V6 vs EcoBoost

[magnetticmadness]

You’ll put up bigger numbers easier and for less money on the ecoboost. But why are you so hung up on 450hp?

300 is the sweet spot for daily driving. It’s fast enough to be fun and literally beat 99% of the cars on the road and efficient enough to be halfway decent on gas. Also you get cheaper rates on insurance.

The eco will give you bigger numbers easier but at what cost? Longevity of the engine?

At some point a car is a car and you rely on it to get you from point A to point B without smoke pouring out of the hood.

I'm not sure why 450 came to mind. I guess its just a goal. somewhere in the 390 whp range was what I had previously and it worked fine. See I'm debating on a GTI as well because the problem for me is that the EcoBoost just seems doomed when it comes to sound. I cannot find a decent exhaust in my opinion lol. Borla was as close to good as I can get. Also, the v6 is def cheaper but I realize the drawback of more money down the pipe for smaller performance gains.

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[USMCtoARMY]

I'm not sure why 450 came to mind. I guess its just a goal. somewhere in the 390 whp range was what I had previously and it worked fine. See I'm debating on a GTI as well because the problem for me is that the EcoBoost just seems doomed when it comes to sound. I cannot find a decent exhaust in my opinion lol. Borla was as close to good as I can get. Also, the v6 is def cheaper but I realize the drawback of more money down the pipe for smaller performance gains.

The costs of gains is not different between the two when you get into numbers above 400 at the wheels. The ecoboost will quickly outpace the 3.7L in costs once you get into that territory. Plus the 3.7L can handle the extra juice without any other additional engine goodies. The ecoboost is better in one criteria IMO only because you can get factory options not available on the V6 that when you attempt to bring them to the V6 it can get real pricey. Performance wise, 400 and above its gonna be the 3.7 all day unless we start dropping some MAJOR money into the eco. A lot of opinions from non 3.7 owners, former ecoboost owners, GT owners who act like the 3.7 can't produce gains for a reasonable costs is uneducated malarkey. I have worked with this engine over 8 years. Its fantastic, forgiving, and loves the boost. I cant think of many rides where I could drop 5-7k and walk away with a +450whp (remember your pushing like 255whp before this) and retain reliability with no other modifications beside the turbo/super kit alone. Some Japanese engines (2JZ series) come to mind but I think we get my point

The Cali issue I totally get with the new laws. Are an auto or manual driver? Cause honestly that would change what decision I would go with too.

 

[magnetticmadness]

The costs of gains is not different between the two when you get into numbers above 400 at the wheels. The ecoboost will quickly outpace the 3.7L in costs once you get into that territory. Plus the 3.7L can handle the extra juice without any other additional engine goodies. The ecoboost is better in one criteria IMO only because you can get factory options not available on the V6 that when you attempt to bring them to the V6 it can get real pricey. Performance wise, 400 and above its gonna be the 3.7 all day unless we start dropping some MAJOR money into the eco. A lot of opinions from non 3.7 owners, former ecoboost owners, GT owners who act like the 3.7 can't produce gains for a reasonable costs is uneducated malarkey. I have worked with this engine over 8 years. Its fantastic, forgiving, and loves the boost. I cant think of many rides where I could drop 5-7k and walk away with a +450whp (remember your pushing like 255whp before this) and retain reliability with no other modifications beside the turbo/super kit alone. Some Japanese engines (2JZ series) come to mind but I think we get my point

The Cali issue I totally get with the new laws. Are an auto or manual driver? Cause honestly that would change what decision I would go with too.

I think this statement makes me more comfortable with the v6. But you are right at the end of the day to get the v6 to "premium trim" it would cost about the same as a used ecoboost premium lol. I am both lol. I prefer manual but my 18gt was an auto and it was an absolute monster. Not quite as good as the zf8 speed in the camaro tho... Sorry ford fanboys but i gotta say that lol.

 

[DR_]

Some dealers here in Dallas advertise new Mustang Ecoboost under $20k. To me at that price it would be hard to go used V6.
However, one big advantage with the V6 is that if the engine blows, it is literally less than $1000 for a low mileage junkyard motor.
Completely stock I was at 266 whp. With just adding the Procharger at 8psi I was at 415 whp. This is on a dyno where stock 15-17 GT dyno at 385 whp.

