Buying a 2020 Yukon with L83 5.3L EcoTec - Should I worry about AFM Lifter Failure

[Printworthy]

Hi Everyone:
Have a deposit on a used 2020 Yukon SLT and just discovered the AFM Lifter Issue online. I cannot figure out if the Service Builletins include the 2020 year or just 2021 L82. Lot's of stories about older Sierras and Silverados but can't narrow it down.
Should I back out and look for another year? It has 36K on it. It has the L83 5.3L Ecotec. I am hoping it is not in the bad batch even though it looks like the class-action lawyers are casting a wide net if you look at their websites.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Marc

 

[Doubeleive]

Hi Everyone:
Have a deposit on a used 2020 Yukon SLT and just discovered the AFM Lifter Issue online. I cannot figure out if the Service Builletins include the 2020 year or just 2021 L82. Lot's of stories about older Sierras and Silverados but can't narrow it down.
Should I back out and look for another year? It has 36K on it. It has the L83 5.3L Ecotec. I am hoping it is not in the bad batch even though it looks like the class-action lawyers are casting a wide net if you look at their websites.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Marc

get a warranty if it's available and don't sweat it. Truth of the matter is it could happen to any of these vehicles from 07-24 randomly. theres no telling
there are millions of these suv's on the road
if you wanted to research a specific run you need the vin and production day/date, then see if it fits into a specific TSB

 

[B-train]

Agreed. And, if/when you take ownership, be proactive on oil changes at 5k or less. Maybe invest on a RANGE AFM disabler if it works on that year.

Just don't run it like a race car, and keep the oil clean and you'll be fine.

 

[Marky Dissod]

if/when you take ownership, be proactive on oil changes at 5k or less ...
... DEFINITELY invest on a RANGE AFM / DFM disabler if it works on that year.

Just don't run it like a race car, and keep the oil clean and ...

Fixed it for you.
Read the following Thread opening post:

2023 GMC Yukon AT4 6.2L dead at 10K miles

With only 10K miles, my 2023 6.2L died and would not restart - conditions not ready to shift. This is after my 2021 suburban had lifters fail after 23K miles.

www.tahoeyukonforum.com

The variable dual-mode lifters ARE the weak point. You buy yourself considerable time by:
avoiding cylinder deactivation as much as possible
keeping it under 5000RpM (these dual-mode lifters flutter and float, kinda like valvesprings and valves)
NEVER letting the Oil Life Monitor get anywhere near 0% - the more often you change your oil, the better

 

[K2 Kaiju]

07-10 were original design, and most problematic until the most recent models which suffer from the pandemic supply chain/chip shortage/alt supplier issues. The L83 was pretty well sorted out by 2020 - I would say thats the best year especially if it was built before March 2020 when everything shut down. You can still tune out AFM with a hand held tuner in that generation which I prefer vs something that stays in your OBD2 port all the time...

 

[Seamus]

Short answer is this generation of LT motor is not as bad as the present generation 2021+. My GM tech says its was never as bad nor that bad on the 2015-2020. Why we are deleting our 2018 and sticking with it. But you are still vulnerable to it. Only 8 lifters instead of 16 on the new one. So you odds are half of a new one. Post #4 is proven good advice. The high rev beat on it guys have more failures. Slow Moms and the school line are less. Clean 5K synthetic oil changes best insurance. At a minimum do a computer AFM delete so it stays in the pumped up 8 cyl mode. Then cross your fingers and enjoy the truck. If it happens be ready for lifters and a cam and your all ready for it if you deleted the computer.

 

[Printworthy]

get a warranty if it's available and don't sweat it. Truth of the matter is it could happen to any of these vehicles from 07-24 randomly. theres no telling
there are millions of these suv's on the road
if you wanted to research a specific run you need the vin and production day/date, then see if it fits into a specific TSB

Short answer is this generation of LT motor is not as bad as the present generation 2021+. My GM tech says its was never as bad nor that bad on the 2015-2020. Why we are deleting our 2018 and sticking with it. But you are still vulnerable to it. Only 8 lifters instead of 16 on the new one. So you odds are half of a new one. Post #4 is proven good advice. The high rev beat on it guys have more failures. Slow Moms and the school line are less. Clean 5K synthetic oil changes best insurance. At a minimum do a computer AFM delete so it stays in the pumped up 8 cyl mode. Then cross your fingers and enjoy the truck. If it happens be ready for lifters and a cam and your all ready for it if you deleted the computer.

