WARRANTY REJECTED!? 2020 Silverado 1500 3.0 Duramax Engine DESTROYED at JUST 45K MILES! LM2 Teardown

For parts go to www.Importapart.com or email us at [e-mail]
Every week I post a new engine teardown. These are engines that have failed or thought to have failed and we try to discover what happened, why it happened, and what parts survived. Here are a few of my favorites!
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Today we tear into a 3.0L Duramax Inline 6 Turbodiesel from a 2020 Silverado 1500. Known as the LM2, 2020 was the first year this 277hp, 460ftlbs of torque 6 cylinder is the first half ton diesel GM has made in decades. This particular engine died at JUST 45k Miles! STILL UNDER WARRANTY? Right? These trucks come with a 5 year, 60k mile warranty so how did this engine end up on my stand? Well I believe this failure was NOT covered by the manufacturer. Not all failure scenarios are the manufacturers fault. Abuse, Neglect, Modifications are some of the reasons a claim may be rejected.
In this case, this engine was brought in with the torque converter stuck on it, completely locked up. Due to its design, getting the engine to turn over to get the converter off was quite laborious, which is likely why whoever replaced the engine opted to replace the torque converter with a new one.
So WHAT HAPPENED? This engine has TONS of damage, but what caused this failure, and why do we think it wasn't covered?
Why am I doing this? My name is Eric and I own and run a full service auto recycler. Part of our model includes dismantling bad, blown and core engines to salvage the good parts for resale. We do not rebuild or repair engines, merely supply parts to those who do!
I really hope you enjoyed this teardown, as always I love all of the comments, feedback and even the criticism. Catch you all on the next one!
-Eric

[@disgruntledfaerie]

Laughing at the Carfax Fox's face being blurred. 🤣

[@I_Do_Cars]

You noticed! ❤️

[@sdrape4964]

Funny as it may seem, I wouldn't put it past Carfax to hit him with a copyright strike. ...for a frickin fox.

[@245bryce]

I came here to write this. That was a solid joke😂

[@chuckymurlo5654]

What's the fine$$ if you didn't blur out the Fox​@sdrape4964

[@sdrape4964]

@@chuckymurlo5654 A copyright strike can be bad. Demonetization. Not being able to upload. Banning the channel. Whatever hwhim KZbin feels. Hwhatever, it isn't worf the risk. 😉

[@edifyguy]

I actually like a lot of things about this engine. This was tuned. Someone thought they were going to get a lot of extra horsepower cheap. Then things went boom, and they discovered how expensive those extra horsepower really are. Thanks for sticking with it and getting it apart, and bringing us along!

[@hochhaul]

There are a lot of things to like about the engine. BMW n N57/B57 owners feel the same way since they're basically the same engine. Deleting is one thing, but tuning for more power is another. Unless you're the test monkey for some big shop that's willing to replace your engine if they break it, I don't see how someone would gamble so much money on trying to get a little more power when they know GM made a bunch of upgrades (including pistons) when they boosted power with the LZ0. The owner probably bought a "tune" from one of those shops that playing with fuel rail pressure. Gale Banks was talking a while back about tuners that just add more fuel and end up spraying fuel outside of the fuel bowl on the piston. That fuel sprayed outside of the fuel bowl eventually destroys pistons. Especially aluminum pistons like the LM2's.

[@OneNationUnderGod.45]

Yeah but you can throw a tuner on any REAL truck with a REAL diesel engine from the big three (Cummins, Duramax, Powerstroke) and not have any of those turn into piston soup. Bottom line, people shouldnt screw around with these mini diesels in mini trucks, play stupid games and win stupid prizes.

[@motorheadbanger950]

@@hochhaulyeah except the M57 is well overbuilt for what its capable of, and detuned from the factory. The LM2 is not in the same class, it just simply 3.0 straight 6 like the M57

[@garrettsmith7244]

​@OneNationUnderGod.45 the problem is these were not tunable for quite some time and the only way to "tune" was to fool the ECM. There are now real tunes available.

[@adotintheshark4848]

I don't think it even went boom..It was chugging along merrily then..UH!

