It's kinda old school I know to say this but............if you have the tq you don't need need the gears.......if you don't have tq, then you need the extra gears......
But with an 8sp, I'm betting the trans clutch's are in for some wear.

 

Not to hijack but... Nobody BUILDS a stick anymore. Besides Ram Heavy Duty[/quote]

To continue the hijack...the reason nobody builds a stick any more is because nobody drove or bought them. If the market share is 3-5%, dealers stop ordering sticks. I remember looking for an Escape with a stick about 4 years ago. I found *ONE* in dealer stock east of the Mississipi. I bought a Subaru Forester which has a nice AWD system and a stick. Looks like the new Kuga/Escape will not have a stick available even though I'm sure in Europe the Kuga can be had with a stick.

Everyone in America is eating a cheeseburger, drinking coffee, dialing or texting on their cell phone, scrolling thru their iPod menus, playing with their Ford Touch screen, reading directions off their GPS, shaving, and putting on makeup while they are driving.

Out of 3 vehicles, I have 2 with sticks, including my beloved old 1991 BMW 318is. This car has no cupholders. It was designed when you were actually supposed to drive the freaking car while sitting in the driver's seat... (My E150 has an automatic.)

In 1980, 35% of cars/trucks had a stick. Now, the percentage is 6%. I just looked up an article, and 60-65% of Porsches are still sold with sticks (so somebody still wants to drive a car), but only 1/4-1/3 of Corvettes have sticks. It's a dying skill for kids to even know how to drive one. Maybe they should make an iPhone with a stick shift app

George

 

Lets not even mention a "3 on the tree".

 

We had a '57 Chevy with 3 in the tree.

YoGeorge I'd like to add most kids don't know what a stick is. Years ago my dad agreed to let a family friends daughter take his Jeep Wrangler for a drive. That dream ended for her when she asked "what's the second brake pedal for?"

EDIT: I had a '94 Explorer (not exploader) and when I bought it I was surprised and excited to see that it was manual trans. I didn't realize how heavy/hard it was to engage that hydraulic clutch in the explorer until I hoped into a manual jetta. Polls have been conducted on FTE to see who would buy a new manual truck if it was offered and also who would pay a premium over Automatic trans for it.
Most of my vehicles have been manual. Autos are convenient but just about every time I drive my truck I am slightly annoyed by something the auto trans does. I always lock-out 6 until I go above at least 50mph, shifting into 6th at 40 mph seems ridiculous to me and lugs the motor so I just lock it out. In town I lock out 5th, 4th, etc. depending on the speed limit and my speed.
Ultimately I would be pretty interested in a new manual Ford truck. I know I know the new autos are tough and better than the manuals, but it's a truck and we should have the option.

... getting off soap box now...

 

Hydraulic clutches are easy to operate in general. It was the old pivoting arm clutches that were tough. I commuted to college in a '68 Olds 442 with a Hayes racing clutch, and in rush hour traffic, my left thigh had a big bulging muscle. I also had a '68 hemi Roadrunner and an old Toyota FJ40 Land Crusher with sticks, and a slew of other stick shift vehicles (way more than half of the 40 or so cars I've owned), and hydraulic clutches really are easier because there is no chance of rusty and misaligned clutch pivot rods....

The Land Crusher and Hemi Roadrunner also had manual steering, which were quite the upper body workout especially with the big phat steering stabilizer I put on the Land Crusher to keep it generally moving in a straight line... Driving could be real WORK in the old days, and like in today's world, work is actually rewarding. You actually had to put your focus into operating the vehicle instead of playing with electronic gadgets.

George

 

I've got two Brockways with quad box shifting. Instead of one stick, you've got two.....one for each hand. Doesn't sound like a big deal until you realize you have to turn the wheel too. One's a 5speed+4speed aux, the other is a 5speed+3speed aux.

Unfortunately, stuff like that is being lost to history. Most people in the states don't know how to drive a normal manual transmission anymore, never mind one with two sticks.

That's part of the reason why I ended up buying a Mustang Cobra. They only sell it in stick and that's just fine with me.

 

Sounds to me like the competition is getting desperate. If you want good mileage buy an electric car, if you want to tow and haul in luxury buy a F-series!

 

I have to believe that each company isn't just trying to "trump" the other, but are struggling to meet the coming CAFE standards too.

I think within the next couple of "models", we're going to see some pretty radical changes to our favorite trucks....and not necessarily what we might consider as changes for the better as it relates to trucks.

 

360HP and 420LB/FT torque from the EB V6.

Nope. Not even close to the EB. Yes, close to the 3.7 V6 perhaps.

 

That Pentastar engine is a beauty, and it's pretty much saving Chrysler's bacon right now. Just look home many models it's being used in.
I do agree however that it's a competitor to the 3.7l Ford engine, and not the EcoBoost.

I wonder if truck manufacturers work hard at shedding some weight if we'll see the return of the NA v6 to common usage. Right now, it's a very rare option around here.

 

Not many keeping vehicles that long anymore. Hell, more would probably benefit from a lease than rolling over the amounts they do.

 

I have a 2001 mustang Bullitt with a purpose built motor and racing clutch. the fact that it is a manual clutch is really making me think about going automatic with a manual valve body. It hurts my knee so bad in traffic sometimes that I have to pull off the road and hang out for a while. I would like to see a zf6 in the f-150 but again, manuals that can handle todays power levels will cost more than the auto option.

 

WOW, that was 2 generations of trucks ago. The 545RFE may not be the most efficient as far as power loss thru the drivetrain, but is it is a quite reliable 6 speed auto. (2 second gears, one for upshifts and a higher ratio for kick down).

No the 3.6L in current form is not competing with the Ecoboost, it is for the base truck market. (XL type work truck or for the guy who may need to haul a sheet of plywood once in a blue moon). But it has been in development for around 10 yrs and like the Ford Modular engines, it responds quite nicely to boost
With gas already almost $4 a gallon and climbing, as well as Obama's unrealistic CAFE ratings coming, a massive diet as well as smaller, more efficient engines are the future of things to come for 1/2 ton trucks.

 

So how long are people keeping vehicles anymore?