Former Ecoboost owner, to Taco V6. Engine compare

Hey guys and gals,
So I have seen a lot of opinions on here about how bad the new engine is, and since everyone has an opinion, I'm gonna give you mine, as an noob to this community. I'm coming from a 2015 F-150 3.5L V6 Ecoboost with 52k miles on it. While waiting for my truck and reading this forum I thought I might have to return it, the truck can't find a gear! The truck can't go up a hill! I need a 4.88 re-gear just to put 31's on this thing! Needless to say, all you taco guys had me worried I had fucked up getting rid of the Ford, even though it's doors wouldn't close and I couldn't wash my windshield off to see the road in it.

The ecoboost engine is great, anything past 1400 rpm and you start shooting, I could be going 50, step on it to pass and my back end would go squirrely before catching grip and then I would take off. I could pass 3 cars up a steep hill no problem and without hesitation. The only downside to this motor was the little bit of turbo lag, while it wasn't horrible it was there. Putting it in sport mode (similar to ect) would take away a lot of that though, and you could tune most of it out also. Anyways, I love going fast and this truck could move, even with a suspension lift, larger tires/wheels and a full bed, hell I passed cars towing my polaris ranger with no issues at all. Needless to say, I loved the engine and was a bit worried about coming to this 3rd gen taco with no superchargers around.

Well....it's fine guys! I don't know if the 2016 and 2017's are different than the 2018's programming but my truck doesn't show all these issues people are complaining about. (It is a Jan 2018 build out of Mexico for those interested) There are some differences, but if you know how to drive, the truck responds great. My drive everyday is literally 40 miles of up and down hills on windy roads, this is a nightmare for tacomaworld 3rd gen owners apparently. My truck does great! I pretty much stay around 1500-2k rpm when cruising with ect on, and when I need to pass someone up the hill, I just step on it and it works! The way this engine accelerates is very similar to the ecoboost. There isn't much at first, but then it shoots forward. Maybe my time in the Ford taught me how to drive these types of engines, but I have found it super easy to have a nice smooth ride and find the power when I need it.

How about that tranny dance tho! I can barely going anywhere with that. Just kidding I don't have that shit either! Again I don't know if its updated ecu tuning, or people don't know how to drive, but I haven't found an issue at all. I also keep it in ect mode all the time, so that probably makes a difference.

Anyways, hopefully this is enough to get some people going on a sunday morning! I'd love to know if people with 18's aren't seeing this stuff as much of a problem as the 2016-17 guys.

 

Wow, I am surprised . I drove a 3.5 Ecoboost and it is hands down, blows away , no comparison to the 3.5 Tacoma .
That being said , The 3.5 in the Tacoma has plenty of umph but it is in in the higher rpm range . I think long time Toyota truck owners are just used to the older engines having all the umph in the lower rpm range and then nothing in the higher range. As far as the shifting dance , there is an after market Shift sense pro that takes care of this if needed . I have driven with one installed and it is awesome .

 

Owned 3 previous 4.0’s, and am digging the 3.5 outright.

 

I agree and nice writeup. This forum definitely gave me some concern before buying my 2017 TRD OR Long Bed. Have had it for 10 months with 12K miles and have had zero issues. No issues with my tranny and no issues with my engine. My only grip is I wish it had Oh Shit Handles above the driver and passenger side windows. Other than that, I love my Taco!

 

No comparison the 3.5 ecoboost had a lot more power and got even better gas mileage. No problem with my Tacoma, has adequate power and doesn’t shift all the time either.

 

Tacoma shifts fine, and there is no turbos to worry about. No Ford is going to be as reliable as a Toyota

 

Just about to round 8,000 miles on my 17 OR. Love the truck. It is exactly what I needed. Love my third pedal!

 

Yeah definitely more power out of the Eco, but I find that the taco has enough when I need it.

 

Yeah I agree about the Eco being way faster and more to, but again I think the taco brings enough for the job if you hit it right. Although if you are a long time owner used to one engine I can see being frustrated with the change. I'd be interested in driving one with the shift sense and see how much of a difference it makes, and if the experience made me think differently about the engine than I do now.

 

The main takeaway I felt ( with the SSP) was when taking off at a normal pace, it goes through the gears evenly , as opposed to it going into 6th way too quick and feeling like it is way bogged down by the time it gets up to 40mph.
There is also an after market tune for it (Ovtune) that a lot of people rave about . I do not feel the need for it but it is there also. The SSP and the tune can be searched for here .

 

I work with a guy that drives Fords and loves them . His 2015 f150 eco boost with 75k is in the shop again because of bad valves. He averages 16, I average 20. My 2016 ORDC 4X4 has been in the shop zero times. So we compared truck problems because he always gives me crap for driving Toyotas. Since 1992 I have had 1 issue with a 4Runner, leaking seal on the rear axle. Every Ford he has owned has had at least 3 problems. My Taco is plenty peppy for me .

 

Nice write up, I had the same concerns before I bought my 18 OR... but after test driving a few 17, 18's and even a friends 16. I didn't really see the issues.

 

I love my 17 TRD Sport automatic. I haven't had any negative issues at all.

 

Speaking to the part I bolded: I don't feel this at all, when I hit it to accelerate merging on a road it goes. I will say, when at a stop and trying to creep, I find that it sorta jumps a little more than I would like, but barely.

 

One can always shift it into sport mode and control how long the truck holds a gear.

 

You may be right about a change in the programing of the 2018's you mentioned in the first post. Toyota may have corrected the condition I mentioned and now does what the SSP does for the older trucks. The 2018 is rated at 1 mpg less than the 2016-17's were rated so something is different . Toyota may have reacted to owner complaints of the shift hunting at the expense of the 1 mpg. wise choice if this is so.

Note , I edited this .

 

That would make sense, I didn't notice the mpg change. I agree that it is a smart choice to take the hit on mpg, especially since it is such a small one. People research online these days, and a forum full of "this engine sucks I hate my truck" is way worse than getting 21mpg's instead of 22.

If they did actually do this, I would hope they would flash everyone's trucks so that the guys who already bought could have a truck that shifts correctly too.

 

It may have been a little more complicated than just reflashing of a shift map. When the 2016's came out , some shifted fine and others had hesitation/jerking into gear and flaring when upshifting etc. , more so when cold . There is a long thread in the sticky section on this . Toyota may have tweeked the transmission valve bodies a bit since then and a flash cannot do that. Just my 2 cents .

 

Only about 1400 miles on my '18. So far it seems that I should be using ECT when I want to be aggressive or pull a trailer, otherwise just let the computer do it's thing to eek out those extra MPG. Since a lot of folks say that the truck smooths out a lot after more break-in time, I'm just trying to be patient for now with any overshifting issues. I do know for sure that it will shit and git when you punch it, though.

 

You can't please 100% percent of the people 100% percent of the time. Some one is all ways going to bitch.