[@johntrout640]

GM parts guy here. The truck has had an interesting life so far lol It was sold in Montana in July of 2020. It had a couple oil changes at the dealership from which it was sold, had a couple warranty claims done for sensors and stuff failing in the exhaust system. It goes dark for a while, then fast forward four years to February of this year then it pops up in Arizona for a DPF replacement. Then here we are today with a blown engine. I'm surprised by how 'cheap' a new long block is as well. It's only $3,400. The more you know.

[@ratbert86]

Yeah, amazing the prices of the long block - I'm seeing closer to 5K for 12729055 but still thats cheap. Also some crazy labor times on this thing - over 35 hours to do the timing chain.

[@gregpenismith1248]

@@ratbert86 does that mean GM would rather people not replace the timing chain? I know almost nothing about this kind of thing. To me that screams fuck off kind of labor. With something like machining, shops will make really high quotes to try and encourage people to go somewhere else.

[@EBIndy]

35 hours? Someone is smoking crack.

[@jaredburns6652]

@@EBIndyformer dealer tech. Yea they were when they designed that pos timing system. There are no timing marks you have to blindly line up a pin on the back of the crank and put a tool on there and if it fits it’s in time but I can almost fit when it’s a tooth off it’s a bullshit design. Not to mention it’s done like the ford 4.0 chain on the back so engine out job

[@barryo9065]

​@ratbert86 You have to pull engine out of truck and remove crankshaft to replace the oil pump belt. Timing cover and timing chain while you're there. 35 hours sounds right

[@SebBrosig]

Eric dated a timing chain guide in high school but she left him for a water pump. This can be the only explanation of his ongoing vendetta.

[@raykaufman7156]

All these years later and he's still "dating" all his timing chain guides...😂

[@Ayyy-33]

Boys, it is always and will be forever, blue, a bit small over the years, but..... The other side will do, 😂❤

[@Go2scout]

@@SebBrosig 🤣

[@Blacksunshine636]

All of the comments and most of you didn't bother to watch the whole video.

[@Ayyy-33]

@@Blacksunshine636 I watch every second, alright?

[@thelonelywolf88]

The fact that you blurred out that mysterious fox's face had me rolling😂

[@MultiTelan]

Guy at work sings the praises of this motor. Less than two years old, he's on his third turbo.

[@Ghauster]

😂😂😂

[@bobcoats2708]

Should be singing the blues

[@GLXTCHYY]

@@bobcoats2708comment of the day😂

[@csjrogerson2377]

GM = Garbage Motors. Hard to find a decent American auto manufacturer these days. The 3 top companies (Chevrolet, Ford, Stellantis) make unreliable rubbish. No wonder Toyota and Honda do so well.

[@PistonAvatarGuy]

That's GM owners, for some reason. They always talk about how reliable their vehicles are, then talk about how many times they've replaced the engine and/or transmission. They're clearly masochists.

[@BDKennels]

I come here for the fun. With all that's happening in America and around the world, I need your humor and great attitude. A very sincere Thank You. I hope you never stop.

[@joe72205]

What’s happening in America?

[@SmittySmithsonite]

@@joe72205 Too much bad stuff. We're run / controlled by absolute MORONS.

[@nooooooooooo6uoki67]

@@joe72205 Rich people keep raping poor people but then again its been like this since America was founded so meh

[@KornPop]

​@@joe72205Joe biden happened and is still happening.

[@lunar3278]

“Unsatisfied not knowing the mileage of a 4 year old engine. That’s preposterous!” Always killing me Eric

[@cricketyosh]

I'm so glad you don't do advertisements or channel sponsors. But sourcing that pry bar and slapping a CriCut sticker with the word 'blue' on it would be awesome.

[@javaguru7141]

I source from China, I'm sure my field agent could find the factory with a few phone calls. Would be an awesome merch item. I'd buy a few myself to give as gifts!

[@davidgrisco1939]

When "BLUE" makes his first appearance it's like when the coach brings his best player off the bench to the playing field. The crowd takes notice and chants, "...go, Blue, you can do it!"

