6.2 Blew Up: Decision Time - Keep or Buy?

[Alpinglow]

Just got word today. Extended warranty approved full engine and cam shaft swap out.

But of course...GM can't find a single 6.2 anywhere and has no idea what the time line will be.

If I didn't hate Ford so much I might switch.

What a clown show.

 

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[24TGrey.]

i don't get it, are the 6.2's in the Camaro's running into this??
also I heard the lifter issue has been fixed after 22? this is what the service tech at my dealer told me when i had my oil change.

 

[Whaler27]

Just got word today. Extended warranty approved full engine and cam shaft swap out.

But of course...GM can't find a single 6.2 anywhere and has no idea what the time line will be.

If I didn't hate Ford so much I might switch.

What a clown show.

I’m not surprised they can’t find any “remanufactured” 6.2 engines, as they have been replacing so many of them. Is there anything in the warranty that starts a timeline, or can they take six months to fix it?

Too bad they can’t swap in a new babymax. If you love everything else about your truck that might be a sensible solution, even if you have to pay a little bit extra to cover the difference.

Might be worth having the valuation conversation with the dealer now. They know all the variables, and they’ll know the truck is getting a new motor.

When capable people rebuild an engine the rebuilds can last as long as brand new engines. Maybe GM is putting people like that to work on this project, but part of a proper engine rebuild is replacing everything subject to wear. If they’re picking and choosing which parts to replace in order to save money I’d have little faith in the motor.

 

[Alpinglow]

i don't get it, are the 6.2's in the Camaro's running into this??
also I heard the lifter issue has been fixed after 22? this is what the service tech at my dealer told me when i had my oil change.

Mine is a 19, so not sure if the newer models have this issue or not. From what I'm seeing on the innerwebs though, all 6.2L GM engines with the dynamic fuel management feature are at risk. I see a lot of guys are moving to aftermarket lifters or disabling the DFM in the computer to avoid this. That being said, you void your warranty by changing out the lifters...so not sure how good a solution that is.

These guys are selling a DFM deactivation kit, so take it with a grain of salt, but, the video below is the best explanation I've seen of the problem and how to avoid it. This guy says that the MAJORITY of the GM engines running DFM will experience lifter issues. Not sure how true that is...but a quick google search of "GM DFM Lifter Failure" will take you down a rat hole of owner horror stories, car "expert" videos and class action lawsuits on the topic.

 

[Alpinglow]

I’m not surprised they can’t find any “remanufactured” 6.2 engines, as they have been replacing so many of them. Is there anything in the warranty that starts a timeline, or can they take six months to fix it?

Too bad they can’t swap in a new babymax. If you love everything else about your truck that might be a sensible solution, even if you have to pay a little bit extra to cover the difference.

Might be worth having the valuation conversation with the dealer now. They know all the variables, and they’ll know the truck is getting a new motor.

When capable people rebuild an engine the rebuilds can last as long as brand new engines. Maybe GM is putting people like that to work on this project, but part of a proper engine rebuild is replacing everything subject to wear. If they’re picking and choosing which parts to replace in order to save money I’d have little faith in the motor.

Right, I think this is pretty much where I am. Now that it's in writing that they will replace the engine, I think I'll go talk to the dealer about my options to trade up to a '24 with the babymax. That being said, much will depend on the trade in value and whether they will give me dealer invoice pricing on the new truck or not.

I don't hate the idea of keeping my old truck with the new engine, assuming they warranty it for a reasonable amount of time. But, I absolutely hate the idea of being without a truck for the next three months if they can't find a motor. I've had terrible luck getting parts for this truck every time I've needed them and I imagine this one will be the same (or worse) with the current demand for new engines.

The warranty questions are good ones that I can't answer. Since its a 3rd party extended warranty company that GM used when I bought the truck, I've forced myself to tape my mouth shut for the last three weeks while they went through the motions. I didn't want to give anyone a reason to deny my claim.

Now that they're committed to replacement, I'm going to be a more active participant in the process.

I've been driving my old 2004 Jeep TJ with no top and have already been caught out in the rain twice. Can't go the rest of the summer without a real car. Something has to give.

 

[Whaler27]

Don’t ever sell that TJ. Speaking from experience, you’ll regret it. I sold mine to buy more parts for my JL. One of the dumbest decisions I ever made — and that’s saying a lot.

 

[Alpinglow]

Don’t ever sell that TJ. Speaking from experience, you’ll regret it. I sold mine to buy more parts for my JL. One of the dumbest decisions I ever made — and that’s saying a lot.

Wouldn't even consider it.

 

[Whaler27]

Beauty — and a Rubicon to boot! Wanna sell it?

