2007 Tahoe 5.3l AFM DOD delete thread

[Just Fishing]

If you had oil pressure issues, might not hurt to cut open your oil filter.
Might end up like me and doing a full rebuild after completing a successful DOD purge.


Tool: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Aluminum-O...n-Tool-IMCA-USMTS-NHRA-IHRA-USRA/393010573037

 

[Taheezy_88]

Timing marks

 

[iamdub]

Timing marks

View attachment 273353

Looks good to me!

 

[Taheezy_88]

Update:

Got rained out most of the day but managed to pressure wash(low pressure)my passenger rocker cover, timing cover, and oil pan. The oil pan was gunked up inside. I managed to get at the bottom real good cleaned up inside out and looks almost new.

Got the timing cover on with new crank seal and installed the valley plate.
Torqueing the valley plate was a lil bit shady. Towards the final turns of torqueing it felt like only the bolt head was spinning and it was about to snap but luckily they were okay.

My lifters came in today but the box was damaged and oil everywhere. When I opened the box the lifters were scattered everywhere. Sent them back for refund and now have to order new lifters and wait. This puts me back.

Waiting on the new lifters I will get the differential back in and the oil pan.

Good news I sent my ECM out to Brendan.

Thanks guys

 

[1BADI5]

Have you already pulled the heads?

If not, have you already pulled the spark plugs?

If so reinstall the plugs and use the impact.

They make a tool that installs in place of the starter that locks the flywheel in place so it can't rotate. That is how I did mine.

Looks like this...
View attachment 272859


https://www.ebay.com/itm/143422296740

Great tool to have, I have used it several times

 

[iamdub]

Update:

Got rained out most of the day but managed to pressure wash(low pressure)my passenger rocker cover, timing cover, and oil pan. The oil pan was gunked up inside. I managed to get at the bottom real good cleaned up inside out and looks almost new.

Got the timing cover on with new crank seal and installed the valley plate.
Torqueing the valley plate was a lil bit shady. Towards the final turns of torqueing it felt like only the bolt head was spinning and it was about to snap but luckily they were okay.

My lifters came in today but the box was damaged and oil everywhere. When I opened the box the lifters were scattered everywhere. Sent them back for refund and now have to order new lifters and wait. This puts me back.

Waiting on the new lifters I will get the differential back in and the oil pan.

Good news I sent my ECM out to Brendan.

Thanks guys

I'd bet money that gunk is the cause for the AFM failure. With the tiny passages and the reliance on solenoids/valves, etc., the AFM system is sensitive to buildup.

That sucks about the lifters. Besides delaying you, they're too rare and precious to be wasted like that.

 

[Taheezy_88]

Installed the lock today the teeth didn't line up with the flywheel when tightening down I will have to adjust it tomorrow. I got the timing cover, Water Pump, radiator and fans in. I have the Oil pan and gasket ready in place just need to put the screws in(have it resting on the rack and pinion). I changed the differential fluid today also.

Staring at the exhaust Headers I am tempted to take them off and replace with something else I cant decide.

Ordered lifters from Summit last night and will be replacing rocker arms and push rods also.

Here's a pic of the lifters I got. They were shaking around in the box pretty good before I opened (I placed a couple back in the tray before pic).

 

[Geotrash]

Installed the lock today the teeth didn't line up with the flywheel when tightening down I will have to adjust it tomorrow. I got the timing cover, Water Pump, radiator and fans in. I have the Oil pan and gasket ready in place just need to put the screws in(have it resting on the rack and pinion). I changed the differential fluid today also.

Staring at the exhaust Headers I am tempted to take them off and replace with something else I cant decide.

Ordered lifters from Summit last night and will be replacing rocker arms and push rods also.

Here's a pic of the lifters I got. They were shaking around in the box pretty good before I opened (I placed a couple back in the tray before pic).

View attachment 273586

Ugh... heartbreak. They probably would've been fine, but I wouldn't chance it either. What kind did you order?

