OnTheReel

Yeah, the headliner does need to drop to remove the light, but it’s already LED so no need. That is, save for the regular cabs that use last generation’s lens and halogen bulbs.

Well, that’s not even a GM-operated website, but I’m guessing one wouldn’t necessarily advertise this because doing so would basically admit that the 19s could have been better? Nevertheless: https://www.motortrend.com/cars/gmc/sierra-1500/2020/2020-gmc-sierra-1500-duramax-first-drive-review “The GM engineers on hand told us the entire lineup of half-tons had their suspensions (both front coils and leaf rear springs) retuned for the 2020 model year, mostly due to customer feedback.“

That’s the tag lights. Well, not inaccessible, but a little tricky with fat fingers.

The “butt” portion is the same shape on all trims. The adjustable lumbar might help a little bit but if you’re not happy with the general shape, nothing really to do. Keep in mind that the 2007 F150 is probably akin to sinking into grandma’s worn out couch. Now, these seats do soften up a bit after some miles, but even the previous generation was softer overall. Some like it, some hate it. I’m pretty much indifferent personally.

Most don’t regret getting the 5.3, but also, no enthusiast ever regrets getting the big engine either. Having driven a couple 19s with the 5.3, they are much more responsive than the previous generation, even though the power ratings are the same. I bet the 5.3 with the 10 speed is even better. The other thing to be aware of is that the Ram, although more powerful, is a much heavier truck that will be down two gears on the 5.3/10 speed. The performance between the two will be much closer than you think. Driving both the 5.3 and 6.2 side by side is a good start, although I’ll tell you the difference was not all that apparent to me in test drives when the trucks are literally brand new. Both engines will wake up after being broken in, however the 6.2 really wakes up. If you don’t need ACC you can also consider getting a 2019 with the 6.2 for the same money, or less than the 2020 5.3 10 speed.

Willing to bet even if they are road-legal, those things are going to rust to hell immediately when hit with road salt. I can’t see GM spending any money on corrosion protection for what are essentially disposable wheels. Personally wouldn’t invest in (4) 22” tires for crap wheels.

The LTs with the 5.3 have a composite rear leaf spring, as referenced in the compatibility guide for the 2” factory lift. So there is a difference there. Between loaners and my own, I’ve spent at least a few days driving each of the 3 suspension packages on these 2019s on the same routes. All three have exhibited much more wayward / tailhappy behavior over broken roads than my 2016 with the base suspension ever did. This is not the only factor in ride quality, but it seems to be the main complaint when it comes to these trucks vs the last generation. All in all, I’m happy with the ride of my NHT, but it does kick out and bounce around occasionally on rough crossings, even after 8500 miles. This can be disconcerting for people who are only getting into their first truck, and I believe it is likely the main reason they retuned the suspension for 2020.

Not really, at least not in city driving. Once I take some longer trips I’ll be able to make better comparisons.

Mines been “gooped” up for over a month now. We’ve had a ton of rain so I am starting to have faith in the ghetto repair they did.

Yeah, I’ve done some runs like that in the past (to no benefit) but not during these tests, I didn’t want to change the method from what I used before the Roto-Fab. For a 0-60 run, hitting 2WD makes little, if any difference because it’s pretty much over before the transfer case even shifts. Couldn’t really find much on calculations for power increase on 0-60 times. Everything is for the 1/4 mile. Car & Driver got 5.1 out of the Limited and 5.4 out of a HC 6.2. C&D’s numbers are always really really low and not necessarily reflective of real life from what I’ve seen. Not sure if they use some kind of correction factor or what. But with 3.42s, cat back and the intake, I only once *almost* matched their High Country which was on 3.23s and stock everything... On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, Motor Trend got horrible times out of similar trucks...about 6 seconds for the Limited, 6.6 for an LTZ 6.2, and 6.9 for an AT4 6.2 with the performance package. Must have been a hot day because those numbers all seem nearly a second too high.

