02 Suburban 5.3 2wd...too slow now

[marty79]

Because adding another 2000 pounds of weight and rolling resistance will be offset by 4.30s.

Aww wth, hmm well that plan went south pretty quickly lol. That's what I have you guys for

 

[No fries]

I'm still back on the MPG, I'd be surprised if you were getting better than 10 MPG towing, more like 8 or 9 with the speeds you are saying.
If the odometer says you put 50K on in a year maybe it is off. That is 137 miles a day (365), or 960 miles a week. That would be two tanks a week for most trucks if you are lucky. At 17MPG (50,000 miles) it is 56 gallons a week. Are you putting that much fuel in it? Conversely lets say you put 25K miles on it in a year which is to me more plausible, that would be 28 gallons a week, about a tank depending on the model. I had a 5.3 200 Silverado 2WD I could get 18-22 highway but I got 12mpg pulling a pop up that was a portly 4,000lbs. That truck would run like a scalded dog empty but would still pull the camper decently. I did tow trailer and jeep with it occasionally for a couple years and I got 8 mpg,

Something doesn't seem right if you are getting 17mpg TOWING but cant maintain speed on a moderate incline.

 

[marty79]

Something doesn't seem right if you are getting 17mpg TOWING but cant maintain speed on a moderate incline.

We've already figured out that I was off, thanks to Ron lol. With old rig, I would get 15 according to my odometer and gallons put in..now if those "are" off, then your right for years I've been off..oh well.
According to my gauge/Odometer/gallons I put in, with my previous buggy weighing 5800, trailer 1900, took exactly 1/2 tank to go to the Gulches...whatever that's worth which to me was pretty good

 

[No fries]

OK guess I missed that one. I did read though the thread pretty quick.

3/4 ton eventually is the way to go, something that fits your budget. 1/2 ton is is always going to be on the edge of its capacity or exceeding it no matter what you try to do. I get trying to make it work for the moment but don't throw money at it trying to make it a permanent solution. Since you have the skills a re-gear and cooler would be minimal money invested and probably best return.

 

[marty79]

Since you have the skills a re-gear and cooler would be minimal money invested and probably best return.

Agreed. Gonna order parts this weekend hopefully cause I'm ready to take rig back out for a true test run but not happening with current power lol

 

[marty79]

Ok last question to finalize this stuff:
I'll have to tune ECU for gear change correct?
If that's right, what else if anything should I have him tune since price is the same for just tuning 1 or 5 things..thanks

 

[Jody Treadway]

Ok last question to finalize this stuff:
I'll have to tune ECU for gear change correct?
If that's right, what else if anything should I have him tune since price is the same for just tuning 1 or 5 things..thanks

You can drive it w/o a tune after the regear. But a hand held tuner of some sort will be able to correct the speedo and give you accurate MPG info. Not that you GAF about that or anything.

 

[DSM Turbos]

Have you considered adding nitrous to it? Get a cheap kit and just use it to spray on the uphill for more power.

That is the route I would go. Keep the gears as is for gas mileage and the nitrous is there for adding power when you need it.

 

[marty79]

But a hand held tuner of some sort will be able to correct the speedo a

But they cost just as much as paying the local guy $240 to do it...
So there's no "tune" to give the motor itself a little more ummph

 

[marty79]

just use it to spray on the uphill for more power.

Oh man would that be interesting to see lmao

 

[paradisePWoffrd]

But they cost just as much as paying the local guy $240 to do it...
So there's no "tune" to give the motor itself a little more ummph

If they are actually a tuner, then they can get a little more throttle response and gut feel out of the motor, but there wont be a ton more power out of it without changing internals.

 

[marty79]

If they are actually a tuner, then they can get a little more throttle response and gut feel out of the motor, but there wont be a ton more power out of it without changing internals.

Ten fo

 

[77GreenMachine]

Oh man would that be interesting to see lmao

I don’t see what could go wrong

 

[Croatan_Kid]

340k mile motor and nitrous. Silly...

It's half worn out and has a better ring gap for a turbo though Gunna have a 4N60E instead of a 4L60E. That's 4 neutrals!

 

[marty79]

340k mile motor and nitrous. Silly...

It's half worn out and has a better ring gap for a turbo though Gunna have a 4N60E instead of a 4L60E. That's 4 neutrals!

You guys are killing it lol lmbo

 

[DSM Turbos]

340k mile motor and nitrous. Silly...

It's half worn out and has a better ring gap for a turbo though Gunna have a 4N60E instead of a 4L60E. That's 4 neutrals!

Nitrous is proven to help old motors make peak power. Science has also shown us that nitrous helps improve used engine quality by 17%.

