Well, to be fair, the 5.4 is still light-years ahead of other junk 4.7. The difference is, when a 4.7 dies you throw the truck away. If a 5.4 dies, the truck is usually worth installing a new engine. I think it's funny how people center on the engine as far as truck longevity is concerned. Even the crappy engines last a long time. Engine life is not the big issue here IMO. Nickel and dime crap like brakes and front-end work and electronics are what get you.
First of all, i disagree that the 4.6 or 5.4 are better than the dodge 4.7, they surely aren't!
And my exact word was 'reliability', by which measure the ford mod motors are the worst of this bunch! Stupid coil issues, cracking intake manifolds, spitting spark plugs, etc etc etc! The FORD is the one that will nickel and dime you! EGR problems, IAC problems, leaking pressure senders, on and on and on. Ive done way more work to mod motors than i have to LS motors, and everything ive done to them has been harder than anything i've done to an LS motor!
On a gm 5.3 you will probably want to do 3 things when you get it: plugs+wires, valve cover gaskets, and oil pan gasket. Alternator ever break? EASY fix. Water pump ever break? EASY fix. AC compressor go bad? EASY fix. Coil go bad? Doubtful.. but extremely easy! EVER have to work on the cylinder head? VERY doubtful, but it would still be easier than the Ford! The GM will need less work and less money to keep running, and when it DOES need something, it won't piss you off to do it, unlike the Ford!
If it tells you anything, i would rather have ford's 4.2L v6 in an expedition with an Ebay turbo kit installed by someone i didn't know, than a stock 4.6 or 5.4.
One time i looked into what it takes to put the mod v10 in an f150 until i realized: WHY would i want MORE of the same CRAP that's already there? More issues, STILL mediocre performance. UGH! The only 96-04 gas Ford truck motor i like is the 4.2.
