Jump to content

Which engine - 5.3, 6.2 or 3.0?

Z71RAD88
 Share

Recommended Posts

Bikerjon Enthusiast

Bikerjon

Posted
Posted
10 hours ago, Z71RAD88 said:

I'm moving forward with a new truck purchase in the next few weeks and struggling to decide which engine to go with. I live in CA and don't tow. Typically drive 20,000 per year. My typical commute is 35 miles each way with 90% country roads at 55 mph and freeway at 65 mph, a combo of the two. I do get up the mountains frequently so the extra torque from the 6.2 and 3.0 appease me. I do understand having the turbo will be helpful at elevation compare to a NA engine. 

 

I was initially all set on the 6.2 but with the recent notice from NHTSA, It's got me thinking twice. 

 

Never owned a diesel and don't feel overly confident I can feed it the proper/required diesel living in California. 

 

What would you all go with? Trim level wise going RST or LTZ. Deals seem to be better on the LTZ with the 3.0. 

I got a Trail Boss with a 6.2 in December. Holy sh*t is this thing fast compared to my other Silverado's with the 5.3. Never had any problems with the 5.3s. As for any problems with the 6.2 engine there are hundreds of thousands of them out there running just fine and making a lot of power. If I have any problems with my engine GM is going to fix it. That's what a warranty is for. As far as gas mileage forget it. I ride a Harley and drive a big 4X4 so I don't worry about gas mileage, however living in Cali this may be more of a concern to you. If you are asking my opinion I would go with a gas powered V8. 5.3 or even better a 6.2.

  • Replies 57
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Popular Posts

newdude
newdude

Is it though?  I can reset my trip meter and drive 7 miles and get the same result.  That's not an accurate measurement of MPG, what it can achieve in a 7 mile stretch.        

Transient
Transient

I see that you ordered your truck before I was able to post my experience.  Imo, you made the right choice getting the 3.0 Duramax.  I have a 2020 with the 6.2 and lived in San Diego from 2020 to 2023

newdude
newdude

41mi.  Doesn't count.  Show us what you get on a tank or current lifetime MPG, that counts.  

Posted Images

Jus Cruisin Enthusiast

Jus Cruisin

Posted
Posted

I've had a 6.2l for a little over 2 years. I have the GM performance exhaust on it and love the sound. Highway mpg is 22ish. Around town, it is 16ish. Premium gas is all that I use. 

 

All though I'm happy with the 6.2l, I'm thinking I'll go 3.0l next. Diesel is cheaper than premium. I'll give up the V8 growl though. 

JeffKirk Enthusiast

JeffKirk

Posted
Posted (edited)

I posted this on another engine debate thread, but speaks to your question with the exception that I have never owned a diesel.  Don't get caught up in some of the mileage claims...one on this thread is a 7.2 mile sampling, so totally irrelevant.  My 2018 with the 5.3 averaged 18.9 over a 6000 mile time period of mixed city and highway use.  My 6.2 is currently logging 18.1 over a 3500 time period of the same use.

 

I know we beat this to death and opinions are all over the board, but here is my experience and thoughts.

  • Bought a 2018 GMC Sierra SLT new with the 5.3 and 8 speed transmission.  Owned that over 6 years and 65K miles using it as a typical homeowner would.  I do tow a 6000 pound tri-toon boat which the 5.3 handled well.
  • Traded in my 2018 for a 2024 GMC Sierra Denali with the 6.2 and 10 speed transmission.  The difference in power and all around drivability is obvious and I do think the 10 speed contributes to that.  Pulling my boat is a different experience now in terms of power.  This is where you really notice the increased torque and my pulling mileage improved by 1.5 mpg (calculated running the same 8 hour roundtrip we do every year).  I do run 93 octane gas even though this is debated up and down, I don't care for one minute about spending the extra dollars at the pump.  I'm not rich, but capable of owning this truck and putting 93 in it.  
  • Bottom line, I would never look back at the 5.3 after owning the 6.2, to me it would now be a deal breaker.  That said, no disrespect for the 5.3 and I had a great experience with mine.  No mechanical failures and only routine maintenance in 6 years of ownership.  I do hope the 6.2 gives me the same experience, but time will tell.

