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| My new-to-me 2017 Ford F150 with a 3.5 twin-turbo and 10-speed automatic transmission. |
This all started when I submitted the information on my 2003 Ford F150 Lightning through one of those online sites* to see what they would give me for the truck, a 2002 F-150 Lightning. It had 136K miles, no accidents, just some minor blemishes and wear and tear. Still runs and drives flawlessly but wanted to see what I could get for it.
They offered $16,100 for the Lightning which was more than what I bought it for in 2010 with 51K miles. For about a week, I searched for trucks seeing what was out there, but I was still not committed to getting rid of the Lighting. Eventually that offer expired, and I submitted a new request and was sent an offer of $15,750. Still not bad.
After convincing myself that this rocket ship of a truck needed replacement with something more modern, I committed more to an internet search. It's still an awesome truck and leaves me grinning like an idiot every time I drive but since going back into towing duty last year, its dependability worries me. I don't want to worry about a tow vehicle -- and not the Camaro -- being down for maintenance like what happened last year.
Local autocrosser Kevin H. had his transmission go out on his F-250 that's the same era as the Lightning with the same 4R100 transmission, too. No warning, just backing up his truck at home and the transmission failed. He said since he installed the new transmission, some things that he kind of ignored before -- not shifting smoothly, kind of "hunting" when up-shifting -- came to light with the new transmission that does all that stuff without issue.
Kevin actually got his replacement 4R100 from me through my job. Oh did I mention I sell remanufactured engines and transmissions for a living? That experience kind of weighed in my decision on what truck I wanted next. Or rather, what I didn't want. We get tons of calls for Dodge Hemi replacement engines as well as General Motors 6L80 transmissions, so that basically left only two options for half-ton trucks -- Fords and Toyotas, which we get very few inquiries on, so maybe they are more reliable. Also, I don't think I know anybody with a Toyota but know of at least three with 3.5 turbo F-150s and they seem to like them.
The replacement tow vehicle had to be new-ish (maybe 2015 and newer), but I didn't need something over-the-top like a 3/4-ton or one-ton. The Lightning has a towing capacity of 5,000 pounds, and newer half-ton trucks are more than twice that. Even the 2.7-liter Ecoboost can tow more than 10,000 pounds. Of course I didn't want a 2.7 -- it had to be a 3.5. Thought about a 5.0 with all the V8 rumbly noises, but a magazine article comparing a 5.0 to a 3.5 gave a slight edge to the latter.
Sure I probably could have sold the Lightning for more than the Vroom offer through Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace, but selling through Vroom meant I wouldn't have to deal with tire kickers or people ghosting after responding to their "Is this still available" request. I tried Carvana but was only offered $12K.
Paul P., who also has a CP Camaro and has helped on my Camaro some, had just traded in his 2018 F-150 3.5 Ecoboost for a 2020 because a dealership gave him some kind of stupid deal. I had begun looking for used F-150s and he offered his for a test hit.
My biggest concern, if you want to call it that, was losing the fun factor of the Lightning. There aren't many options for a truck that runs low 13s at the drag strip, so I was worried about having a lethargic truck that couldn't get out of its own way.
"Magazine racing," 3.5 Ecoboost F-150s run around 14.6 at 96 mph at the drag strip, which is a tick slower than my old 1990 Firebird when it had a 305. More than a second slower than the Lightning but not terrible.
Driving Paul's truck, it definitely had some pep, and the transmission even has a sport mode. He said towing with his Camaro on a trailer, it's still quick enough to get away from stupidity. His truck has the "max tow" package which has an assist for backing up a trailer. Basically turn that on, take your hands off the steering wheel and turn a little knob to guide the trailer while watching the backup camera. "I turn this on and look like a hero," he said.
So I started narrowing my search for a 2017+ with a 3.5 Ecoboost, max-tow package, and an extended (not crew) cab, around $35,000 and 50,000 miles.
