Any after stories with failed lifters?

SigPig94 · April 5, 2022

Picked up my truck yesterday afternoon…..second bank of lifters was replaced. So far everything sounds good….I guess now I just keep my fingers crossed every time I get in and start driving.

One curious thing though…..I posted a couple weeks ago in a different thread about the knocking/metallic rapping noises that I was hearing when I first started up my truck in the morning (chilly mornings)…..I didn’t hear those noises this morning. Many theories I read online mentioned carbon deposits as the possible explanation. Were these knocking noises a warning of what was to come (lifters failing)? I do believe they’re separate issues, but if I knew anything I guess I wouldn’t be on a Forum such as this. So, fingers crossed….until I have to type here again. (Yeah, I know, very pessimistic).
Thx again to everyone.

thekcwolf · April 5, 2022

Yeah, It certainly blows having to keep your fingers crossed, so that you get to where you are going.

Those knocking/metallic noises... I always had the understanding that was typical with these direct injection engines. Something about oil settling lower than in a non D.I. engine, so it would take a few minutes for the oil to warm up and get distributed around critical parts to at least quiet it down... (something like that), which would also explain the prominence on chilly mornings. Also probably why they suggest full synthetic oil. Well, anyway... Thanks to you as well for continuing to update your story. Aside from being able to learn a few things on these forums, it certainly eases the repair anxiety for the rest of us. Good Luck with all the new lifters, You should be okay. See you around !

Cheers,

Tony

SigPig94 · April 6, 2022

20 hours ago, thekcwolf said:

Yeah, It certainly blows having to keep your fingers crossed, so that you get to where you are going.

Those knocking/metallic noises... I always had the understanding that was typical with these direct injection engines. Something about oil settling lower than in a non D.I. engine, so it would take a few minutes for the oil to warm up and get distributed around critical parts to at least quiet it down... (something like that), which would also explain the prominence on chilly mornings. Also probably why they suggest full synthetic oil. Well, anyway... Thanks to you as well for continuing to update your story. Aside from being able to learn a few things on these forums, it certainly eases the repair anxiety for the rest of us. Good Luck with all the new lifters, You should be okay. See you around !

Cheers,

Tony

Thx for your reply Tony, I appreciate it. I’m certainly glad ALL the lifters have been replaced.

khays · April 23, 2022

On 2/11/2022 at 6:11 AM, voided3 said:

That is the better approach, for sure. Our dealer thanked me for not going off on them over the combined 51 days our truck spent there (as much as I was slowly dying on the inside), but A) the service department didn't design and build the truck so it's not their fault the lifters were made out of tin foil and B) in our case, they also had to wait on on a GM engineer to come to the dealer and give the final diagnosis and authorize the repair.

I had to get three Hertz rental cars and one dealership loaner in the first few months of ownership. The dealer initiated a P.O. for each rental car for me. I'm sure they didn't like having to pay for a rental car for weeks, but they did it anyway and I only had to put gas in them (I wasn't required to put gas in the dealer loaner). They absolutely should reimburse you, but it makes things more complicated since they didn't arrange the rental on your behalf (not that it's your fault at all).

I also totally agree that the service department staffing should take priority over sales. The service department gets way more foot traffic for both new and used vehicles wether they were purchased there or not and the experience there is what retains customers. I expect an awful sales experience, but It only happens once per car thankfully. I'm at the dealer several times a year for service (especially with this truck....) so I really only care about the quality of the service department.

Doesn’t 51 days put you in the running for lemon law?

11bravoZ71 · October 6, 2022

On 3/31/2022 at 9:02 AM, Josh Woyame said:

My #4 Lifter failed on my 2019 6.2L at 112K miles. Took out the cam too. Was told either $6k to fix the existing engine or 8k for a completely new engine. I opted for the new engine and now have 4k miles on that. That was $9,400 out of pocket and GM refused to help in any way. They also said I needed a new fuel pump so they replaced that. The truck is now broke down again but it's not engine related I think the fuel pump is out again. Idk....honestly the worst experience of a purchase in my life and will never give GM another penny that I don't have to to fix this piece of junk. It has me super stressed out and depressed honestly. It shouldn't be right for them to screw someone over on a known issue. I don't have that kind of money laying around to drop thousands into this truck.

I’m worried about the same thing happening to my 2019 5.3 I’m at 70k miles now. If you don’t me mind asking .
what was your oil change interval?

Mine is every 5k or less….

