• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • The Rearview Mirror: The End of the Road for Route 66
  • Here We Go Again: Automakers Report June Sales Decline
  • Recession or Not, U.S. Car Market is in For a Big Boom
  • Hyundai Slashing Passenger Car Line-up — Again
  • Tesla, Maserati and Genesis Owner Loyalty Rising
  • Tesla Market Share Set to Collapse as EV Competition Heats Up, Predicts Leading Analyst
  • Nissan Planning to Drop Titan After 2024
  • New NHTSA Chief Ready to Crack Down on Wayward Self-Driving Technology
  • GM Avoids UAW Strike at Four Michigan Plants
  • Rising EV Prices Could Cause the Auto Market to “Collapse,” Warns Stellantis Manufacturing Chief
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • A Week With: 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe Overland
    • A Week With: 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan SE R-Line Black
    • First Drive: 2023 Cadillac Lyriq
    • First Drive: 2022 Ford Bronco Everglades Edition
    • A Week With: 2022 Mazda3 2.5 S AWD Hatchback
    • First Drive: 2023 Honda HR-V
    • First Drive: 2022 Ford Bronco Raptor
    • A Week With: 2022 GMC Terrain AT4 AWD
    • A Week With: 2022 Cadillac Escalade Sport
    • First Drive: 2023 Cadillac Escalade-V
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > news > Automobiles > V-6 Now Overwhelming Choice for F-150 Truck Buyers

        V-6 Now Overwhelming Choice for F-150 Truck Buyers

        Automakers taking different paths to the same results.

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        June 05, 2015
        Sixty-seven percent of F-150s are rolling off the production line with V6 engines, including the 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost.

        Pickup buyers are among the industry’s most macho, and they’ve traditionally wanted the biggest, baddest engines they could stuff under the hood. But things appear to be shifting as automakers come up with creative alternatives that meet growing demand for better fuel economy.

        Ford Motor Co. says that more than two out of three buyers of the new 2015 F-150 pickup truck are opting for V-6 engines, rather than V-8s. Demand is shifting at other manufacturers, though at not nearly the same pace – reflecting the fact that there are numerous different ways to deliver better mileage.

        Key in on the News!

        A decade ago, “I definitely would not have expected this,” said analyst David Sullivan, of AutoPacific, Inc. “Nobody would have expected V-6s to develop the way they have in terms of power for displacement, but they’re now making as much power as many of the V-8s of a decade ago.”

        That’s the case with Ford’s biggest V-6 which can match the performance and towing numbers of its top-line V-8 of just a few years back.

        While not selling them in the same numbers as Ford, Chevy is also seeing an increase in V6-equipped full-size pickups.

        Three of the four engines offered on the 2015 Ford F-150 are now V-6s. Of those, two have adopted turbocharging to deliver a balance of fuel economy and the heft truckers need. That includes the new twin-turbo 2.7-liter EcoBoost which is rated at 19 mpg City, 26 Highway and 22 Combined while still yielding 325 horsepower.

        If anything, Sullivan says he expects this package to gain even more traction with truckers going ahead.

        At the bottom of the Ford F-150 line-up is the price-based 282-hp, naturally aspirated V-6. Then there’s the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 getting a 17/24/20 mpg rating from the EPA.  The only V-8 left in the line-up right now is the 385-hp 5.0-liter package.

        With 67% of its 2015 F-150 trucks going out the door with V-6s, Ford is well ahead of its competitors, especially General Motors and Fiat Chrysler, in making that transition. It underscores Ford’s emphasis on the EcoBoost line-up, an engine family that will be available, in one of many forms, in roughly 80% of its product lines for the 2016 model-year. Even the Mustang now has an EcoBoost option, as well as a conventional V-6.

        (Twist of a knob to make towing easier with new F-150. For more, Click Here.)

        All told, Ford has sold 701,000 F-150s with EcoBoost engines since the first of those powertrains was added to the truck’s option list.

        The competition hasn’t been ignoring either the engine downsizing trend or the demand for better mileage, it’s just that, “they’re achieving similar results, just going down different paths” to get there, said Sullivan.

        Along with the addition of a third V-6 for 2015, Ford introduced a complete redesign of its full-size truck model, switching from conventional steel to an “aluminum-intensive” body shaving as much as 700 pounds of mass compared to the prior-edition truck.

        (Click Here for details about why gas prices will drop just in time for summer driving.)

        Lightweighting has become a major push for all manufacturers, and GM and FCA’s Ram brand are expected to use more aluminum and other mass-saving materials going forward. But they’re also introducing creative powertrain solutions.

        The hot new engine for the Ram 1500 is its EcoDiesel. The 3.0-liter “oil burner” delivers massive amounts of torque while still clocking 21 mpg in the City and 29 mpg on the Highway and 24 Combined, a double-digit gain over the 2.7-liter Ford EcoBoost –though diesel fuel often carries a steep premium. To help improve mileage, Ram has also added a new eight-speed automatic to its pickup line-up.

        (Editors Note: the Ram diesel figures have been revised to compare 2WD models of the Ford and Ram models.)

        General Motors has adopted advanced gearboxes for its Chevrolet and GMC pickup lines, as well. And the maker has found ways to squeeze more mileage out of existing V-8s through creative engineering. That includes such technologies as displacement-on-demand, where half of the engine’s cylinders are automatically deactivated when power demands are low.

        (To see more about how apps will keep drivers safer, Click Here.)

        That said, most observers anticipate that demand for V-6s will continue to grow among truck buyers in the coming years. We may also see even more creative technologies, such as hybrids, gain ground as battery technology improves.

        Recently Published
        Car dealers sales area

        Here We Go Again: Automakers Report June Sales Decline

        July 01, 2022
        Car dealership, closeup view on radiator grille

        Recession or Not, U.S. Car Market is in For a Big Boom

        July 01, 2022
        2022 Hyundai Veloster N driving REL

        Hyundai Slashing Passenger Car Line-up — Again

        July 01, 2022

        3 responses to “V-6 Now Overwhelming Choice for F-150 Truck Buyers”

        1. Jorge says:
          June 5, 2015 at 12:58 pm

          The benefit to a turbo V-6 or I-4 is increased torque across the entire operating band and lower fuel consumption when not using a lot of power. At WOT a turbo engine will consume considerably more fuel than a larger NA engine.

          An NA V-6 vs. an NA V-8 is going to have a lot lower appeal to truck buyers who use their truck for hauling loads, towing, etc. as a non-turbo V-6 is typically short on torque in comparison to an equal deign V-8 engine. Torque is a necessity for hauling loads. A car maker has a lot of influence on what people buy based on the std. equipment they include and the costs of upgraded power.

          Reply
        2. john says:
          June 6, 2015 at 7:53 am

          Ford has some steps advanced from their competitors and trying to beat the competition by providing some features of V-6 engines,F-150,EcoBoost engine option and Lightweight structure.

          Chevy is also in line to offer best solution to their customers with v8 engine.With the help of creative engineering, they are using its full capacity for better mileage.

          Now lets see who wins this war 🙂

          Reply
        3. Sam Perri says:
          June 9, 2015 at 3:08 pm

          Very good responses from customers sold and just wished allocation goes up as well as production
          Great Job

          Reply

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2022
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: