[Nasty Wendy]

How is it that aftermarket airfilter systems and tuners get so much more out of the Ecoboost than Ford does? I can't believe that Ford developed this platform and just threw whatever airfilter they had laying around on this engine. Why is there that much untapped power? 99% of everything that adds performance also adds fuel economy...if you fight the urge and drive sensibly. It would only stand to reason that Ford would benefit from being able to advertise even higher engine performance numbers hp/tq and fuel economy. Why don't they? I've read claims from the tuners that driveability isn't compromised and the performance gains are verified. Why doesn't the truck come this way from the factory or why won't Ford sell upgraded programming? Something just doesn't add up....and I think I know what it is.

 

[SPPD]

Bottom line is $$$$

It is cheaper to produce using the factory parts.
They also have to back up the trucks with the warranty. They build them to handle a certain amout of power and then tune them down to make it less likely something will break. Also, emmissions is regulated by the Govt and they tune and part them to meet emmissions requirements. There are also other factors, but these are the main reasons.

SPPD

 

[HowFX2]

A great article to read is done by Full Race on their ecobeast build. They tore the motor down completely and were very surprised to see Ford went above and beyond normal specs they also commented about the stock air filter and said it's more than adequate the way Ford built this little engine is pretty unique Full Race feels this engine can handle 500 plus hp
How

 

[1fastbob]

OP, Ford knows exactly what they are doing and certainly Ford knows more about the Ecoboost engine than ANY aftermarket company. Ford designed, engineered and built the Ecoboost and they know it inside and out. Ford has emission standards to meet and they also have to engineer vehicles that are usable with no drivability concerns in many different climate conditions and elevations. Ford is not perfect and sometimes problems crop up, but they are usually promptly identified and handled. I would also disagree that 99% of modifications add fuel economy. I has been my experience that most modifications do not add fuel economy. I have spent many dollars on cat back exhausts and K&N airfilters over the years to gain economy and all that I noticed was my wallet was thinner. Tuners will increase the HP of the Ecoboost and they do so by increasing the turbo boost pressure as well as change other things such as fuel tables, timing etc. I would not be smart of Ford to boost up the horsepower and have the increased horsepower damage the transmission or other parts of the driveline. Aftermarket performance modifications are to be done at your own risk.

 

[GJN25]

+1 ^^^^^ I have said it before I have friends design motors for Ford, Mercedes-Benz, GM, and the few other companies as well, all over the world. They know what they're doing and they are very careful about what to put on the market people are more than welcome to get the power out of the motors themselves but they have to worry about everyone not just you driving. you may be able to have a tuned race ready motor and take care of it but what about the person that just wants to hop in their truck or car and drive and know that it turns on every day the only way to do that is by doing what they do overbuilding the motor and then backing off on the power to something that is for longevity not performance.

 

[Nasty Wendy]

Ford also has to protect itself from its own warranty. Any given engine has a finite number of horsepower-hours that it will live. Ford knows what the horsepower-hour life expectancy of our engines are. At maximum output from the factory the engine burns 360 hp/hrs per hr. Ford has also conservatively figured how hard the 'average' engine will have to work over the course of the powertrain warranty and therefore knows how long its hp/hr life will last against the warranty. Simply put, if the engine's output (hp) is increased it will also increase its consumption of hp/hrs and therefore shorten its life, possibly having it fail while under warranty. A huge factor in figuring the hp/hr life of an engine is its displacement. Ford knows exactly what they are doing. And not all mods that claim to add performance do. The ones that actually do add performance will also increase fuel economy in nearly all cases. Its just that you have to fight the urge to enjoy the added performance for the sake of fuel eco.

 

[graysailor]

Ford and producers of other products have a lot of Federal agencies and standards to comply with. Having said that I am sure they could do better given a free reign. I also believe that the Ford engineers know what they are doing and certainly more so then me. I'm into cosmetic upgrades just for my own satisfaction. As far as tunes, exhaust, air intake etc. No thanks. These trucks cost a lot of money and I cannot afford to jeopardise the warranty.