 

[Taheezy_88]

Ugh... heartbreak. They probably would've been fine, but I wouldn't chance it either. What kind did you order?

I went with Summit GM performance lifters just got them today and thankfully they were packaged right.

I was going to chance that and keep the other lifters I ordered but with my luck I decided to play it safe.

What is the performance route of the LM7 5.3l?
Cam I figured and I kinda wish I went with a bigger cam but oh well the L33 is a small upgrade over my stock.

Found this article the other night about cam comparisons for the LM7. Pretty good read for anyone with the LM7 5.3l
http://www.hotrod.com/articles/ls-cam-test-comparison/

 

[iamdub]

I went with Summit GM performance lifters just got them today and thankfully they were packaged right.

I was going to chance that and keep the other lifters I ordered but with my luck I decided to play it safe.

What is the performance route of the LM7 5.3l?
Cam I figured and I kinda wish I went with a bigger cam but oh well the L33 is a small upgrade over my stock.

Found this article the other night about cam comparisons for the LM7. Pretty good read for anyone with the LM7 5.3l
http://www.hotrod.com/articles/ls-cam-test-comparison/

The L33 is identical to your stock cam, just without the AFM lobes. The point of putting it in an LMG is to have a cam that works 100% like stock on the stock tune. There are mild performance cams that will work fine on the stock tune, but they leave a little room for optimization. IMO, any cam worth spending the cash on will require a custom tune, and that's another ~$500 or more in expenses. This is why you settle on your plans for your project and stick to it. Switching up mid-game is expensive! I scored a mild cam for $100 from a friend after I had already bought all the stuff for a 100% stock AFM delete (including an L33 cam). Yeah, the cam was a no-brainer at $100, but all the supporting mods (push rods, head work, converter, custom tune, etc.) that cam entailed more than doubled what I had planned to invest.

 

[Taheezy_88]

True about the L33 cam I just read something where it offered more power than the stock LM7 cam but nothing noteworthy and/or worth the effort. At this point and the money I have spent I wish I went ahead with a more aggressive CAM and forked out the extra $$$ for a tune.

Headers even worth it?

update waiting for Head gaskets to come by mail. I figure the local auto store have them which they did but theirs didnt match ?

 

[kbuskill]

True about the L33 cam I just read something where it offered more power than the stock LM7 cam but nothing noteworthy and/or worth the effort. At this point and the money I have spent I wish I went ahead with a more aggressive CAM and forked out the extra $$$ for a tune.

Headers even worth it?

update waiting for Head gaskets to come by mail. I figure the local auto store have them which they did but theirs didnt match ?

Headers will give the best results with a tune as well.

If you do go with headers, make sure you go with the smallest primary tubes you can find, which is usually 1 5/8".

The 5.3l doesn't need big 1 3/4" or 1 7/8" primary tubes unless you are going FI.

The smaller primary tubes will help maintain the bottom end torque. Bigger tubes on a smaller displacement engine will hurt the low end power which is where you spend most of your time in a daily driver.

 

[iamdub]

True about the L33 cam I just read something where it offered more power than the stock LM7 cam but nothing noteworthy and/or worth the effort. At this point and the money I have spent I wish I went ahead with a more aggressive CAM and forked out the extra $$$ for a tune.

Headers even worth it?

update waiting for Head gaskets to come by mail. I figure the local auto store have them which they did but theirs didnt match ?

The L33 cam does offer more power over the LM7 cam. But, your engine is an LMG, which is like a Gen4 version of the L33 but with an iron block and AFM.

I'm a fan of anything more than shorties on these engines. The stock manifolds are actually pretty good. Shorties won't really provide any gains, but you'll have the extra heat and sound typical to headers. This makes them not worth it, IMO. There are always debates between mid-length and long tubes. I took the scientific approach and went with the tri-Y design from Doug Thorley.

 

[Taheezy_88]

Today I got the heads on torqued to specs, rocker arms torqued, pushrods and covers on.