He’s my last TJ. It was a Sport, so it has the crappy Dana 35 rearend in it, which I blew up at about 40,000 miles. I replaced the rear with a Ford 8.8 from a junked Explorer, re-geared to 456s, and installed ARB lockers front and rear.
That gave me rear disc brakes. Really wish I still had it. The JL ate the parts I bought without a burp. In the end I went from two jeeps I loved to one. That’s never a good trade.

 

[20AT421]

From my experience last month, I was told the replacement engines are rebuilt from the block up. Looking at the bolt-ons though they are not new. Talking pulleys, pumps, and alternator.

As for warranty, mine was still under the factory warranty and I was told I just get the remainder of that warranty on the replacement engine. Nothing additional.

My SA said at least 3 weeks to get the engine but it showed up 5 days after order. Hopefully you have the same luck.

There's no way you'd get them to change out to the babymax. They'd have to do engine, emissions, ecm... you'd have better luck getting a deal on a new one. And you should. I think all of us that have engine failure should be issued a voucher from GM for discount on a trade up if we chose to. I know, I dream in a world outside of corporate profits

I had heard the same things about DFM when I got mine in '21 so I put the Pulsar LT on at about 1500 miles and have had the DFM disabled ever since. Yet I had lifter failure/replacement at 12k and rod bearings/seize/engine replacement at 52k so I'm not sure that's the answer anymore.

I wish I was in a position to get rid of mine, I'd get another AT4 but with the 3.0. As is I'll keep it and cross my toes!

 

[Alpinglow]

From my experience last month, I was told the replacement engines are rebuilt from the block up. Looking at the bolt-ons though they are not new. Talking pulleys, pumps, and alternator.

As for warranty, mine was still under the factory warranty and I was told I just get the remainder of that warranty on the replacement engine. Nothing additional.

My SA said at least 3 weeks to get the engine but it showed up 5 days after order. Hopefully you have the same luck.

There's no way you'd get them to change out to the babymax. They'd have to do engine, emissions, ecm... you'd have better luck getting a deal on a new one. And you should. I think all of us that have engine failure should be issued a voucher from GM for discount on a trade up if we chose to. I know, I dream in a world outside of corporate profits

I had heard the same things about DFM when I got mine in '21 so I put the Pulsar LT on at about 1500 miles and have had the DFM disabled ever since. Yet I had lifter failure/replacement at 12k and rod bearings/seize/engine replacement at 52k so I'm not sure that's the answer anymore.

I wish I was in a position to get rid of mine, I'd get another AT4 but with the 3.0. As is I'll keep it and cross my toes!

Interesting, thanks for sharing.

When I mentioned the new babymax I meant trading up to a new truck...not swapping out in lieu of the old 6.2 block. in this truck Agree that there is no way that would happen.

Most interesting to me are your comments about the warranty. I'm at 67k so if they tell me that the "new" engine won't have any warranty I will pretty much have to trade-up to a new duramax truck. I have zero faith in these 6.2s based on my experience and everything I'm reading. Even more concerning is that when you disabled the DFM the lifters still went.

It may be that the lifter design is just flawed and no matter what you do they will go bad.

 

[20AT421]

Interesting, thanks for sharing.

When I mentioned the new babymax I meant trading up to a new truck...not swapping out in lieu of the old 6.2 block. in this truck Agree that there is no way that would happen.

Most interesting to me are your comments about the warranty. I'm at 67k so if they tell me that the "new" engine won't have any warranty I will pretty much have to trade-up to a new duramax truck. I have zero faith in these 6.2s based on my experience and everything I'm reading. Even more concerning is that when you disabled the DFM the lifters still went.

It may be that the lifter design is just flawed and no matter what you do they will go bad.

Maybe your warranty will be different, I don't have an extended.
Agree that it's a lifter design issue more than the manufacturer GM is sourcing them from.
I do wonder how some out there have no issues at all. Hell some are running superchargers on their 6.2 without issues.
I have no idea what the true issue is but I wish we didn't all have to suffer.

 

[Joe98]

While I can't speak from personal experience, my last truck was a 2018 Sierra Denali Ultimate with the 6.2 and never gave me a single problem in the short 2.5 yrs of ownership. Having said that, I'm looking to get back into new Sierra 1500 sometime soon hopefully as better incentives come along, I think I've already made up my mind in powertrain choice. 3.0 Duramax. Yes, maintenance may be more costly but I think for the advantages in fuel economy probably make up the difference along the way. Hearing way too many horror stories with lifter failures and crank bearing failures...really sucks especially on newer models with minimal mileage. Sad....

