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I’m getting it ready to go to the Syracuse Nationals.

Lauren Fix Is AI quietly deciding what you pay at the gas pump? How the algorithm picks drivers' pockets. Every time tensions flare somewhere in the world, gasoline prices seem to jump overnight. Drivers expect it. The news blames geopolitics, oil traders blame uncertainty, and politicians blame each other. But here's the question almost nobody is asking: If computers can raise prices within hours, why do they suddenly become so patient when it's time to lower them? Americans have lived with this frustration for decades. The price of crude oil climbs, and gas stations respond almost immediately. Crude oil falls sharply, and suddenly we're told to be patient. Refiners need time. Distributors need time. Retailers need time. Somehow, that urgency only seems to work in one direction. Regulators have already gone after algorithmic pricing in apartment rentals, and they're looking at hotel rooms, airline tickets, and online retail. Now a new California lawsuit and a federal push to investigate gasoline pricing suggest there may be another piece of the story that deserves far more attention. It isn't simply about oil markets anymore. It's about artificial intelligence, algorithms, and whether software designed to maximize profits is quietly changing how fuel prices are set across America. If that sounds like something out of a science fiction movie, think again. Kalibrating the market? Kalibrate is a real pricing platform. The company markets its software as an advanced pricing solution that analyzes competitor prices, wholesale costs, local demand, traffic patterns, and countless other variables before recommending the "optimal" price at the pump. By the company's own marketing, it serves many of America's largest fuel retailers and convenience store chains. Retailers use it because it promises to increase profit margins while staying competitive. There is nothing inherently illegal about any of this. Every major industry now runs on data analytics. The concern begins when pricing software stops simply reacting to the market and starts shaping it. On June 22, three California drivers filed a federal class-action lawsuit in Sacramento — and they didn't just sue the software company. They sued the gas stations. Kalibrate is the lead defendant, but so are Marathon, BP, Circle K, 7-Eleven, Speedway, Walmart, Sam's Club, and Albertsons. According to the complaint, Marathon alone runs more than 1,000 ARCO stations in California and has been letting Kalibrate set prices at them since 2020. Circle K, plaintiffs claim, has more than 400 stations on the software. Albertsons, they allege, has been using it since at least 2009. The complaint alleges that Kalibrate allowed competing retailers to share competitively sensitive information and receive pricing recommendations that discouraged aggressive competition. It describes a "restoration" feature that plaintiffs say lets nearly all the stations in a market raise prices at the same time. It also quotes Kalibrate's marketing, which according to the complaint tells operators that even in the face of "falling oil prices ... it's critical to avoid a race to the bottom," and warns that cutting your price to win customers "could be making a change that triggers a downward spiral." The plaintiffs call the platform the "central nervous system for a conspiracy to extinguish retail price competition among gas stations." Price pumping What does that cost you? Research cited in the complaint found that stations switching to this kind of software raise prices by about 6 cents a gallon on average — and by as much as 30 cents where most of the stations in an area are running it. Plaintiffs point to a real-world example too: They allege that when one California Albertsons turned Kalibrate on, its pump price climbed 3 to 4 cents within days. That sounds small. It isn't. By the complaint's math, a single penny on the statewide average drains $134 million a year from California drivers' wallets. Kalibrate says it disagrees with the allegations, calls its technology lawful, and intends to defend itself. The retail chains have not yet answered the complaint. No court has ruled on any of it. But what happens when thousands of competing businesses begin relying on the same algorithm to determine prices? Price fixing has been illegal in California for more than a century, and the plaintiffs are suing under that old law. What's new is a statute that took effect on January 1 — AB 325, the Preventing Algorithmic Collusion Act — which says plainly that you cannot escape a price-fixing charge by routing the conspiracy through software. Using pricing software is still perfectly legal, but using it to coordinate with your competitors is not. AB 325 makes it unlawful to use or distribute a "common pricing algorithm" — software that uses competitor data to recommend, align, or stabilize prices — as part of an agreement to restrain trade. Whatever you think of Sacramento, it closed that loophole first, and this case is the first real test of it. The A-word Washington is applying pressure of its own — though it is worth being precise about what kind. On July 3, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission sent every state attorney general a letter urging them to investigate whether antitrust violations or price gouging are keeping gas prices artificially high. "Recent volatility in crude oil prices does not suspend either the antitrust laws or state consumer protection laws," they wrote, "and it does not authorize companies to manipulate retail prices or collude with their competitors." The letter followed President Trump's complaint, posted to Truth Social on June 23, that falling crude prices weren't reaching drivers. But read that letter closely and you'll notice something. It never mentions algorithms. Not once. The federal government is going after gas prices with the same tools it has always used, while the argument about the software is being made by three drivers and their lawyers in a Sacramento courtroom. Nobody in Washington has said the word yet. And whether any of these investigations turns up illegal conduct remains to be seen. Anyone who has driven for more than a few years knows the pattern. Prices spike within days of a geopolitical event, then drift down at a painfully slow pace. Economists even have a name for it: the "rockets and feathers" effect, and they have studied it for decades. Researchers point to several reasons, including inventory replacement costs, consumer behavior, and local competition. None of those explanations necessarily involve illegal activity. Dirty work But artificial intelligence introduces an entirely new variable. Unlike traditional pricing models, today's software can monitor competitors continuously, process enormous amounts of market data instantly, and recommend price changes faster than any human pricing manager ever could. If dozens or even hundreds of competing retailers rely on similar recommendations generated from comparable market data, the practical result may be less price competition — without anyone ever picking up the phone to coordinate prices. That possibility isn't unique to gasoline. Regulators have already gone after algorithmic pricing in apartment rentals, and they're looking at hotel rooms, airline tickets, and online retail. The Justice Department sued RealPage over the software landlords used to set rents and settled the case last November. The concern in every case is the same: that algorithms may accomplish indirectly what competitors have long been prohibited from doing directly. It's worth being precise about what that settlement did and didn't say. RealPage paid no penalty, and the government made no finding that it broke the law. What the DOJ objected to was the use of nonpublic information from competing landlords — not the software itself. Using an algorithm to price your product isn't illegal. Feeding it your competitors' private numbers is where the trouble starts. That distinction is going to decide the gas station case too. Technology moves faster than regulation. Thin margins This debate also exposes another misconception. When Americans get angry about gas prices, they aim that anger at the oil companies. In reality, what you pay at the pump includes crude oil costs, refining expenses, transportation, taxes, distribution, and retail pricing. Gas stations generally operate on thin per-gallon margins — the National Association of Convenience Stores puts the net at roughly a dime a gallon once credit card fees and operating costs come out — while state taxes and regulatory costs can dramatically affect what you pay locally, particularly in a state like California. If gasoline prices are rising because of global supply disruptions, consumers may not like it, but they can understand it. Markets move. Wars affect energy. Hurricanes interrupt refining. But if pricing software is reducing competition by encouraging retailers to move together instead of competing aggressively for customers, consumers deserve answers. Artificial intelligence is quietly becoming the invisible middleman in countless financial decisions Americans make every day — insurance rates, airline tickets, hotel rooms, online prices, and now what you pay every time you pull up to the pump. Most consumers never know an algorithm was involved; they simply assume that's what the market decided. Algorithms don't care whether you're commuting to work, driving your kids to school, or trying to keep your small business afloat. They don't understand household budgets or family vacations. They optimize. That's what they were built to do. The question was never whether artificial intelligence can set prices more efficiently. It's whether we've quietly allowed machines to redefine what competition means. Because if software can determine the price of something as essential as gasoline today, what will it be deciding tomorrow? https://www.theblaze.com/lifestyle/is-ai-quietly-deciding-what-you-pay-at-the-gas-pump

