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Aluminum Block Benefits

Bowler807

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Bowler807 Enthusiast

Bowler807

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I'm looking at an 08 Sierra Crew Cab to replace my 06. The one I'm probably going to buy has the 5.3 aluminum block engine. Other than weight, what are the advantages of the aluminum block or are there any?

Bowler807 Enthusiast

Bowler807

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Thanks, I already read that post. There didn't seem to be anything but conjecture.

 

There may be no benefit other than the light weight. Does anyone know what the weight difference is?

HawkeyeOC Senior Enthusiast

HawkeyeOC

Posted
Posted
Thanks, I already read that post. There didn't seem to be anything but conjecture.

 

There may be no benefit other than the light weight. Does anyone know what the weight difference is?

 

We love our conjecture here. Thats for sure :rolleyes:

 

Weight savings is about 100 pounds which will be offset by a heavier vehicle than your '06 was. The NBS trucks have added a little weight which I believe mainly went into a stronger frame.

rogerf Enthusiast

rogerf

Posted
Posted
I'm looking at an 08 Sierra Crew Cab to replace my 06. The one I'm probably going to buy has the 5.3 aluminum block engine. Other than weight, what are the advantages of the aluminum block or are there any?

Not sure if it's still the case but remember the hype from @ 5 or 6 years ago when GM introduced the aluminum 5.3L is it can meet emissions without Exhaust Gas Recirculation. It is also known these reach efficient operating temps much faster. So there is enough gain in thermal efficiency to effect emissions hardware & tuning choices that were known to have a negative impact on fuel economy.

 

Give it a few more years, you won't see cast iron blocks in cars or light trucks. Have an '08 Honda Civic with an all aluminum engine that is up to temp very fast. They even went as far as to directly incorporate the catalytic converter into the exhaust manifold. It works for Honda, gets both ULEV rating with great fuel economy.

Ryan00TJ Enthusiast

Ryan00TJ

Posted
Posted

Aluminum blocks will help getting to op temp faster. I noticed this on the switch from my SS to the Sierra. I believe it's a 70-80lbs difference between the blocks so not enough to really matter. GM uses camshaft design to get away from needing EGR setups. Less overlap negating the EGR valve. It really has nothing to do with the aluminum block.

redvett Senior Enthusiast

redvett

Posted
Posted

EGR was deleted when DBW was introduced to all engines. The electronic throttle control allows the PCM to control the emissions by modulating the throttle during driving.

Zembonez Senior Enthusiast

Zembonez

Posted
Posted

There is no real technical advantage to using aluminum. It is dimensionally less stable than cast iron when heated. In order to even be used as a block, strategic areas must be reinforced with steel. But - If designed properly it will last as long as any other construction material.

 

Aluminum is lighter and easier to cast and machine. These are probably the main reasons aluminum is used instead of iron in most cases. An assembled 5.3 aluminum block engine weighs 83 pounds less than the iron block version. That is a lot of weight savings in the car world.

mdrew Enthusiast

mdrew

Posted
Posted

The only benefit of AL for owners is weight. AL has many benefits from a manufacturing perspective though. It’s easier to work with, less expensive to machine, less expensive to ship, easier on tooling….etc. AL blocks were a down right pain in rear end to use until GM rolled out the GenIII small blocks. They completely redesigned the block to work with a new head design. I’ve built a few race engines where weight was a huge factor and I had no choice but to use AL. (410 sprint and light rail) When I was building them, Donovan was about the only game in town. They were grossly expensive, a nightmare to hone and line bore and almost impossible to keep the sleeves to stay put. I would have loved the opportunity to use one of the newer generation GM AL blocks. They’ve definitely eliminated a lot of, if not all of the little quirks associated with AL blocks.

Zembonez Senior Enthusiast

Zembonez

Posted
Posted

Either 5.3 block material is completely acceptable from a dependability standpoint. It is nice that the aluminum block is lighter.

sonjaab Senior Enthusiast

sonjaab

Posted
Posted

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Ask the Cadillac guys about those wonderful aluminum blocks with the stripped

out head bolt holes and the $3000 heli-coil fix in the N-star 4.6.

 

I wonder if time will tell and this issue will appear on the alum. 5.3s ???????

Zembonez Senior Enthusiast

Zembonez

Posted
Posted
Ask the Cadillac guys about those wonderful aluminum blocks with the stripped

out head bolt holes and the $3000 heli-coil fix in the N-star 4.6.

That does suck!

 

While that may be so on the Northstar, it's a design flaw and not a characteristic of aluminum. Many import vehicles have hundreds of thousands of miles on their 4 banger aluminum engines. Time will tell.

 

It does make me glad that mine is iron!

 

What I wonder is how all of these AFM engines are going to be after 150K. I'd bet there will be some big time expensive repairs there.

MS3DALE Senior Enthusiast

MS3DALE

Posted
Posted
Ask the Cadillac guys about those wonderful aluminum blocks with the stripped

out head bolt holes and the $3000 heli-coil fix in the N-star 4.6.

 

Boy...I remember those :thumbs:

Its been a few years since we've done one of those jobs at the garage.

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