First Test: 2011 Ford F-150 Lariat EcoBoost - MotorTrend Magazine
It seemed like the 4. 6-liter and 5. 4-liter V-8s had been around forever, the only changes being the addition of a three-valve 4. 6-liter. After some major housecleaning for 2011, there are four new engines: a 3. 7-liter V-6, 5. 0-liter V-8, 6. 2-liter V-8, and a 3. 5-liter, 365-horsepower, 420-pound-foot twin-turbo EcoBoost, and all four are backed by the same six-speed automatic. The twin-turbo isn't the largest displacement engine available -- those honors go to the 6. 2-liter V-8 that's standard in the Raptor, Lariat Limited, and Harley-Davidson edition. It doesn't have the most horsepower or torque -- that would also be the 6. 2 -- and it doesn't come standard in any F-150. Yet, despite what seems initially like shortcomings, Ford has made this engine its franchise player, declaring a V-6 the... The true benefit is with torque, where the gain is 40 lb-ft (420 versus the 5. 0's 380), and peak torque is at 2500 rpm as opposed to the 5. 0's 4250. In our tester, a rear-drive Lariat SuperCrew, it a $750 upgrade. That, plus the 3. 55:1 limited-slip, Lariat Chrome and Lariat Plus packages, heated and cooled leather seats, trailer brake controller, and tailgate step, brought the as-tested price to $42,770. The dark blue and beige paint combination looks good... However, our EcoBoost tester can tow 11,300 pounds, has a GVWR of 7100 pounds, and an as-tested. Source: www.motortrend.com