Just cruising around this holiday weekend. Been working on her every spare minute for the past two months. Still lots to do but sometimes you gotta stop and smell some flowers! Old school guys will appreciate the rock crusher whining away. Such a nostalgic sound. Purists may disagree but I like to think I hit a good blend of modern and retro with this car and did it my way.

I thought my dryer was shrinking my clothes. Turns out it was the refrigerator.

Atlas won. I know better, but I did it anyway. I took a compressed air line with a chuck and rubber tip and jammed it in the open EGR port. The port was clear as far as I could see, and as far as I could poke with a flexible wire, but that doesn't mean it's not clogged. Compressed air blew back at me along with a cloud of black. Oops. I didn't have the rubber tip seated in there all the way. Jammed it up in there some more and squeezed the chuck. PSI was set to 120. Poof! It blew back at me again. Third time...pfffffttssssssspffffffsssfffffff, face full of carbon, and then, kind of a thud..and the air stopped spraying back at me. It was now exiting the exhaust with a low shhhhhh sound as it flowed through the pipe. Something broke free. I pressurized the port again, and air flowed. Made my day. Long story short on this problem, it's fixed. Something was really blocking the EGR passages down low, and compressed air blew it apart. I don't recommend this as who knows what debris was sent where. But it's allowed me to move forward, mentally, and onto the next problems I need to get this little S-Blazer going down the road properly again.

A young newlywed couple wanted to join a small church. The pastor told them, "We have special requirements for new parishioners. You must abstain from having sex for two weeks." The couple agreed. Two weeks later they returned. The pastor asked them, "Well, were you able to get through the two weeks without being intimate?" "Pastor," the young husband replied, "I'm afraid we were not able to go without sex for the two weeks." "What happened?" inquired the pastor. "My wife was reaching for a can of corn on the top shelf and dropped it. When she bent over to pick it up, I was overcome with desire and took advantage of her right there." "You understand, of course, that this means you will not be welcome in our church," the pastor responded firmly. "That's okay," said the young man. "We're not welcome at the grocery store anymore either..."