One happy 6.2 owner here!

 

Edited by JeffKirk
newdude Senior Enthusiast

newdude

Posted
Posted
22 hours ago, PunchT37 said:

My ‘25 LT 2wd 5.3 with 3.42 gears has done this, at least at times. 
 

 

E36D1F76-2641-419B-94D2-A9312AF38EE2.jpeg

 

22 hours ago, Z71RAD88 said:

 

Wow. Impressive. Thanks for sharing. 

 

 

Is it though?  I can reset my trip meter and drive 7 miles and get the same result.  That's not an accurate measurement of MPG, what it can achieve in a 7 mile stretch.  

 

 

 

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
JeffKirk Enthusiast

JeffKirk

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, newdude said:

 

 

 

Is it though?  I can reset my trip meter and drive 7 miles and get the same result.  That's not an accurate measurement of MPG, what it can achieve in a 7 mile stretch.  

 

 

 

Exactly my thoughts.  I have a very long downhill stretch where I live and could post a mpg photo that would make you run and buy a 6.2...lol

newdude Senior Enthusiast

newdude

Posted
Posted

2.7 Turbomax, 3.0 Duramax and 5.3.  Skip the 6.2.  

 

Turbomax and the Duramax have the best factory powertrain warranty, 5yr/100k miles.  The only downfall is the Turbomax can be option limited so if you wanted buckets, gotta go with one of the other engines.  As for MPG with the Turbomax, I've got 3 years on mine (2022.5 HO before they called it Turbomax) and I've averaged the life of the truck almost 4mpg more than my old 2018 5.3 6 speed.  Currently in 32,000mi, lifetime MPG is 19.3mpg, my 5.3 when I traded it was 15.7mpg lifetime in 48,000mi.  

 

Duramax is the MPG king for sure.  There is added costs (diesel does run closer to 91/93 prices but again, better MPG, oil changes are a bit more, DEF).  You could easily get 25mpg or more per tank out of the 3.0.    

 

5.3 with the 10 speed makes the 5.3 a way better platform that it used to be with the 6 speed.  It was better with the 8, but the 10 makes it more enjoyable.  

Z71RAD88 Enthusiast

Z71RAD88

Posted
  • Author
Posted
8 minutes ago, newdude said:

2.7 Turbomax, 3.0 Duramax and 5.3.  Skip the 6.2.  

 

Turbomax and the Duramax have the best factory powertrain warranty, 5yr/100k miles.  The only downfall is the Turbomax can be option limited so if you wanted buckets, gotta go with one of the other engines.  As for MPG with the Turbomax, I've got 3 years on mine (2022.5 HO before they called it Turbomax) and I've averaged the life of the truck almost 4mpg more than my old 2018 5.3 6 speed.  Currently in 32,000mi, lifetime MPG is 19.3mpg, my 5.3 when I traded it was 15.7mpg lifetime in 48,000mi.  

 

Duramax is the MPG king for sure.  There is added costs (diesel does run closer to 91/93 prices but again, better MPG, oil changes are a bit more, DEF).  You could easily get 25mpg or more per tank out of the 3.0.    

 

5.3 with the 10 speed makes the 5.3 a way better platform that it used to be with the 6 speed.  It was better with the 8, but the 10 makes it more enjoyable.  

 

Ya, I'm going buckets. Over the past few days really leaning towards the 5.3. It best suites my needs a vast majority of the time. 

PunchT37 Enthusiast

PunchT37

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, newdude said:

 

 

 

Is it though?  I can reset my trip meter and drive 7 miles and get the same result.  That's not an accurate measurement of MPG, what it can achieve in a 7 mile stretch.  

