Guys keep in mind when buying a truck one of the most important things to consider is the ratio of the rear axle. The ratio is what is going to play a Big part in what kind of milege you get out of your truck. Just remember when selecting a truck that the rear end is just like the prop on your boat. You need to select one that gives you what you are looking for. It's alot like a prop if your boat is strong out of the hole you probably had to sacrafice some top end, the same is true about a rear end. If you choose a rear end that is best for towing it will have great pulling ability but you will give up some gas mileage.

I've had an 01 and an 07 chevy and 5.3 and I didn't realize how crappy they pulled until I pulled with a dodge and hemi. Then towed with the 5.7 tundra. I'm not a dodge fan but I now own
a hemi and that flat out pulls. I hate pulling with my wife's tahoe and 5.3

the normal ford v6 cost about $6,000 less and pulling a z8 it is getting 14.5 at 64 mph to tyler from north west of fort worth but the braking power just dosent feel like enough until the trailer brakes kick in.

It's a gasoline turbo V6 Chad. It has 420 lb ft of torque. Pretty impressive.

I had a new 2008 Sequoia with the 5.7 last year. I liked the way it drove and pulled the boat. It was more than adequate for towing a 21' bass rig on a tandem trailer. It got about 11-12 mpg towing. More importantly it averaged 13.8 mpg over the 80K miles I put on it in two years. That is in town, highway, and some towing average over 80K miles.

My 2010 Chevy Sub gets about the same pulling a boat as the Sequoia but it is not nearly as strong. The 5.3 Chevy has 350 lb ft of torque compared to the Toy's 400 lb ft. Both have a Six speed auto tranny. Drag race the Toy will run off and hide from the Chevy, no contest. No bash here just fact.

The good thing about the Suburban is that over 56K miles I have on it now it has averaged 16.1 mpg. That is real world everyday driving same as the miles I put on the Toy.

Here's the math...

40,000 miles a year at 16.1 mpg = 2,484 gallons
40,000 miles a year at 13.8 mpg = 2,898 gallons
Difference of 414 gallons @ $4.00 a gal = $1,656 more dollars a year used or $138.00 per month more fuel burned.

Now the question is, Is it worth it?

2009 Silverado
4spd auto with OD
4x2
20 inch factory wheels with goodyear street tires
5.3
Towing package with 4.10 gears.

I would be able to tow like it wasn't even there. I would go from dallas to San Antonio and still have close to a 1/8th tank left on a 26 gallon tank. Stopping seemed to be a little hard at times due to drum brakes out back, but it never really was an issue. I traded the truck in due to not having the room in the back i wanted for my daughter.

I purchased a 2011 Tundra Crew Max for the room and for the fact that I just thought it looked Great and had enough room for 3 adults in the back.
with the following
5.7
4x4
6spd auto with OD
4.30 gears
3 inch leveling kit
Mud terrain tires.

I do 70mph I'm getting about 10mpg and as low as 8mph. If I do about 55 i'm looking at 13mpg. I know the 4x4 lift and the tires aren't a fair comparison, but I'll be honest it doesn't seem to tow as well as my old silverado as far as mileage and how the motor seems to labors at times between gears at cruising speeds. Stopping is like the boat isn't even there. The breaks are huge and could stop 5 boats back there. I have heard of people getting all kinds of great mileage in a tundra. My old roomate has a 2011 5.7 4x2 stock rims/tires and on the highway he gets 16.8-17.2 and his 2009 one was much of the same.

Overall I knew what i was getting. I figured 17mpg on the sticker would net me about 15 with the lift and the mud tires and I was right. About 15.5 on the HWY. But what I didn't expect was to go down about 6-8mph by towing on flat roadways. I'm curious to know if a 33X12.50R20 Toyo Open Country M/T makes that much of a difference over a stock tire though..