[@Renville80]

When Eric said 'Let's give it a little brap' when getting ready to use the impact wrench to loosen a bolt, I was reminded of a remark I read on some vehicle restoration blog years ago where the writer opined that an impact wrench sounded like a robot breaking wind... :)

[@gtpanoz]

No Piston McNuggets this week but we get a 3-piece Crispy Piston meal instead. The one that melted though the piston rings is a work of art.

[@adotintheshark4848]

those pistons are grilled, not crispy

[@goldwingconepatterns2565]

@@adotintheshark4848 Crispy is funnier....

[@bw6378]

Seeing all these over engineered complicated nightmares really motivates me to keep pampering my 25 and 30 yo stuff. lol Thanks for the video!

[@anthonybertone2336]

Amen, not buying anything new ever, my old 1999 is cheap to fix eng or trans,

[@Jihadbearzwithgunz]

Agreed on this .. everything 2010 and up is a no go for me almost feels like they are designed to fail at this point

[@terrycampbell8275]

Time limited by the Michigan rot.​@@anthonybertone2336

[@septicwhelk3654]

Nothing with a puter will ever live in my yard ! AND all the tecnocrap fuel efficiency is lies !

[@saucemaster2]

Are you serious? This engine is extremely simple and all of these components could have easily been replaced with the engine in the vehicle. Whoever had this motor just ran an extremely aggressive tune and then ran it hot.

[@Bxud]

Thank you Eric for your sleuthing abilities, we appreciate your unwavering commitment to finding details and the truth.

[@kalybnielsen4183]

My brother bought a truck 8 months ago with that engine, it was in his driveway for about 4 hours, check engine light came on, went into limp mode and the truck was sent off to the dealership up north, he got the truck back about 2 weeks ago because they have been waiting for that coolant control, GM was making his truck payment the entire time, they called him once a week to update him and tell him that the part was not yet available. Apparently it's made of unobtainium and the backorder list is extensive

[@GLXTCHYY]

@@kalybnielsen4183 smh that’s just disappointing honestly I would’ve bought a used LB7 Duramax but again that’s just crappy on GMs part, they gotta do better

[@ldnwholesale8552]

Only unobtainable for spare parts. For the factory business as usual. Though I suspect it is not made by GM but a contracter. As for this engine?? Depends on parts pricing,, the crank will live as will the block with a sleeve and the head as well

[@evilbrian66]

its the same story with the gas engines on the newer trucks, and the transmissions. 6-7 months waiting on a transmission or parts for the original on a truck with less than 50k miles. the call from chevy was a Michigan number.

[@iananderson8363]

Is unobtainium easy to obtain?

[@hochhaul]

I think they might be making a design change. For most guys with the coolant control valve issue, they could open up the actuator and replace the grease on the worm gear. That's what causes 99% of them to stop working. The grease turns gummy for some reason and eventually the worm gear can't move the valve.

[@chrisblood7395]

As soon as I saw the top of those pistons, my brain screamed "Gasoline!". Why? Air Force; young ignorant Airman; didn't know the truck was a diesel; engine go dead...

[@whiskerbiscuit99]

Ill bet big $ thats the engine outta one of one of our old company trucks. Ill bet on it. And gas is right..... lmao

[@robertpeters9438]

Aren't the tanks fitted with a restrictor at the neck to prevent the larger gasoline nozzles from entering?

[@whiskerbiscuit99]

@@robertpeters9438 diesel nozzles are generally larger

[@marlu6373]

@@whiskerbiscuit99 yes

[@craigdowney6438]

my former work truck was a 6.0 ford. one day 3 injectors failed at the same time. the fuel pressure blew the injector tips off and the broken pieces went through the pistons. it was still running on 5 for about 5-6 minutes. after getting it to a dealer he showed me the pistons and except for a hole the rest of the dead pistons looked melted like these were.

[@robertwest3093]

This engine holds the record for most bolts holding down a valve cover.

[@matthewtaylor3308]

Look into obtaining the three cars Cleetus just trashed - those engines would all show a lot of carnage…

[@lornebelongia4780]

I wanted a tear down of the Caprice engine that they ran gasoline in place of oil

[@dnlmachine4287]

That guy rocks the greatest Beavertail Mullet in modern history. Stay gold.