Fixed it for you.
Read the following Thread opening post:

2023 GMC Yukon AT4 6.2L dead at 10K miles

With only 10K miles, my 2023 6.2L died and would not restart - conditions not ready to shift. This is after my 2021 suburban had lifters fail after 23K miles.

www.tahoeyukonforum.com

The variable dual-mode lifters ARE the weak point. You buy yourself considerable time by:
avoiding cylinder deactivation as much as possible
keeping it under 5000RpM (these dual-mode lifters flutter and float, kinda like valvesprings and valves)
NEVER letting the Oil Life Monitor get anywhere near 0% - the more often you change your oil, the better

Agreed. And, if/when you take ownership, be proactive on oil changes at 5k or less. Maybe invest on a RANGE AFM disabler if it works on that year.

Just don't run it like a race car, and keep the oil clean and you'll be fine.

Thanks for all the input. I feel better about the AFM issue now. Maybe 2020 is a good sweet spot if I heed the advice on maintenance and driving style. Carfax shows is had regular oild changes about at 6K intervals. It also shows it was a Hertz vehicle I think ("Fleet" on window sticker and title in Oklahoma City OK.) All the miles are Florida (36K) so it was probably rented for Disney Vacations in Orlando and Tampa.
I don't see any reason to be scared off by the rental designation if it only has 36K and minimal interior wear - do you?
Thanks in advance.
Marc

 

[Marky Dissod]

Carfax shows is had regular oil changes about at 6K intervals.

Toyota used to recommend 6k oil change intervals.
When you find out what happened to those engines, hopefully, you'll stop thinking '6k oil change interval' was is or ever will be a good idea.
At the VERY LEAST, you'll start looking for a larger compatible oil filter.
Think - oil filters are getting SMALLER - how are oil change intervals getting bigger? Make that make sense.
Then check how many Gen5 V8s have gone past 250k miles.

It also shows it was a Hertz vehicle I think ("Fleet" on window sticker and title in Oklahoma City OK).
All the miles are Florida (36K) so it was probably rented for Disney Vacations in Orlando and Tampa.
I don't see any reason to be scared off by the rental designation if it only has 36K and minimal interior wear - do you?

I remember how I used to drive rental vehicles, including the one I rented last year.
Not everyone drives rentals as I do, but you should bet at least 3 to 5 renters rode it hard, tossed it around, and put it away hot and sweaty.

 

[K2 Kaiju]

Not a rental fan - hard miles. They may have good maintenance records, but they usually have much more wear and tear as heavy suitcases and a full load of people are involved almost every time. Sometimes people use it one day for a specific heavy use like pulling a really big boat or trailer. Sure anyone could misuse their ride, but I woud say on average rentals get a rougher life vs someone with payments...

 

[Doubeleive]

Thanks for all the input. I feel better about the AFM issue now. Maybe 2020 is a good sweet spot if I heed the advice on maintenance and driving style. Carfax shows is had regular oild changes about at 6K intervals. It also shows it was a Hertz vehicle I think ("Fleet" on window sticker and title in Oklahoma City OK.) All the miles are Florida (36K) so it was probably rented for Disney Vacations in Orlando and Tampa.
I don't see any reason to be scared off by the rental designation if it only has 36K and minimal interior wear - do you?
Thanks in advance.
Marc

people tend to be scared of previous rentals thinking they are just beat on. but rental places get rid of them fairly quickly before the warranty expires, I think most of my vehicles I have bought were either previous rentals or company owned. I wouldn't worry about it.
I would be more scared of a vehicle with no history shown because that means it possibly was not maintained at all and just driven into the ground and dumped.

