# is a 5.4l enough motor for F350?



## 92f350

I am concidering a 08 F350 regular cab 8' box with a 5.4l. It has 3.73 gears i will be putting an 8' pro plus on it. Just wondering who has the 5.4l in an f350? Does it has enough power and how bad will the mpg be? I wont be towing much so $8000 extra for the diesel isn't really an option for me.


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## vanwhyjr

I have the exact set up you are talking about but on an 04oh and mine is a supercab. I have never had and problems moving snow with it. I plow for the develop where I live. It has about 5 miles of road plus I picked up some driveways here and there. 

It gets about 10MPG when I'm plowing with it. But on the highway I got 22MPG once!!

I don't do much towing and long distance travel (it only has 34000 miles on it) so I couldn't justify the diesel.

Good luck with your purchase.


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## Flipper

As I have said, I wish you could still get the striaght six for just plowing.

Plowing is about traction period. You don't need horsepower or torque. My 550 is diesel and breaks loose plowing all the time from the torque. How did I stop it? Better tires, more weight. If I didn't tow I would not need the motor.

In conclusion the 5.4 is plenty, lots of plow trucks have them around here.


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## Sweetpete

I agree....I have an 04 250 w/ the 5.4. Plenty of power, especially in 4 low. Amazing beast. Reliable, built rock solid.

You'll probably have even better luck with the 08, as I think they upped the horsepower and fuel economy. I agree, a few short years ago, you could get the V6 in a heavy duty truck and still have no problem pushing snow. It's all about gearing.

The 5.4 is a very well built, time proven engine that should go 200k with proper maintenance. The rest of the truck will probably fall apart before the engine. Let us know what you decide.

Pete


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## kashman

it works for me you aint going 2 win any drag races but it will pull and hall whatever you need


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## ABES

It will do the job but if your looking for a powerful truck i would look into a diesel. The 5.4 is a great F150 motor but it just doesnt have the power for a 1 ton.


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## Brian Young

I have a 06 F250 with a dump bed insert and a few extra leaf springs in the rear. Mine has 4:10 gears and it tows and pulls all of my stuff just fine. As far as mileage, I get anywhere from 10-13mpg plowng or pulling our 8.5x16 enclosed trailer. I think 22mpg is a little far fetched as some one else said but a Chevy Cavalier wont push too much snow,lol. If your just plowing with it then the 5.4L is a great way to go, if your pulling something all the time then I might look into the V-10 vs. the diesel.


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## F250 Boss v

I run an '06 F250 with the 5.4, I totally agree with Brian! The 5.4 pushes fine; -for lot's of towing then consider the V-10, -or diesel.


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## ducatirider944

I have a hard time buying that a 5.4L gets 10-13 mpg pulling with 4.10s. I have owned a lot of trucks, all fords. I trade them about ever 2-3 yrs. I had a 5.8L in a 94' F-150 and worked great, got about 14 mpg on average unless I hooked much wieght to it then it would get about 6-7 mpg. I got a 96' F-250 same 5.8L because I didn't want to go to a 460 and get that really bad mpg. I got about 11-12 mpg when not pulling but got 5-6 mpg when I did. I pulled nothing that weighted more than 10K at this point. In 99' I got a F-250 with the V-10 and actually got better mileage, nothing huge but 12-13 mpg empty and the big benifit came when pulling. I was pulling a lot at this point in my business and it was 14-15K. I was getting 7.5-8.5 mpg pulling more weight. I then bought a 2001 V-10 and got a bigger skidloader and some other trailers that endded up at about 20-21K and the V-10 still did a good job, but the mileage while pulling was 4.5-5.5 mpg. I ended up trading for an 2001 PSD close out the next year and hands down a diesel is the way to go. If your going to get a super duty gas go with the V-10. You will get the same MPG as the 5.4L but will make up the added cost of $600 of the V-10 the first few times you pull in getting twice the mileage of the 5.4L. I will agree with the guys that say it will push snow just fine because you will lose traction before you need more power.


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## FIREDUDE26

i have a 06' 350 w5.4 and have a boss 8'2" V on it and pulled my 16' enclosed up north and got 6.5mpg. empty with no plow or trailer best is 12, if you are getting 22 your calculator is broken.

but as far as plowing 5.4 is ok i would spend the extra 600 to get the v-10 not a big diff in mileage but alot more power!!!!!.


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## derekbroerse

Not a Ford but I can reply anyways.

I will repeat what is said above, plowing is about traction, not power.

When I first bought my one-ton 4x4 dump, it had a carb'ed 305 in it.... all of 150hp when it was new, and it had a dead cylinder.... so more like 100hp at most. In plowing trim, namely a 9'-2" Boss V-Plow, and the bed loaded with gravel, we were often over 12000lbs.

