I'm looking for a used F150 SCab or SCrew for work.

I'll be occasionally towing a trailer of 6-7000 lbs; maybe once a week or less.

In my price range, I'm not sure if I should favour a 2009-2010 model with the 5.4, or a 2011-12 with the 5.0? I'm mostly thinking of reliability and repairability here.

The later models with the 5.0 would have higher mileage, (one in particular has ~240K KM) but all else being equal, what would you lean toward, and why?

My other options are SD trucks with the 6.2. I had a '12 SD CCLB, but I think I'd rather a smaller truck which is somewhat less thirsty on fuel.

TIA.

 

You'll be much happier with the power of the 5.0L vs the 5.4L trucks. Not saying the 5.4L's are under powered, but compared to pretty much any of the 2011+ trucks the 5.4L will feel sluggish. As far as reliability goes, the 5.4L is a seriously tough engine, company I used to work for had a 2005 F-150 5.4L and it was very regularly overworked, towing and hauling loads that were deep into 3/4 ton territory, It took it a bit to work up to the speed limit towing the 10,000lb+ trailer we had, but it still managed a cool 70mph on the highway.

I own a 2011 F-150 FX4 SCab 5.0L, and comparatively it's light years ahead of the 5.4L in terms of usable power and all that, My F-150 only has 41,000 miles on it and so far it's been flawless, but admittedly my truck is babied and well taken care of. I did on one occasion tow about 7,000lbs with my 5.0L and it performed great! A lot of credit goes to the excellently geared 6-Speed auto.

As far as the 6.2L Super Duty goes, The 6.2L is a fantastic engine, I've heard almost zero complaints about it from owners. I've driven a couple of 6.2L powered Fords, both 1/2 ton and 3/4 ton, and the 6.2L makes great power!

I think with what you'll be using it for, your best bet is to shoot for one of the 2011+ 1/2 ton's. 6 to 7K isn't a problem for them and they will be more efficient and powerful in day to day driving than the older 2009-2010 1/2 ton or the 3/4 ton truck.

 

5.0 all the way. Better power and mpg. I would say more reliable too. If you don't need the SD you will save at least 5 mpg on avg. I really like my 6.2 but I give up a lot of mpgs for it.

 

2011-up truck for sure, can't go wrong with any of the engines offered in my opinion.

 

The 5.4 in that generation with the six speed trans is a good combo, but the 5.0 is simply better. As always, with used vehicles, condition Trump's everything else. I'm not scared of high miles, but I want to see maintenance and repair records.

I agree for your use, the super duty wouldn't be a good fit.

Good luck!

 

I too would look more toward the 5.0 truck myself. I have one in my truck and love it. I'm pushing 71k miles on mine and other than a tune up at 52k, it been flawless. I will add one important feature to definitely keep in mine. Make sure the trucks that you look at considering all have the trailer tow factory option. Easiest way to tell would be to look for the tow/haul button on the gear selector. Also verify the trucks have the 373:1 gear set. With those features you'll be able to tow 10,000lbs. with the truck you get. One other nice feature on the 11-14 trucks that wasn't available on the 09/10 trucks, is that with the tow/haul feature you'll also get the manual shift toggle switch feature with the 6 speed auto. It'll allow you more control of what the trans is doing and when it shifts. But won't let you over rev the engine causing you to hurt anything. Good luck and hope this helps.

 

All of the trucks on my shortlist have the factory tow option with the brake controller and select-shift 6 speed. AFAIK, none have the MAX tow package with the short gears, but if I need to tow heavy, my business partner has an F550... with the V10 that drinks a breathtaking amount of gas!

I don't think I'll ever need to get close to 10K with this particular truck honestly.

 

If I bought a 11-12 truck, I'd sure as heck buy an extended warranty to go with it. The '11 model year was Ford's worst across their entire lineup as far as powertrain failures.

 

I traded in my 2000, F150 5.4 for a 2014 5.0 and the power is 100 more HP and 140 more ft/lbs of torque. It will run and in Auto you can lock out 6th or even 5th gear if need be to keep rpm's up.

I'd stay away from the 2011-2012 and look at 2013-2014, less chance of power train problems.

 

Good idea, but nobody is selling an extended warranty for a truck with +240,000 Km on the odo.

This talk of powertrain issues makes me think that 6.2L SuperDuty may be a better choice. The F150 I'm looking at is a '12 model, made in 06/2012. Any truck in the 2013 and up vintage is going to go much closer to $20K than I want to spend on a work truck.

I'm going to look at both trucks tomorrow or Friday; that will tell the tale.

 

hey now, the 3.7 and 6.2 2011-2012 trucks (actually any of them 11-14) have little to zero issues reported. Seems as though the mass market 5.0 and EcoBoost had some teething issues.

 

Can anybody completely decode a VIN for me? Or possibly call up a window sticker?

The VIN decoder tool only gives me basic information about a range of min-max capabilities on a truck I'm doing a deal on.

I'd specifically like to know what gears this truck has, plus any other relevant info.

 

Try entering your vin here:
https://www.etis.ford.com/vehicleReg...B0AF5.fcvas507

Not 100% sure it works for Canadian vehicles, but it is the best way I know to decode a vin.

 

Thanks meborder, I found that link in another thread here.

It's perfect.