[@hochhaul]

I wanted to see him tear down the Ford 4.6 that Cleetus ran with diesel for engine oil. He did 36 laps around the track before the engine locked up lol

[@scottlee1211]

I truly believe you nailed it…that Duramax didn’t like gasoline diet!!!

[@pomz3604]

The consensus seems to be that they tried an aftermarket tuner which fucked up the fuel flow and melted the pistons. Would running it on gasoline do the same?

[@davidg3944]

@@pomz3604 I'd think trying it with gasoline would lead to massive detonation and more scarring of the cylinders from low lubricity fuel. But that's just a guess.

[@mathieuhache1845]

The Carfax report at 48k “Fuel system cleaned/serviced” could be an indication that someone filled the truck with gasoline and they sent it to a shop because it began running poorly. This would 100% melt pistons.

[@hydrocarbon8272]

@@mathieuhache1845 I'd guess they did it a 2nd time and figured "$1000+ for a 2nd cleaning is too expensive, I'll just run it...", and here's the result

[@zxggwrt]

I don’t think gas would do that. It doesn’t have as much heat as oil. The consensus seems to be they upped the fuel capacity of the injectors and it sprayed outside of the “bowl” and they’re pretty convincing about this

[@sdrape4964]

48:13 You're a dad. NEVER apologize! We dads appreciate it 😁

[@merlinglennon5370]

Definitely a tune it that engine! As a gm tech, gm provides documentation on what to look for on Dmax engines with pictures for damage caused by modifications. That piston damage is over fueling. I am also a turner, that ECM would have needed to be sent to HP Tuners to get unlocked. So i think once they found some engine damage, the dealer scanned the vehicle and found a modified tune, NO WARRANTY. 52:42

[@1gbayfisher]

Simple as that. Well said.

[@ronferguson512]

Over boosting with insufficient fuel will increase EGTs to melt pistons faster. Tuned, but tuned poorly for sure.

[@eugeneoreilly9356]

Only on a gasoline not on a diesel.A diesel engine always runs unthrottled.

[@catfishbilly7425]

As a mechanic, I 100% absolutely have a sawzall in my toolbox

[@joshuagibson2520]

And a grinder

[@jeffreyweinzierl1509]

I have 3...

[@Pecos33109]

Amen.

[@user-dy3pd8qe3c]

I am a retired aircraft machinist/welder and now a diesel mechanic for the local school bus company. I have a ton of cutting tools for taking things out of my way. sawzalls make taking things apart extremely easily. Just finished a full exhaust replacement on a bus and taking them out is quick with a sawzall.

[@ronv6637]

If you don't have a sawzall in your toolbox then the shop has one.

[@AndyDavis-vc1sc]

I own the last of these engines (LM2), as my truck was built in June 2022. At 277HP and 460 lb/ft of torque, it's still quite a powerhouse for a 1/2 ton. They're rated for 150K miles before the oil pump belt needs replacing. And yes, it requires the transmission to be dropped to access the back of the engine.

[@garyh.8082]

It's been upped to 200,000 now.

[@rondyechannel1399]

Ridiculous a belt was used in the crankcase that needs periodic replacement. Reminds me of poor decision by Ford to use this same belt idea in their crankcase on 1.0/1.2 l. engines.

[@hangman396]

That was a great tear down Eric... Someone the causes with excessive cylinder heat can be caused by over fueling, or pulling a really big hill, with your foot mashed through the floor, pulling a really heavy load... Over the years I have burned holes in pistons, but it was my fault for trying to push an engine beyond it's limits... High Exhaust temps can also cause this to happen as well, but that is why I'm a big fan of every engine I build gets a new Pryrometer installed automatically, however, these new electronic controlled engines have no parameters to warn a driver of high exhaust temps at the turbo anymore... So you get this situation to happen... Again Thank You Eric for another Great tear down video, I'm hooked like always... Have a great week, and I'll catch you next Saturday...

[@91CavGT5]

Putting gas in a diesel can cause some pretty serious meltdowns too.

[@garrettsmith7244]

The ECM does derate power when the EGTs exceed 1,300 degrees. So no reason the driver needs to know. This one is definitely due to one of the plug and plays that fool the ECM to dump in more fuel.

