5.3 engine rebuild or buy crate

[DCVegas]

Is the truck a DD or for seldom use? Share your needs/wants and long term plans.

Its my daily driver and I use it to haul my construction gear to jobs often. Its paid for so I plan on keeping for time being

[DCVegas]

Drop in a junkyard 6.0. the LQ4 will give you a bump in power over the 5.3, and they are a dime a dozen with decent miles

Does this bolt right up or is there fab work involved?Do I need the ecm from the donor engine or need custom tuning?Would I get the same or less MPG with this swap?Thanks

[Chris]

Does this bolt right up or is there fab work involved?Do I need the ecm from the donor engine or need custom tuning?Would I get the same or less MPG with this swap?Thanks

All you need is tuning. That engine was in the 02-04 sierra denali and the 01-06 yukon denali. Bolts up and plugs in. Mpg is a mute point because it varies person to person. I lost about 1-2 MPG on the LQ9 6.0 compared to my 4.8

[desrtrat]

IMO- i would do a cam/lifter swap and be done with it.

[Cold Air Inductions]

That pricing is insane from the dealer. I would buy a new CAM, upgraded valve train, lifters, etc. and have a reputable local engine builder assemble it and get it back in the truck. You could do all of that for probably under $2k, maybe even get a warranty from the engine builder, and you would be good to go with minimal headache and money spent. Good luck!

[Jsdirt]

All you need is tuning. That engine was in the 02-04 sierra denali and the 01-06 yukon denali. Bolts up and plugs in. Mpg is a mute point because it varies person to person. I lost about 1-2 MPG on the LQ9 6.0 compared to my 4.8

You can use the stock computer and wiring harness? JUST a tune is all that's needed going from a 4.8/5.3 to the LQ4? Wow if that's the case I'm gonna start shopping ... I expected a years worth of check engine lights, wiring problems, computer issues, etc. with an engine swap on these things ...

[Chris]

You can use the stock computer and wiring harness? JUST a tune is all that's needed going from a 4.8/5.3 to the LQ4? Wow if that's the case I'm gonna start shopping ... I expected a years worth of check engine lights, wiring problems, computer issues, etc. with an engine swap on these things ...

Just swap long blocks and tune

[PJB1972]

Just swap long blocks and tune

Yup, that is all!

[Jsdirt]

SA-WEEET! Made my day guys, thanks!

 

There's hope for my rig after all. Now it's just a matter of money .. because I'll have to grab a Raptor tranny (not a level 5 - prob just a level 2 or 3 for longevity) if I want it to live, as I tow quite a bit.

 

How are the front & rear diffs & transfer cases holding up in these trucks with big power engine mods, or swaps?

[vettelovralexand]

Careful to get the right engine. NNBS are 58x reluctor and many of the cheap engines are from older vehicles with 24x. Only reason i mention it is that jsdirt's pic is of a nnbs.

[Jsdirt]

I was expecting some catch to this - sounded too good to be true. Also adding to the drama is the fact that mine is a Flex engine - not sure what that changes .. or doesn't change there.

[vettelovralexand]

It can still be done but you would just need to find a slightly different engine model (ly6 is the most frequent for 58x swaps). If you tune the truck afterwards the tuner would just need to know what your injectors are that you ended up using. There isnt a plug difference.

[Jsdirt]

Does the Flex engine have different injectors for E-85?

 

I always wondered if the Flex programming is why I always got heavy spark knock running a hand-held Hypertech program, even with the 87 octane tune installed. Now I just run premium all the time - solves that problem fairly easily ... but paying .40 cents + per gallon more sucks ..

 

I would never run that E-85 crap - I like this engine for the extra corrosion resistance of the Flex Fuel components, but it's the option package the truck had, so I got what I got.

[HARD CORE]

I bought a LQ9 6.0 ltr and put in my Silverado last Year . That's the best motor I ever had . Got it for 2300 complete engine LKQ MOTOR COMPANY . 3 year 100,ooo mile warranty ... Bad part was my tranny went out shortly afterwards . Put a RPM STAGE 5 solved that problem .

[vettelovralexand]

It does have a different injector and fuel pump to allow for the added volume needed of e85.