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Sorry for the long post but I trust the BCB Family here more than other boards. I own a 2007 Silverado with the 5.3L engine. Had the oil changed 2 weeks ago to prepare for a 1200 mile round trip from MA to VA to do some fishing. Took the truck to my local Goodyear center who has serviced the truck for 3 years. Other than the oil change they changed the power steering belt and performed a throttle body/fuel injector cleaning. Truck only has 66K miles on it. Towed my 2007 Puma to VA and back with no issues. Oil pressure was good, engine temp was fine. Truck towed the boat just fine as it always has. The day after we got back I started the truck and driver information center said low oil, must add oil. When I checked the oil level there was nothing on the dipstick. I went immediately to Goodyear where they put fresh oil in. They had no explanation other than maybe their tech didnt put the proper amount in the week before at the oil change. He asked me to keep an eye on it. So today I towed the boat about 200 miles round trip for a local club tourney. Oil was full when I left and looks full when I got back. However, when I took out the dipstick steam came out of the dipstick tube and the dipstick itself was vey hot and also steaming. It also smelled like it was burnt. Like I said it looks like the oil is full but is that kind of heat normal? Do I have an problem Im not aware of? Is my engine in trouble? Could I have burned up all the oil from the oil change in 1200 miles? I know a fair amount about boats but not much about trucks. I have the oil changed every 5K miles and this is the first time Ive had a low oil warning. I plan to take the truck to Goodyear Monday. Do any Chevy experts have any advice for me or am I worried over nothing. They used 5W-30 non synthetic oil of that matters. Thank you in advance. Alan
I have put hundreds of thousands of miles on Chevy trucks and never experienced anything like that. If my truck had only 66k miles on it I would consider it barely broke in. Maybe Bigcatter (Mark) will be along and give you a professional viewpoint.Dan
Call me at 870 715 0100,, and I will share my similar experience with my 07 GMC ,,,To lengthy to type,,,,J
Known issue with those motors using oil. Google search and you will find hundreds of threads about it.
I have an 07 Tahoe, I was well aware of this problem before I bought my vehicle. Long story short, your truck has active fuel management or some people call it V4 mode. It was designed to get better fuel economy which it maybe if youre running under 65 mph will save you a MPG. But in a nut shell it sucks! The 5.3 is a great engine but AFM has given this otherwise awesome power plant a bad name…Unfortunately you might need some major engine work…. I really hope you have a powertrain warranty???!!!! Possibly pistons and other things you can quickly read about if you do a search. I bought my Tahoe with a notary signed agreement from the dealership that if it was an oil drinker they would fix it…. I got lucky, my Tahoe didnt burn much and I corrected what causes the oil consumption!Theres a solution AFM can be deactivated, I do believe a dealer can disable the function and of course they will charge you an hours worth of labor to do it. Or you can buy an aftermarket programmer which is what I did. I would go with a programmer if I were you, they yield better MPG and performance gains as well as transmission shift points for towing and economy settings for increased MPG when cruising. All the major brands of programmers have the function to disable AFM. I have a Super Chips programmer, Edge, Bully Dog, Hypertec just to name a few, all are capable of disabling it.Now that I have deactivated my AFM my engine consumes NO oil whatsoever. Good luck and I hope you dont need major repair work! Regardless shut off the AFM ASAP!!!!!!!!!!Last edited by 94eyracat on May 3rd, 2015, 5:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
This is the service recommendations GM sent to dealerships regarding our lovely oil burning AFM equipped enginesIf anyone does they finally have a fix#10-06-01-008A: Engine Oil Consumption on Aluminum Block Engines with Active Fuel Management (AFM) ( Install AFM Oil Deflector and Clean Carbon from Cylinder) – (Sep 28, 2010)Subject: Engine Oil Consumption on Aluminum Block Engines with Active Fuel Management (AFM) (Install AFM Oil Deflector and Clean Carbon from Cylinder)Models: 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT2007-2008 Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe2007-2008 GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra Denali, Yukon, Yukon XL, Yukon Denali, Yukon Denali XL2008 Pontiac G8 GTEquipped with Aluminum Block V8 Engine with Active Fuel Management (AFM) (RPOs LC9, LH6, L76, LFA, L92)with Greater than 45,000 km (28,000 mi)——————————————————————————–This bulletin is being revised to update the Condition/Cause/Correction sections, add 4WD labor time and add information about replacement of spark plugs if necessary. Please discard Corporate Bulletin Number 10-06-01-008 (Section 06 – Engine/Propulsion System).