[@stephenarbon2227]

@@91CavGT5 Can depend, in the MB I drove, the manual said to use ⅓ petrol when below -10C temps.

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

@hang cool story bra

[@user-ss5vx8sj7r]

I saw Pinetop on the papers. Pinetop isn’t obscenely hot, but it’s high and mountainous. Nevertheless, when you have an unknown failure in AZ, jumping to a heat problem is a good bet. No matter what the failure is and what failed. 117 in Phoenix. Death Valley is going for a world record of 130.

[@TheBandit7613]

I live about 25 miles from Death Valley. Yep, it's hot right now. I have a diesel truck to tow my toys and have to be very careful not to melt pistons when climbing 20 mile long hills. I leave behind lots of unused turbo boost.

[@1djbecker]

The engine is running at 190F or 210F. As long as the radiator isn't at its limit, the outside temperature is nearly irrelevant for the engine. It's more of a challenge for hot parts without a thermostat such as a differentia.

[@silicon212]

Pinetop is actually one of the cooler areas in Arizona. It's usually about 25-30 degrees cooler than Phoenix, it's closer to Flagstaff in climate.

[@seanarthur8392]

I've worked in 135F temps and lasted about 10 - 15 mins. a time. Sweat running like a river. Without a bandana to keep it out of my eyes I couldn't see. Not do that again.

[@MixedGrid]

Pinetop is one of the cooler places in Arizona, Obscenely hot is not valid. Example it's summer RN in AZ. It's 92* in Pinetop and 112* in Phoenix. However we can say near Pinetop it is elevation changes, lots of grades. It's possible they tuned it and used it to haul stuff between Phoenix and Pinetop which is a bad combo as from Phoenix lower elevation it's still very hot at times and works the engine wildly hard. Legitimate tuning only more recently became available. I'd venture to bet this has some garbage like a AGDiesel module. 😂

[@bbiskner]

That was great thanks for letting come along on this adventure

[@noelpeterson5591]

A rubber belt running in oil is a bad idea. Remember what happened to the Ford diesel engines.

[@fixingitrightish]

"Do you know how many degrees were in there? Must have been no room left!" 😂

[@ragehelsel]

I love how you still show care to the order on those main caps even though the block is shot.

[@MDBenson]

My 2 cents Theory: It was re-tuned badly and was not fueling correctly and that's what caused the pistons to burn up. The main probably died because once the piston blew through a fail bit it'd have started washing down really badly and was likely dumping diesel on the main bearing every cycle which washed out all the oil. Diesel is a type of oil, but it's not the type of oil you should use on your crankshaft. It... doesn't work too well. Great video and I got all the yelling at the TV "Why don't you just " ideas right too! I'm learning stuff!

[@lijoima]

Hey Eric thanks for your videos!! Rock on 🤘

[@MurphyTheBandChild]

OK now we're gonna need to see a giant Duesenberg engine on the channel.

[@FloodExterminator]

I'd love to see a Ford GAA used in Shermans during WW22 :P

[@Flies2FLL]

What about a 928 engine instead?

[@sdrape4964]

A real Dusenburg? Or one of those 80s Dusenburgs that were specially skinned Buicks or whatever?

[@timradde4328]

Oh, wouldn't that be great. I agree.

[@jsh6952]

I think Jay Leno did a rebuild on one. He had to have parts made for it.

[@mfree80286]

Oddly enough, just the other day I caught a Gale Banks short where he explained that just upping the fuel in a diesel for performance leads to spraying outside the bowl and torching pistons. And here, we have a 3.0 Duramax that was "somehow" spraying outside the bowl, and has torched it's pistons. Hrmmmm.....

[@hochhaul]

There's a sketchy shop that's advertising a "tune" for LM2's that just tricks the engine to add more fuel by playing with the fuel rail pressure sensor. Hmm.....

[@northgategmfleetmanager8137]

Sir. You have the most patience I have ever seen from a Technician. Thank you for sharing!

[@hotpuppy1]

Not a fan of the design: timing chain at rear (stupid); wet oil pump drive belt (stupid); not 4 bolt main and cross bolted (weak). You buy diesels to PULL and this is NOT built heavy enough.