 

[magnetticmadness]

Some dealers here in Dallas advertise new Mustang Ecoboost under $20k. To me at that price it would be hard to go used V6.
However, one big advantage with the V6 is that if the engine blows, it is literally less than $1000 for a low mileage junkyard motor.
Completely stock I was at 266 whp. With just adding the Procharger at 8psi I was at 415 whp. This is on a dyno where stock 15-17 GT dyno at 385 whp.

i mean have you test driven a gt in comparison to your procharged v6?

 

[DR_]

i mean have you test driven a gt in comparison to your procharged v6?

Yes. I have even instructed some guys on track with GT's. The 15-17 GT has more mid range but by 5k RPM my car pulls harder. I recently had a student with a '18 GT PP with 10A and it felt as strong up top.

 

[magnetticmadness]

Yes. I have even instructed some guys on track with GT's. The 15-17 GT has more mid range but by 5k RPM my car pulls harder. I recently had a student with a '18 GT PP with 10A and it felt as strong up top.

so you're telling me that your procharged v6 feels just as fun to drive as a gt? if thats the case then maybe a v6 is the way to go. I am really curious becuase i have had an ecoboost and 3 gt's but never a v6. How would you describe your daily driving? do you have enough power down low or is it really lacking?

 

[ctandc72]

It all depends on what you want out of the car versus what you want to spend.
My purchase happened unexpectedly because my daily driver was totaled (other driver's fault).
I only bought my car new because of the price and I know the dealer pretty well. $5K off sticker at the time. The difference in price for a clean, used, unmodified (I don't do previous owner mods - 30 years of fixing other peoples' mistakes - no thank you) GT 6 speed at the time was a tick more than $6K over what I paid.

Stick vs auto + gearing will hugely affect your perception of how much power there is down low. Of course my definition of power down low might be a bit different than most. I've come from bigger cubic inch small block chevrolets mainly so that comparison is hardly fair to the V6 or the 5.0 (down low at least) for that matter.

Personally one of the best things I like about the 3.7 is that it likes to rev.

Is your desired HP figure just a number or do you have something in mind like 1/4 mile times etc?

My plan for my car will involve a Procharger in the near future. My goal is to get it dyno tuned locally so I can run two tunes. A 91/93 octane version fine-tuned for the daily driving it sees and then a 93/100 octane race gas tune for weekends at the strip.

My advice is to figure you what YOU want out of the car. Then go from there.

 

[shadowsong6]

supersix motor sports has ported heads, cams, and a stoker kit.... can't get hit with CARB bullshit if they don't see anything unusual under the hood ;) lol

 

[magnetticmadness]

supersix motor sports has ported heads, cams, and a stoker kit.... can't get hit with CARB bullshit if they don't see anything unusual under the hood ;) lol

wait a stroker kit for 3.7? what would be the benefit of that? Im not super mechanically inclined lol

 

[USMCtoARMY]

wait a stroker kit for 3.7? what would be the benefit of that? Im not super mechanically inclined lol

Its not something u do for a street ride and you need to understand engines IOT tackle this unless your willing to pay a shop. To benefit from this your also talking ported cylinder heads. By then your well over the cost of turbo or supercharger. Basically, stroker kit increases displacement, more torque, and usually produce more overall horsepower. Something like this makes no sense unless u plan on banging this car on the track regularly and want to lose its daily driver characteristics. You need time and money for this conversion. This is not for the daily driver. Heck if carb and costs are that big an issue...stick to bolt on upgrades or build a twin turbo kit from ecoboost parts, it will look factory, but the gains would be only around 340ish whp compared to the base 260ish whp if you dont upgrade the base parts, which is capable of 400-450 if done correctly. However, this kit also requires some level of mechanical understanding and requires custom fabrication with exhaust.