On the PCM side, blue PCM connector, pin 18, solid gray color (no stripe) wire circuit 435. That is the EGR low circuit which an issue on that line (be it the wiring, the PCM or the EGR valve or system performance) will trigger P0401 when it tests that code. There is also a VERY old TSB that states to make sure you clear the DTCs ANY time the PCM is unplugged, reprogrammed, or if the EGR valve is unplugged or replaced as the PCM has an auto zero function in the PCM for the EGR pintle data 61-65-59: SMU - SECTION 6E - ENGINE CONTROLS - CLEAR DTC'S - (Nov 25, 1996) "CLEAR ANY DTCS FROM THE VCM ANYTIME AFTER DOING VCM REPLACEMENT/ PROGRAMMING, TURNING THE IGNITION ON WHILE THE EGR VALVE IS DISCONNECTED, OR REPLACING THE EGR VALVE." Some diagnostic aid notes in the GM diag on P0401 for a 1995 S10 Blazer: Diagnostic Aids Notice: In order to prevent further damage if the EGR valve shows signs of excessive heat, check the exhaust system for blockage (possibly a plugged converter) using the procedure found on the restricted exhaust system check. If the exhaust system is restricted, repair the cause; one of which might be an injector which is open due to one of the following reasons: Stuck Grounded driver circuit Check the oil for possible fuel contamination if a stuck open fuel injector is found. Poor connection or damaged harness - Inspect VCM harness connectors for the following conditions: Backed out terminal BL 18 Improper mating Broken locks Improperly formed or damaged terminal Poor terminal to wire connection Damaged harness Intermittent test - If connections and harness check OK, monitor a digital voltmeter connected between terminal BL 18 and ground while moving related connectors and wiring harness. If the failure is induced, the voltage reading will change.

Oil change before Thursday's track day at NCM

We have a deposit on one. Dizzy is going to need a replacement sooner that later. We live equidistant from two towns 40 miles apart and the range of this the vehicle is in that sweet spot. Plus it's plastic and sans paint! I have 220 V in the garage so a station is not much of a lift. Wife wants the square back SUV variant and I want the extended battery. No frills salt truck for those mindless runs to town that eat up fuel economy on the gas burners and waist them away in winter salt. Plus I can sit my beer on it without worrying about a scratch. No midwinter, on my back in the snow oil changes. I figure it is the cheapest way into dipping a toe into the EV market. Plus it serves a utility.

Ancillary parts to the lower intake and connections went together without issue. There was a brief pause when I leak-tested the fuel lines and injection system. Fuel was spraying all over. Lovely. O-rings weren't sealing the fuel lines to the spider, and inbound line was leaking at schrader valve, leaks at both flange nuts. It's moments like those when you just want to set fire to the whole shop, and be done with it. I was mostly enjoying the project up until that point, and was tracking to an agenda of having a running Blazer and a cold beverage in hand by dinnertime. I found some larger Viton o-rings for my spider and some grease to get them to seat. One leak solved. Swapped fuel line Schrader core for old core. Still leaked. Swapped entire valve for old valve. Leak solved. Nudged the flange nuts a little tighter on the connections. Another leak solved. I could cycle the key / prime the pump and the intake was staying dry. Reassembled the upper intake, with 10,000 vacuum lines, and filled the cooling system with water* (this is temporary, I'm not done with the cooling system yet). Showtime!! Cranked it over and smoke billowed, it was running rough. CEL illuminated and began flashing. P0300 and I somehow tripped a code for the TPS sensor, voltage low. There's nothing as unrewarding as a vehicle that won't run (and produces the same code/problem) after hours of research and work. Clearly I was in over my head. Was the timing off, did I stab the distributor incorrectly? Is the new distributor bad? With my limited OBD 1.5 data stream I really don't have a lot of parameters to see. The engine was pulling mad timing again (flooding?). Think, Atlas, think. 1-6-5-4-3-2. One, six, five.....four, three, ....two. Wait a second. That makes no sense. 1 is the forward cylinder on the driver's side, so 2 should be the forward cylinder on the passenger side, not 6. I can't believe it, but I'm looking right at it. Swapped 2 and 6 on the distributor and turned the key over, and... It fired, coughed and stumbled, smoked, and then settled into a smooth idle. The scanner showed no codes, no lights on the dash, and the throttle was nice and responsive to gentle revs while it warmed up. It's working!!! IT'S WORKING!!! I paused for a late dinner, no cold beverage yet. I was determined to do my shakedown run. Did a basic safety and fluids check one more time and then went out and put almost 70 miles on it last night. She's a runner, runs good. Came home and did a post-trip, post-mortem. The underside is dry *except* for where the last owner RTV'd the snow out of the intersection of the timing cover and oil pan. He said he had replaced the timing cover seal, but, my dude had clearly done it incorrectly and then tried to hold back fate with black RTV. Never works. Yesterday morning I replaced the broken driver's door mirror. As much as I hate cheap Chinese parts, thank goodness for cheap Chinese parts. I think an entire new power mirror assembly cost me like $30, and it works perfectly. Replacement tail lights (faded, and one was busted) ran me about $12/side. I have a door pin kit ready to go in because the driver's door sags just a little and I want to fix that because there's nothing sadder than a saggy door. I don't know what's next for this rig. Half of me wants to take some nice photos (there's a park nearby with a HUGE American Flag that always seems to be catching wind) and throw it up on CL/Marketplace for a couple grand and see if it flies. The other half of me... I've got a sweet running S10 Blazer that's been keeping my mind off of whatever I'm going through right now, and it's bringing some joy, and is cheaper than therapy. Maybe I'll keep it around for a little while. However, this is my 5th vehicle, just for me. 4 is really my limit, but they are not junk, so need very little attention. I don't know...there's a point where it's just too much and I don't see owning this truck long term. But I solved its major problem, got it running, so I'm going to stick a feather in my cap for now. Sometimes we just need to get our hands dirty and fix something in the physical world to gain some satisfaction.