——————————————————————————–ConditionSome customers may comment about engine oil consumption of vehicles with higher mileage (approximately 48,000 to 64,000 km (30,000 to 40,000 mi). Verify that the induction system is assembled correctly and that there is no evidence that the engine has been ingesting dirty air due to a mis-assembled induction system. Also verify that the PCV system is functioning properly. If diagnostic procedures indicate that oil consumption is piston/piston ring related, verify that oil consumption is less than 3,000 km (2,000 mi) per liter/quart. If these conditions are met and oil consumption is less than 3,000 km (2,000 mi) per liter/quart, perform the service indicated in this bulletin.CauseThis condition may be caused by oil spray that is discharged from the AFM pressure relief valve within the crankcase. Under most driving conditions and drive cycles, the discharged oil does not cause a problem. Under certain drive cycles (extended high engine speed operation), in combination with parts at the high end of their tolerance specification, the oil spray quantity may be more than usual, resulting in excessive deposit formation in the piston ring grooves, causing increased oil consumption.CorrectionTo correct this condition, perform the piston cleaning procedure as described in this document, and install a shield over the AFM pressure relief valve per the procedure outlined in this document. Monitor oil consumption after this repair to ensure oil consumption has improved to acceptable levels. If this repair does not correct the condition, it may be necessary to replace the piston assemblies (piston and rings) with new parts.Important: It is critical in this cleaning process that the engine/fuel injector cleaner remain in the cylinders for a minimum of 2.5 hours to fully clean the components. The cleaner solution must be removed before a maximum of three hours.Verify the oil consumption concern following Corporate Bulletin Number 01-06-01-011F. If oil consumption is found, continue on with this bulletin.Remove the spark plugs and ensure that none of the pistons are at top dead center (TDC).Clean the pistons by putting 118-147 ml (4-5 oz) of Upper Engine and Fuel Injector Cleaner, GM P/N 88861802 (in Canada, use 88861804), in each cylinder. Allow the material to soak for at least 2.5-3.0 hours, but no more than three hours and then remove the cleaner. A suggested method of removing the cleaner is cranking engine over. Make sure to unplug the ignition coils and fuel injector before cranking the engine over. Also make sure that the painted surfaces are covered so no damage is done.Remove the oil pan. Refer to Oil Pan Replacement in SI.Remove the AFM valve (1).Install the new shield (1), GM P/N 12639759, and tighten the AFM valve to the oil pan to 28 N·m (20 lb ft).Important: Ensure that the engine cleaner is thoroughly removed before reinstalling the spark plugs. Failure to do so may result in a hydro-lock condition.Reinstall the spark plugs. Replace the spark plugs if necessary due to full of carbon. Refer to the parts catalog.Reinstall the oil pan. Refer to the Oil Pan Installation procedure in SI. Replace the oil pan gasket if necessary. Refer to the parts catalog. Replace the engine oil if necessary.Re-evaluate the oil consumption. Document on the repair order. If the oil consumption is still greater than 0.946 L (1 qt) in 3,200 km (2000 mi), replacement of the pistons and rings will be required.Parts InformationPart NumberDescriptionQty12639759DEFLECTOR-OIL PRESS RLF VLV (quantity of 3 per order)188861802 (in Canada, use 88861804)CLEANER, F/INJR 16 OZ LIQUID POUR (Upper Engine and Fuel Injector Cleaner)3 –
Interesting. Im on my 3rd 5.3 AFM system engine in Sierra SLTs or the latest a Allterrain and have never had an issue. Great engine that is great on gas. I can run 70-73 and get 19-20 mpg and thats driving the Mass Pike which is anything but flat. Just got back to day driving out and back plus running around town quite a bit and still got hair over 18mpg. My 08 had 60K and never burned a drop of oil. Same with my 04. The 2014s engines were redesigned so dont know if there are any issues with these. So far, so good. All my trucks were maintained of course changing oil every 5K until this one with the synthetic oil where it goes around 7K before changing.
Not all of them had the issue as much as others. I believe my tahoe wasnt burning excessive amounts of oil but I still decided to deactivate AFM. It did burn some oil. I had my Tahoe for a month before I installed my programmer it burned a half a quart in 2500 miles. Like I said it burns no oil now. If youre driving on roads with steep grades youre probably not activating AFM very often. Could be a part of why you havent had a lot of oil consumption. Also like I said some didnt have issues or enough if a problem that owners noticed. I do believe all AFM in the 07 08 years burned some oil but others consumed a lot or as the OP is finding out eventually they burn a bunch, as stated in the GM corporate bulletin over time carbon builds up on the piston rings and thats when oil consumption becomes excessive.
Interesting information to say the least. Jerry, thank you for your input. Could having the injector cleaner service exposed the problem? Never had an issue prior to that. Im going to call the local Chevy dealer today and have a conversation. Ill let you know what he says. BCB family is truly the best. Thank you!
schodackbassman wrote:Interesting. Im on my 3rd 5.3 AFM system engine in Sierra SLTs or the latest a Allterrain and have never had an issue. Great engine that is great on gas. I can run 70-73 and get 19-20 mpg and thats driving the Mass Pike which is anything but flat. Just got back to day driving out and back plus running around town quite a bit and still got hair over 18mpg. My 08 had 60K and never burned a drop of oil. Same with my 04. The 2014s engines were redesigned so dont know if there are any issues with these. So far, so good. All my trucks were maintained of course changing oil every 5K until this one with the synthetic oil where it goes around 7K before changing.That is the exact same experience I have had. I use Mobil 1 in everything I have owned for over 20 years.Dan
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