2015 Expedition as TV? 3.5 Ecoboost Reliability?

[ASTMedic]

Who's towing with a 2015 Expedition? My dad is looking to upgrade to the 3.5 ecoboost motor from his 5.4 V8 Navigator and wanted to get input. He's been towing his 4800lb TT with out issue but wanted to upgrade a bit and started looking at the Expedition since they like their Navigator. He won't have an issue with TW or being over cargo capacity since he's well inside the specs now.

He found a used one but we were trying to figure out if it has the HD tow package. It has the built in trailer brake controller so I'm thinking it does. Any way to tell by looking?

How has the 3.5 ecoboost held up? Seems to be a fair amount of negative things about the motor but I thinking the people with problems just tend to be the ones you hear from the most.

[Rolling Ragu]

There are lots of doubters because the engine is so different from what people are accustomed to. I would say that ACTUAL problems are very small for this engine.

We have towed our travel trailers about 40k miles around the US several times, through the Rockies, etc. Our 2013 has not had one thing go wrong and has past our expectations in all conditions. IMO, it is the best towing option in a half ton or SUV. A completely different experience than towing with V8's we've had.

[shane_the_ee]

Originally Posted by ASTMedic

Who's towing with a 2015 Expedition? .... Any way to tell by looking? How has the 3.5 ecoboost held up? ...

Not me; mine's a 2018 (newer generation). You should be able to find the 2015 Expedition towing guide which should give you some solid hints as to what to look for (like axle codes). You might also have to dig up the 2015 brochure to see what was available as a stand-alone option or only as part of the towing package.** How's the Ecoboost held up? The answer to that question seems to be two questions: have you tuned it? Were you an early adopter? If the answer to those two questions is "no", then reliability is better than his old 5.4. (I've had two friends with the 5.4, both of which have needed to be re-engined. I know, I know, the plural of anecdote is not data.)

**I think for 2015, the real way to check is to look for the transmission cooler.

[tuffr2]

IMHO the 5.4 litre Ford Triton engine was a real dog of an engine. It made more noise than acceleration. The 3.5 Eco-Boost will make your dad smile. It will tow much better than the 5.4 and at a much lower RPM.

I did not own nor would I buy any ford with the 5.4 litre engine. As soon as you hit the gas pedal you had a problem. No acceleration. And that could not be fixed.

A troubled 3.5 Eco-Boost is better than that 5.4 Triton.

[Normal_Dave]

It would appear, the factory brake controller indicates Equipment Group 202A, which includes the HD Trailer Tow Package.

+Heavy-Duty Trailer Tow Package includes Class IV hitch receiver, 7- and 4-pin connectors, heavy-duty auxiliary transmission oil cooler, heavy-duty radiator, electronic brake wiring kit and integrated trailer brake controller

Page 10:
https://www.ford.com/services/assets...stalCode=65613

If it doesn't have 202A, but does have the factory brake controller, then it still likely has HD trailer tow package listed above, so he should be good to go.

The 3.5L Ecoboost is a beast. Just remember it's known for more "Boost" than "Eco".

3.5L Ecoboost V6
365 HP @ 5,000 RPM
420 ft/lbs Torque @ 2,500 (2,250 in brochure), RPM (This approaches old-school big block/diesel torque numbers)
-
Assuming everyone knows the deal, but the 3.5L Ecoboost has two very small turbochargers that spin up quick and provide boosted power beginning at lower rpms. Torture tested by Ford, and other than a few early glitches, if not modified, seem to be favorable.

5,4L V8
227 HP @ 4,250 RPM
325 TQ @ 3,000 RPM

So, he gains nearly 100 ft/lbs torque, which we love when towing, and almost 140 HP. It should be a night/day difference.

[ASTMedic]

Originally Posted by Normal_Dave

It would appear, the factory brake controller indicates Equipment Group 202A, which includes the HD Trailer Tow Package.