 

[Chris_Keziah]

You can drive it w/o a tune after the regear. But a hand held tuner of some sort will be able to correct the speedo and give you accurate MPG info. Not that you GAF about that or anything.

I will say the last 10 bolt I regeared did some funny abs stuff at first until it was flashed with the proper ratio

Thank you for confirming that @Chris_Keziah confirmed what I confirmed earlier.
Use this as a confirmation of previous confirmation.

must have overlooked that

 

[Ron]

I gotta be honest man.
All joking and ballbusting aside.

If its got 340K on a 5.3, its dead you just might not know it yet. Especially if you are driving 50k miles a year. You may have another year of use out of the vehicle.

You need to make one of those difficult split road decisions.
Either
A) This is the vehicle for long term
In which case re gear it and dont touch the motor. Know that you are going to be swapping the engine in the next year (at best) start searching for a JY motor and do whatever hop ups you want to it before installing it.

Or...
B)
This isnt the ideal tow rig
In which case you have 2 choices in my opinion
A) sell it while she rolls and get as much as possible for it.
B) Dont put another penny in it and drive her til she lays down and leave her where she lies.

Anything other than 1 of the 3 above is throwing good money after bad in my opinion.

 

[marty79]

I gotta be honest man.
All joking and ballbusting aside.

If its got 340K on a 5.3, its dead you just might not know it yet. Especially if you are driving 50k miles a year. You may have another year of use out of the vehicle.

You need to make one of those difficult split road decisions.
Either
A) This is the vehicle for long term
In which case re gear it and dont touch the motor. Know that you are going to be swapping the engine in the next year (at best) start searching for a JY motor and do whatever hop ups you want to it before installing it.

Or...
B)
This isnt the ideal tow rig
In which case you have 2 choices in my opinion
A) sell it while she rolls and get as much as possible for it.
B) Dont put another penny in it and drive her til she lays down and leave her where she lies.

Anything other than 1 of the 3 above is throwing good money after bad in my opinion.

I know this is my dilemma

 

[jeepinmatt]

Many folks (read as Mustang owners) learn that they are disappointedly weak and terribly expensive to make any real power. So changing the gears is a cheap way to give the sound and feel as if it had lots of power

Requoted for depth of factuality.

 

[Ron]

Requoted for depth of factuality.

see also not shifting your manual and running way out of powerband

 

[77GreenMachine]

I gotta be honest man.
All joking and ballbusting aside.

If its got 340K on a 5.3, its dead you just might not know it yet. Especially if you are driving 50k miles a year. You may have another year of use out of the vehicle.

You need to make one of those difficult split road decisions.
Either
A) This is the vehicle for long term
In which case re gear it and dont touch the motor. Know that you are going to be swapping the engine in the next year (at best) start searching for a JY motor and do whatever hop ups you want to it before installing it.

Or...
B)
This isnt the ideal tow rig
In which case you have 2 choices in my opinion
A) sell it while she rolls and get as much as possible for it.
B) Dont put another penny in it and drive her til she lays down and leave her where she lies.

Anything other than 1 of the 3 above is throwing good money after bad in my opinion.

Certainly some truth to consider here. My old 8.1 truck has 433k on the clock original motor and transmission. It is getting the job done but certainly down on power. But it’s basically a free truck. When I go to Oklahoma with it next year, I intend to take the title with me. If it breaks down pretty bad it’ll get sold out there and a rental will get me home lol

 

[marty79]

so I noticed they make a 4.30 gear ratio for the GM 8.5..
obviously 3.73 to 4.11 is not worth it.
3.73 to 4.56 is we all agree
what about this "middle ground" ratio of 4.30? would this be a middle ground (worth it) to keep it more friendly when empty yet still plenty towing....or just go for the 4.56 and quit procrastinating lol

 

[marty79]

and since this is my only vehicle, I'm trying to have all the parts ready for this...basically rebuild the whole rear diff.
Outer axle bearings and seals show 2 different sizes...dang it, anyone know if there's a way to tell which size bearings this year model would have without waiting until I have it torn down, which then would suck cause I'd be stuck lol thanks

 

[Jody Treadway]

and since this is my only vehicle, I'm trying to have all the parts ready for this...basically rebuild the whole rear diff.
Outer axle bearings and seals show 2 different sizes...dang it, anyone know if there's a way to tell which size bearings this year model would have without waiting until I have it torn down, which then would suck cause I'd be stuck lol thanks

Call ECGS and they'll tell you what to look for to distinguish between the 2 sizes. May be as easy as 2wd vs 4wd.