[DavidTree]

AFM lifter failure is THE reason why these engines fail. Without going into whether it’s a poor design or planned obsolescence or both, I will give my opinion on root cause.

The AFM lifters fail because they are a small lifter INSIDE the body of a regular lifter, essentially. The smaller spring fails overtime because, well, it’s too small. Or the small body of the lifter gets stuck somewhere in the main lifter body and hyper extends when it finally releases.

I’ve deleted an ‘08 and an ‘18. Both got stuck and hyper extended upon release. The ‘08 broke the valve spring and the ‘18 lifter failed internally bent the pushrod then collapsed inside the lifter.

I work in or next to the street for a municipality. I hear GM’s with lifters ticking ALL THE TIME. It’s a bigger problem than what’s being reported online.

This comes from a GM sales rep:
"Spring failure due to poor quality AND this has been remedied - supposedly"

 

[DavidTree]

I have also searched the internet on this issue. There are people that have religiously changed their oil with quality synthetic oil every 5000 miles and have still had a lifter failure at low mileage. That tells me it's someting more than dirty oil. I have a 2021 Trail Boss bought brand new that is a Covid truck and did not come with the AFM chip, " thank God." But my 2011 Suburban 5.3 liter 6 speed came with AFM. I made note of watching how many times it switches from 8 to 4 cylinders as i drove it. It was unbelieveable how may times it went back and forth betwen 8 and 4 cylinders.. That is to many moving parts for me at to many times.. For a piece of mind I put an AFM disabler on last week at 170,000 miles. I must have got lucky making it this far without the disabler.I feel the diasbler is a personal thing, i"m not avocating it or against it. This video link convinced me to put the disabler on. It sounds to me like it's more of a mechanical / timing event that causes the lifter failure.

Bad Idea design with poor quality parts and you have a GM Disaster.

 

[DavidTree]

GM knows what the causes are.

#1 - Poor quality components = springs were breaking

#2 - Dumb-arse idea of shutting off cylinders in a V8 truck no less

Never had an issue with my 2012, 2016, 2018 Tundra where all 8 cylinders run without the need for techno-arse

 

[Tomcheeser]

I have also searched the internet on this issue. There are people that have religiously changed their oil with quality synthetic oil every 5000 miles and have still had a lifter failure at low mileage. That tells me it's something more than dirty oil. I have a 2021 Trail Boss bought brand new that is a Covid truck and did not come with the AFM chip, " thank God." But my 2011 Suburban 5.3 liter 6 speed came with AFM. I made note of watching how many times it switches from 8 to 4 cylinders as i drove it. It was unbelievable how may times it went back and forth between 8 and 4 cylinders.. That is to many moving parts for me at to many times.. For a piece of mind I put an AFM disabler on last week at 170,000 miles. I must have got lucky making it this far without the disabler.I feel the diasbler is a personal thing, i"m not advocating it or against it. This video link convinced me to put the disabler on. It sounds to me like it's more of a mechanical / timing event that causes the lifter failure.

 

[dburkecl]

The 5.3s are nice. They have some lifter issues, but so did the 5.7 hemi.

The 5.0 coyote has some issues with the cam phasers.

Seems like they all have some issues.

The TurboMax seems to get good reviews for reliability as long as it's not towing too much.

I had a F150 (bought at auction at 61k miles) with 5.0 coyote. Had to replace phasers and timing chain under 70k miles. Truck was eating 1/2 quart of oil every 500 miles! Traded in while I could and now 2 months into a 2019 GMC sierra elevation with 5.3 at 45k miles. So far I love it!

 

[chaney2988]

The internet seems convinced that GM's lifter design is flawed, but I'd like to play devils advocate.

I am a prospective 5.3L Ecotec buyer and was wondering if the route cause of Afm/dfm failure could be lack of maintenance versus a design flaw. To my understanding the system works off of oil pressure and the fact that these engines are known for burning oil makes me think people are starving the engine of oil, leading to valvetrain failure. Carbon build up probably plays a role too. I'd especially like to hear from GM techs in case they have insider information. I could sure tell you some shit about Toyotas😉 Thank you.

I apologize in advance if a thread for this exists, I found something about the lifters turning in their plastic trays. But I'm not convinced.

I had a 2015

 

[chaney2988]

I had a 2014 silverado 5.3. My truck was well maintained and I never had any engine issues. But the service manager at my local fm shop said the lifter problem was a vendor issue (bad parts). I'm not sure but I'm glad the afm/dod went away .

 

[DavidTree]

I had a 2015

What are you driving today?

I sold my 2018 Tundra and ready to buy a 2025 Silverado 1500 5.3L

I hear of success stories and also the carnage of failure - so.............???

 

[DavidTree]

I had a 2014 silverado 5.3. My truck was well maintained and I never had any engine issues. But the service manager at my local fm shop said the lifter problem was a vendor issue (bad parts). I'm not sure but I'm glad the afm/dod went away .

Chevy sales rep said to me it was cheap quality springs that were breaking.

SUPPOSEDLY, now replaced with better.

 

[rivitmen]

The internet seems convinced that GM's lifter design is flawed, but I'd like to play devils advocate.

I am a prospective 5.3L Ecotec buyer and was wondering if the route cause of Afm/dfm failure could be lack of maintenance versus a design flaw. To my understanding the system works off of oil pressure and the fact that these engines are known for burning oil makes me think people are starving the engine of oil, leading to valvetrain failure. Carbon build up probably plays a role too. I'd especially like to hear from GM techs in case they have insider information. I could sure tell you some shit about Toyotas😉 Thank you.

I apologize in advance if a thread for this exists, I found something about the lifters turning in their plastic trays. But I'm not convinced.

