Just bought 2014 YukonXL, 109000 miles, AFM?

mamawof6 · Jun 1, 2026

I just bought, 5-21-26, a 2014 Yukon XL with 109??? miles on it, It now has 110???. I have been looking and test driving Yukon's and Suburban's for over 2 years trying to find the right one. This one drives and rides like a dream.
Now, the concern I have. On the car fax, it showed in Jan of 25 that it had minor front end damage, caught fire, no air bags deployed. Everything in the engine compartment looks new. Hoses, coil packs, plug wires, etc.. I'm wondering if it caught fire because of the AFM? Also, how would I know if it had been deleted or removed?
I honestly can't find any faults with it right now. But I also don't want something to happen to it in the future. Can anyone help me with this?

mikez71 · Jun 1, 2026

Haven't heard of AFM causing a fire before..
Have heard of washer fluid heater burning up.. That's originally by the brake booster on driver side of firewall.

You can set your DIC to show if you're in V4 or V8 mode..
If it never shows V4 mode, then they must have tuned out or deleted the AFM.

pronstar · Jun 1, 2026

For a 12 year old truck with crash and fire damage, no one can tell you if it will be reliable or a ticking time bomb.

It’s a crapshoot that’s entirely dependent on how well it was repaired.

Best you can do is stay informed on known issues and weaknesses…AFM being the prime candidate and that’s also a total crapshoot.

Maintain it as best you can, plan/budget for the worst and hope for the best.

rdezs · Jun 1, 2026

Look at the valley cover under the intake. If it's smooth the metal, AFM has been deleted. If it has raised passageways, ticking time bomb.... The hardware is still there even if it's turned off.

At that mileage it's a prime candidate to take care of the AFM delete.

Joseph Garcia · Jun 2, 2026

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

You are already receiving sage advice from the knowledgeable folks on this Forum.

fredcook · Jun 3, 2026

AFM isn't going to start any fires... except in your wallet.

Don't worry so much about the AFM failure hysteria. Yes, it can be an issue, but industry estimates are the failure rate is 10% to 20%. So, of the 350,000,000 to 400,000,000 AFM GMT900 engines (5.3 LY5, LMG, LC9, LH6, and 6.0 L76), between 350,000 to 800,000 have failed. In other words, you have a 80% to 90% change of not experiencing an AFM failure. And, BTW, AFM failures are more common on engines produced between 2007 and 2010. You have a 2012, which had some updates aimed at addressing AFM issues.

You only have 109,000 miles on yours. Heck, it's just now due for its first tune up. Keep changing oil at 5,000 miles or less, use a good filter file a PPE 10 micron filter, and don't lose any sleep over it. I bought a new 2007 Tahoe with AFM and put over 300,000 miles on it. Current owner has over 400,000. It's still all original and running fine. My current 2008 Tahoe has nearly 270,000 miles, all original, no AFM issues. Same with our 2013 at 160,000 miles.

If you want to worry about something, think transmission. They claim the sun shell failure rate in a 4L60 is nearly 100% approaching 150,000 miles. And 30% for the 6L80 torque converter nearing 100,000 miles. You are more likely to have a transmission failure than an AFM failure.

it's funny. People are more likely to spend more for a AFM/DOD delete to prevent possible AFM failures than they are on a less costly preemptive mod to their transmission to prevent a more costly repair to replace that transmission, even though it's more likely the transmission will fail than AFM will.

rdezs · Jun 3, 2026

Lol, roll the dice! It happens enough on the AFM that there's an entire industry built around the delete kits. The best prevention and protection of the AFM system probably comes down to regular oil changes, like every 3500 miles. Probably the worst thing you can do is follow the oil changing interval that the dashboard tells you.

Talk to your local GM service Manager. The one in my area tells me most of their work they get deals with electronic modules, second most common issue relates to AFM. They do not delete it, they only repair. And yes, transmission issues were number three on the list. When I looked at their shop, seemed like most of what they were working on was 2010 and newer vehicles.

