2016 Sierra DC SLT 5.3 initial thoughts

evilstevie · April 21, 2016

Picked the truck up on Monday. 5.3L with the 8 speed.

Initial thoughts: Truck looks awesome. The new grille for 16 really gives it a distinctive look. With almost 11k in discounts I’ve very happy with the price. Have done city driving almost exclusively and am still happy with the gas mileage. Based on my recent history with GM I don’t anticipate any reliability issues at all, but obviously it’s too early to tell. Drives great, handles great, I love the sound system. No complaints at all.

It’s a perfectly fine truck.

Especially for an accountant. Or retired nurse.

Because it sounds like a sewing machine, and moves like a v6. When I got home I double checked the window sticker to make sure it wasn’t a v6. Nope, 5.3 v8. Maybe I’ll count the plug wires this weekend just to be sure. From a dead stop it’s actually not that bad, but from any kind of roll it just seems….lazy. Transmission doesn’t shift down aggressively enough, throttle response seems poor, shifts are not firm, and there is no exhaust note at all. Yeah I probably should have got the 6.2 (or a Ram), but this 5.3 puts out about the same hp/torque as 6.0 in my G8 GT, so I figured it would feel like that motor/tranny in a +1500lbs vehicle. It does not. Maybe the transmission needs to learn my habits, or maybe I need a different muffler and a tuner to remove GM’s aggressive torque management.

Overall I do like the truck, just wish it had a little more snort.

BigBadSierra · April 21, 2016

The transmission takes time to learn. It will get better as you go.

My 5.3 Double Cab and keep pace with the Dodge Hemi Crew cabs.

As for beating heavily on these trucks with all of the traction and stability controls it's hard to do.

Good thing is GM has an intake now for them. So no worries with warranty if you add one of theirs.

fondupot · April 21, 2016

Don't expect your city gas mileage to be much better than 14-16 when it breaks in though. Try moving 5300 lbs from a start, non-stop for miles on end...

The "sewing machine" sound is the sound of direct injection. That is the sound of the high pressure fuel injectors.

Your Pontiac G8 GT weighed prolly 1000 lbs less than your truck. Was was tuned to be a sports car....you can't expect a pickup truck to have the same performance as a sports car.

The transmission will learn tho. And If I recall, there is a pedal "feature" with the 8 speeds, that you can feel some resistance on the pedal, but if you push harder it will go and give more power. Might be only the 6.2's with 8 speeds, but I'm not sure.

Give it some time and the 5.3 will wake up. A tune would definitely help with that.

steelcity · April 21, 2016

You have to really mash the gas pedal to get it to downshift where you want it. Its almost like a two stage pedal. When you think its floored, its not. It has like a detent, (A detent is a device used to mechanically resist or arrest the rotation of a wheel, axle, or spindle. Such a device can be anything ranging from a simple metal pin to a machine.) Push hard and you'll see what I mean.

fondupot · April 21, 2016

You have to really mash the gas pedal to get it to downshift where you want it. Its almost like a two stage pedal. When you think its floored, its not. It has like a detent, (A detent is a device used to mechanically resist or arrest the rotation of a wheel, axle, or spindle. Such a device can be anything ranging from a simple metal pin to a machine.) Push hard and you'll see what I mean.

yea thats what I was talking about. Thanks @steelcity

InertiaFaze · April 21, 2016

Picked the truck up on Monday. 5.3L with the 8 speed.

Initial thoughts: Truck looks awesome. The new grille for 16 really gives it a distinctive look. With almost 11k in discounts I’ve very happy with the price. Have done city driving almost exclusively and am still happy with the gas mileage. Based on my recent history with GM I don’t anticipate any reliability issues at all, but obviously it’s too early to tell. Drives great, handles great, I love the sound system. No complaints at all.

It’s a perfectly fine truck.

Especially for an accountant. Or retired nurse.

