The V10 is regarded as strong and reliable, and you can find it in the F-250 and F-350, the Excursion large SUV manufactured between 2000 and 2005, or the F53 motorhome. Hot rodders have used the Triton to power their souped-up creations, custom off-road vehicles, and standalone generators.
There are some reliability concerns, the biggest being wear in the spark plug thread, especially among early units. This is because the heads are made out of an aluminum alloy, and worn-out threads can provoke the spark plugs not to screw in properly and allow pressure to escape from inside the cylinders, causing a misfire or just generally affecting the running of the engine.
Another issue with these engines is the possibility of cracks in the exhaust manifolds. They can also evolve fuel injector problems, and the cam phaser (a component of the variable valve timing system) is prone to wear, just admire in the 5.4-liter V8 that the Triton is related to.
Considering the Triton is a big 6.8-liter gasoline V10 used almost exclusively in trucks, it’s not particularly efficient if you differentiate it to the turbodiesel engines that are more common in heavy-duty applications. For instance, a 2012 Ford F-650 has an average fuel economy of 5.7 mpg, but users on the Ford Trucks Forum say they can get over 15 mpg out of their Triton-equipped Fords if they drive with a light foot (although most owners report they get closer to 13 mpg).