Either way I hope this helps. I wonder what a dealer would say if you showed up with a boat and asked to do a test drive/tow with the boat first

I had a 2002 Ram 1500 regular cab with the V6 and that thing could barely pull itself around. With 70k miles, the whole truck was falling apart and it was by far the worst vehicle I've ever owned. I had a 2000 Silverado with the 4.3L V6 that got about 19 on the highway and 15 towing that 17' Triton, and that Dodge with the 3.7L V6 got 14 highway and 10 towing and it was running at 3k RPM just going constant 65 mph on the highway with less than 2k. Just a ridiculous excuse for a truck. The hemi might be good, but I'll never own another Dodge again. Sometimes you just can't erase that memory, you know?

i hope ford doesn't shoot themselves in the foot with this eco-boost. i would love to see there turbo v6 change the market. Of course, the first of anything new will have bugs. there isn't a single vehicle that I would buy the 1st year of a new model change.
I had an 99 f-150 before my tundra. btw, f150 was rated truck of the year in 99. it did have the 4.6l v8, which was really weak and wasn't worth the 1mpg difference to the standard block. i am not going to compare the power of a 4.6 f150 to a 5.7 tundra (unlike those that seem proud of their 8.1 chevys at 10mpg) my f150 was just a pain to work on in comparison to any other truck thus far, and yes you have to certainly work on them. the f150 didn't handle the boat very well either. i didn't notice this until i got my tundra. my ford was really kinda scary at times trying to stop my boat too. don't even notice it in the tundra. of course the tundra is a heavy truck in comparison to the 99 f150. the new fords appear to be heavier.

sparkplugs took way way too much work to replace!.. try getting those back ones and you'll know what i mean.

list of problems i had with my f150 by 150k:
heater core (11hrs of labor and had to remove stearing column...hanes book said TAKE TO DEALER!)
raidator (and yes, i did routine coolant changes)
alternator
both front hub assemblies ($$$ thanks to abs)
both from brake calipers failed: ceramic cylinders JUNK!
both rear diff seals and wheel bearings
both front half shafts
egr tube
all ball joints
tye rods and pitman arm (ill just consider this maintenance for fords sake)
rear sliding window leaked, everyone i asked that had one had same problem.
universals joints twice (not major, but my biggest complaint was the lifetime sealed bearings that didn't have a grease fitting... and didn't last a lifetime for sure! avoidable problem)

my poor hanes book was barely together after having that vehicle for only 5 years.

now to end this on a positive note:
the truck never left me stranded and gave me plenty of heads up when something was about to go out.
engine- no problems
tranny- no problems
differential (excluding wheel bearings and axle seals)
ooo. the speakers were better than my tundra.
sharp looking truck to the end too.
all these were listed positive for my truck (aside from the looks) in CR, which was why I bought it in the first place.

I'm right there with you.. 8-10 if i do the speed limit, but i do have a lift and 33s

my truck is stock aside from i have AT tires. of course, any truck you lift and up the tires on is gonna hurt you... especially towing.

I have an 07 Sequoia and I believe it is on the same exact undercairage of the tundra and have no problems towing. I usually get 12 to 14 mpg while towing . Usually cant even tell that there is a boat behind. I dont usually gun it when taking off from a stop and think this helps the mpg a lot. Good luck!

I'm glad we could all agree...

the 8.1 i had got 10 mpg on a good day ( i was 19 when i owned it and made way to much money for my age). only had it for 5 months then got a diesel. i was merely commenting on a guy that said the tundra was the strongest gas burner and he had driven them all. that truck had ranch hands front and back and i put a 2" lift and 33" mud tires on it. it was really cool to be able to punch it at 30mph and smoke the tires. oh yeah igt wasnt stock either i put a new mas air folw sensor intake and exhaust plus had it programmed. probably cost me 10 grand to drive it for 5 months. once again i was 19. will never think of owning one again but glad i did.

I just bough the new F-150 eco boost and I had a Toyota before with the 5.7 litre. Toyota 17 mpg empty at 70mph and 9 mpg at 70 mph towing a boat. Eco boost 19 mpg at 70 mph empty on cruise and towing a boat at 70 mph I get 13 mpg. They both pull great but I like the Ford because I can pull with the cruise on. The truck pulls like a diesel. It will carry over hills at 70 mph and never down shift. Its a good truck.

I pull a Legend 211 with the 5.7 liter. Best truck I've ever had. I get around 13mpg @ 70mph

I talked to a gentleman at the gas station the other day that had put a Cold Air Intake and Air Filter; along with a masterflow muffler and it increased his milage 3 miles per gal. I am ready to do that to mine if there is anyone on the forum that can do the work.