Sadly, there's a drought of good 92-95 4.3 cars at junkyards in the area otherwise I would have gone fishing for parts. Not that they don't come up, there's just nothing good in the yards right now. I tore into the intake yesterday evening, easier than I thought, and I might have this problem licked for cheap. Two of the intake studs came up with the bolt on removal, no big deal but that's why it looks funny with studs only on one side. There's pooled gas on both sides of the plenum. Highlights boxed in green. Picture-right side has an obviously split pressure line from rubbing on the #5 injector nylon line. #5's line is worn in that spot but not all the way through. Passenger side intake (picture left), not sure, but I think the pressure regulator is hosed. Rebuilt spiders don't come with the pressure and return hoses so I'll need to replace those no matter what. A pressure regulator is $30 so I'll try that and if I end up having to swap the whole spider, it was $30. I'll be grinning ear to ear if that's all I need. Parts arrive Tuesday. Sure enough the shop was here before. That's a new gasket. Vacuum lines and wiring are a tangled mess, I sorted that out last night as well. Spent about an hour just picking up general slack and shoddy reassembly around the engine bay. Cheek-pokered the battery tray, got it all cleaned up. Sometimes things just need a little elbow grease and a few minutes of time to be right again.

Most thermostatically controlled ATF systems use a 'wax' pill just like the one in your water thermostat. They work on the expansion volume of the wax and the pill is constructed in such a way as to limit the travel to remain within that range. This means it has an opening temperature often called the 'cracking temperature' and a fully open temperature. For whatever reason oil is designated by it's fully open temperature and water by it's cracking temperature. Between the two it the "Regulating Temperature" The entire range is about 20 F from closed to open. In your example the lower limit, opening point of 145 F then has a fully open temp of 165 F and a throttling temperature of 155 F. Thing is, the throttling temperature needs two things to work properly. Enough system load high enough to reach the minimum and a heat sink (cooler/exchanger) large enough to prevent any load applied from exceeding the fully open temperature. If your system exceeds the fully open temperature it is screaming MORE COOLER. Here is the silly part of the whole thermostat system where the oil is cooled/heated by the radiator. Nothing is flowing to that system until the oil temperature reaches the cracking temperature unless it is equipped with a minimum flow bypass orifice or a bypass built into the seating surface of the plunger. That system meant to get it up to temp quicker isn't doing a thing until WORK drives if from ambient to cracking temp. One a cold winter day, like zero F, it may never get hotter than about 110 F. Sometimes not even that. People forget or are young enough to not know that until this millennia transmissions were cooled by the radiator cold tank alone and without a thermostat at all. In the 50's they weren't even cooled. OEMs learn everything the hard way. When an OEM tells you the trans "Works best" between 175 F and 220 F it means works best for THEM. The transmission thermostat is fuel play. If you watch you trans temps like I do you will learn that it may take a hundred miles if you are not towing and not driving more than say 55-60 mph on a zero F day to even reach 120 F and it might sit there all day if it's colder. Yet if functions perfectly over about 100 F. It may need to get a bit warmer for the fuel and spark maps to go without an multiplier. Worry more about too hot. Use a cooler large enough to put that thermostat in range.

The truck is a 1995 Chevrolet S10 Blazer, 4.3 VIN "W" engine. :cracks knuckles: On a whim - because I needed a headache - this truck was for sale so I stopped to take a look. Doesn't run. Well, it does, but barely. Long crank, choppy idle, bad misfire(s), it REEKS of fuel. I can DO this..I'm thinking. Diamond in the rough. One owner until last year. A young guy is selling it, he bought it 6 months ago. It stranded him more than once, he's got a newborn. It was in the shop 10 days ago and he "thinks" they said it needs a new fuel injection system. He can't put any more money into it, needs it gone. I was thinking of upgrading my Macbook, which is a total want, not a need. For less than the price of a new laptop I can have fun for months tinkering on this truck and enjoying it. I'm taking this truck home. The guy was beyond thrilled, his wife was there, she thanked me profusely, I could tell they were hurting. They seemed like good people in a bind. Some parts, a wash, maybe a set of tires, and I can have a few months of fun and then turn it for beer money (or the next project). Sure enough, there's a work order from a shop last week in the INCHES of paperwork on this truck dating back to when the first owner bought it. They put a new distributor in it, fuel injection work describes basically opening the plenum and putting it back together. He said he couldn't afford any more work so he had them button it up and that's when he put it up for sale. I'm not well versed in 4.3. I did discover 1995 uses the 1992-1995 SCPI "Spider" injector which is riddled with issues from splitting lines, clogged or cracked poppet valves and plastic spider legs that crumble over time. Cool. I'll just order me a ne---. Oh, the auto parts store doesn't have it? Rock Auto doesn't have it. eBay? $$$$$$ for used. These are UNAVAILABLE period end of story unless you know "a guy" who's still got one in a box somewhere. Can't upgrade to the '96-'04 injector, it's a different plenum, wiring/pinout and sensor config. There are a few kinda "know a guy" -guy rebuild services for these injectors out there for about $350. Okay, Okay... I'd like to know if anyone has used them? Anyone got a lead on these crappy 92-95 spiders? I also don't want to send MY spider to Narnia and back without knowing if that's truly the problem. I guess I'll need to pull apart the plenum and do some digging. I was also thrown for a loop. This 1995 model year truck has an OBD-II connector. The interface is decidedly not OBD-II. I can read and reset trouble codes and view live data, but there's not a lot of data. Like misfire count and on what cylinder, that's not there. It's OBD-1.5. Nothing is ever easy. Now it makes sense why this guy wanted to disappear this thing for cheap. I'm guessing the shop told him the injector is toast, the part is unobtainable and they're not going to sort sending the thing to a rando offering rebuild service on craigslist, and the kid likely can't be without a working car for 3 weeks even if they'd facilitate that. Experience with these early SCPI's? Stories? Things to check? Sympathy? (..Nah...) This can sit until I sort it. But I haven't had a problem with a vehicle I couldn't easily solve in a long time.