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| With dealers vague on options, the tell-tale sign for an F-150 with the "maximum towing" option was the knob for the trailer backup assist. |
Searching the internet, not a lot ads detailed complete options. One ad I found listed 10 different details for a Sirrius subscription. It took some sleuthing to narrow down which trucks had the max-tow option, namely if there was an interior shot to see if the backup assist knob was on the dash underneath the four-wheel-drive selection knob.
Narrowed it down to two -- one at a dealership in northern Virginia, a 2018 F150 with 51K miles, and 2017 F150 with just under 25k miles. Both were nearly identical in price. Other than the years, they were about the same -- both black with cloth interiors, 4WD, 3.5 Ecoboost, 10-speed transmissions. Only real differences were the 2018 had a chrome grille while the 2017 was all black.
Karen and I trekked out yesterday and looked at the F-150 in northern Virginia first. Some little things set me off first -- a cracked rear taillight and the chrome on the side steps peeling away. Karen slid underneath it and said there was a lot of surface rust and salt residue. It also needed new tires. It turned out, it was originally purchased in Canada and was there all its life until making it to an auction in Ohio where the dealership got it. They didn't appear to want to budge on the price, and the salesman even got his manager to come in for some reason. We said thanks but no thanks and headed south to look at the other truck.
This F-150 at Bayside Ford in King George originated in Maine before it was purchased at auction last year. I'm guessing that with the lack of availability of new vehicles, dealerships have been boosting their stock from auctions so their lots look full. This truck had some minor surface rust underneath but not nearly like the Canadian transplant in northern Virginia. Basically as long as there weren't any issues, this was going to be my new truck. I figured finding something in that price range with that mileage would be pretty difficult, and every other truck with that mileage was newer and several thousand dollars higher.
I'm probably the easiest person to close a sale when I find something I want. The first Sentra SE-R, the first Lightning, the second Lightning, and now this truck, all purchased used from some kind of dealer where I showed up with a dumb grin and said, "I want to see that one."
Early impressions are that, as expected, a truck produced in 2017 is a whole lot nicer than a truck from 2003. The Lightning has cruise control and a CD player (that doesn't work), and that's pretty much it. No touchscreen fancy technology or anything digital other than the trip odometer. The new truck is immaculate inside and is almost "too nice" like it shouldn't be a truck.
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| Dashboard confessional: The 2003 console versus the 2017 version. |
Drivability of course they are almost night and day. There is a reason why Jeremy Clarkson on his "Top Gear" test drive said something like, "It's like unleashing George Thorogood and all his Delaware Destroyers." Instant torque, almost violent upshifts on full throttle, super charger whining, stupid fast that will still kick the shit out of most cars on the road today (ask me about the encounter a couple years ago with a Hemi Charger). And other than the Dodge SRT-10 with the Viper engine or a Ford Raptor, there really isn't a truck out there as fast. I always said, it's a truck that thinks it's a car. Or, it's not a real truck.
The Lightning also requires 93 octane fuel while the 3.5 Ecoboost F150 manages its performance -- 375 horsepower and 470 foot-pounds of torque -- on the cheap stuff. And on the trip home with some stop-and-go traffic showed 19.5 MPG. I might have edged into the 15 MPG range with the Lightning once or twice on complete highway driving but usually settled in around 12-13 MPG and 9 or 10 when towing.
But the new truck can get out of its own way, and the 10-speed transmission is super smooth. Something that would be interesting to find is a 2WD F-150 with the 3.5 Ecoboost with a regular cab and see how it compares to the Lightning. I would bet that could run high 13s out of the box, but that is probably an elusive unicorn.
I'm going to miss the Lightning. Two trips towing the Camaro to Nebraska and back twice, several autocross runs, some laps on the Shenandoah Circuit, and just driving trying to merge onto the highway and leaving cars in the dust ... I haven't driven it in two weeks trying to avoid seller's remorse.
However the new F-150 is growing on me. Although it's not stupid fast, all the other bells and whistles will numb the pain when the Lightning eventually leaves.
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| Underneath the hood is really clean, nicer than the exterior. |
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| Dat ass. |
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| Grille matching the paint instead of chrome. |
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