How is your Chevy EcoTec3 v6 still holding up?

[Mr.cant-find-his-10.5-mm]

Sold my old 05 Tahoe last year and now I'm one of the people that is looking for a used truck in this crazy market. Currently looking at a base model 2015 Silverado work truck with over 270k km (which is almost 200k miles for my American friends here . Mostly worried about the 4.3 v6 engine it has, as I read that it is not the same old 4.3 they've been using since forever. It introduces in 2014 and has AFM and direct injection. How is the reliability of these engines at higher km, especially in a place that sees extremely cold winter? I just want a simple and reliable truck that would last me a long time.

 

[AZjeff]

I had a 2016 4.3 work truck and can't comment on how they are with high miles/kms but I can say it's plenty enough motor for a truck doing truck things if you aren't hauling heavy or towing too much trailer. Interesting that the 4.3 running on 4 has higher displacement than the 5.3 running on 4. What would you think is a long time to last for a full size 6 cyl truck with 270km on it already? Do you know its history? Depending on when it was put into service that could be 45k kms/year which could be good if it means a lot of highway miles. Give it a good test drive, some of the early trucks of this gen had a shake at highway speeds that was related to how the frame was constructed, often mistaken for tire balance. Tough time to be buying used trucks, is it as bad in Canada as it is here?

 

[Mr.cant-find-his-10.5-mm]

I had a 2016 4.3 work truck and can't comment on how they are with high miles/kms but I can say it's plenty enough motor for a truck doing truck things if you aren't hauling heavy or towing too much trailer. Interesting that the 4.3 running on 4 has higher displacement than the 5.3 running on 4. What would you think is a long time to last for a full size 6 cyl truck with 270km on it already? Do you know its history? Depending on when it was put into service that could be 45k kms/year which could be good if it means a lot of highway miles. Give it a good test drive, some of the early trucks of this gen had a shake at highway speeds that was related to how the frame was constructed, often mistaken for tire balance. Tough time to be buying used trucks, is it as bad in Canada as it is here?

The truck is from the dealership so no way of knowing the maintenance history, it's probably from the auction but the condition is absolutely mint inside out for the mileage. I'm hoping the carfax would have history. Here in central Canada used truck prices are off the roof due to the nasty winter we have. Funny that quite a lot of private sellers are asking more than the dealer.

 

[clinebarger]

DI Injectors, HP Fuel Pump, Vacuum Pump, Oil Pump Flow/Volume Solenoid, And bent Pushrods are the most common issues with Ecotec3 engines.

A 200,000 mile 6L80E in a K2XX chassis is on borrowed time assuming it's original?

 

[dareo]

Is it really cheap? It may last a long time but you could also get nickle and dimed to death on it. Brand new base model GM trucks are fairly cheap considering todays market pricing. Looks like in canadian pesos a base GMC "Pro" 4x4 crew with the 2.7 turbo is $45k. I would assume you might get another 100k out of that used truck with expenses along the way. I would want to be at the most 25% of the cost of a new one.

 

[dadto2]

I have a 2016 Sierra with the 4.3. 64k miles, so I can't speak to high mileage, but I love it. All the power I need, tows my 4500 lb boat with no trouble whatsoever. The only thing I've had to do on this truck yet is oil, air filters, and then finally did pads/rotors and coolant flush (5 year interval) at 62k miles. Been an extremely useful and reliable truck.

 

[Jim74]

I have a 2015 Silverado 4wd with the 4.3. 88k miles. It's been rock solid. As long as you do the proper maintenance such as change your coolant and transmission fluid, keep up on your oil changes, etc it will be fine.
Mine has a custom tune on it and I run premium gas. It has plenty of power for light towing and whateverI need it to do.

 

[01rangerxl]

We don't see a ton of issues on V6s from around that period, but the 5.3 is the predominant option around here. 2015 was a good year except transmissions. Lifter problems are coming back into style on the 19+ newer trucks.

The 6 speed transmissions are having issues. GM sent out a notice to dealers that they were not able to keep up with demand on the 6L80 rebuilds. Something like 25% higher than last year, and 38% higher than 2019 for demand. That's nuts. I'm waiting on one now, I think my coworker is waiting on at least two, and we are a small dealer. I want my transmission now! Why can't GM come up with a transmission on a four year old Tahoe? People have been accepting of bad GM transmissions for years, but only because availability was good!

 

[Drew7a]

DI Injectors, HP Fuel Pump, Vacuum Pump, Oil Pump Flow/Volume Solenoid, And bent Pushrods are the most common issues with Ecotec3 engines.

A 200,000 mile 6L80E in a K2XX chassis is on borrowed time assuming it's original?

I mentioned in a separate thread that I am working on one of these. It does have a 6l80 that seems to still shift well, any suggested band aids to extend the life?

What are the signs of and Oil Pump Flow/volume solenoid going bad? While I was replacing the broken tensioner, I went ahead and replaced, the Chains, Sprockets, Cam Phaser, but can not seem to source the OEM flow/volume solenoid valve without significant delay (RA has a gates one?), so I just cleaned it well, I know they recommend replacing it, but it looks like a mechanical part that does not really fail? Should I try harder to source a replacement before re-installing.

I am still waiting for the new oil pump to show up as well before I can re-assemble.

 

[clinebarger]

The best thing to do at this point is a good trans tune via tuning software.

A faulty Flow/Volume Solenoid Valve will set DTC's & comes with a new oil pump. The internal harness usually needs replaced as well.