For 2 years doing repairs or maintenance has not easy with my physical issues. Something simple isn't simple any more. Sept. 6 2024 left shoulder 2 rotator cuff tears, bicep torn from bone. Still having issues, pain and dexterity problems left hand. Go to have EMG test on the 27th, second test. I'm left handed. Oct. 3rd 2025 right hand carpal tunnel surgery and ulnar nerve, end of 3 fingers still lack good feeling. Makes it difficult to do things. March 3rd 2026, Cervical fusion, 4 vertebrae. Still have pain in neck and upper back. I put upgraded shocks on our side by side, not hard but it took me over 2 hours. Oil changes are frustrating because nothing works like it used to.

Yesterday we brought home a 6yr old Havanese dog from a nearby SPCA. We've had her for 24 hours and we are delighted with how well she is adjusting to her new home. It was a huge decision to adopt a dog at this stage in our lives but we believe we made the right choice! it was reported that her first 6 years were ones of neglect. I think she's already realizing her life is going to get a whole lot better... so is ours!

2024 2500 gasser with 47,000 miles. Driving on interstate Friday when my truck shudders, downshifts, and I get the above message with check engine light. Transmission would not upshift. I had to drive home 2 hours at 65 mph at 3600 RPM with transmission temps 190-200 degrees. Got it to the dealer Monday. They ran the code and said the #1 valve body was malfunctioning in the transmission. Miraculously, they had the part in stock and I had a new valve body installed that day with new transmission fluid/filter. Thankfully, all under warranty. Shout out to Everett Chevrolet in Hickory, NC.

Dear diary, Not much to report, but the re-assembly started. New intake is smooshed down and torqued, ready for CPI leak testing again. 24hrs cure for the RTV will be completed this evening, so I'll fill it with fluids tomorrow and try to fire it off after getting all the little bits bolted back on. I hope this little truck thinks of me late at night and in the early morning after rising, too. (LOL) The greasy trench: The front crossmember is a gravitational force/black hole for dropped bolts, sockets, souls. It also retains leaked oil and coolant. It's awful when something actually falls inside of it. There's a thick greasy goo in there. I need to clean it out somehow because, fingers crossed, the engine shouldn't leak anymore. Douse it with brake cleaner? Get a pressure washer on it? It's freaking nasty.

After nearly 3 years of waiting I finally got rid of the chrome wheels. They were just too much. Next are the factory running boards. Very functional and sturdy but too bulky and they stick way out. Just my opinion anyway.

New member here, very long time occasional guest. Saw this thread, thought it would be a good time to contribute someting. It is only my experience and not a claim that everyone will have the same. I bought my '20 3500 L5P new and have put 99.9% (literally) of it's current ~400k miles on it myself, with over 50% of that towing loads between 4k to 15k, and to me this truck has been nothing short of amazing. For the first 235k I had zero issues, and from there until 321k I replaced a NOx sensor, two failing glow plugs, and three of the notorious injector connectors. I believe this truck is in part, a testament to good luck, but also good care and following a decent maintenance schedule (I also keep meticulous records.) As a result, it looks as good as a well cared for 70k rig, up and down, inside and out. At some point before that 321k mile mark I began to get a little spooked about the 10L1000, especially the valve body. Word of mouth about potential issues prompted me to jump on the net to sift through all the noise and determine what all the fuss was about. I routinely take long trips, coast-to-coast and points in between, so roadside breakdowns can be '...a thousand miles from nowhere' and a bit of a challenge, and though I had no issues, my guard was up and activated. And then I stumbled across a chance to salvage some parts off a new 2025 that had been wrecked in transport. I grabbed a few wear items (alternator, pulleys, etc.) and on a whim asked what the ten speeder would cost me. It was cheap...really cheap. I knew some changes had been made in the '24+ version 10L and were supposedly not compatible, but I called service/parts at my local Chevy dealer and asked why and they didn't know. A call to a well known aftermarket transmission outfit revealed it was very likely it would be fine, but to them not 100% sure. Because it was cheap (really cheap) and I was spooked, I took the chance. Had it installed by a local shop and it worked like a champ, shifted just like the original. At it's first service at 37k, I had the shop put in a Next Gen valve body kit, which after some initial hiccups and rough shifts, smoothed out though with somewhat firmer shifting. All that said, I have a very serious concern about my newer transmission as just two weeks ago it suddenly began to exhibit a strong reluctance to engage forward or reverse. It was a bit past due anyway so I took it in for service. The reason it was sticking was due to 'glitter' in the fluid clogging the filter...not good folks, often indicates a converter giving out. We ended up going ahead with the new filter and fluid, first to see if it would move and shift, and then if so buy me a little time. It did, and I've driven it over a thousand miles and it is shifting smooth, no noises or slipping. Regardless, it looks like a third gearbox is in my future so I can resume taking long trips with some confidence. In the very short term, my curiosity will have me examining the fluid to check how much glitter has reappeared. An earlier poster had alleged, in the context of 10L100 failures, that it is another example of how we seasoned citizens somehow descend into hysteria, lose control of our senses, and react irrationally after brief encounters with the idiocy of the internet infosphere. Let me say (and I have used and abused said internet since it's infancy) there is no segment of the populace that has a corner on over-reaction to digital garbage. Just as my offering of experience in this arena is purely anecdotal and should not be considered gospel or all-encompassing, I believe it is still worthwhile information to consider, along with other relevant anecdotal experiences about things like complex transmissions, especially when balanced with other sources. So to answer the original question, yes I got high miles out of my first 10L, trouble free for 321,000. Now I really wonder how much longer it would have went. Did I 'overreact' to the internet ghouls by replacing a 'good' one with a 'bad' one? Maybe. Who knows, the thing might have taken a puke a 100 miles later. So I'll just fix it again, then move on and start thinking about all the other stuff that will eventually wear out. It still has the original brakes (they're at ~60%), original injectors/pump, turbo, water pump, etc....pretty much original everything. Knock on wood.