And did you use any DFM disabler like range or pulsar LT or tuner?

I’m using range.

I’d tune it out permanently with Diablo tuner. but CA Won’t allow us to buy the tuner for this truck. CARB.

Lauralei · October 7, 2022

On 10/6/2022 at 2:31 AM, 11bravoZ71 said:

I’m worried about the same thing happening to my 2019 5.3 I’m at 70k miles now. If you don’t me mind asking .
what was your oil change interval?

Mine is every 5k or less….

And did you use any DFM disabler like range or pulsar LT or tuner?

I’m using range.

I’d tune it out permanently with Diablo tuner. but CA Won’t allow us to buy the tuner for this truck. CARB.

Ugh! Same here. My 2018 Z71 5.3 is at 90K miles and I have the lifter ticking. I just bought this truck 3 months ago from a dealer. They said they would replace the bad lifters but not all of them and I would still have to pay. I am opting for my local mechanic who is really good and trustworthy. He is going to replace ALL the lifters and add a tuner. I am praying that is the fix and there isn't any other damage to my engine. The dealer is now offering to try and help financially since I've only had the truck 3 months. To be honest, I think they knew they were selling me an issue. My first and last GMC truck! I've always had Fords or Dodge.

RobZ · November 9, 2022

I just got my 2019 GMC Sierra with 5.3(67000 miles) back from the dealer after 3 weeks of replacing the lifter and Piston.

First time they did it on another cyclinder with 26000 miles. I have lost all trust in this crappy DFM motor. I like to keep my truck for many years, this thing is a ticking time bomb. May be looking at getting the 2500 6.6 gas as it does not have DFM.

The only problem is 5mpg less. And what I get for a trade in.

Douglas Aden · April 19, 2023

My GMC Sierra 1500 with 11700 miles just failed with bad lifters. Will probably take the dealership one to two months to repair. Then I will go to RAM and trade it in!

KARNUT · April 19, 2023

1 hour ago, Douglas Aden said:

My GMC Sierra 1500 with 11700 miles just failed with bad lifters. Will probably take the dealership one to two months to repair. Then I will go to RAM and trade it in!

Ram has cylinder deactivation. Toyota and Nissan doesn’t. Or buy extended warranty.

Dpach · April 20, 2023

10 hours ago, Douglas Aden said:

My GMC Sierra 1500 with 11700 miles just failed with bad lifters. Will probably take the dealership one to two months to repair. Then I will go to RAM and trade it in!

Look up Ram lifter tick and you will find the same issue as they also have an AFM system in the hemi.

The Raven · April 20, 2023

On 4/19/2023 at 10:26 AM, Douglas Aden said:

My GMC Sierra 1500 with 11700 miles just failed with bad lifters. Will probably take the dealership one to two months to repair. Then I will go to RAM and trade it in!

Yeah as mentioned, the HEMIs have the exact same problems. Your alternatives are all TT V6's which have a whole new slate of issues.

Bottom line is this - there is no "safe" truck. Find the truck you like the best and keep it under warranty.

Clewallen11 · May 9, 2023

I have a 2020 GMC Sierra 1500 5.3, just had lifter failure that damaged the cam also, total repair out the door was $8100. This was at 77,000 miles, I didn’t realize this was even an issue until it happened.

Does anyone know if they repair the engine with the same original OEM spec lifter from 2020 that failed or has the lifters been updated since then to be more reliable? I love my truck but if I have to worry about lifter failure moving forward, going to have to bail.

Mike Reinstein · May 12, 2023

Mine’s outside the build date as a 2022, but did I dodge a potential future bullet that mine came with a $50 credit and no DFM?

20L8TSierra24 · May 13, 2023

Add me to the list. 8400 miles on my 6.2 and all 16 were replaced last week. Dealer had the vehicle for a week and all sounds normal now. Mine knocked real bad every morning from both sides of the engine.

Navy Vet · May 30, 2023

I have a 2019 Silverado L84 5.3 with a failed lifter on #5 cylinder. This happened with 60,123 miles on the truck - yep, 123 miles out of GM's warranty. So far, GM has done nothing to remedy this, despite the widespread lifter issue with these engines. They did offer to pay for the towing. . . . then changed it to the first 25 miles. . . . . then no record of any such authorization. I have been a lifetime GM owner and have also built and raced GM products. Stunning! Needless to say, I will never own another one. Their gross mishandling of a serious design and product flaw is utterly despicable.