I want to know which engine you guys prefer. and let me know the REASONS. Chevy's 5.3 or Ford's 5.4. Thanks

 

295@5200 and a torque rating of 330@4000. It has an EPA fuel economy rating of 15 city/19 highway miles per gallon.

5.4L V8
HorseyPower 260 @ 4500
Torque 360@2500
5.4L auto - 15/19

 

Whoops...didn't finish all that...let me try again:

5.3L V8 Chev
HorseyPower 295@5200
Torque 330@4000.
EPA fuel economy rating of 15 city/19 highway miles per gallon.

5.4L V8
HorseyPower 260 @ 4500
Torque 360@2500
5.4L auto - 15/19 City / Highway

OK, now that we've got the numbers out there we can have a discussion.

The first thing you will notice is that the 5.3 makes more horsepower. Score 1 for Chevy.

The second thing you will notice is that the 5.4 makes more torque. Score 1 for Ford.

So far, we're even.

Now, most of the guys on this forum will quickly point out that the 5.3L makes its peak torque at 4000 RPM and the 5.4L makes its peak torque right down there at a measly 2500 RPM.

Clearly, as the folks on this forum will again point out, this where torque should be MADE in a truck, down low.

What everyone fails to note is that the 5.4L makes its PEAK torque at 2500 RPM. That means that after 2500 RPM, it begins to lose torque. Thus, by the time it reaches it max horsepower at 4500 RPM, it has already lost most of its torque.

On the other hand, the Chevy continues to BUILD torque the faster it spins, all the way up to 4000 RPM.

Now, consider yourself pulling a large trailer down the highway and you encounter a BIG hill. What will your truck do, downshift or upshift? If you said it will upshift, then you should buy a 5.4L and live in lala land.

The truck WILL most certainly downshift and when it does, your engine is going to start turning higher RPM's. Which engine would you want? The one that LOSES torque when it downshifts or the one that BUILDS torque when it downshifts?

Go ahead and buy the 5.4L. I'll see you at the top of the hill with little high windin', torque buildin' 5.3!!!!

Remember...2500 RPM = PEAK TORQUE...after that...you're just makin' noise.

 

i almost agree with you, my uncle had a chevy 5.3 in a 1500 sc and my dad had a F--150 super crew with a 5.4. both had very similarly wieghted camper trailers. the ford did end up beating my uncle to the top. please explain this, just for fun.

 

trucksforever,

The dynamic magnetic field over the antarctic circle was experiencing a strange fluctuation on the day of the "pull" causing, momentarily, the appearance that the Furd could out pull the Shimolay. LOL!

Actually, without getting into transmission type, rear axle ratios, what "similarly" weighted means, etc, there's no clear answer.

However, torque curves do not lie. The 5.3 will build torque when it downshifts, the 5.4 may or may not depending on RPM.

 

Actually, the 5.4 has 300 hp and 370lbs./tq., now, and the 5.3 has 295.

Unloaded the Chubby might have an advantage, well it does, less weight. But loaded the 5.4 shines, showing the 5.3 that down low is where power is supposed to be in a truck, not about to blow the motor trying to make horsepower.

 

i like the 5.3 better, you floor it you feel it all the way to red line. my other friend has a 5.4 and with some small mods still runs out of breath. floored still feels like 1/4 trottle. both loaded i still like the 5.3 because you can cruise fine but when you need it you with florr it and when you do the tranny will downshift thus making the 5.3 move and the 5.4 feel like it's working alot harder than i should. i always feel like the 5.4 is such a dog. when i first drove one i was not impressed. then my friends with an intake exhust and chip.... still not impressed.

 

"But loaded the 5.4 shines, showing the 5.3 that down low is where power is supposed to be in a truck, not about to blow the motor trying to make horsepower."

You have to try to "blow" the motor to make horsepower. The Ford won't make any either if until you rev it up to 4500RPM. At issue is can you continue to build TORQUE as the engine revs. You cannot do it with the 5.4. It will reach its peak and then begin its decline long before the 5.3 will.

Thus, even if it has 300HP (which I believe is only for the Lightning), that is only a measurement of how fast it can apply torque (that's what Horsepower is...how quickly torque is applied).

By the time the 5.4 reaches its peak torque, it cannot apply it very quickly (as peak horsepower is way above peak torque).

Conversely, horsepower and torque are closely matched on the 5.3. Meaning, that as every foot/pound of torque is gained, there is an equal gain in the ability to apply it. Thus, the 5.3 continues to build horsepower AND torque throughout its operating range whereas the 5.4 is limited to a very narrow RPM range.

This makes no sense to me. If I have a 5.4 with a stick shift, I would constantly have to try and stay in a HIGHER gear so that I kept RPM at a level where peak torque was applied. But...if I did that, I would also not have much horsepower to apply it (thus...the "doggy" feeling).