 

[B-train]

The rental thing can go either way, but I'd speculate that a SUV wasn't beat on like a little shitbox or muscle car. Just get an extended warranty and enjoy it. Being down south is a plus - no rust. That is itself is worth something in my book. If you do live in a salt state, find someone who can rust proof it, or do it yourself.

You can always PM me m, or other here that do it for info/best practices. I can tell you from working on cars in the midwest, it's one of the most valuable longevity things you can do.

 

[Printworthy]

people tend to be scared of previous rentals thinking they are just beat on. but rental places get rid of them fairly quickly before the warranty expires, I think most of my vehicles I have bought were either previous rentals or company owned. I wouldn't worry about it.
I would be more scared of a vehicle with no history shown because that means it possibly was not maintained at all and just driven into the ground and dumped.

Not a rental fan - hard miles. They may have good maintenance records, but they usually have much more wear and tear as heavy suitcases and a full load of people are involved almost every time. Sometimes people use it one day for a specific heavy use like pulling a really big boat or trailer. Sure anyone could misuse their ride, but I woud say on average rentals get a rougher life vs someone with payments...

Thanks for the responses. I made the deal today 2020 Yukon SLT with 36K (Florida) miles. The Carfax showed that Hertz sold it at 21K - right about when Travel and Covid shutdown at April 2022. (I read they really downsized their fleet that time). It was a private local owner for the next 15K and it looks like it got serviced with regular fluid changes. It was traded in on a VW Atlas. I am pretty stoked about it. I went back and checked for interior luggage wear before closing the deal so many thanks for that tip.

 

[Printworthy]

The rental thing can go either way, but I'd speculate that a SUV wasn't beat on like a little shitbox or muscle car. Just get an extended warranty and enjoy it. Being down south is a plus - no rust. That is itself is worth something in my book. If you do live in a salt state, find someone who can rust proof it, or do it yourself.

You can always PM me m, or other here that do it for info/best practices. I can tell you from working on cars in the midwest, it's one of the most valuable longevity things you can do.

Thanks for the advice. The rustproofing is a great idea. I will certainly do it as we run it up to Michigan once or twice a year. I forgot you could still do that to a used car. I wetn over the underbody and it is really clean - some of the stickers are still white.
Thanks again.

 

[CaptainMurray]

I had a '07 Tahoe with no issues on the engine til 251k. Was going to be to expensive to fix for the age. I was lucky and got a '20 Yukon with 12k (Hertz was dumping them due to COVID). I haven't had any issues on it.

Just keep the oil and maintenance on a regular schedule. The 5.3 is a sturdy engine. FYI I do pull a 5k pound boat with it also.

 

[Miami-Dade]

@Printworthy If it makes you feel better my AFM is still enabled at 165K miles.

 

[Printworthy]

@Printworthy If it makes you feel better my AFM is still enabled at 165K miles.

Wow. I guess that says it all. I bet you are faithful about oil changes. Good input. Thanks.
M

 

[RB_Trucker]

I’m right around 105k and my AFM is still enabled, it is BB tuned and has 5k valvoline full synthetic oil changes will their top shelf filters…. These systems need clean oil all the time… don’t even bother with semi-synthetic or regular oil, those allow too much sludge that’ll kill these sensitive lifters and VLOM system.

 

[tom3]

Whatever happened to the 15K oil changes that were touted when the synthetic oil first hit the market?

 

[Flugzeugfuhrer]

Whatever happened to the 15K oil changes that were touted when the synthetic oil first hit the market?

I've done 10k-12k on our 2014 V6 Equinox for as long as it's been around...Still runs great and 211k miles on it. Oil sent off to Blackstone after every change. They say keep doing what I'm doing - oil always looks good.

 

[Miami-Dade]

Wow. I guess that says it all. I bet you are faithful about oil changes. Good input. Thanks.
M

Every 5K miles with either Mobil 1 EP or ACDelco. Only gets ACDelco if I have the Stealership do it.