Plowing was never, ever a problem. Usually ran it in 2wd Hi. Never ever needed 4Lo, but mind you I had the bull-low manual fourspeed and the truck has 4.56 gears, but 3" taller tires. Without that gear advantage maybe 4Lo would have been necessary sometimes.

It sucked royally for climbing hills... towing anything heavier than a car, or carrying 3.5 tons of stone. But it plowed like a champ and ran empty like a champ. 

A modern 5.4L Ford has got to have twice the output of my old 305... get better fuel mileage... and a pickup would be considerably lighter than my rig. 

I wouldn't worry about it. If it suits your needs for everything else, it will suit your needs in the snow too. Enjoy your new truck--just don't go drag racing it!


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## vanwhyjr

FIREDUDE26;544811 said:


> i have a 06' 350 w5.4 and have a boss 8'2" V on it and pulled my 16' enclosed up north and got 6.5mpg. empty with no plow or trailer best is 12, if you are getting 22 your calculator is broken.
> 
> but as far as plowing 5.4 is ok i would spend the extra 600 to get the v-10 not a big diff in mileage but alot more power!!!!!.


I drove the truck from eastern PA to the border of Ohio and on the return trip I avg between 20 and 22 MPG. My calculator works fine.

It has 3.73 gears and I put a hard shell tonneau(SP?) on it.

I usually only get between 16 to 18 on the highway and thats not pulling anything.


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## OhioPlower

If V8 gas 1 tons got 20mpg there wouldnt be diesel engines in pickups. And if there was you would have to be stupid to buy one. Both of my diesels would be gone in a heartbeat.


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## LawnProLandscapes

92f350;543590 said:


> I am concidering a 08 F350 regular cab 8' box with a 5.4l. It has 3.73 gears i will be putting an 8' pro plus on it. Just wondering who has the 5.4l in an f350? Does it has enough power and how bad will the mpg be? I wont be towing much so $8000 extra for the diesel isn't really an option for me.


if i were you i would spend the extra $600 or so and just get the 6.8 V10. the fuel economy is comparable to the 5.4 but you have A LOT more power. i know until i get diesels im going to just spend the extra couple hundred for the extra power. thats just my .02.


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## LawnProLandscapes

vanwhyjr;544967 said:


> I drove the truck from eastern PA to the border of Ohio and on the return trip I avg between 20 and 22 MPG. My calculator works fine.
> 
> It has 3.73 gears and I put a hard shell tonneau(SP?) on it.
> 
> I usually only get between 16 to 18 on the highway and thats not pulling anything.


i know a few folks with the 5.4 in a 1/2 ton and they arent seeing that kind of mileage on the highway. maybe that number came off your truck computer readout and that was not hand calculated. those onboard computers are a joke. idk it could of happend but i find it really hard to believe.


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## KGRlandscapeing

LawnProLandCare;545027 said:


> i know a few folks with the 5.4 in a 1/2 ton and they arent seeing that kind of mileage on the highway. maybe that number came off your truck computer readout and that was not hand calculated. those onboard computers are a joke. idk it could of happend but i find it really hard to believe.


i run a 5.4 in my 04 it dose 15 or so hauling back and fourth to r cabin in PA. my dads 07 thou gets better then 20 thou


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## FIREDUDE26

well if hes getting 20 mpg on a 5.4 than that is amazing and great for him. it is just hard to believe. i wonder if he goes over 40 mph?


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## KGRlandscapeing

FIREDUDE26;545036 said:


> well if hes getting 20 mpg on a 5.4 than that is amazing and great for him. it is just hard to believe. i wonder if he goes over 40 mph?


thats at crusing speed around 70 the newer 5.4 if u havent driven one have alot more balls the the first ones that came out. I can say that from having an 04 and then jumping in his 07 and it goes like the wind


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## LawnProLandscapes

KGRlandscapeing;545078 said:


> thats at crusing speed around 70 the newer 5.4 if u havent driven one have alot more balls the the first ones that came out. I can say that from having an 04 and then jumping in his 07 and it goes like the wind


yea maybe in a half ton but not a 1 ton. they switched in 05 from the 2valve to a 3valve motor. they did the same thing with the v10's.


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## KGRlandscapeing

LawnProLandCare;545120 said:


> yea maybe in a half ton but not a 1 ton. they switched in 05 from the 2valve to a 3valve motor. they did the same thing with the v10's.


i have a 3valve in my 04 just thought i would point that out


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## 92f350

Thanks for the info. i'm still on the fence here about the 5.4l. I would like a v10 but there aren't any here in the area in a regular cab. There is one 5.4l about an hour away. I've go visit the dealer here in the area and see if they can get one in for me. Is it to late to get one made the way i want? How long will that take?


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