"Get up and go" - "Got up and left"

[Wes1]

A little background info: My parents sold me there 08 Expy which my wife drives and they bought a new 2011 XLT EL. When they built it they speced it out just like the 08 so basically everything should be the same. So ever since my mom got it and started driving she stated that it just does not get up and run like the 08 did. Meaning when she would punch it to go around someone it just wouldn't jump up and go. My brother drove it last weekend on a trip to Houston and he said the same thing. So to my question:

Did Ford change up the engine from 08 to 11? They both have the same 5.4l and same gears. The 08 will jump up and go when you punch it, the 11 does not. Any actually spec changes or have others had the same issue.

Thoughts??

Wes

 

[jacks3am]

were they both EL's? the added weight probably slows it down, or the engine probably needs to be broken in, tell them to drive it like a baby so the piston rings can seat properly so it doesnt eat oil in the future

 

[Wes1]

They are both EL's.

 

[JUST4FUN]

are they the same axel 3.73 or is it like a 3.08

 

[Wes1]

They both have the 3.73 rearend. I have reviewed the specs on both the 08 and 11 and the specs are the same.

 

[jacks3am]

I still say its going to need a break in peroid, and be gentle driving it so the rings seat properly.

 

[tmajikman]

The 08 could have been a factory freak, maybe they detuned the 2011, new emissions possibly, could be a defective truck from the factory (the 2011), I would go test drive another 2011 with the same options to see if a different Expy drives the same or not, the ecu may need to be reflashed at the dealership. Disconnect the battery on the 2011 for a half hour and see if a reset will help.

 

[bigblack]

I have an '11 that is the same way. It also seems to lug up hills and even lose power on slight inclines. We test drove many used '07-'10's before buying this one (some with 80k plus miles) and all of them rode well. Took it back to the dealer and they said "Nothing Wrong"

 

[Wes1]

Talked with the dealership and they said that apparently Ford changed the computer settings on the 11's which is causing this issue with power. The head tech at the dealership found the same issue on his 11 and put a chip on his, but with not much luck on gaining back much of the power. Not sure which chip or programs he used.

My brother made a call to StangHi (Stanghi.com), which did the performance work on his 2011 Mustang 5.0, and they said to bring it to them and they could do a little work on it and fix the issue. I think we are going to do this and see what they can do. Once it is completed I will post an update.

 

[MN_Moose]

Wes, did you have any luck with this?

Our new 2011 is also very sluggish.

 

[Wes1]

Moose, no, still pretty much the same. Waiting to put more miles on it and then look at a programmer. Have you found anything out in your research?

 

[MN_Moose]

No, I am in the same situation as you.

We only have 300 miles on the odometer.

I'm definitely not used to the "electronic throttle control (ETC)."

Supposedly this ETC is in learn mode for an initial set of miles.

I am finding that I don't like its current setting: seems too sensitive at low throttle input, and not sensitive enough at higher input (sluggishness is at high throttle settings). My best way to put it is that the first 5-10% throttle seems immediate (either on or off) while the 10-100% throttle seems to have turbo lag without a turbo ever kicking in.

My F150 is opposite, and just how I like it: 0-50% throttle seems gradual, but if I put petal to metal, response is immediate. I believe in math terms, that would be an exponential curve - gradual increases from starting.

I posted in another thread asking how best to drive during this adaptive learning stage, but have not had any insightful input.

I'm thinking about just taking it into the dealer, and seeing what they have to say. I wish they could just take my F150 throttle curve and program the new Expy similarly.

 

[MN_Moose]

This expo curve is what I think that it should be :

...

Another geeky article on Ford ETC: http://articles.d-tips.com/art8.html

 

[jacks3am]

get a custom tune, the GM 4.2 has a problem where the ETC doesnt open as quick as it should, a tune will take care of it

 

[bigblack]

Programmer

Has anyone tired one of theses programmers? My '11 is so sluggish and unresponsive I want to drive it off a cliff! My freind recommended the superchips flashpack. He used it on his jeep and loved it. Has anyone tried this? I'm kinda scared to start messing around with a vehicle with only 5k miles on it.

http://www.superchips.com/Store/Flashpaq.aspx

 

[wiffmajig]

I have owned 3 Expeditions, an 04 (4.6) and 06 (5.4) and an 09 (5.4) and the 09 is by far the biggest pig of all.

In my opinion the biggest change was due to the 6 speed transmission. For me getting used to the odd shift changes and kick downs was the worse...it is much slower than the my previous 2.

 

[bigblack]

Check out this thread
http://www.fordexpeditionforum.com/showthread.php?p=92753#post92753

Just got a custom tune from 5 Star, and it solved all my problems. Best $415 I ever spent!