Ford introduced the new F-150 as an '04 model, and with its fresh appearance came a bold new powerplant. Under the hood, the optional 5.4L engine was improved greatly thanks to a set of three-valve cylinder heads. The increased airflow offered by the new castings are making all the difference in the power department. Horsepower and torque production shot up, and it now boasts a vigorous 300 hp and 365 lb-ft of torque. It was a nice improvement of power, and one would think it would equate to a better performing F-150. Unfortunately, that isn't the case thanks to a severe increase in curb weight.
This unmolested, bone-stock...
This unmolested, bone-stock engine was transformed into a tire-smoking powerplant with less than a day's worth of work.
Today's modern F-150s are pushing a curb weight in the realm of Super Duty trucks. High performance took a backseat despite the jump in power. That is fine if you plan on using the F-150 solely for its intended workhorse duties. Ford never had enthusiasts in mind when designing and building these vehicles. If you're reading this high-performance magazine, chances are you want more performance out of your truck. A growing legion of tuners, shops, and enthusiasts have been taking ordinary F-150 trucks and treating them to lift kits or slamming them to the ground and building their own high-performance pickup. Just because it's big and bulky doesn't mean the new generation F-150 can't be turned into a high-performance vehicle.
If your agenda includes adding more power to that F-150 in the driveway, then you'll like this Vortech supercharger installation story. Adding a centrifugal blower makes up for the excessive weight of these trucks. The torque output alone helps around-town driving, and the horsepower increases will certainly give you a leg up on the competition.
Vortech's Ricky Best tears...
Vortech's Ricky Best tears into the engine bay and removes the air-inlet system and radiator cover.
We installed Vortech's High Output kit, which makes up to 10 psi and includes an air-to-water intercooler, the Powercooler, to chill the boosted air. Our test vehicle is bone stock save for the supercharger installation. It was so new that the window sticker was just peeled off and the odometer hadn't even cracked 1,000 miles at the time of the test.
We ran the truck on a Mustang Dyno, which generally reads lower than the more popular DynoJet chassis dyno. The engine wasn't even fully broken in yet, so there could be a few more ponies available with some mileage on the odometer. Initial testing showed our test subject was making 216.6 hp and 268.7 lb-ft of torque at the rear tires. With the Vortech kit installed and huffing 9 psi of boost (as logged by an Auto Meter gauge) into the 5.4L engine, the horsepower shot up to 325.4 and torque production increased to 373.4 lb-ft. Mathematically those results work out to be a 50 percent increase in horsepower and roughly a 38 percent increase in torque. That's quite an improvement over stock.
Whether you use your truck for high performance, towing, or all-around aggressive driving, adding a centrifugal blower will help overcome the weighty situation of the new generation F-150 pickups.