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5L vs 3.5L?

JW258

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So I'm going to be placing an order today or tomorrow for a new 402A Tremor
So I may be mistaken but I didn't think you could place orders for 2024 Tremors as of yet. I've seen Chip from Granger reply on other Forums saying that since Tremor is Job 2, orders won't be accepted until sometime in December.

Here is a link to another forum where this was discussed.
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TexasTruck

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If you don't do any towing, just get the 5.0L.
I don't know my 5.0 does just fine towing my stuff around. Would the 3.5 EB do it better, sure, for all the reasons mentioned here, but the 5.0 is no slouch.
 

TexasTruck

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In the spirit of the football season, I'll pile on here....

Since 2015, I owned 5 3.5 EB and went with a 5.0 in 2022. The 3.5 EB is very refined, low end grunt, zippy as heck, but I found it a little boring at times. Ford pipes "simulated engine exhaust sounds" through the speakers to help with the experience.

My 2022 5.0 BAP came with a single exhaust. With this help of others here I converted it to a Tremor dual exhaust, not simulated whatsoever :)
 

Chili

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In the spirit of the football season, I'll pile on here....

Since 2015, I owned 5 3.5 EB and went with a 5.0 in 2022. The 3.5 EB is very refined, low end grunt, zippy as heck, but I found it a little boring at times. Ford pipes "simulated engine exhaust sounds" through the speakers to help with the experience.

My 2022 5.0 BAP came with a single exhaust. With this help of others here I converted it to a Tremor dual exhaust, not simulated whatsoever :)
I think they stopped pipping in noise. My 3.5 is very quiet. You can hardly ever hear any engine noise while driving.
 

Pops

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Well I had the same dilemma in an f150 fx4 not the tremor. I went with the 5.0 and am enjoying it coming from a hemi. Plenty of power and great mileage and I have a 3.31 rear end.
 

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TexasTruck

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I think they stopped pipping in noise.
Oh they may have, it is very subtle though and I do see it listed in the 2021+ FORScan settings. Even after several mods, I traded my 2022 5.0 STX for a 2023 3.5 EB XLT High (don't ask) and I could hear the fake engine sound. 10 days later I returned it for my 5.0. Not the smartest financial decision, but I liked my 5.0 and all the mods.
 
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Scott Maxson

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Don't forget the Tremor comes with dual exhaust that exit out the back. Yes, its a single split into two tail pipes but the V8 rumble comes through perfectly. The V6 will never compare. I installed the Tremor/BAP dual exhaust on my '21 crew 5.0 and the sound is perfect. It is a huge difference from the original single side exhaust. Not as loud as aftermarket exhaust but then that's not what I want from my F-150. I leave that to my GT500. While I was at it I also added the Tremor skid and deleted the silly aero spoiler.
 

Eighthtry

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5.0. Anything that needs boost to make its equivalent power is an accident waiting to happen. 3.6 may be a fine engine, but it is stressed to get there. Those turbos WILL go out. It might be 175,000 miles like my buddy's, but that is a huge expense when a 5.0 truck can easily run 250,000 miles. Mine will go there and beyond, as have my other V8's.
 

Samson16

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I think we can agree there is no bad option between the two, so I choose by application. If I purchased a Tremor it would be to go off road. I think the non turbo charged V8 has less exposed plumbing to damage, and even though the 3.5 is a torque monster I don’t want any lag while I’m rock crawling. Heat buildup under load is another issue that concerns me with the 3.5.
All that to say I would go with the 5.0 for off road use if it were me.
 
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cb4017

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When I decided I wanted an F150 I looked for a 5.0L FX4 with 5.5' bed. I really wanted the V8. There were none to be had within 250 miles in a configuration even close to what I wanted.

I ended up in a Rattler with the 3.5L EB. I am not disappointed. Awesome power and torque. Gets great mileage. Hauls my small travel trailer with no effort.

We did a 2.5K road trip this summer through Nevada, Oregon, Wyoming and Montana. Overall mileage was close to 21 mpg.

The Rattler has the dual exhaust. The exhaust note is actually not bad. Not a V8 but still not bad.

ETA: As far as off roading and heat, my Rattler spent a fair amount of time off road this last summer in the desert exploring, visiting old mine sites, etc. No issues with heat.
 
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I know everyone gets tribal and want to pick the application they went with but there's no argument that the EB 3.5 is the best option for towing. Now, I am not saying the 5.0L is shit....don't misconstrue that. However, if you will be doing lots of towing, this is not even something you should debate on. Turbos are not wear items. Feed them with clean oil, don't abuse them (heavy load situations and not giving them time to cool down) and you will be fine. I have been around turbo vehicles for 25 years and I have had only one turbo failure ever.
 
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dmac

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I love my 5.0. The 3.5 kicks butt though too. If you have lots of short trips < 5minutes, then I'd get a 2.7 if you're concerned about mpg. But the 5.0 is extremely efficient once warm and cruising, especially under load (Some say more so than the 3.5).
 

Samson16

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When I decided I wanted an F150 I looked for a 5.0L FX4 with 5.5' bed. I really wanted the V8. There were none to be had within 250 miles in a configuration even close to what I wanted.

I ended up in a Rattler with the 3.5L EB. I am not disappointed. Awesome power and torque. Gets great mileage. Hauls my small travel trailer with no effort.

We did a 2.5K road trip this summer through Nevada, Oregon, Wyoming and Montana. Overall mileage was close to 21 mpg.

The Rattler has the dual exhaust. The exhaust note is actually not bad. Not a V8 but still not bad.

ETA: As far as off roading and heat, my Rattler spent a fair amount of time off road this last summer in the desert exploring, visiting old mine sites, etc. No issues with heat.
The heat buildup concern might just be in my head lol. I know when I'm 4 wheeling with my H3 it's low speed, high effort, muddy, hot, and nasty fun.
 

gadourym

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I'm not an expert, and can't speak for the other engines, but I have the 5.0 in my 21 and I love it. I have plenty of power, and have averaged almost 21mpg over 47000 miles. I really like to sound too when I step on it!
 

Jeb536

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If you’re not a heavy or long distance tower you likely can’t go wrong with any of the three. I was in the same boat And ended up with the 5.0 only because I tend to own my cars past 10 years and over 100k miles. My thought the 5.0 SHOULD have an overall lower engine maintenance cost than the 2.7 or 3.5.
 

huhner5

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5.0. Anything that needs boost to make its equivalent power is an accident waiting to happen. 3.6 may be a fine engine, but it is stressed to get there. Those turbos WILL go out. It might be 175,000 miles like my buddy's, but that is a huge expense when a 5.0 truck can easily run 250,000 miles. Mine will go there and beyond, as have my other V8's.
To say that turbos WILL go out is 100% not factual

A buddy and a coworker both with 5.0s are on their second engine.. one with 70k miles, another with 130k miles... That's just people I know

Another good friend has 302k miles on his 2011 Ecoboost with original turbos

To say one engine is better than the other... is just stupidity.. they're both great engines

I prefer the quiet performance of a 3.5
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