Vortech Max-How well does it perform

michigan2500hd · November 30, 2005

Looking to posably trade in our 02 trailblazer on a vortech max. Thinking of giving the 05 crew cab 1500 4x4 to my wife to drive and i would drive the max. She likes the trailblazer but likes to drive my truck also. Says it has more get up and go then her trailblazer. I agree I like my truck but would also like some more power.The 5.3 in my truck could use some more low end torque IMO .

Looking for some feed back from those that own or have drove the max. How would it perform compared to my crew cab? As far as i can tell it only comes w/ the 4.10 gears. Mine has 3.73 gears,wishing i could have found one with 4.10's.

Anybody have times for both of these trucks?

05 1500 crew cab,5.3,3.73 gears,westers 87/89 tune k&n drop in,synthetic oil.

any help is great!

callie · December 2, 2005

To answer your question........ hold on! Test drove a 2wd ext. cab it was a little lighter than the one your looking at but it would get with the program. It would fry the tires from a dead stop and pulled very hard until you let out of it. Real fun truck to drive and hated to take it back. Truck got sold the next day and I didn't get a chance to buy it (so much for sleeping on it). As far as 1/4 mile times I would guess 15.1 to 15.3 in the trim you described.

FSTDL · December 2, 2005

I love mine...Feels pretty fast.Pulls my trailer real well(6,000lb).

Brakes felt crappy at first but arn't that bad now.I average over 16 mpg.

I have yet to see another one and it will be a short run so I wouldn't wait long.

I am not sure why any one would get any thing but a bad ass 6.0 in their truck if buying a new one.

VortecMax282 · December 2, 2005

I'll let you know tomorrow. . . I pick it up a 2:00. Im so pumped to get this truck. The test drive it took was with a 5.3 which still had some nice power but the thought of adding 50HP makes my body tingle inside!

michigan2500hd · December 3, 2005

Let me know how you like it after you pick it up. This might be the truck i have wanted the general to build for years. You woulldnt believe how ticked off i am about my timing regarding buying my new crew cab. Just a few days after driving my new truck home i see an advertisement for the vortec max. I was already a little peeved that you cant get the 5.3 H.O. in the 1500 crew, a couple of days later i open up my issue of popular mechanics and there it is the vortec max.

So the next day i had to stop by the dealer to pick up my plates and i talked to my salesman. He had no knowledge what so ever GM was even making this truck.

Come on GM, make your people aware of your products and the customers needs.

I stopped at another dealership on the way home, to see if they had any on the lot found a red one out front. So i go inside and talk to a salesman about the truck,he doesnt have a clue. Didnt know what it was or that it even was in the lot. Sorry just had to vent a little,just a little tired of aways knowing more about trucks then all the salesman i deal with.

MS3DALE · December 3, 2005

Mark,I totally understand what you mean,I go through the same thing here at the dealership I work at,I hate to say it about the place I work at but the salesmen here have NO clue what a lot of this stuff is.

They are always coming to me to ask about new features and options,I too had to tell them about the "VortecMax" pkg.

I told them about it months ago and we still don't have one in to sell yet!

Even our General Manager didn't know what it was

Hell they never even knew about the "Pro-Tech" box available until AFTER GM discontined it!

LogixRat · December 3, 2005

If money allows, there is no doubt in my mind I'd get the 6.0. It's the same engine the SS models utilize and has some other nice features as well. The downside is the gas mileage is a little worse, but if you are buying a full size truck I'm not sure that is a major concern anyhow.

The dealer being stupid may well be to your advantage...if they don't know what they have, and you don't let one like the best thing since sliced bread you have a real negotiation advantage for your dream vehicle.

Going the other way, if you throw up the term SS then they realize it's a premium vehicle and less likely to negotiate. Just some food for thought.

VortecMax282 · December 3, 2005

I pick up the truck in 20 minutes. . . I drove by the dealer yesterday and it still had the factory plastic on the seats. It's going to be tough parting with my Jeep TJ but im sure I wont regret it.

i talked to my salesman. He had no knowledge what so ever GM was even making this truck.

When I first started looking into getting the truck I went to get a price from a local dealership. . . The had no clue about the VMax package, sales guy to me models change every year but that's no excuse . . . it's his job to be updated!!! I told him I wanted the 6.0L 1500, so he gets me a price for a 1500 HD. . . so due to the lack a knowledge I moved on and went to a dealer.