[@karlschauff7989]

Or you buy a diesel because it makes 495 lb ft of torque in in a half-ton truck and gets 30 mpg. The 3.0 Duramax is based on an engine design that's been around for decades. BMW has also been using this engine design for decades.

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

GM guaranteed malfunction

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

@karl BMW is another trash company

[@eurbanautotech]

I had a 15 year old 6.6L Duramax come in that was much cleaner than that. The injector return lines were leaking and filled the crankcase with diesel fuel. There was no oil at all in it. Just diesel. The thing was SPOTLESS. I felt guilty getting smudges on it with my fingers...

[@Chris_de_S]

Diesel is dead - move on fools.

[@samarch2189]

@@Chris_de_S All real men love the smell of Diesel!

[@49commander]

So many people ruin these engines by "Tuning the Up via Aftermarket" Modern engines like this are engineered to a cost. There isn't the "Extra Margin" that allowed the old diesels to take bigger Turbos' Higher Boost and more aggressive Injection timing and increased fuel etc!

[@johncooper4637]

The Cummins 5.9 12 valve is a case in point. In the Dodge it was stock 180 HP but the same engine in a boat was 300 HP.

[@hochhaul]

I guarantee the fool that owned the truck bought one of those "performance modules" from a company like AG Diesel that just fool the computer into boosting fuel rail pressures. That caused the start pattern burned onto the pistons and it's why GM didn't warranty the engine.

[@SHSPVR]

Well first of all I doubt this was caused by a aftermarket tuner look more like an injector failure to me because an aftermarket Turner would have done this across all the Pistons not two of the Pistons

[@matthewq4b]

@@SHSPVR This was most likely wrong fuel, Injector failure would not be multiple cylinders with the same symptoms, I've seen more than one diesel that has gasoline added to the tank, the burned melted pistons and cylinder bore is very typical of a diesel that has had its fuel diluted with gasoline.

[@49commander]

@@johncooper4637 it's because that engine was designed by JICase and Cummins for use in Farm Tractors and industrial equipment where full load operation for hours on end is a MUST! Nothing used in on road vehicles or boats ever works at full load for hours on end! This is why you could turn up a Dodge Cummins 12V and it would still last 500K miles if serviced properly! None of the modern Pickup Diesels are made for AG service which is several levels higher than Big Rig service! It's also why not one Ag company still uses V type diesel engines anymore! Inline 4,6 or7 cylinders are best based on physics! The Duramax 3.0 liter would crap out in a year in Ag service! It doesn't have the bearings and block strength needed for full load operation! The best diesel is one that creates the maximum torque at the lowest RPM. Forget about HP its just for winning races!

[@danielurban5500]

That was a challenge for you, an education for me! Thanks. That was fun to watch. You don't disappoint.

[@shyecjj]

Bought one of these 3.0 duramax brand new... some dude wrecked into us totalling it and we got all our money back! We dodged the bullet (no pun intended) and bought a new H.O cummins 6.7 , 3500 and love it.

[@killercan10]

Oh man I wish I could try and get you the one a freind of mine is changing right now. Customer bought a salvage title (so no warranty on it) 2021 with the LM2, he does his own oil changes. Somehow, some way he thinks its okay to "crank the engine over to get all the oil out" when he changes his oil. "I've done it on all my cars". Well...guess what fired up with no oil in the pan, and then ran itself to lockup? Yep, his LM2. Its till waiting on a new turbo for it since it pumped bearing through everything. The funny part? His wife is mad at he dealer for not having a turbo yet because GM doesn't have any, when she should be mad at her husband. Not sure in what world he though its okay to crank an engine over to get all the oil out of it...

[@1djbecker]

If you've ever rebuilt an engine you'll realize that you can't get all of the oil out. As we see in every video, even engines that have been sitting around for years and rolling around in the back of the delivery truck still dump copious amounts of fluids when inverted, then even more when the head comes off. There is no point in waiting for the last few drops during an oil change, let alone trying to drain the oil pump. Cranking the engine dry is pretty much the opposite of pre-filling the oil filter.