 

[shadowsong6]

Its not something u do for a street ride and you need to understand engines IOT tackle this unless your willing to pay a shop. To benefit from this your also talking ported cylinder heads. By then your well over the cost of turbo or supercharger. Basically, stroker kit increases displacement, more torque, and usually produce more overall horsepower. Something like this makes no sense unless u plan on banging this car on the track regularly and want to lose its daily driver characteristics. You need time and money for this conversion. This is not for the daily driver. Heck if carb and costs are that big an issue...stick to bolt on upgrades or build a twin turbo kit from ecoboost parts, it will look factory, but the gains would be only around 340ish whp compared to the base 260ish whp if you dont upgrade the base parts, which is capable of 400-450 if done correctly. However, this kit also requires some level of mechanical understanding and requires custom fabrication with exhaust.

Errr... a stroker doesn't suddenly make your car a monster and totally unstreetable. Hell, in most cases you will notice no difference in the cars manners aside from having more power to play with. People have been stroking, and de-stroking street cars for decades, even OEM's will stroke or destroke engines to fit their needs, the 5.4 old 2 valve is just a stroked 4.6. Chevy does is all the time with their LS/LT motors as well.

 

[USMCtoARMY]

Errr... a stroker doesn't suddenly make your car a monster and totally unstreetable. Hell, in most cases you will notice no difference in the cars manners aside from having more power to play with. People have been stroking, and de-stroking street cars for decades, even OEM's will stroke or destroke engines to fit their needs, the 5.4 old 2 valve is just a stroked 4.6. Chevy does is all the time with their LS/LT motors as well.

Did i say a monster? Did i say unstreetable? Your not following the OPs train of thought here. I said daily driver characteristics i.e. gas mileage (debatable i know), warranty, CARB etc. I am not deriding your comment personally but trying to help the OP. Why would u drop in excess of 6-7k (that is on the low side) to build out a stroker kit to get an N/A build rated at around 400 unless u are gearing up for a track build on a car whose engine stock can handle 600whp with boost? That makes little sense. Lets understand what the OP is asking here and why. Why would i advocate engine work to the level of a stroker kit to someone who is clearly attempting to learn the basics and has stated their a novice rating in basic wrenching. They also are concerned about cost over the life of the car. Hell, has anyone on this forum done the stroker kit to understand how that looks on our cars, outside of a track build...no. I would not recommend this option the OP, and nor did i post misinformation in answering what a stroker kit is...

EDIT: I answered this first thing in the AM before my coffee. I apologize if this comes off with bad intent. That is not the case.

 

[magnetticmadness]

Did i say a monster? Did i say unstreetable? Your not following the OPs train of thought here. I said daily driver characteristics i.e. gas mileage (debatable i know), warranty, CARB etc. I am not deriding your comment personally but trying to help the OP. Why would u drop in excess of 6-7k (that is on the low side) to build out a stroker kit to get an N/A build rated at around 400 unless u are gearing up for a track build on a car whose engine stock can handle 600whp with boost? That makes little sense. Lets understand what the OP is asking here and why. Why would i advocate engine work to the level of a stroker kit to someone who is clearly attempting to learn the basics and has stated their a novice rating in basic wrenching. They also are concerned about cost over the life of the car. Hell, has anyone on this forum done the stroker kit to understand how that looks on our cars, outside of a track build...no. I would not recommend this option the OP, and nor did i post misinformation in answering what a stroker kit is...

EDIT: I answered this first thing in the AM before my coffee. I apologize if this comes off with bad intent. That is not the case.

wow thanks for all the support here. This is what really makes me want the Mustang over my other choices is just the absurdly large amount(in a good way of course) support you get. Right now my choices boil down the these options and in no particular order or anything:
1. VW mk6 or MK7 gti-depends on mileage and pricing
from what i understand and have driven a few these cars are amazing for what they are and their performance abilities have huge potential.

2. Mustang v6 or ecoboost.
Dont need to discuss this since the thread is already kind of all about that lol

3. Mazdaspeed3
great car from my very limited research but very limited aftermarket.

 

[Nagare]

I'd skip the Speed3 at this point just because of how old it is tbh. Then the Mustang vs GTI comes down to body style preference. GTIs are great with a tune and everybody loves their handling.

And just wanted to let everyone know, some guy on reddit feverishly argued with me and believes that an Ecoboost is more reliable at 550hp than our V6 XD

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