2001 z71 5.3 head gasket, heads, cam swap

MudKing96 · April 30, 2014

Hi, I'm Logan. I'm new here and new to trucks.

I've got a 2001 5.3L chevy silverado 1500 z71 standard cab with about 222k miles on it. Its my first truck and I bought it from a friend of mine. I changed the oil when I got it, it was barely touching the dipstick, black as coal, and had sludge in the bottom of the oil pan. I put a new filter in, 5 quarts mobil 1 5-30 full synthetic high mileage, and 1 quart Lucas Oil. After that it smoked like crazy and burnt a quart every 200 miles. It seemed to slowly lose a little acceleration every time i drove it and then it started to idle funny and stall out when it got warmed up. I cleaned the PCV valve, EGR valve, MAF, O2 sensors (blow torch), and when i started to clean the throttle body I noticed oil standing in the bottom of it and the intake; the throttle body and intake were COVERED in black oily carbon build up. So I got all that cleaned up and it seemed to run better until it got warmed up, it started acting up again. I finally replaced the old rattle type PCV valve with the straight through orifice type and it has been fine ever since. I have not yet checked to see if the oil in the throttle body has gone away but I'm waiting for everything to get burned out.

I drove it a little while, and it has since almost stopped smoking. It smokes a little white smoke when I crank it up and every now and then when i lay on it. I checked my fill tank for my radiator and it bubbles just a little while running and it has a VERY slow antifreeze leak so I'm guessing I have a head gasket leaking. I'm gonna replace the head gaskets, valve cover gaskets (they are leaking), do a cam swap, and some other things while I'm down that far. I can hear my lifters really loud when I crank it up and still some when it warms up; it sounds like a slapping sound and gets faster when u rev the engine, so I want to replace those and anything else I should while I have everything off.

Ha so after all that, here are my questions:

1. Idk if I have Castech heads yet but if I do, should I replace them with aftermarket heads/heads from a different vehicle or just go ahead and have them worked over and ported.

2. If I keep the Castech? heads, what all should I do to them? I know I want to replace lifters; what else? Valve guides, valve seals, rockers, push rods, etc?

3. What cam should I get? I want some more low to mid torque while keeping my MPG as much as possible.

4. At 222k, what are some safety measures I can take? What else should I replace while I'm down that far?

I'm going to have it dynotuned after all this so I'm not really worried about that, I just want to get everything decided so its not torn down for too long. I work on small engines (dirt bikes, 4 wheelers, etc) and I'm decent with car engines but I've never been this far into one of them. I'm doing all the work with the help of my dad so any other help is greatly appreciated.

Danthaman69 · May 1, 2014

do A Full Port And PolisH 3Angle Valve Job. The Works. On Cam Choice ContacT TSP. What Are Your Plans For The Truck?

Danthaman69 · May 1, 2014

Hi, I'm Logan. I'm new here and new to trucks.

I've got a 2001 5.3L chevy silverado 1500 z71 standard cab with about 222k miles on it. Its my first truck and I bought it from a friend of mine. I changed the oil when I got it, it was barely touching the dipstick, black as coal, and had sludge in the bottom of the oil pan. I put a new filter in, 5 quarts mobil 1 5-30 full synthetic high mileage, and 1 quart Lucas Oil. After that it smoked like crazy and burnt a quart every 200 miles. It seemed to slowly lose a little acceleration every time i drove it and then it started to idle funny and stall out when it got warmed up. I cleaned the PCV valve, EGR valve, MAF, O2 sensors (blow torch), and when i started to clean the throttle body I noticed oil standing in the bottom of it and the intake; the throttle body and intake were COVERED in black oily carbon build up. So I got all that cleaned up and it seemed to run better until it got warmed up, it started acting up again. I finally replaced the old rattle type PCV valve with the straight through orifice type and it has been fine ever since. I have not yet checked to see if the oil in the throttle body has gone away but I'm waiting for everything to get burned out.

I drove it a little while, and it has since almost stopped smoking. It smokes a little white smoke when I crank it up and every now and then when i lay on it. I checked my fill tank for my radiator and it bubbles just a little while running and it has a VERY slow antifreeze leak so I'm guessing I have a head gasket leaking. I'm gonna replace the head gaskets, valve cover gaskets (they are leaking), do a cam swap, and some other things while I'm down that far. I can hear my lifters really loud when I crank it up and still some when it warms up; it sounds like a slapping sound and gets faster when u rev the engine, so I want to replace those and anything else I should while I have everything off.

Ha so after all that, here are my questions:

1. Idk if I have Castech heads yet but if I do, should I replace them with aftermarket heads/heads from a different vehicle or just go ahead and have them worked over and ported.

2. If I keep the Castech? heads, what all should I do to them? I know I want to replace lifters; what else? Valve guides, valve seals, rockers, push rods, etc?

3. What cam should I get? I want some more low to mid torque while keeping my MPG as much as possible.

4. At 222k, what are some safety measures I can take? What else should I replace while I'm down that far?

I'm going to have it dynotuned after all this so I'm not really worried about that, I just want to get everything decided so its not torn down for too long. I work on small engines (dirt bikes, 4 wheelers, etc) and I'm decent with car engines but I've never been this far into one of them. I'm doing all the work with the help of my dad so any other help is greatly appreciated.

Let Me Know What You Plan On Doing With The Truck Before I Can Give You Better AnSwers?

MudKing96 · May 1, 2014

4" Rough Country lift

2" body

33" M/T's

Full skid plates (idk where....)

Rear disc brake conversion

beefed up tranny at some point

beefed up 4:10 rear end whenever my stock goes out

Engine:

Airaid MIT

K&N air filter

cam swap

head work

maybe longtube pacesetters, it already has some kind of Flowmaster muffler and sounds great just not loud enough for my taste. I'm thinking 3" tips will help a lil with that.

Looks:

Westin Bull Bar

Westin Nerf Bars

Mossy Oak camo inside

smoked headlights and taillights

fender flares

HID lows, highs, fogs

Its going to be my daily driver as well as my weekend warrior once I get it running good so I want to try to keep at least stock MPG if possible; torque is slightly more important tho. I'm trying to find somebody that has already swapped a new cam getting the results I'm looking for so I can just use that grind. Will I see any benefit from a 5 angle over a 3 angle?

MudKing96 · May 1, 2014

Also plan to use ARP head bolts, any other bolts I should replace with ARP?

Danthaman69 · May 1, 2014

Also plan to use ARP head bolts, any other bolts I should replace with ARP?

With Head Work Use ARP Studs And Bolts. You Really Only Need Arp In Your Engine, Transmission, And RearendGo Ahead Do The 4.10 swap. Since Your Gona Put 33 On There. You Will Enjoy It More. Since You Want To Do Head Work And CaM Put Headers On To Get The Most Benefit Out Of It. 5 Angle Is Better. Talk With Texas Speed And Performance About The Right Cam. They Do Alot Of LS Engines.

MudKing96 · May 2, 2014

Thanks. I've decided I want to replace the push rods, rockers, and valve springs when I do the cam. Should I use the same brand as the cam or get some off of a wrecked ls1? I'm looking for the cheaper route but I want it right.

Danthaman69 · May 3, 2014

Thanks. I've decided I want to replace the push rods, rockers, and valve springs when I do the cam. Should I use the same brand as the cam or get some off of a wrecked ls1? I'm looking for the cheaper route but I want it right.

From Experience buy New Springs, Push Rods And Rockers. You Can Find Them With Package Deal When You Get A Cam.