[@joseeduardo4327]

What a tard

[@darrellbobyk6363]

The guy`s brain must have been short on oil-aka-`brain matter.` Who starts an engine to get all the oil out while you are changing it? I have changed oil hundreds of times and have never ever done this. Whoever does this it is going to have an expensive episode to deal with at the end.

[@greebj]

​@@1djbeckerI disagree. The point of waiting for all the oil to drain is that it's a perfect excuse for an extended mid job break, including a beverage of choice

[@killercan10]

@@1djbecker Fully aware. Seen plenty of engines apart. Obviously the customer hasn't lol.

[@tsimpson007]

This one was interesting. Thank you sir.

[@xoxo2008oxox]

I love this channel! You are so enthusiastic on your intro considering how many motors you tear down. And just funny as heck about your describing at motor motives. Just great info you provide as well. Keep up the teardowns and detective work! -edited because spit out my coffee laughing

[@stephanebolduc6501]

Awesome tear down, thanks for sharing!

[@timothyodonnell8591]

Blue needs its own theme music for when it first appears on screen.

[@johnt.848]

1970's porn music 😂

[@jen_alanfromchicago53]

"Mr. Blue Sky" by E.L.O.

[@RickJohnson]

At the 29:00 mark, based on the spray pattern of those two "cleaned" pistons, I'm going to wager that this was just "slightly" tuned, hence the easy warranty denial.

[@napoleontheclown]

Yeah, my guess was "badly tuned" as well. The amount of carbon (rather, just how little there is) also makes me wonder if there was an EGR (and other emissions) delete.

[@tachometer74]

Maybe aftermarket turbo?

[@HKvsGlock]

I thought the only deletes for these were from shady tuners.. so maybe?

[@StaticVapour590]

@@napoleontheclown Yeah those cylinders look really clean. I wonder if one of those shitty tuning boxes that fool rail pressures and whatnot was used, or maybe just really bad tune with really messed up injection quantity and timing.

[@thelonelywolf88]

@@RickJohnson somebody tuning a diesel pickup?! Who would do such a thing?

[@redlywaxer]

Your videos and "destructive analysis" as we say in my line of work, are very interesting! Thank you for shedding light on these engine failures!

[@johnmcintyre3827]

Thanks for all the smiles you put on my face! 😂

[@hopingforthebest1.9]

Why would they use a wet belt to drive the oil pump if they use chains for the cams? They must've been designed by 2 completely separate groups of engineers

[@hochhaul]

Because it's a low stress application and the belt is made out of Kevlar. As you can see here, the engine locked up violently and it still didn't snap the belt. They hold up extremely well. You will be in the engine to service the timing chains before that belt will ever fail.

[@stephenbrown3760]

Apparently it was done to lessen the noise the engine makes, it is a pretty quiet engine

[@TheFixwing1]

Can you smell any gas in the fuel system? Those pistons are so wasted, very mysterious, Excellent tear down thanks Eric

[@509brown]

Really enjoyed this video, as I do all of your videos. You shared your thought process and problem solving as you were faced with a puzzle. Nice!

[@chrisbayus5189]

Good stuff, as always!

[@rollerbones1]

5 Grand for a core!!!!! Shop that block around... that area is not very stressed. It MAY be possible to fill in the burned aluminum with weld, machine, new liners and have a good block....At 5 grand, it ought to be worth it for a shop that can do all that work.

[@standardsupplies3332]

A rubber belt inside the motor. How cheap things have gotten.

[@BrandonFlint-ro2ns]

Driving the OIL PUMP of all things.

[@tielkgate]

Wow - That was fun! I have a 2005 version of that motor in my truck, with 111K miles on it, and it has been a good, reliable truck. It was nice to see how it's put together. I tore down and rebuilt my first big block at age 18 - I am now 68. Making motors go has always been fun for me. My Grandson is now a truck/car guy-a gentle giant who loves being greasy. Thanks for the good video. Papa

[@sapphirepilot]

Thanks. I love your style in this work.

[@johnathanedwards9054]

Is anyone else thinking that some young kid put a shoddy tune into his truck's engine computer and blew it up immediately after? 😂😂😂

[@GeekGinger]

Yep,I think a bro was behind this tragedy.