 

 

 

This should be a little better. By the way, no long hills here. 

98D15B4F-41BF-4635-A84E-3F9759043BB5.jpeg

newdude Senior Enthusiast

newdude

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, PunchT37 said:

This should be a little better. By the way, no long hills here. 

98D15B4F-41BF-4635-A84E-3F9759043BB5.jpeg

 

 

41mi.  Doesn't count.  Show us what you get on a tank or current lifetime MPG, that counts.  

  • Like 1
PunchT37 Enthusiast

PunchT37

Posted
Posted (edited)
16 minutes ago, newdude said:

 

 

41mi.  Doesn't count.  Show us what you get on a tank or current lifetime MPG, that counts.  

You are correct but, I did say "at times, at least" in the 1`st post. What does any engine get it`s whole life? Lots of factors involved. I know my 2000 LM7 with 3.73 gears won`t come close to this T1 truck with the L84.

 

I`m not trying to deceive anyone into believing a heavy truck with a v8 gets 25 mpg all day, every day.😉

Edited by PunchT37
Z71RAD88 Enthusiast

Z71RAD88

Posted
  • Author
Posted
3 hours ago, newdude said:

2.7 Turbomax, 3.0 Duramax and 5.3.  Skip the 6.2.  

 

Turbomax and the Duramax have the best factory powertrain warranty, 5yr/100k miles.  The only downfall is the Turbomax can be option limited so if you wanted buckets, gotta go with one of the other engines.  As for MPG with the Turbomax, I've got 3 years on mine (2022.5 HO before they called it Turbomax) and I've averaged the life of the truck almost 4mpg more than my old 2018 5.3 6 speed.  Currently in 32,000mi, lifetime MPG is 19.3mpg, my 5.3 when I traded it was 15.7mpg lifetime in 48,000mi.  

 

Duramax is the MPG king for sure.  There is added costs (diesel does run closer to 91/93 prices but again, better MPG, oil changes are a bit more, DEF).  You could easily get 25mpg or more per tank out of the 3.0.    

 

5.3 with the 10 speed makes the 5.3 a way better platform that it used to be with the 6 speed.  It was better with the 8, but the 10 makes it more enjoyable.  

 

3 hours ago, newdude said:

2.7 Turbomax, 3.0 Duramax and 5.3.  Skip the 6.2.  

 

Turbomax and the Duramax have the best factory powertrain warranty, 5yr/100k miles.  The only downfall is the Turbomax can be option limited so if you wanted buckets, gotta go with one of the other engines.  As for MPG with the Turbomax, I've got 3 years on mine (2022.5 HO before they called it Turbomax) and I've averaged the life of the truck almost 4mpg more than my old 2018 5.3 6 speed.  Currently in 32,000mi, lifetime MPG is 19.3mpg, my 5.3 when I traded it was 15.7mpg lifetime in 48,000mi.  

 

Duramax is the MPG king for sure.  There is added costs (diesel does run closer to 91/93 prices but again, better MPG, oil changes are a bit more, DEF).  You could easily get 25mpg or more per tank out of the 3.0.    

 

5.3 with the 10 speed makes the 5.3 a way better platform that it used to be with the 6 speed.  It was better with the 8, but the 10 makes it more enjoyable.  


I agree with your fuel selection on the 6.2, if I were to go with it I’d run it with 91 since that’s the highest we even have in CA. I own zero equipment to tow so I don’t have that factor in my engine choice. I’ve driven both and you can for sure tell the difference but I’d only be getting the 6.2 for bragging right and less downshifting going uphill, faster acceleration, etc. 

JeffKirk Enthusiast

JeffKirk

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Z71RAD88 said:

 


I agree with your fuel selection on the 6.2, if I were to go with it I’d run it with 91 since that’s the highest we even have in CA. I own zero equipment to tow so I don’t have that factor in my engine choice. I’ve driven both and you can for sure tell the difference but I’d only be getting the 6.2 for bragging right and less downshifting going uphill, faster acceleration, etc. 

