Engine swap ?

[Spudz]

Hey everyone, I’m new on this site and have a question. I have a 2011 GMC Sierra sle 5.3 extended cab with 197,000 miles that just started knocking. With the miles it’s a no brainer to have the engine replaced but I am thinking about a 6.0 I would like more power but the only thing performance wise I’m going to do is a cold air intake and exhaust. So what am I looking at going with the bigger engine or does it make more sense sticking with a 5.3. I appreciate the time and any input will help thank you 

[Supreme Pizza]

27 minutes ago, Spudz said:

Hey everyone, I’m new on this site and have a question. I have a 2011 GMC Sierra sle 5.3 extended cab with 197,000 miles that just started knocking. With the miles it’s a no brainer to have the engine replaced but I am thinking about a 6.0 I would like more power but the only thing performance wise I’m going to do is a cold air intake and exhaust. So what am I looking at going with the bigger engine or does it make more sense sticking with a 5.3. I appreciate the time and any input will help thank you 

 

 

 

 

 

197,000 miles is not that bad. I have (3) 5.3 motors. One has 285K, one has 241, and the other has 270k miles. They all run great, no oil burning, not noises.

 

What do you mean its knocking? Lifter? Rod? Broken motor mount? Cracked exhaust manifold?

 

[Jworks]

Agree with Supreme Pizza.  Engine knock could be anything.  197k is not a super high number to be having a rod knocking.  I would have that checked out before I started replacing engines. 

 

* I had a 94 GMC ext cab w/4.3 with 484,000 miles on it .  It was still running when I sold it.

 

[CamGTP]

If you are okay with less fuel mileage and some more horsepower then going larger to a 6.0 is fine. Finding a 6.2 would be good as well.

 

Tuning the computer for the 6.0 does take a little more time compared to a 6.2 swap because the half tons came with a 6.2 and that information would be very easy to bring over when using HP Tuners.

 

The 6.0 has to be from 2007.5+ and the earlier year engines ran different MAF and MAP sensors compared to your truck. So you'd have to keep those sensors from the 5.3 if running a engine before 2010 I believe.

[shakenfake]

Hey sometimes a 6.0 swap nets better fuel mileage. More power to pull the same weight so mechanical advantage

 

Or something like that...

[Spudz]

On 1/15/2022 at 2:24 PM, Spudz said:

Hey everyone, I’m new on this site and have a question. I have a 2011 GMC Sierra sle 5.3 extended cab with 197,000 miles that just started knocking. With the miles it’s a no brainer to have the engine replaced but I am thinking about a 6.0 I would like more power but the only thing performance wise I’m going to do is a cold air intake and exhaust. So what am I looking at going with the bigger engine or does it make more sense sticking with a 5.3. I appreciate the time and any input will help thank you 

Hey thanks for the input, the mechanic got a hold of me and it seems to be the lifters on the afm side and that’s under warranty from having it done a few months ago 

[TurboTruck]

For the record... The 6.0 and 5.3 rated HP and TQ numbers are something like 385hp and 380tq for the 5.3 and 380hp and 385tq for the 6.0. 

 

There's more to it than that however. While the overall power is marginally different, the 6.0 makes better torque down low than the 5.3. Overall, it's not a massive difference and in most cases unless you're shooting for a 1,000hp+ build, the 6.0 isn't really worth it.

 

Be careful with CAI... The only performance advantage had is from a smooth intake tube and those power gains are also marginal and hardly worth $200-$300 in my opinion. I would invest that money in a set of rear end gears or a professional tune. Exhaust will help some with power and done right will give a much better sound than stock.

 

 

[TurboTruck]

Another performance option would be a mild stall converter or a cam.

 

After reading your issue with AFM, I hate to say, those trucks and SUVs are notorious for that and the best solution is to have it turned off in the tune.

 

So you could just get exhaust and a tune, tell the tuner to turn of AFM, and kill two birds with one stone.

[CamGTP]

You got your power numbers a little wrong.

 

That era 5.3 makes 315-320hp and 335 ft lbs. A 6.0 from 2007.5+ makes 361hp and 385 ft lbs.

 

A 6.2 makes 403/417 just for reference.

[TurboTruck]

21 hours ago, CamGTP said:

You got your power numbers a little wrong.

 

That era 5.3 makes 315-320hp and 335 ft lbs. A 6.0 from 2007.5+ makes 361hp and 385 ft lbs.

 

A 6.2 makes 403/417 just for reference.

 

Yeah, I'm going from memory when I bought my 2017 Sierra Denali. Then the 6.2 was 420hp and 460tq and I'm almost certain the 5.3 was 385hp and 380tq, but once again, that's off memory.

 

He didn't specify what year 6.0 he'd be getting so I was shooting from the hip.

 

One thing to consider is that all the power number regardless of era are dependent on cylinder head and intake. So an older 6.0 could be purchased, then a set of new heads or a set off a camaro or corvette could be put on.

 

No replacement for displacement so I'm not arguing that at all. Even era correct, you're talking about 40hp and 50tq at the engine difference. By the time you take into account drivetrain loss, it may or may not be worth it.

 

I went 6.0 if that helps. The difference is that if I wasn't running a 78mm turbo and shooting for 1000hp, a 5.3 would just as easily hit 800hp. So my 6.0 is now a 6.7/408 because I need as many cubes as I can get to hit my number. Not required though.

[TurboTruck]

On 1/15/2022 at 3:41 PM, CamGTP said:

If you are okay with less fuel mileage and some more horsepower then going larger to a 6.0 is fine. Finding a 6.2 would be good as well.

 

Tuning the computer for the 6.0 does take a little more time compared to a 6.2 swap because the half tons came with a 6.2 and that information would be very easy to bring over when using HP Tuners.

 

The 6.0 has to be from 2007.5+ and the earlier year engines ran different MAF and MAP sensors compared to your truck. So you'd have to keep those sensors from the 5.3 if running a engine before 2010 I believe.

Valid point on the sensors and tune.

 

I think the tune from a 5.3 the same era would probably be close enough to work fine for a N/A combo but to net the most power, you'd need to have it tuned by someone who knows what they're doing.

[Supreme Pizza]

Disable the AFM ASAP.

[Jsdirt]

6.0, 706 heads, mild cam, Trailblazer SS intake, long tube headers, and a tune, and you're over 450HP / 480 ft.lbs. at the crank. This will be happening to my failure prone POS very soon.

 

I'm only at 117k on my LMG, and oil pressure is dropping off big time. Started burning oil at 50k miles. Oil analysis at 75k or so was showing lots of metal (piston, ring, plus cam & cam bearing material). I've had a Range device plugged in since 77k, so that's kicked the lifter problem down the road for me. I bought a pickup tube o-ring, pan gasket, and a deflector shield, but at this stage it's just a matter of time before the lifters or something else fails. Might not even be the pickup tube o-ring. Could be the VLOM seals. I'm not a gamblin' man - I'll let someone else freshen that engine up and drop it in a hot rod. Done F'ing around with this toilet. Do it once, do it right.

 

I'll be doing a LY6, deleting the VVT, NO AFM, and I'll finally have a reliable truck since the transmission and rear end already failed before, and right after 100k miles respectively.

 

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