I would prefer not to gamble such expensive components. An AFM delete is cheap compared to trash in the entire engine. Same goes for changing transmission fluid every 30,000 miles, and consider replacing that torque converter with a billet unit. I also run an inline hydraulic filter on my wife's 6L80.

Being proactive gives you peace of mind. The other option is do nothing, knowing that you are rolling the dice every time you turn the key

mamawof6 · Jun 3, 2026

mikez71 said:
Haven't heard of AFM causing a fire before..
Have heard of washer fluid heater burning up.. That's originally by the brake booster on driver side of firewall.

You can set your DIC to show if you're in V4 or V8 mode..
If it never shows V4 mode, then they must have tuned out or deleted the AFM.

Thank you I will take a look at that.

mamawof6 · Jun 3, 2026

fredcook said:
AFM isn't going to start any fires... except in your wallet.

Don't worry so much about the AFM failure hysteria. Yes, it can be an issue, but industry estimates are the failure rate is 10% to 20%. So, of the 350,000,000 to 400,000,000 AFM GMT900 engines (5.3 LY5, LMG, LC9, LH6, and 6.0 L76), between 350,000 to 800,000 have failed. In other words, you have a 80% to 90% change of not experiencing an AFM failure. And, BTW, AFM failures are more common on engines produced between 2007 and 2010. You have a 2012, which had some updates aimed at addressing AFM issues.

You only have 109,000 miles on yours. Heck, it's just now due for its first tune up. Keep changing oil at 5,000 miles or less, use a good filter file a PPE 10 micron filter, and don't lose any sleep over it. I bought a new 2007 Tahoe with AFM and put over 300,000 miles on it. Current owner has over 400,000. It's still all original and running fine. My current 2008 Tahoe has nearly 270,000 miles, all original, no AFM issues. Same with our 2013 at 160,000 miles.

If you want to worry about something, think transmission. They claim the sun shell failure rate in a 4L60 is nearly 100% approaching 150,000 miles. And 30% for the 6L80 torque converter nearing 100,000 miles. You are more likely to have a transmission failure than an AFM failure.

it's funny. People are more likely to spend more for a AFM/DOD delete to prevent possible AFM failures than they are on a less costly preemptive mod to their transmission to prevent a more costly repair to replace that transmission, even though it's more likely the transmission will fail than AFM will.

Thank you, I just figured this morning that I have put about 700 - 800 miles on it in just under two weeks. And the tag in window shows oil change at 112,??? so, I was going to change oil soon anyway. Will probably do about the same as my Acadia, ever 3000 to 3500 miles. I will have someone look at transmission. Even at this time there are ABSOLUTLY NO bumps, slips, jumps, hickups, any thing. But I want to keep it that way.

mamawof6 · Jun 3, 2026

rdezs said:
Lol, roll the dice! It happens enough on the AFM that there's an entire industry built around the delete kits. The best prevention and protection of the AFM system probably comes down to regular oil changes, like every 3500 miles. Probably the worst thing you can do is follow the oil changing interval that the dashboard tells you.

Talk to your local GM service Manager. The one in my area tells me most of their work they get deals with electronic modules, second most common issue relates to AFM. They do not delete it, they only repair. And yes, transmission issues were number three on the list. When I looked at their shop, seemed like most of what they were working on was 2010 and newer vehicles.

I would prefer not to gamble such expensive components. An AFM delete is cheap compared to trash in the entire engine. Same goes for changing transmission fluid every 30,000 miles, and consider replacing that torque converter with a billet unit. I also run an inline hydraulic filter on my wife's 6L80.

Being proactive gives you peace of mind. The other option is do nothing, knowing that you are rolling the dice every time you turn the key

Thank you, I will have everything checked. I hadn't thought about the transmission fluid.

solli5pack · Jun 3, 2026

DIisable AFM but more important than AFM is to check the dates on the coolant hoses and replace if they're old. Also replace coolant tees to the heater core. More of a chance one of them fail than a lifter.

Just bought 2014 YukonXL, 109000 miles, AFM?

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