// Thank you, also for your response. More information is always good. This 2013 GMC is most likely my 'forever truck"-I'm 77 and retired...and truck only has 42K on it-very clean-so I try to keep it that way. Tks again for your response- glenn

This is a 1/2 ton thing ONLY. All HDs 2020-2026 have the two speed transfer case, with Autotrac as an option (still a 2 speed transfer case but gains Auto mode). 1/2 tons 2019-2026, regular 4x4s come with a single speed case (no 4LO!), and trucks with Z71 ordered, or all Trail Boss trucks come with the 2 speed case. 2 speed case is also an option on WT, and is also standard on High Country.

4 low is really nice on steep boat ramps.

If we actually used any significant amount of that source in the USA then I'd agree but we don't. We've had that discussion before. We drill and pump more than we use. Thing is, we sell. We export. Gas and Crude. It's more profitable so any shortage here is self inflicted and LEGAL. I worked a gas plant that has multiple fuel sources available and I worked in the furnace and boiler plant in that facility. I'd had days we swapped fuel types four times in a twelve hour shift which isn't done on supply but on margin. Two of the fuel sources are internally generated. Tail gas and DAK, both of which are sold as well a consumed. We always had more than we needed to run the process but we chose the fuel that produced the best margin not bought at the cheapest price always. A good bit of math to that and back in the time that was done on a slide rule. I worked the Shale Oil Semiworks of Chevron Research and CONOCO Research in Salt Lake City. That process never went into production although it was very successful. Why? Did we lack oil bearing shale? Nope. Price of crude never made the margins work. That was in the late 70's early 80's. Remember history? What was happening then was a reaction to that situation. It didn't drive it. If so then it's easy. This isn't a supply and demand thing. This is a profit and margin thing and AI rules that now. In no refining situation that I was ever in would a bomb hitting a well anywhere in the world 'instantly' interrupt or even distress the supply. Most plants have more than a months worth of crude in the tank field and more in pumping stations. That yo-yo could play out over days, weeks and maybe months and have zero impact on plant operations. How many times has this been off and on in the last few months? These people and not stupid. These plants measure down time in hundreds of thousands of dollars per day. They are not sucking fumes or waiting on the next truckload with baited breath. Besides, as I noted, they are for the most part 'vertically integrated'. They own it from the dirt is sits in to the delivery rack and sometimes to the pump. It has a HUGE shock absorber built in. When production suffers, refining wins and when refining is winning exploration is killing. The rest of that crap in the news is a 'news cycle'. Government dipping in to reserves? Oil is stealing their milk money. There's a reason Chevron abandon Venezuela infrastructure and it had nothing to do with security of US citizens. Nationals run those plants. it has to do with MARGINS disappearing to corruption. They are in no hurry to return. Is there supply there? Oh yea. More than enough to offset what is bought in the middle east. Just isn't ???? Profitable. We have supply. There are places in Illinois you can drive a pipe into the ground and run your homes natural gas furnace on it. A refinery fire will gum up the supply works but not a localized war where the market is using a limited supply from. Now Europe, that's something other....

4-5-6 fails due to design. Not enough clutches and not enough piston to clutch surface area. Also the backing plate can bow. I'd say converter is two part. The design of converter chosen, and factory tuning of it aka slipping it in D (also L6) for AFM purposes, as well as locking it up in 2nd gear, sometimes 1st, also it will partially lock up at light loads. All because CAFE/fuel economy requirements. A billet converter on the stock tune might hold up better, but would still be subject to the stock tuning and how its designed to lock or partially lock. The most baffling part to me, is the 2007-2013 6L80s didn't have the failure rate the 2014-2018 ones do. I've been where I work for almost 17 years now, and I recall maybe 3 or 4 of the 07-13 transmissions getting pulled for something. 14-18 on the other hand, it was at a minimum one a month being opened up. If I had to guess, I'd say the tuning for the gen 5 engines/6L80 setup and its fuel economy goals had a good bit to do with it. Also, it was bankruptcy time during these years, so I'm thinking some cost cutting was done for the launch of the K2XX trucks. See also now the 10 speed valve body issues (more cost cutting). They blow out some mesh screen in the spacer plate, undersized check ball, and the feed limit valve was aluminum and wears out prematurely. I don't think it was the HP jump from the gen 4 to gen 5? The 6.2 in the 07-13 trucks was good for 380-400hp during its life/states of tune, and the 5.3 did 310-320hp.