I will never purchase another GM with this system. When my Silverado began to act up and I diagnosed the problem with the ATF system. I thought the right thing to do was to simply replace the failed parts. I pulled the engine and put it on a stand. Pulled the heads and inspected the engine for wear. All looked fine other than the failed lifter. I installed a new set of ATF lifters along with new baskets. New head gaskets and new bolts. All looked fine.
The new lifters failed within a few months. Pissed doesn't begin to cover how I felt.
This time around I rebuilt the entire motor and DELETED the ATF system. New lifters and cam. New valley cover and I couldn't be happier. I get about 19 mph on the highway. So the ATF system is a farce as far as I'm concerned. GM has had nothing but trouble with this system since it's introduction.

 

[pronstar]

Was the lifter failure on your 2015?

It was on my 2018.

2015 is still running great, but I've budgeted for a hardware delete/cam swap. Just need to find the time...

 

[jay43452]

It is a flawed design by design..they will all suffer a lifter failure at some point(mine made it 200k). Full rebuild and only thing wore was the trays(from the lifters moving in them) and the failed afm lifter) bearings at 200k still had the red prelube the factory uses on them.mine got a oil change every 3k since new. The plunger inside the lift just failed.

 

[tsuintx]

I purchased a 2022 Chevy Silverado. Because of the parts shortage GM didn't have the chip needed for their cylinder cutout feature. I actually got a $60.00 reduction on the sticker.

You still have the same failure prone hardware in the engine. You just basically got a free (well..., made $60) AFM disabler others spend couple of hundred and up on to by. As has been evidenced time and again, the AFM system can fail, regardless whether the system is active or not.

 

[chaney2988]

What are you driving today?

I sold my 2018 Tundra and ready to buy a 2025 Silverado 1500 5.3L

I hear of success stories and also the carnage of failure - so.............???

I bought a 2025 gmc sierra slt 4x4. 1500

 

[Pdraggin01]

The internet seems convinced that GM's lifter design is flawed, but I'd like to play devils advocate.

I am a prospective 5.3L Ecotec buyer and was wondering if the route cause of Afm/dfm failure could be lack of maintenance versus a design flaw. To my understanding the system works off of oil pressure and the fact that these engines are known for burning oil makes me think people are starving the engine of oil, leading to valvetrain failure. Carbon build up probably plays a role too. I'd especially like to hear from GM techs in case they have insider information. I could sure tell you some shit about Toyotas😉 Thank you.

I apologize in advance if a thread for this exists, I found something about the lifters turning in their plastic trays. But I'm not convinced.

Well I bought a 2009 with 94k and very close to 100k it was obvious that the lifters failed. It hadn't been neglected prior or after I bought it. I've had several 2002-2006 trucks but was totally blown away with the issue. I bought it without knowing anything about it even having DOD on it. After several shops quoting from $2500-10,000+ for new engines that had the same lifters. I had the engine rebuilt with the delete kit for the DOD and so far perfect performance. As far as burning oil in the 5.3 or the 6.0 I think your not getting the wear and tear I've experienced. Never had a issue with any of my trucks using oil or leaking oil. But I'm sure I'm not the vast majority. Good luck with your purchase

 

[RedSLEd]

I'd say you are in the vast majority. The vast majority of these engines do not use oil.

 

[chaney2988]

If you are buying a 2025 I'm not sure a Diablo is ready yet for the newer model trucks? The Diablo plugs into the OBDII Port which disables the cylinder cut-out on the engine. Plug and Play. I have a friend I recommended the Diablo to, he says his mileage didn't change?

I purchased a 2022 Chevy Silverado. Because of the parts shortage GM didn't have the chip needed for their cylinder cutout feature. I actually got a $60.00 reduction on the sticker. When I told the sales guy if any new 1/2 ton trucks with the 5.3 had the AFM? That was a deal killer for me. I told him exactly what I was looking for, and he brought a truck out with everything I wanted. It was perfect.

It seems all Manufacturers have their issues. GM has issues with some of their fuel pump modules. Others have transmission issues? AFM and DFM problems. The 6.2's are developing a bad reputation more so than the 5.3's. Allison transmissions seen to have more problems than the GM Ford hybrid transmissions. It's the luck of the draw. Do your homework and make an educated purchase after you understand what flaws each manufacturer is dealing with. That said, I absolutely love my 2022 LTZ!

Good Luck!

2025 does not have afm/dod

 

[hlecea]

The internet seems convinced that GM's lifter design is flawed, but I'd like to play devils advocate.

I am a prospective 5.3L Ecotec buyer and was wondering if the route cause of Afm/dfm failure could be lack of maintenance versus a design flaw. To my understanding the system works off of oil pressure and the fact that these engines are known for burning oil makes me think people are starving the engine of oil, leading to valvetrain failure. Carbon build up probably plays a role too. I'd especially like to hear from GM techs in case they have insider information. I could sure tell you some shit about Toyotas😉 Thank you.

I apologize in advance if a thread for this exists, I found something about the lifters turning in their plastic trays. But I'm not convinced.

How about the brand new Cadillac Escalade had its engine die with less than 1000 miles. See Dave Auto on YouTube.

 

[MrCarpenter]

2025 does not have afm/dod

Yes it does. Most of them have DFM, but I think they have the AFM version still? Maybe it's only DFM. (Dynamic Fuel Management, all 8 cylinders can shut off in a bunch of different patterns.)

 

[pronstar]

2025 does not have afm/dod

Semantics.

Let's change the acronym to "does it have cylinder deactivation and shitty lifters that fail" (DIHCDASLTF) and the answer is yes.