Because it sounds like a sewing machine, and moves like a v6. When I got home I double checked the window sticker to make sure it wasn’t a v6. Nope, 5.3 v8. Maybe I’ll count the plug wires this weekend just to be sure. From a dead stop it’s actually not that bad, but from any kind of roll it just seems….lazy. Transmission doesn’t shift down aggressively enough, throttle response seems poor, shifts are not firm, and there is no exhaust note at all. Yeah I probably should have got the 6.2 (or a Ram), but this 5.3 puts out about the same hp/torque as 6.0 in my G8 GT, so I figured it would feel like that motor/tranny in a +1500lbs vehicle. It does not. Maybe the transmission needs to learn my habits, or maybe I need a different muffler and a tuner to remove GM’s aggressive torque management.

Overall I do like the truck, just wish it had a little more snort.

The transmission doesn't learn a drivers habits, rather it learns about the physical attributes of the transmission in your vehicle and adjusts certain parameters after comparing measured responses vs desired responses. It continues to do this throughout the life of the vehicle, though much more so early in its life. As it learns you should notice shifts becoming smoother and more consistent. It's obviously more complicated than this but thought I'd try to lay to rest the idea that driving habits or style have much to the way the trans learns.

jamin87ss · April 21, 2016

Ya let's forget this learn crap that's bs

redwngr · April 22, 2016

You have to really mash the gas pedal to get it to downshift where you want it. Its almost like a two stage pedal. When you think its floored, its not. It has like a detent, (A detent is a device used to mechanically resist or arrest the rotation of a wheel, axle, or spindle. Such a device can be anything ranging from a simple metal pin to a machine.) Push hard and you'll see what I mean.

GM's OM description:

Kickdown Mode

The accelerator pedal provides an additional downshift after pressing through the kickdown feature.

It requires extra pedal pressure near the end of its travel to engage.

Thornton · April 25, 2016

If you have adjustable pedals, move them off floor about 1/4 to halfway up away from floor. This helped a lot on my truck.

Daryl Z71 · April 25, 2016

Definitely a sharp truck.

The Mad Veteran · April 25, 2016

Nice looking truck, the black and white really complement the new 2016 trim.

Going through these threads isn't helping since I just ordered mine April 13th. This wait is killing me and who knows how long this will take.

crushNchowda · April 25, 2016

Picked the truck up on Monday. 5.3L with the 8 speed.

Initial thoughts: Truck looks awesome. The new grille for 16 really gives it a distinctive look. With almost 11k in discounts I’ve very happy with the price. Have done city driving almost exclusively and am still happy with the gas mileage. Based on my recent history with GM I don’t anticipate any reliability issues at all, but obviously it’s too early to tell. Drives great, handles great, I love the sound system. No complaints at all.

It’s a perfectly fine truck.

Especially for an accountant. Or retired nurse.

Because it sounds like a sewing machine, and moves like a v6. When I got home I double checked the window sticker to make sure it wasn’t a v6. Nope, 5.3 v8. Maybe I’ll count the plug wires this weekend just to be sure. From a dead stop it’s actually not that bad, but from any kind of roll it just seems….lazy. Transmission doesn’t shift down aggressively enough, throttle response seems poor, shifts are not firm, and there is no exhaust note at all. Yeah I probably should have got the 6.2 (or a Ram), but this 5.3 puts out about the same hp/torque as 6.0 in my G8 GT, so I figured it would feel like that motor/tranny in a +1500lbs vehicle. It does not. Maybe the transmission needs to learn my habits, or maybe I need a different muffler and a tuner to remove GM’s aggressive torque management.

Overall I do like the truck, just wish it had a little more snort.

The tranny needs to adapt, there's boat loads of torque mgmt, pulled timing, and granny shifts dialed into the tranny programming from the factory. Your G8 GT had a 6L80E 6 speed that also shifted crappily and had a notorious 2-3 "flare" issue that was both mechanical & software driven - I had one so I know what I'm talking about.

