2021 Silverado 3.0 review thread.

[BoiseRob]

I had high hopes for the 3.0. I loved what Dodge did with the ECO Diesel and thought if I every had to get rid of my LMM this might be the way to go.

Dean, I thought the same thing so we purchased a 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee with an Ecodiesel in May of 2016. I was getting 30+ on the highway and it has been our go-to vehicle for travel when I wasn't towing out 11k# TT. Then in December 2021 with 42k+ miles on the odometer, the engine picked up a noticeable tick which over time became louder. Fast forward to March 2022, the vehicle is currently sitting at the dealership waiting for a $10k crate engine to replace the now knocking engine. It's out of warranty and the repair bill will be somewhere north of $17,650 which includes a new torque converter (since the labor is free) and transmission service . At least the new engine comes with a 3yr/100k mile warranty.

 

[Dean E]

Dean, I thought the same thing so we purchased a 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee with an Ecodiesel in May of 2016. I was getting 30+ on the highway and it has been our go-to vehicle for travel when I wasn't towing out 11k# TT. Then in December 2021 with 42k+ miles on the odometer, the engine picked up a noticeable tick which over time became louder. Fast forward to March 2022, the vehicle is currently sitting at the dealership waiting for a $10k crate engine to replace the now knocking engine. It's out of warranty and the repair bill will be somewhere north of $17,650 which includes a new torque converter (since the labor is free) and transmission service . At least the new engine comes with a 3yr/100k mile warranty.

I did hear the early gen ECO diesel had some initial problems. All new engine designs do. The latest version of the ECO diesel look pretty reliable. The GM engineer constantly talked about the limited space they had to work with. Makes it very interesting to see the Ford and Dodge people did the V6. I understand the philosophy about diesels and the in line configuration but looking at what ended up and the fact that GM went to an aluminum block to save weight a V6 would have made more sense and certainly takes care of the length issue. The ability to work on the engine would have been night and day. Like I said it is a great performer but they soured me on some of their thinking with the overall design and listening to the interview of the chief designer did absolutely nothing to change my mind on that. Dean

 

[BoiseRob]

The rear belt on the GM 3.0 is a bit worrisome but they haven't really had any problems other than the "no start" issue many owners experienced. Brad from TrailRecon on Youtube purchased an EcoDiesel Wrangler last year but he's already sold it. He mentioned several times the vehicle ran "hot" so he didn't want to risk an engine issue while he was out in the sticks....

 

[Dean E]

The rear belt on the GM 3.0 is a bit worrisome but they haven't really had any problems other than the "no start" issue many owners experienced. Brad from TrailRecon on Youtube purchased an EcoDiesel Wrangler last year but he's already sold it. He mentioned several times the vehicle ran "hot" so he didn't want to risk an engine issue while he was out in the sticks....

My biggest concern with the belt is originally GM claimed 175,000 miles limit on the belt, that has now changed to 150,000. Can't see anyone owning one with that many miles already, makes you think, what happened during the endurance testing runs? Dean

 

[TheBac]

Yes, I agree its a very foolish design, but if its something you go into it knowing about, then at least you're prepared for it. Its when unknown major issues show up thats the worry. (i.e. LB7 injectors, Cruze 1.4 PCV issues, Northstar oil leaks, etc....)

 

[BoiseRob]

The other issue for me is the use of 0W20 engine oil...

 

[Dean E]

Yes, I agree its a very foolish design, but if its something you go into it knowing about, then at least you're prepared for it. Its when unknown major issues show up thats the worry. (i.e. LB7 injectors, Cruze 1.4 PCV issues, Northstar oil leaks, etc....)

I agree, I do think that is the key. Personally if I was someone who normally get a new truck every 5 to 8 years I would have little issues purchasing a truck with the 3.0. Just don't think I would get a used one with high miles for the reasons listed earlier. Dean

 

[Dean E]

The other issue for me is the use of 0W20 engine oil...

I got a couple Subaru vehicles that use 0w20. Man the stuff is like water. Maybe I'm just showing my age of what oil should be like but honestly if the tolerances are set up correctly the oil should be fine. My biggest concern with oil that thin is in a vehicle that sits for long periods of time. Thicker oil will hold a film on contact surfaces better over time that what this 0w20 would do. Not a problem for my Subarus, they get driven daily. Dean

 

[Jakezed22]

Trucks been good, had to have a water pump replaced under warranty due to communication issues. Was at the dealer for about an hour, so to be honest I'm not sure what they replaced. Was quick anyways.

As far as having the chains and belt on the back of the engine doesn't really bother me. Have you ever done phasers and chains on a 5.4 triton lol. But anyways the trans and t case could be dropped in less then two hours on a hoist, and then there's and nice cover on the back so the pan or anything else crazy doesn't need removed. If a guy did a couple I see no reason why it couldn't be a 4 hour job to do wet belt or chains. Time will tell, if mine needs done outside warranty I'll be doing it myself and that's okay.

 

[08lmm72mm]

I got a couple Subaru vehicles that use 0w20. Man the stuff is like water. Maybe I'm just showing my age of what oil should be like but honestly if the tolerances are set up correctly the oil should be fine. My biggest concern with oil that thin is in a vehicle that sits for long periods of time. Thicker oil will hold a film on contact surfaces better over time that what this 0w20 would do. Not a problem for my Subarus, they get driven daily. Dean

I don't think the 0w-20 is a problem. The days of having to run thick as molasses oil are gone. Alot of guys have switched from 5w-30 to 5w-20 a long time ago and oil analysis shows no harm at all and an increase I'm mpg. If these trucks were 1 ton tow pigs I'd run a thicker oil.

Just curious, why not run a 5w-40 in it? I remember when I got my lmm new the gm dealer said could run 10w-30. I said nope to that.

 

[Mike L.]

Ford's coyote for '21 and later uses a wet belt on the oil pump now.

 

[Dean E]

Ford's coyote for '21 and later uses a wet belt on the oil pump now.

Does it have a scheduled life limit?

 

[LBZ]

I run 0W-40 Syn in my 7. No issues. Not something I would worry about. Ever cold started a newer 6.7 Ford? They go straight to high idle. I’d worry more about something like that.
Neighbors has a 3.0 with 50k on it. No issues so far. My buddy is a GM tech and he says the 3.0 can be a nightmare to work on depending what it is. Said 4-6 hours to do an oil pump belt but couldn’t remember what book time was.

 

[Dean E]

I run 0W-40 Syn in my 7. No issues. Not something I would worry about. Ever cold started a newer 6.7 Ford? They go straight to high idle. I’d worry more about something like that.
Neighbors has a 3.0 with 50k on it. No issues so far. My buddy is a GM tech and he says the 3.0 can be a nightmare to work on depending what it is. Said 4-6 hours to do an oil pump belt but couldn’t remember what book time was.

Yeah, normally run T6 5w40 in my LMM year round. No issues whatsoever. I could not imagine what techs will go thru wrenching on the 3.0. Just don't see people working on it in their back yard. Going to need a lift and tranny jack for the oil belt and even then it won't be fun. That is part of my biggest gripe. Why add a maintenance item were one was never needed before. The only reason to do a wet oil belt is for a bit of weight savings and it is cheaper. Like I said before, I would not mind owning one that is new and run it for 7 or 8 years but that would be about it. I would worry about things would act up with age. No worries like that at all with my LMM (as long as I can keep the electrical gremlins at bay)! Dean