This past week was spent in bowling green for Camarofest (15)

New sensors installed today. They auto learned without issue. They were working within a 1/4 mile of leaving the installer. I think I'm done for now. Finally have everything done to get it to a good enough base level that hopefully I'll be happy with. Time will tell. I appreciate everyone's thoughts and opinions along the way.

Problems are blown way out of proportion due to the internet. The same experiences get repeated over and over again till it sounds like a real problem. There is NOT an vehicle out there that does not have some issues. Building 100's of 1,000's of vehicles with 1,000's of parts from various suppliers all over the whole, some quality control issues are going to make it through the process. The internet is full of misinformation often designed to change readers opinions. I have had 2 trouble free years with my 2024 Sierra, don't tow anything heavier than a 2026 Ranger NorthStar and mostly a around town. I personally know 3 others with same engine and no issues, 2 are LM2 version and 1 is the LZO, all three happen to be GMC's. All of these owners are older persons (40+) so that may have a lot to do with it. No modifications, no big tires, suspension hacks etc, just normal use. One who has a 2021 LM2 has over 100,000 miles and travels estimating projects for the electrical contracting company.

Turns out it was the remote transmitter. The dealer checker it and found the (remote) transmitter was sending out a close. Ed door signal all the time. Ed

From the back

Got a call today scheduling the bumbers for next week. Can't wait. That's the last major change, stuff they owed me, scheduled for next week. I'm not sure what I'm looking at. Looks like a draft from last week. Bumpers were installed today by the dealer. I'm very happy with the results. A couple before afters ... or not. looks like I can only get 2 into a single post.

dexos began as an effort for GM to control the oil change market because the Quick Lube Industry was eating into dealer service department profits big time. So they attempted to get other oem’s to develop standards as well and that would make it hard for Quick Lubes to compete because all the oems would be different. GM faced lot of industry push-back, mostly the quick-lube industry and they went to licenses. Still GM it making a ton of money (est'd 30-40 million in 2025) off the license structure as they charge a hefty fee to get oil tested then require a royalty on ALL gallons sold applicable to GM vehicles.

This biggest difference in a HM oil is in contains some "Seal Conditioner". DEXOS oils and most shelf oils are "Dry" oils which over time harden seals. "Seal Conditioner" is more times than not, an Ester. Addition will soften the seals over time but will not repair one that leaks or has cracked. Esters also provide some cleaning but these HM oils don't contain enough to solve out hard deposits. Just the soft stuff. Also a function of an Ester. Ester's are not 'allowed' as a 'co-base" by license. Weird, right? A certain amount is allowed as an additive. Bunch of game playing is what it is. It's why HM oils don't have a DEXOS approval. DEXOS is a license 'with' a specification but is not a specification. Never was, never will be. It's GM's slot machine always paying the house. Use what you like.

I am using a ScanGauge II. A ScanGauge III is nicer but it's bigger and I couldn't figure out where I wanted to mount it. I mounted the smaller ScanGauge II where it covers the bottom part of the tach (who cares about 500 rpm most of the time?) and it covers up some idiot lights. I use it to display (actual) engine temp, engine oil temp, transmission gear (1-10), and transmission fluid temp. I checked engine oil pressure and voltage but the dash gauges were close enough (unlike engine temp), so I display the ones I listed above. L8T gasser.

Meaning the manufacture of the catch can. They are completely unnecessary.

Just did an injector/HPFP replacement on Pepper at 192,400 miles; close enough to 200K, RIGHT? (If 200K is considered life end and to me it isn't). But hey, to each his own. Have never run a catch can on this vehicle. Back side of every valve looked like a new valve spray painted semigloss black. Port walls looked 'neat' (all a normal result of passive EGR via VVT) Zero build up even in AFM cylinders. Just color. It uses no measurable oil and never has. At 155,000 I put her on E-85 and a borescope of the cylinders at plug change showed very clean pistons and valve faces. The replaced injector tips looked new. (It was the pump piston seal that was leaking). Oh well, have six good backups. Still gets 28 mpg on gas (highway average) and over 20 (highway) on alky. UOA's look good and runs as good now as it did when I bought it. Better in fact. What improvement would a Catch Can provide this motor? And given all this I expect that IF I installed one I'd see some water/gas/oil vapor accumulation. Byproducts of normal combustion. Having said that, IF my motor used an appreciable amount of oil I'd consider it a useful 'crutch' until I had the situation corrected OR if bore polished, until I junked it or rebuilt it to stave off repeated plug fouling. I'm not telling you what I THINK. But what its DONE.

