I am looking to trade my 6.2 SD for an F150 CC. My plan would be to level the truck, and add a slight larger/heavier tire. Nothing outrageous, but an AT tire, either in 18in or 20in, depending on what I buy and decide to do. I really like the look of the 20's on these trucks.

So is the 5.0, 3.5 or even the 2.7 the best engine for this. I really like the 5.0 specs and the thought of the V8 engine.

My concerns are this; MPG (of course) taking a huge hit and the truck constantly searching for gears and downshifting any time I hit a slope. I plan to start making a lot of trips from the St. Louis area to the Ozarks and MPG's are important.

Can you post what tires you have, size and MPG's?

 

Factory 20" wheels & tires with 2.5" frnt level and anything over 70 I get a whopping 16.
I've got the 3.5eco with the highest gear ratio, just can't remember if that is the 3.15.

 

Depends on the body style. If it's a Screw, then the highest differential gear is 3.31. Super & regular cab get 3.15.

To the OP: The best mileage might be with the NA 3.5, then the 2.7 EB. Kind of a tossup between the 5.0 and the 3.5 EB. The 3.5 EB is the strongest engine for towing, but the 5.0 can beat the mileage if you do a lot of towing. OTOH, if you want to tow a bigger load, the 3.5 EB might be the better choice.

 

Not really worried about towing, more about adding larger tires and a leveling it out.

 

It's hard to know how much a leveling job will impact the aero on the truck. But the larger tires will obviously add mass. If you're wanting to stay away from gear hunting, then I recommend the low end torque of the 3.5EB. My screw with the 3.5EB and 3.55 rear turns about 1,650rpm at 60mph and I can haul long hills and mountain passes in 6th gear.

My truck is all stock, but had a canopy and gear that's adds 620lbs (scaled). I'm averaging 16.9mpg per tank (hand calculated), and see low twenties on the highway. I do a fair amount of city driving and this is only about 1mpg less that the Explorer I replaced.

 

our '12 Screw has a 2" leveling kit and 33" tires on the stock 20" rims with 3.73 gears. It doesn't hunt for gears at all and we get mid 16's local and 20 on interstate only trips running 70mph.

 

Thanks guys. What tires do you have fordman? Weight is a bigger factor I believe than height at times.

 

I have pretty much what your looking to do. 2 inch leveling Kit, 20s, and slightly bigger tires. 5.0 with 3.55 gears, truck is never searching for gears, it will downshift on big hills sometimes, but no worse then stock.

 

They're P275/60/20 Hankook Dyna Pro ATM.