Im sure I'll have picture up by tomorrow. . . I plan on taking alot of pics because I had a hard time them on the net.

LogixRat · December 3, 2005

I currently own a '04 TJ and before that owned a '02 ECSB w/ the 5.3. Unless you plan to take the truck rock crawling or severe offroad conditions you won't miss the TJ at all. These trucks are a dream to drive on the road, and with all the power of the 6.0L you will soon forget about the TJ.

I'm actually in the process of trying to sell my TJ so I can buy another truck. As much as I love the TJ, it's just not a great daily driver and because it IS my daily driver I don't like to get too extreme offroad either. After I get a truck bought I plan to buy an old CJ or YJ for the trails, or possibly some quads.

Glad to see it all worked for you. Be sure and post some pics so we can all drool over your new truck!

eshoremd · December 4, 2005

well? guess hes still driving it.

i dont even know what you guys are talking about. i assume its a new motor. what can you get it in. chevy sure doesnt have to much about it on thier site or i just cant find it.

Truckman031 · December 4, 2005

It is a 1500 ext. or crew cab with the 6 liter in it.

VortecMax282 · December 4, 2005

Well, I picked it up yesterday and the salesman seemed more pumped to hand me over this beast. He said it was the first one the dealership recieved so everyone was asking about the truck.

Ive already used up about a 1/4 of a tank and have yet to really open it up to see how much power it has. . . but let me tell ya. . . the 5.3 I test drove has nothing on the 6.0. Im stilling in the process of finding new options that I never knew this truck had, like "curb view" option and such.

It snowed about 2 inches last night so im going to put the AutoTrac thru it's paces to see how well it conects.

So I should have some pics by tomorrow, I have a nice backdrop in mind. . . the GM Headquarters!

michigan2500hd · December 5, 2005

Been on GM buy power trying to build a vortecmax, but it wont let me add the snow plow prep package. Heck, i even tried to build a reg. cab long bed with a 8.1 and it would not accept it. Too bad you cant have a truck built just the way you want it. The perfect truck for me would be a heavy half-ton,4x4,ext. cab or crew cab,6.0 high output,manual trans. ( 6-speed would be awesome ),heavy duty trailering and snow plow prep. I know i could get a 3/4 ton set up similar but the 6.0 they use in it is a dog. Guess im back at square one,unless i can find a dealer with some one that knows trucks,LOL.

MS3DALE · December 5, 2005

Been on GM buy power trying to build a vortecmax, but it wont let me add the snow plow prep package. Heck, i even tried to build a reg. cab long bed with a 8.1 and it would not accept it. Too bad you cant have a truck built just the way you want it. The perfect truck for me would be a heavy half-ton,4x4,ext. cab or crew cab,6.0 high output,manual trans. ( 6-speed would be awesome ),heavy duty trailering and snow plow prep. I know i could get a 3/4 ton set up similar but the 6.0 they use in it is a dog. Guess im back at square one,unless i can find a dealer with some one that knows trucks,LOL.

Yep,You won't find one equipped like that.You can't get a 1/2-ton ext.cab or 1/2-ton crew-cab with the "VYU" snow-plow prep pkg. Nor can you get the "H.O." 6.0 with a manual trans. with the 1/2-ton "VortecMax" pkg.

I feel the same way,I don't know why GM restricts so many things and why they won't just let you get a truck the way you want it built!

sablowme · December 6, 2005

yeah i cant wait to see one of these things on the lot i work in the parts dept. at a chevy, gmc dealer and i got all the books but no truck yet, the vortec max is a awsome powerplant, i thought the vortec max was so cool i even ordered the badges on the doors for the max pkg. unfortanly theres no avval. on the parts yet i just called gm trax and they say for the max badges (15268796) delivery to the dealer is march 26... wow thats a long time.

From what i understand that the same with all the specalty trucks, the ss silverado intimidator edition late arival. and also the hybrid truck are sapose to be on hold from the dealers or at least thats what they say at mine.

Off topic a bit i just tried to order a reg cab short bed , 4.8 with a 5spd for the lot to fix up and offer a sport pkg. but aparently gm is having probs with the vendors on the manual trans for the 4.8 rcsb, so i dont know what there doing.