I completely understand where your are coming from, the 5.3 served me well for 6 years and was reliable.  Congrats in advance of your new to be truck, you will love it!

Z71RAD88 Enthusiast

Z71RAD88

Posted
  • Author
Posted
4 hours ago, JeffKirk said:

I completely understand where your are coming from, the 5.3 served me well for 6 years and was reliable.  Congrats in advance of your new to be truck, you will love it!


Thank you! I am really excited. Been almost 10 years since my last new vehicle. Looking forward to the upgraded features of a 2025 vehicle. 

redwngr Senior Enthusiast

redwngr

Posted
Posted (edited)

Here's one of mine. 

One tankful.

Filled near home, crossed at Sarnia-Port Huron and refilled somewhere in NC on the way to Raleigh.  

 

image.thumb.jpeg.3ce7e54350b92dafd4fce78d2e09092d.jpeg

 

 

Edited by redwngr
  • Thanks 1

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Latest Articles

  • Posts

    • Atlas
      Wow I'm in a pickle. (Broke down truck) and a story.

      By Atlas · Posted

      Declaring victory would upset the demons that possess this Blazer, so I won't. But I did make progress today--after it put up a fight. Always a fight.   I had the day off so I spent the morning cleaning up the shop and I thought I'd get ahead of things by filling the cooling system in prep for the final part I needed to arrive: the driver's side knock sensor. Glug, glug, glug....and then the unmistakable sound of liquid hitting the shop floor. It induces the same chagrin when the sonar and targeting laser temporarily malfunction during a late night bladder evacuation over the toilet with the bathroom light off. D'OH!!! That made a mess...   Oh, hey, that knock sensor I removed? It threads into a wet port. Who knew?! Learn something new every day. Put a pin in that chore, I'll fill it the rest of the way later.   The knock sensor arrived at about 1pm. I threaded it in, connected the wire, filled up the coolant, checked for leaks, and... drumroll.... fingers crossed for a perfect start, excellent timing, model fuel trims, and ...no squeaks... Here goes.....   No, it didn't start. At all. I cranked it a few times and it wasn't sounding good. Furthermore, I heard leaking again. Jesus H Tapdancing Christ, stop leaking all over the dang floor. This time I had accidentally overfilled the coolant reservoir and the churn of the water pump via cranking caused a bit to burp out. Ok, just, breathe... Put the flamethrower down. Dang thing wouldn't burn anyway, leaks too much...   Did you know the rotation of a round crank sensor in a round hole, matters? I do now. Took me about half hour to retrace steps and realize what I had done. Then it started right up.   No squeaks. The squeak was the old balancer.   Once it entered closed loop, fuel trims are dead on, hovering right around zero at idle. No more -30%. I'll credit the injector rebuild on that one.   Timing? I think there's an OBD 1.5 translation error with my Actron scanner. It's anywhere from -20 to -30 at idle, sometimes as high as -40 cruising. Sorry, the engine just isn't running that smoothly at -40 degrees ignition advance. It's just not. It's smooth all through the rev range and has decent power. I'm going to have to trust the seat of my pants on this one.   The new exhaust is very quiet. The old catalytic converter? Not melted, but definitely not healthy. Rains glitter when you turn it on its end...all the precious metal is flaking out. Once the new exhaust system burned in/smoked off a bit, the engine's exhaust smell is normal again. Not that I'd recommend going around huffing car exhaust, but, you know what I mean?   One problem to correct. The new exhaust has the opposite problem of the old spliced up exhaust. It wants to hit the floor where the old one wanted to rest on the cross member. Happy medium, please? Still noodling on that one, need to look at how I can adjust some hangers.   I don't know what's next. On one hand I want to run away from this thing as far and as fast as I can -- there have been a lot of NOT fun moments. On the other, now that it kinda drives nice, maybe drive it around for a little bit?   Shhh... it's not currently dripping oil all over the floor. I can see just a little wet at the bottom of the timing cover where it meets the oil pan seal. It's not dripping multiple drops with every ignition cycle, in fact, after some driving this evening it has yet to even form a drop that could drip off yet. But the weekend is young... I fully expect this could turn into Exxon Valdez by Sunday. Because this Blazer hates me. LOL.      
    • Grumpy Bear
      The Peckish Synapse