Okay, so here’s where we are at. I’ve tried very hard to match conditions, but unfortunately even in the heat of the day, my comparison runs were done in 68 degree weather versus 70 degrees for my “before” runs. I would have to say “close enough“ as the impact air temperature has on horsepower is only about 1% for every 10 degrees change. There is also always going to be slight pressure and humidity differences between tests, but I think this is as close as possible to scientific and certainly better than “well it feels faster!” Best 6 runs “before intake”, only mod was the GM performance catback: Top 0-60 run was 5.71, average across the top 6 in this config was 5.76. After intake, and about 150 miles learning by the time of testing...best was 5.46! And average across 6 runs was 5.57, almost 2 tenths quicker than “before”. The 5.46 0-60 seemed like a freak of nature, I’ve never had it hook up and pull so hard from a stop. It was a legitimate run (not down hill, no funny business), but I couldn’t match it again and probably never will. All testing was done in auto 4x4, just mashing the gas from a stop. Measured with a Dragy performance meter which has been proven to be very accurate. And as you can see, very consistent here in the records. Taking a closer look at an “average“ run before (5.75s), and an “average“ run after (5.57s ran this exact time twice) probably gives the best picture of the real difference. I would say one could expect to consistently drop a tenth to 60, and two tenths not out of the question. I had a lot of fun doing this test and didn’t really know what to expect. I would have been happy with anything but a loss, so the small improvement was just fine for me. Of course I’m left pounding my head on what could be if these things were tunable. ?

Yeah, it certainly did make me think. It has long been accepted that a tune is the best way (some would say the only way) to get any type of positive results from an intake. Putting that aside, and also putting aside my own displeasure with the MIT on my 2016...so far so good. I’ve put about 125 miles on it in every type of driving, on all of the same roads I’ve driven before...there hasn’t been any difference in the way it shifts or generally behaves. Further, in some fairly scientific (but not perfect) performance testing, I am seeing some definite gains. I will be posting up the results of that in the Roto-Fab thread, which is here in the “mods” sub forum.

Yeah, mine were all the same too. I suspect the smaller clamps they speak of are for smaller couplers that only the 5.3 kit would use/ include? BTW, you win. I only spray waxed my kit. ?

Sounds great at moderate to WOT. Outside of that, it’s pretty low key. I’m really happy with it so far. The GM CAI is the only one that comes with a reflash for the MAF calibration. Otherwise, there is no way for anyone to tune these trucks. So every other intake, including this, is designed to operate on the stock tune.

Roto-Fab CAI installed.

Couple more “during” pics I took. One is of the bracket for the new air box which might help it make sense for you installing, and then another with it about 80% done. Not really worth a write up, the instructions are spot on.

Had a tight window before rain, but I managed to get it installed here this afternoon. Took about an hour, maybe a tiny bit more if you add in my OCD cleaning stuff, unboxing and memorizing the instructions. Put about 35 miles on it so far in varying speeds/ conditions as a test, and trying to get it to relearn. Sound difference is good, not over the top but noticeable above 50% throttle. Nice roar at WOT. I have the loud GM catback so really not a huge difference to me. On a stock truck it would be more noticeable. When in DFM, it doesn’t have the super annoying “gulping” sound my Airraid MIT did on my 2016. So that’s good. The other good news is, it was easy to put in, I have no CEL and it looks pretty cool. I will do some performance testing with my meter after it has had time to learn and after the rain goes away. I have about 10 baseline 0-60 runs so if I can match weather conditions, I should be able to check with some accuracy...if it helps, hurts or stays the same. Guessing it won’t make much difference but never know.

Gonna try to get mine on tomorrow. Instructions look good and clear. Detailed with color photos. All the parts look really nice. Good quality kit.

Love that hood decal. Really fits the style of the truck perfectly.

My measured 0-60 difference between sport and tour modes is a couple hundredths of a second. In other words, sport mode really does not make a performance impact if you’re just flooring it off the line, even if it revs out an extra 100 RPM. I like the steering feel better, but the shift points are annoying as hell around town with a loud exhaust.

I don’t think the 2019 LD will let you call cameras up while driving. It’s still on the old platform and with the old infotainment software (MyLink). The Colorado did get the new Infotainment 3 system for 2019, so that is the reason it can.

Mine will always go back to normal. The only mode that it will stay on after shutting down is tow/haul.

Same RPO (IOR) is 7” or 8” depending on the trim level. On LT/RST the IOR is 8”. No card reader, no IOS. I’ll bet the IOR is lacking some stuff behind the scenes, outside of the card reader, that would be needed to make it nav-capable.

Check the hood release cable. Someone said something about tying it back with a zip tie to fix a rattle.

May very well just be the spoiler with that late of a build. My window frame was cracked, but the dealer also said there was no seal around the spoiler retainer holes which may have leaked eventually too. Hopefully it’s just that anyway. Once they started putting the goop on the window, I pretty much decided to trade on the refresh. I’m kinda over it, but it will always bug me a little and I know it’s going to leak again one day.