+Heavy-Duty Trailer Tow Package includes Class IV hitch receiver, 7- and 4-pin connectors, heavy-duty auxiliary transmission oil cooler, heavy-duty radiator, electronic brake wiring kit and integrated trailer brake controller

Page 10:
https://www.ford.com/services/assets...stalCode=65613

If it doesn't have 202A, but does have the factory brake controller, then it still likely has HD trailer tow package listed above, so he should be good to go.

The 3.5L Ecoboost is a beast. Just remember it's known for more "Boost" than "Eco".

3.5L Ecoboost V6
365 HP @ 5,000 RPM
420 ft/lbs Torque @ 2,500 (2,250 in brochure), RPM (This approaches old-school big block/diesel torque numbers)
-
Assuming everyone knows the deal, but the 3.5L Ecoboost has two very small turbochargers that spin up quick and provide boosted power beginning at lower rpms. Torture tested by Ford, and other than a few early glitches, if not modified, seem to be favorable.

5,4L V8
227 HP @ 4,250 RPM
325 TQ @ 3,000 RPM

So, he gains nearly 100 ft/lbs torque, which we love when towing, and almost 140 HP. It should be a night/day difference.

And he gains it at 2200rpm rather than 4200. I'm jealous, I want an ecoboost version of my 6.2 in my F250

[ASTMedic]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

IMHO the 5.4 litre Ford Triton engine was a real dog of an engine. It made more noise than acceleration. The 3.5 Eco-Boost will make your dad smile. It will tow much better than the 5.4 and at a much lower RPM.

I did not own nor would I buy any ford with the 5.4 litre engine. As soon as you hit the gas pedal you had a problem. No acceleration. And that could not be fixed.

A troubled 3.5 Eco-Boost is better than that 5.4 Triton.

My buddy had a 3.5 in his 150 and when I asked him he said stay away. He's known for being negative and I really don't think he had any issues, he just bought into the internet BS where mostly people with problems post the loudest.

I figure with the volume of units sold if it was that big of an issue there would be a much louder voice.

[powerboatr]

well i have a 4x4 2016 expedition eco boost powered long wheel base beast
if you get the EL version with HD tow its a 3.73 LS rear gear set
it likes to run, and be driven

i have had a 5.4 in a f150 and eco boost in a f150


this little engine is a grunt, low end tq will put you back in your seat
towing mpg is typical of most
empty i get 17.5 to 17.9 at real world highway speeds of 77 or more




it tows very well, seats 6 real nice, 7 if they like each other.
i have had it pulling over 7k a few times and it did it and did it well.
these were flat bed trailers loaded with steel.


and yes if it has the 7 pin connection and brake controller then t has the HD towing package.

[tuffr2]

I know a lot of people tune the Eco-Boost trying to squeeze all the power possible out of it without regard to longevity. I bet if you take those problems out of the equation the 3.5 Eco-Boost is reliable.

I looked hard at the Ford half ton F-150 with the 3.5 Eco-Boost but bought a F-250 6.2 instead. My local Ford dealer told me a few times that they would replace or fix anything wrong with that engine for free. I asked about, what if the turbo blew up. They said they would fix it no charge. The catch was I had to have all maintenance done at a Ford garage.

There are videos with Mike Rowe on the 1st gen Eco-Boost back in 2011. Ford tested the heck out of that 1st gen. Improvements have been made since then.

I do not know why exactly that engine never made it into the F-250. Probably longevity issues would have shown up with the additional weight trying to be towed. Plus the 3.5 Eco-Boost was designed for the F-150.

[ASTMedic]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

I know a lot of people tune the Eco-Boost trying to squeeze all the power possible out of it without regard to longevity. I bet if you take those problems out of the equation the 3.5 Eco-Boost is reliable.

I looked hard at the Ford half ton F-150 with the 3.5 Eco-Boost but bought a F-250 6.2 instead. My local Ford dealer told me a few times that they would replace or fix anything wrong with that engine for free. I asked about, what if the turbo blew up. They said they would fix it no charge. The catch was I had to have all maintenance done at a Ford garage.