 

[Alpinglow]

So I finally wrapped this thing up and here's how it went. The 6.2 in my old 2019 with 64k miles blew up - lifters and cam shaft both shot. Luckily I was covered under extended warranty (offered through GM when I bought it, but managed through a third party). It took a few weeks to convince the extended warranty company to cover it, and I had to provide my maintenance records. They also had to inspect it to ensure no excessive towing or off-roading had caused it. Once all that was complete, the warranty company approved a "new motor and cam shaft" to be installed. Still not clear to me whether that was factory new engine or rebuilt. Either way, they offered a 30k warranty with the new motor, so keeping it was a real option. The issue was that the dealership could not find a motor for the old truck. Apparently, there are so many 6.2s blowing up under warranty that they can't build the new motors fast enough. They didn't say that, but that's what I deduced from talking to them - "very high demand" they said.

Because I didn't want to be without a truck all summer, I traded it in for a 2024 AT4 with the babymax diesel. They gave me about $36k for the old truck. Probably could have gotten more, but I got them up from $30k.

Been driving the new diesel around for the last few days. My impression is that it is MUCH less responsive when driving in "Normal Mode". Deep depress on the accelerator required before you feel any power at all, very sluggish on the highway when you need to pass. Just no comparison to the 6.2 at all. That being said...I'm getting about 21 mpg around town and better on the highway in normal mode. Also, the new models come with a sport mode that feels much more punchy on when stepping on the gas. Not quite the 6.2, but not bad at all. Haven't tested the MPG in sport mode yet but I will report back when I do. To be honest, I kind of like the ability to switch modes depending on where I'm driving and how I'm feeling....feels pretty natural. Pretty sure my old truck didn't have that (or if it did, I never used it)

Lastly, if you own or are considering buying a 6.2 join the facebook at4 community. Every day it seems there is a new guy on there complaining that his engine blew up. This is clearly an epidemic and I'm glad not to be a part of it anymore.

Good luck gents.

 

[gemarsh]

So I finally wrapped this thing up and here's how it went. The 6.2 in my old 2019 with 64k miles blew up - lifters and cam shaft both shot. Luckily I was covered under extended warranty (offered through GM when I bought it, but managed through a third party). It took a few weeks to convince the extended warranty company to cover it, and I had to provide my maintenance records. They also had to inspect it to ensure no excessive towing or off-roading had caused it. Once all that was complete, the warranty company approved a "new motor and cam shaft" to be installed. Still not clear to me whether that was factory new engine or rebuilt. Either way, they offered a 30k warranty with the new motor, so keeping it was a real option. The issue was that the dealership could not find a motor for the old truck. Apparently, there are so many 6.2s blowing up under warranty that they can't build the new motors fast enough. They didn't say that, but that's what I deduced from talking to them - "very high demand" they said.

Because I didn't want to be without a truck all summer, I traded it in for a 2024 AT4 with the babymax diesel. They gave me about $36k for the old truck. Probably could have gotten more, but I got them up from $30k.

Been driving the new diesel around for the last few days. My impression is that it is MUCH less responsive when driving in "Normal Mode". Deep depress on the accelerator required before you feel any power at all, very sluggish on the highway when you need to pass. Just no comparison to the 6.2 at all. That being said...I'm getting about 21 mpg around town and better on the highway in normal mode. Also, the new models come with a sport mode that feels much more punchy on when stepping on the gas. Not quite the 6.2, but not bad at all. Haven't tested the MPG in sport mode yet but I will report back when I do. To be honest, I kind of like the ability to switch modes depending on where I'm driving and how I'm feeling....feels pretty natural. Pretty sure my old truck didn't have that (or if it did, I never used it)

Lastly, if you own or are considering buying a 6.2 join the facebook at4 community. Every day it seems there is a new guy on there complaining that his engine blew up. This is clearly an epidemic and I'm glad not to be a part of it anymore.

Good luck gents.

This eliminated the "dead pedal" and woke up my LM2 and the 6.6d's...

SE0530-TC DLX Bluetooth® Throttle Controller: Silverado / Sierra (2019+) Suburban / Tahoe / Yukon / Escalade (2021+) — Soler Performance LLC

The most advanced Throttle Controller for: Silverado/Sierra 1500 (2019+) Silverado/Sierra 2500/3500 (2020+) Yukon (2021+) Suburban (2021+) Tahoe (2021+) Escalade (2021+) The perfect match for our Throttle Bodies. Easy installation. Premium features. 1 YEAR WARRANT

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[Alpinglow]

This eliminated the "dead pedal" and woke up my LM2 and the 6.6d's...

SE0530-TC DLX Bluetooth® Throttle Controller: Silverado / Sierra (2019+) Suburban / Tahoe / Yukon / Escalade (2021+) — Soler Performance LLC

The most advanced Throttle Controller for: Silverado/Sierra 1500 (2019+) Silverado/Sierra 2500/3500 (2020+) Yukon (2021+) Suburban (2021+) Tahoe (2021+) Escalade (2021+) The perfect match for our Throttle Bodies. Easy installation. Premium features. 1 YEAR WARRANT

www.solerengineering.com

Thanks. But what's the difference between using this and just switching to sport mode?