You might try this 1st. 1. Disconnect both transmission lines from the trans thermostat. 2. With compressed air, blow out the transmission cooler lines, blowing thru the return line with a jug container on the outlet line, and see if any debris is in the jug. I used a clear plastic drink bottle to catch the fluid & then looked to see if it caught any debris. Note from AI.....On your 2017 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 5.3L with the 6L80E, the transmission fluid flow is: Upper cooler line at the transmission = Hot fluid OUT to the radiator/transmission cooler. Lower cooler line at the transmission = Cooled fluid RETURN back into the transmission. At the radiator/auxiliary cooler, the fluid typically flows: Out of the transmission through the upper line. Through the radiator heat exchanger. Through the auxiliary cooler (if equipped with the factory towing package). Back to the transmission through the lower return line.. Then with the thermostat removed, I installed a thermometer defeat (bypass) that bought off Amazon. This one has no moving parts.

I had a 1970 Javelin MDS SST 390 4 speed with the go pack. It was a bullet for its time. A guy a work with a 72 GTX called it a rambler. After a chance meeting at a traffic light. He said no more. It was during my stupid time when I traded often. I traded it for a 67 California special Mustang.

Well....I've done my first intake gasket. Probably wrong, but...we'll see? Ultra black on the china walls and 1/4" up onto the sides of the intake gaskets. Permatex High Tack (couldn't find Gaskachinch) on the head side of the intake gasket. I read wrong and it says you're supposed to put it on the mating surface of the head, not the gasket. Hoping it's like a PB&J sandwich where it doesn't matter what side the PB goes on so long as there's jelly. That crap is messy/sticky and I got a dab or two on the intake port openings, tried to wipe it off. Hopefully it won't be a big deal and will only aid in sealing. Per instructions I left the intake (top side) of the gasket dry except for a light smear of RTV around the coolant ports. Wiggling the intake in there was a bear but I had help to free me of surrounding wiring/stuff but I was basically able to set it straight down lined up with the bolt holes. I did not think to wait until the RTV skinned over but there probably was 5-10 minutes while it sat before installing the intake. Bolts finger tight first. Then, followed the Chilton's manual pattern to snug them to 15 lb-ft. Waited a little over an hour, and then did the final torque in sequence again to 35 lb-ft. Yesterday I replaced the fuel pressure regulator and got my new "nut and bolt kit" (fuel lines) installed. Damn GM used security torx on the spider, which I don't have, so I got scammed at the local HW store for an off-brand security Torx bit set. The new driver's door mirror arrived yesterday, so, there's a chance this thing could be running and road legal tomorrow? I don't want to get my hopes up. This will be my first time stabbing a distributor, too. Although, lucky me, someone else marked the old distributor for removal previously, I did see that. (Someone's been here before!!). Engine is still at TDC so it *should* be just a matter of transferring the mark to the new dizzy and rotating it into place.

It really is comical when people don’t agree or see the reason some people prefer the older vehicles. They become condescending. All the while they may be busting their knuckles on old vehicles. I have found memories of swapping out engines in my old GM cars in a weekend without much hassle. Unlike today. One wrong move a computer will shut you down. Even on something as easy as a brake job. There’s a pretty comical YouTuber called the car wizard. A garage owner who puts it all in perspective. Another Vicegrip garage that’s shows just how tough the old stuff is.

I'm taking a day or two off. Still waiting on a fuel pressure regulator, and I'm hurting. This is a hobby not a day job and I'm just not used to bending over an engine bay like this. Surprisingly, hands are OK. I wear gloves. I'll do some tinkering later today and get the engine side of the intake mating surface cleaned up. Intake itself is ready to go. Hoping to seat it / gaskets and RTV today so it can cure in time for the weekend.

Because that is IDIOTIC, much like this question. They've already been forced to do it by past administrations - why would you roll that back when it's a GOOD thing? WHO IS ARGUING FOR LOWER MILEAGE???? NOBODY IS!! I'm certainly not! What I want is RELIABLE vehicles again that are worth the price paid! I don't get your logic here ... In 2003 I paid $2,200 for our '86 Grand Marquis. It's STILL running and I've never been inside the engine, aside for the timing cover since it was leaking, so I threw a new timing set in since that makes sense. Transmission is ORIGINAL. Electric pump in the gas tank is ORIGINAL. Rear end is ORIGINAL. I'd have to hit my head REAL hard to want to pay $60k or more for a car that still can't come close to the comfort, seating and storage space, or reliability of this one. Nothing is even in the ball park! Hundreds of thousands of brands and models have been built and sent to the crusher while this one keeps on going! https://postimg.cc/Z9XRrCSg I've got a whole fleet of cars, motorcycles, and a truck close to this age for summer and winter. No one could pay me enough to buy anything built this century. I have zero use for any it.

Sitting at my parents house are two older diesel trucks not only getting the same fuel mileage that the mini diesel gets. But both have pulled a 14K tractor on a 7K gooseneck trailer. A 2000 Ford one ton diesel and a 1998 3/4 ton 5.9 Cummins. All original. I’m certainly not complaining about the power of today’s trucks. But the additional quest for fuel mileage and the additional pollution devices have taken reliability down to half what it used to be.

I think the key point to longevity that may be being missed is the way the vehicle is being used. Long operating times with limited cold starts is one. Sustained speeds is another. Vehicles get better fuel mileage on highways for that reason.

Miles? Has it been serviced?

I have changed oil and filter for years by starting a cold engine to warm oil up, let it run 5-10 minutes depending on temperature. Drain until it starts dripping, refill with quantity from owners manual or get it close.