There are videos with Mike Rowe on the 1st gen Eco-Boost back in 2011. Ford tested the heck out of that 1st gen. Improvements have been made since then.

I do not know why exactly that engine never made it into the F-250. Probably longevity issues would have shown up with the additional weight trying to be towed. Plus the 3.5 Eco-Boost was designed for the F-150.

What I saw regarding the eco 3.5 and the F250 was that the eco just didn't have the durability for a HD truck. From what I've read the 6.2 is a tank and if taken care of there are guys getting 350k+ miles out of the 6.2/6r140 combo. FlatbedEd on the Ford forum passed 500k on his 6.2/6r140 with minimal issues. I think he lost a main seal at some point but very little issues. I don't think you could get that kind of durability on a boosted motor.

Also there's no reason to get the good MPG since it doesn't apply to the F250 and up. If/when that changes then we'll see them go that direction.

I'd kill for the low end torque in my 250

[SmokeyWren]

I loved my 2012 F-150 with the 3.5L EcoBoost engine with the "highway" gearing of 3.15 e-locker axle. Towed a 5k TT all over the county, from back east to way out west. One trip of over 300 miles over the central Texas Hill Country towing a full-size backhoe and grossing 27,500 pounds with no problems at all. That pickup with about 70k miles had never seen a shop for anything other than oil changes, flat tires, and new tires.

I liked that 3.5L EcoBoost drivetrain so much that I ordered a 2019 F-150 with that engine, but added the max tow pkg with 3.55 axle, and took delivery right after Christmas 2018. No towing yet, but to break it in before towing I recently drove it 400+ miles to Houston and back. 17.5 MPG cruising at 79 MPH all the way. It's now broken in and ready to tow.

The only thing wrong with a Expedition as a tow vehicle is you can either tow a decent size TT or haul a large family, but not both at the same time without exceeding the payload capacity of the tow vehicle. If Dad has not overloaded the Navigator, then he should have no problems in not overloading the Expedition.

Before I ordered the 2012, I had towed a 5er for over 100,000 miles, plus another 100,000 miles not towing, with an F-250 turbo-diesel, for a total of 200,000 miles. So I knew Ford had lots of experience with turbo engines. I has no qualms about buying the EcoBoost engine because of Ford's experience with turbo engines. Proved I was right.

The only reason I traded my 2012 for a new 2019 was to get more payload capacity. The 2012 with only 70k miles was nowhere near worn out, but I was overloaded by 100 pounds over the payload capacity of the 2012 when towing my wet and loaded TT. The 2019 with alloy bed has about 400 pounds more payload capacity than the 2012, so I won't be overloaded on long trips. I don't like being overloaded, even by a little bit.

[tuffr2]

Smokey - you get the tweaked 3.5 Eco-Boost with gobs of torque. I think now 470 vs the 1gen of 420. You will need to post back and tell us if you can feel 50 more ft. lbs. of torque.

The GM 6.2 litre engine is 460 ft. lbs. of torque so your Eco-Boost is still top dog.

To the OP - 2011 was a long time ago. There should be pleanty of history. Maybe look at Car Guru for a 2011 F-150 Eco-Boost and see how many miles are on this trucks. I saw one with original engine with 200k miles

[ASTMedic]

Originally Posted by SmokeyWren

The only thing wrong with a Expedition as a tow vehicle is you can either tow a decent size TT or haul a large family, but not both at the same time without exceeding the payload capacity of the tow vehicle. If Dad has not overloaded the Navigator, then he should have no problems in not overloading the Expedition.

Ya I told him that was the issue with an SUV as a TV. All they haul in their rig is 2 dog crates with the dogs and mom and dad. They don't want to put the dogs in the bed of a truck and they like having a SUV for hauling people when not towing. My brother and I all tow our own rigs so they don't have to haul a gob of people. I bumped up the the 250 for the very reason you bring up cus I needed the increased capacity with me, wife, 2 kids and 2 dog crates.

[powerboatr]

i will add
we bought ours so our two dogs had a nice area to hang out on those trips we didnt take the bus.
now we are down to one dog, and we still have room