So, what to do with the 5.4...downshift to get more "power" or stay in a higher gear, watch the tach, and make sure I don't start losing torque while I sacrifice power.

No thanks. I'll downshift the 5.3, make more power AND torque when I need it, get my work done, and go home.

 

3V 5.4'S in the new F-150's make 300hp/375ftlbs. Also employs a variable cam timing system.....more torque over a much broader rpm range. Also i don't know were you are getting that torque drop off thing after 2500 rpms.....I've put my truck (2V 5.4 Auto) on the dyno many times and I see a flat band until 4000 rpms with a gradual decline after that. The 5.4 may peak at 2,500 but maintains 90% of that peak from 1900 though about 4500 rpms. Haven't seen a 5.3 do that yet....and belive me I've checked...

 

Horsepower and torque aside, the 5.3 is easier to service than the 5.4. On my 2wd 2003 F150, the oil filter is a pain to remove, located right above the front crossmember with a sharp metal dribble tray, not so on the 5.3. Also, try accessing the plugs on the 5.4, you can't even see them when looking under the hood. And, I have not heard of the Chevy exhaling sparkplugs, but maybe they do. Also, for it's displacement, the Chevy is much smaller than the 5.4. The engine is not half buried under the dashboard either, nor is it's design as complicated as the 5.4 (OHC, long timing chains, tensioners and now 3 valves per cylinder, more $$ if you need a valve job). But, if the 5.4 is reliable, I should not need to service it, other than the pain in the neck oil changes!

 

i just knew it! totally agree with you.

 

"Haven't seen a 5.3 do that yet....and belive me I've checked... "

Well...since I don't know you, I have no choice but to believe you for the moment. How many 5.3's have you put on the dyno by the way???

Do you have a torque vs. horsepower graph for the 5.4's you've dynoed???

Here is one from GM for the 5.3. I can't find one for the 5.4 (why not?) From this chart, it appears the 5.3 has a very flat torque curve. In fact, at 2500 RPM it already has about 300 FT/LBS of torque and applies it with about 175 HP at that point. It would be interesting to see what the 5.4's chart looks like.

Link to 5.3 HP vs. Torque chart

http://www.chevrolet.com/avalanche/p...ngine/5300.htm

 

Well the new 3V 5.4 makes more hp and more torque than the 5.3 L Chevy . All of this is across a broader RPM range as well. Chevy takes a back seat to the 5.4 in all areas now that the 3V heads are in place.

Yes, the 3V 5.4 makes 300 hp. My 2001 Lightning made 380 hp stock, and even more now.

 

"Well the new 3V 5.4 makes more hp and more torque than the 5.3 L Chevy . All of this is across a broader RPM range as well. Chevy takes a back seat to the 5.4 in all areas now that the 3V heads are in place.

Yes, the 3V 5.4 makes 300 hp. My 2001 Lightning made 380 hp stock, and even more now."

Really? How can you be SURE about that?

Do you know how horsepower is actually measured? Or do you just assume that everyone measures it the same way?

Here is some fascinating information I found that you might enjoy. I know I did. I've included the link as well as an excerpt.

The jist of it is this: Ford lies about horsepower and so does GM. The difference? Ford overrates their engines and GM underrates theirs.

Until you have both side by side on the dyno...don't get too cocky about those numbers you see in advertisements.

The excerpt:

"Advertised Horsepower
Surprise! Those horsepower numbers presented in advertising and brochures aren't always accurate. Though manufacturers are supposed to base their horsepower ratings on SAE net standards, they are not completely beholden to it. They often fudge the numbers. Ford and Mazda both recently got in trouble with the Mustang Cobra and the MX-5 Miata, respectively, when they delivered a car that had less horsepower than what they advertised. Ford ended up doing considerable warranty work to bring the numbers up where they belonged, and Mazda re-rated their car and offered to buy back any offended customers' cars. General Motors regularly underrates their engines, most notably the GM LS1 5.7L engine as installed in the F-body (Camaro and Firebird) cars. Mechanically almost identical to the engines installed in the Y-body car (Corvette), the engine mysteriously "lost" 40 advertised horsepower in the F-body chassis. Although this technically is as fraudulent as selling a car with less than the advertised horsepower, no one seems to complain when they get a car with more horsepower than what appears on the spec sheet."

Excerpt collected from:

http://neptune.spacebears.com/opine/horsepwr.html

 

StompGo- Along with my 2003 F150 I have a 2001 Camaro SS with SLP options, rated at 335HP by SLP. While I like the F150 better for everyday driving, that Chevy can really haul when it needs to, and I only have 300 miles on it, so it's not even broken in. I thought you posted an interesting article, I remember the issues with the Cobra. I drove a Cobra before buying the Chevy, the 305HP 4.6 revved real well, but was soft on the bottom end compared with the 5.7 liter Chevy. But now I'm thinking about the 390HP Cobra, that's supposed to be a hot performer that can put my SS in the weeds! I don't think it would be bad to have both, do you?