In order for these GM auto-equipped "performance" drivetrains to really waken up you need a custom tune done.

The 5.3 is plenty powerful in this platform, not sure if yours is E85 capable but you get a good boost in HP & TQ running it just an FYI

'01LS1 · April 25, 2016

My thoughts were the same as the ops after test driving a 5.3 8 spd 3.42 rears Saturday. The factory exhaust is quiet, which I think is what you are talking about more so than the D.I. sound. You will have to look into aftermarket mufflers to make it sound better. Plenty of sound files on here linked to you tube to help with that.

The 5.3 would move when asked, but you had to really ask. The truck I drove had 10 miles on it & sure it would get better as others have mentioned above. For avg driving, that 8 spd is awesome. It keeps things level vs running higher rpms. Which is an adjustment in driving feel as well.

evilstevie · April 25, 2016

You have to really mash the gas pedal to get it to downshift where you want it. Its almost like a two stage pedal. When you think its floored, its not. It has like a detent, (A detent is a device used to mechanically resist or arrest the rotation of a wheel, axle, or spindle. Such a device can be anything ranging from a simple metal pin to a machine.) Push hard and you'll see what I mean.

Yeah...that detent was fooling me. When I mash through the detent.....it moves out OK. Needs an exhaust for sure.

If you have adjustable pedals, move them off floor about 1/4 to halfway up away from floor. This helped a lot on my truck.

I do, and that's a good idea. I've got them all the way to the floor now.

Nice looking truck, the black and white really complement the new 2016 trim.

Going through these threads isn't helping since I just ordered mine April 13th. This wait is killing me and who knows how long this will take.

It looks awesome. It's gotten quite a few double takes from random dudes.

The tranny needs to adapt, there's boat loads of torque mgmt, pulled timing, and granny shifts dialed into the tranny programming from the factory. Your G8 GT had a 6L80E 6 speed that also shifted crappily and had a notorious 2-3 "flare" issue that was both mechanical & software driven - I had one so I know what I'm talking about.

In order for these GM auto-equipped "performance" drivetrains to really waken up you need a custom tune done.

The 5.3 is plenty powerful in this platform, not sure if yours is E85 capable but you get a good boost in HP & TQ running it just an FYI

Yep. I've had a Superchips tuner on my G8 for so long I forgot I had it. Barks the tires on the 1 - 2 shift with ease. But prior to that, it shifted like a dog just like this Sierra. A tuner will be in my future.

My thoughts were the same as the ops after test driving a 5.3 8 spd 3.42 rears Saturday. The factory exhaust is quiet, which I think is what you are talking about more so than the D.I. sound. You will have to look into aftermarket mufflers to make it sound better. Plenty of sound files on here linked to you tube to help with that.

The 5.3 would move when asked, but you had to really ask. The truck I drove had 10 miles on it & sure it would get better as others have mentioned above. For avg driving, that 8 spd is awesome. It keeps things level vs running higher rpms. Which is an adjustment in driving feel as well.

It definitely does move when you tell it to. I'm more impressed with the power now than I was during my OP. I think a different muffler or possibly catback exhuast will be in order for now, and then a tuner once I'm sure there are no warranty issues with the truck.

crushNchowda · April 25, 2016

My thoughts were the same as the ops after test driving a 5.3 8 spd 3.42 rears Saturday. The factory exhaust is quiet, which I think is what you are talking about more so than the D.I. sound. You will have to look into aftermarket mufflers to make it sound better. Plenty of sound files on here linked to you tube to help with that.

The 5.3 would move when asked, but you had to really ask. The truck I drove had 10 miles on it & sure it would get better as others have mentioned above. For avg driving, that 8 spd is awesome. It keeps things level vs running higher rpms. Which is an adjustment in driving feel as well.

Food for thought - the "more powerful" Ram trucks feel/sound quicker but are notably slower in every measure due to their sheer weight I guess, the quietness of the cabin & exhaust as well as the smoothness of the shifts is deceiving