V6 “good enough” in a Pickup?

[JTK]

I've known guys with this exact truck/engine/drivetrain and they liked the power and economy of this newer DI V6. Their only complaint was the feeling when the cylinder deactivation kicks in. One guy I work with hated that so much he traded the truck in.

I hate the feeling of the cylinder deactivation kicking in/out on my 2019 Ram classic with hemi, but one push on a steering wheel button and it's off for the trip if it bugs me enough. Other than that, I'm happy to have it when I want it.

 

[A_Harman]

Yep, love a good V6 pickup.


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I had one of those for a couple of years. Great for straight-line passing on 2-lane roads. Had incredible acceleration in the snow on winter tires. Didn't handle very well. Unreliable, but that was probably due to the previous owner being a butthead.

The interesting thing to note is the turbo 4.3 V6 had 280 hp. The modern GenV 4.3 has 285. But the Syclone had a lot more torque.

 

[1blkc5]

I have the typhoon and love it

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

My regular cab F150 with the 4.2 V6 will give a 3 cylinder Geo Metro a run for the money.

 

[tblt44]

I used to tow 1600 with my old 1990 4.3. You will have no problem with these newer v6 engines

 

[350Rocket]

Sign # 11 that you are getting old. A V-6 has enough horsepower in a full size pickup.

I'm 38 years old...I have no doubt the 4.3 would have enough power to get by (as much power as my 2005 4.8 anyway) but I love the sound of my V8 and I wish for the power that the newer V8 or EcoBoost trucks have. The lack of power has probably helped extend the life of my transmission, transfer case, etc though. The V6 will likely have the same effect on the rest of the drivetrain too.
Our other surveying office has a 2015 Silverado with the 4.3. They say it's a bit underpowered on the hills (loaded with surveying gear) but it's been abused badly and I haven't heard of any major failures yet other than the radio doesn't work.