Hi all -
I am looking at buying an F-150 with a 4.6L 2V engine, but the interweb shows conflicting information concerning HP/torque specs. I completely trust no web site, including Ford, and I certainly don't trust any AI answers.
Some web sites say the HP increased from 231 to 248 in 2006, and other sites say 2007.
I believe 2007 is the correct answer, but I have been dealing with cars (and Fords in particular) for about 45 years and I know parts cutoffs rarely intersect EXACTLY with a model year, so it wouldn't surprise me to find that some early 2007s were made with 2006 technology or vice-versa. One example is the 2011-2013 5.0 Coyote, which had soft valves that sink into the head. Some of those valves found their way into 2014 models since Ford was using up their old stock of head assemblies, so buying a 2014 5L does not guarantee you won't get soft valves.

So I have 2 questions:
1 - I know the intake manifold changed about that time, so I am ASSUMING the manifold (and maybe a corresponding PCM software change?) was the reason for the power increase. Is that a correct assumption? Or was there something else?
2 - If I am under the hood of a 2006 or 2007 F-150, is it possible to tell a 231HP engine from a 248HP engine by looking at it?

Thanks!

 

I don't think the trucks ever got the higher output 2v motor I think that was in the cars only and that is based on what I have read about the differences between the truck and car intakes. The truck intake is universaly panned on performance forums as a bottleneck which makes some sense because the extra HP usually comes at higher rpms where a long runner intake begins to get in the way. And the 3v motor started appearing in pickups in 08 or something leaving cargo vans as the last vehicle using the 2v. Of course I could be wrong on that.

 

All web sites I found (for Ford trucks) say HP increased from 231@4750 RPM to 248@4750 RPM in either 2006 or 2007, and if you look at F-150 intake manifolds on ebay or whatever, pre-2007 is a different part than 2007-2008 so I am pretty certain 2007 is the change date. They started using 3V in trucks in 2009 (292HP, but I do not want cam phasers)

 

I had an ‘08 SCrew with the 4.6. I was just under the impression that Ford just said “Send it” and started dropping “car” 4.6s (The Panther cars still used the ~250 HP 2V 4.6) into the trucks to get rid of extra engines in warehouses as the “truck” variant’s time was winding down. So, if you’re worried about some magic cut off date, go 2008-2010. There were still 2V 4.6 engines in the latter two years of that range.

If I had to hazard a guess, that kinda cutoff is right on the model year. EPA certifications and whatnot.

 

Not looking for a magic year because parts (such as engines) don't always follow model years exactly and also because when I am looking at used vehicles on craigslist or whatever, I don't really get to choose the year if one pops up that's a good deal. I was just looking for answers to the 2 questions I asked - but what you're saying about using up stock makes sense. That's the type of thing car companies do (and who can blame them?), although in this case it doesn't appear Ford did that. I looked at pictures of upper intake manifolds for cars and trucks and the truck manifolds look different than car manifolds for 07/08. I also agree it may be possible to find a 2V engine in a 2009 or 2010 even though the F-150 4.6 went to 3v in 2009.

I do, however, think I answered my own question #2 at least. After looking more closely at pictures of manifolds on ebay, the 2007-2008 F-150 style manifold looks different enough from the 06 and older F-150 style that I think I could tell the difference by looking under the hood. Still not certain about question #1 but I am pretty sure my assumption is correct - that the HP increase goes along with engines that have the newer style 07/08 manifold
All in all, it's really not that big of a deal. If I find a good deal on a nice 2006 I'm not gonna pass it up for this reason. 17 HP and 1 lb-ft of torque would be nice but isn't going to make much difference everyday driving, and all I have to tow is a small fold-up camper. Mostly I was just curious if anyone knew

 

Is this rating difference 2V 4.6 "PI" head related?

 

Good question - I had to look that up. According to this thread, PI heads were introduced much earlier (like 2000)
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/563030-pi-heads.html

 

Yeah, “worried” probably wasn’t the right word and I get you on that extra power. I would have been itching to get that extra bit in the same spot. The 11 Gen trucks are several hundred lbs than their 10G counterparts, so they need all they can get.

I guess if you find a keeper earlier 4.6, a tune would solve that deficit? Maybe so. A 2V 4.6 is still a 2V 4.6 aside from (allegedly) the tune and some platform-specific accessories.

If that doesn’t work, the 2V 4.6 still came in XL/STX/XLT trims for 2009-10. They do exist and I’ve seen them out there.