Waiting for my harmonic balancer Billet install tool to come in on Tuesday and will get that on then. I have the flywheel locking tool in place ready. My ECM is on its way back. Exhaust Headers I will install back on after I get the oilpan, starter, etc.. (headers dropped a lil bit when removing components from underneath for oil pan, crossmember I think)

My first pic is of the passenger head and I lost my memory but my first question is
1) The three drill holes showing are meant to be left open?(I marked with three red lines
2) The rubber hose leads to wear in the radiator? (Marked red arrow)
3) Aluminum rail hooked up to where? (Marked red arrow)

*I took pictures before I uninstalled anything but can't see that aluminum pipe deal, and where the rubber radiator hose leads to

 

[kbuskill]

Today I got the heads on torqued to specs, rocker arms torqued, pushrods and covers on.

Waiting for my harmonic balancer Billet install tool to come in on Tuesday and will get that on then. I have the flywheel locking tool in place ready. My ECM is on its way back. Exhaust Headers I will install back on after I get the oilpan, starter, etc.. (headers dropped a lil bit when removing components from underneath for oil pan, crossmember I think)

My first pic is of the passenger head and I lost my memory but my first question is
1) The three drill holes showing are meant to be left open?(I marked with three red lines
2) The rubber hose leads to wear in the radiator? (Marked red arrow)
3) Aluminum rail hooked up to where? (Marked red arrow)

*I took pictures before I uninstalled anything but can't see that aluminum pipe deal, and where the rubber radiator hose leads to

View attachment 273870 View attachment 273871

#1. Yes those holes are left open.

#2. Hose should go to a small port on the passenger side end tank of radiator about mid way up... if my memory serves me.

#3. That is the PCV inlet, or clean side, and should have a rubber hose going to the intake tube mid way between the air box and throttle body.

 

[iamdub]

^^^ This.

 

[Rick 98Tahoe]

I’m mainly a lurker... but love reading about 5.3 AFM deletes... I’ve done 2 now, both on 08 Tahoe’s... I’ve used Brendan both times for the ECU, and can highly recommend him. Both times I used all GM parts, no shortcuts in anything and took my time. Best advice i can give if anyone really cares, is take your time, be patient, keep everything clean, and of course use all quality parts.

Side story... the 2nd AFM swap had a surprise... somehow... #3 cam bearing got knocked out upon the cam removal... fwiw... it was spun, nothing I knew at the time.... ended up pulling the motor and did all bearings and rings. Typically they tell you not to look at 5.3 cam bearings, lol but this was a case where I had to.

anyhow... best of luck to those reading this thread and contemplating doing a mechanical AFM delete. It’s a worthwhile endeavor, and there’s lots of good advice on the site here!

 

[iamdub]

Both times I used all GM parts, no shortcuts in anything and took my time. Best advice i can give if anyone really cares, is take your time, be patient, keep everything clean, and of course use all quality parts.

YES!

And try to avoid scope creep if you honestly only want/need a stock engine. I fell victim to it with my delete.

 

[Taheezy_88]

#1. Yes those holes are left open.

#2. Hose should go to a small port on the passenger side end tank of radiator about mid way up... if my memory serves me.

#3. That is the PCV inlet, or clean side, and should have a rubber hose going to the intake tube mid way between the air box and throttle body.

Thanks I realized the third one when I installed the intake tube

Oil pan cracked on me while torquing down not sure why? so I pick up my new oil pan tomorrow and I ordered new arp oil pan bolts that will be here tomorrow. Torque specs still 18lb for ARP?

should be able to start up tomorrow fingers crossed.

 

[kbuskill]

Thanks I realized the third one when I installed the intake tube

Oil pan cracked on me while torquing down not sure why? so I pick up my new oil pan tomorrow and I ordered new arp oil pan bolts that will be here tomorrow. Torque specs still 18lb for ARP?

should be able to start up tomorrow fingers crossed.

Where did it crack???

Not sure about the ARP bolts but I wouldn't think it would differ from factory specs...