difference.

 

[ETAV8R]

Looks great.
Crazy that they won't make the older narrow models for smaller trucks. The Swift looks at home on the F-150.

 

[Frstnflt]

Looks great.
Crazy that they won't make the older narrow models for smaller trucks. The Swift looks at home on the F-150.

Thanks. Yes I don't like the mushroom overhang as much but give up the space.

 

[Ohpyramids]

Any chance you could post some photos of the anchor bolts and platform?

 

[kmcintyre]

1 mpg? That is not accurate. The difference is substantial. The 3.5 would would probably be around 15-16 under the same circumstances which is still good. Before the camper it was running about 27mpg at the same speed and the 3.5 I tested topped out around 20-21 (using onboard computer, not hand calculating). In the Winter yes that is a typical difference of fuel price but it gets closer in the Summer. The DEF cost is negligible and so easy to do.

However, given the cost premium of the engine, about $4K, the maintenance, and the lack of support I will probably have as this thing ages you are right. For essentially everyone, the 3.5 is a better choice. It is better in every other way. I just love diesels.

I'm with you on the diesel and I have the Ram 1500 ecodiesel but the power, torque, mpg, etc. are crazy good. I think the gas engines do have some benefits but it's not that big of a deal. The prem cost for fuel (in some parts of the country) and upcharge for the diesel is a downside. Increased maint. really isn't that different; DEF is cheap. Oil changes every 10k miles, etc.

I'd love to hear your experience w/ the truck over time too! Ram's have their issues and it'll be interesting to see if at some point the EPA comes after Ford next.

 

[CougarCouple]

Nice looking rig frstnflt
Something caught my eye in one of the early posts. That was the large difference between empty and loaded. I think you mentioned 27 empty and 20 loaded for the mpg. That looks like a huge number. Not doubting it just thought it was kinda lg difference. My 6.2 gas varies 2-5 depending on terrain and speed. Also noted that locking the trans in a lower gear to get the rpm’s up helped mpg. I know diesels are torque monster, could mpg’s be improved by monitering rpm’s.

Russ

 

[mtnbiker99]

my post keeps getting deleted? why??

anyways,

F150 diesel have low payload and curious to know if you went over your payload and by how much. I enjoy my f150 diesel and would like to see if a truck camper will work knowing that i'll be going over my payload significantly.

thanks in advance