      By Grumpy Bear · Posted

      About that:   Once upon a time in a land far far away lived a car company that was shy about taking your money and wanted to be sure that they gave you more that you asked for so that you'd come back. No really, not a fairytale. 😱   But after the field got thinned out enough to limit the competition it seemed good enough to give you only what you asked for. Fair enough I say but in such a market you have to give something the others are not or they go to the one who does. Gimmicks or glitz. Oh, fins and chrome. Yea, shinny crow like cars. Yum.    Field narrows a bit more and 'brand loyalty' becomes a thing and the minute it does they start thinking to themselves, "Could we make more money if we gave them less than they expect and they will hang in there for brand and comfort with the known?" They gave it a try and da*n, it worked!!    Well, what if we teach them, groom them into believing that less is "Normal" and cut some more corners. Will that work? Oh heck yea!    🤔 I wonder, can we give then WAY less than they expect and make them mad enough to spit nails and STILL get them to pay up? Sure, if we get everyone else to do the same so that the choice is less or nothing at all. How would be do that? Platform sharing.  What a concept, right?  Steal like there is no tomorrow and it's legal too!    Truth is no one is going to give up driving, not for very long. The Gen Z crowd is fine with it and will be as long as someone not Gen Z will haul them around. At some point we all die.    Economic voting only works if you cast a NO vote now and again and enough of them to get dumb and dumber to wise up. Well, that's how I was taught anyway. And it should have worked. Would have worked. But the Bail out!!   Look, you have another choice if  you take that bag off your head. If the dumb it down to some predetermined expectation of how John Q Public will use it the, that is under design it to failure they you use it to a lower stress mode. D'ho!    A 1950 Royal Enfield Bullet 500 will go anywhere a Suzuki Hayabusa will and for just as long. But you will have to treat it for what it is and not for what you wish it was. 
    • Vu1can
      Bridgestone vs Goodyear tires?

      By Vu1can · Posted

      Maybe I was just too unlucky, but I had nothing but bad luck with Bridgestones. Out of 3 sets, they all started losing a lot of air when they got down to about 1/2 tread life, and at that point also wet traction suffered more than it should have. Also, the only tire I ever had in my 60 years of driving that had a side wall blow out was a Bridgestone.   I'm currently running Goodyear Wrangler Workhorse AT and am very happy with them.   
    • davester
      Broke Down on the Mountain

      By davester · Posted

      maybe when the trip is over, check all the other joints in the front end, like all the ball joints, tie rods, pitman & idler arms, etc...
    • Carlos Eduardo Silva
      adding 360 surround view, UVI (Trailer Camera) package to UVS (Surround/invisible Trailer) Upgrade 2020 Silverado RST

      By Carlos Eduardo Silva · Posted

      Thks, and actually it was my bad, because here in this post there is someone showing the correct wire position as well. My bad... But thank you a lot with the help as well. I was able to find and buy a 10 channel VPM that came from a sister silverado of mine. The same year, same mode, same trim, same everything. 2022 Silverado 1500 LTD LTZ (pre-refresh). I also found to buy just the bottom mirror part that has the cameras, so way cheap than the full mirror. + a used front camera. I did test everything together, cameras, cables and the VPM.... everything worked EXCEPT my original Bed camera and the backup grid lines. I think the reason is because now I need to do the VPM reprogram. I sent a msg White Automotive & Media Service to confirm that it is the problem and that they can do it service for me case.   Once I get it 100% done I will post here result....

  • GM-Trucks.com Clubs

  • Popular Contributors

×
×
  • Create New...