[@lanesaarloos281]

Oil pump belt? No, game over.

[@kdean3059]

Plus lift kit, supersize tires, 8 inch exhaust tip, and last but not least, brass bull balls hanging from hitch! Yep we’re figuring this out.

[@user-ui4le8wo3t]

some of these kids are enthusiastically brainless ...

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

@kdead aka truck ricer

[@gonaads]

From what I have come across in being an auto Tech, most of the time this type of damage is due to someone making a big boo boo and put gasoline in a diesel vehicle. Ouch! This is probably why they didn't go to the dealership for warranty coverage and went with a used engine.

[@johnt.848]

Wouldn't Eric be able to tell when pulling the rails and the fuel runs out?

[@electrickal1]

@@johnt.848 I said that too, surely he would be able to smell gasoline or diesel!! My diesel car here in the UK has smart refuelling, where the fill neck is covered by a flap that only opens when a diesel nozzle is inserted, because it is thicker than a gas nozzle it pushes the sides out and flips the flap open allowing the diesel nozzle to be fully inserted. A gas nozzle will not be allowed into the neck stopping cross fuelling. Genius.

[@hydrocarbon8272]

@@electrickal1 What's wild is people will literally spend >250 hours a year in their car, but taking 15 seconds every 50hrs to double-check they grabbed the correct nozzle is just too time consuming.

[@charleshellings8366]

awesome tear down. Thank you.

[@russellhammond4373]

Great video Eric. Loved the tight bolt segment.

[@EBIndy]

The Duramax came with a 5 year 100k mile warranty. The 2.7 Turbomax gas gets the same warranty now. Keep that in mind when you get another one.

[@bartholomausallen883]

That might be the warranty for the 6.6 Duramax in the 3/4- and 1-ton pickups. Is the 1/2-ton engine the same warranty?

[@alainaguilar9938]

A warranty is only as good as the one willing to honor it. After working at a gm dealership and seeing the system, you will be fighting tooth and nail for that warranty to be honored. And let's be honest, the test of reliability is how long it can go after it's warranty ends.

[@Chris_de_S]

Pretty lame.

[@2nickles647]

Warranty doesn't mean neglect 😅😅 is covered.

[@jamesdallas1493]

They will always find a way to void your warranty .

[@CADesertFox]

it will be very interesting for everyone to see a Toyota Tundra V6 turbo engine tear down! BTW Good work!

[@jeepinintexas6215]

Are you joking? Toyota engines don't fail. Scotty Kilmer said so...

[@user-vj2wt7jh7j]

It is fun to watch your videos and see someone else deal with odd connectors and hard-to-remove bolts. The hardest-to-reach or see bolt always seems to be the one that has welded itself in place.

[@RobsNeighbor]

Great Video! Thank you!

[@beyondquestion]

6:50...Dude, I just want to stop and say how much I appreciate the fact that all, ALL of the videos from u I've watched are all natural ambience, that is, RARE in this day and age. I HAAAATE music thrown in these vids. I aint here to here music, I'm here to see the tear down and I expect the sounds of the tools and whatever's happening to be present so THAAAAAANK YOUUUUU!! \O>

[@zxggwrt]

He’s gonna be a car tuber star for sure. Ridiculously good at making great videos I really want to watch!

[@johnhufnagel]

those melty pistons are spectacular.

[@nathanblanchard2357]

Your theory was EXACTLY what I was thinking. It definitely matches the fact it wasn't replaced under warranty

[@michaelodonnell8209]

I would not be one bit surprised if the engineers who designed these motors watch your videos. They can learn much from catastrophic failures. You are some doing very nice (and entertaining) work even though I tend to skip ahead to the xxx-rated money shots to see the real carnage. Greetings from a fellow mechanic/welder.

[@hochhaul]

The engineers would be laughing at the fool that bought a "performance module" from AG Diesel and causing this engine to fail. The star pattern burned onto the pistons is the clue to what destroyed this engine.

[@TestECull]

53:03 That's not news, but that is a large part of why I won't touch new stuff. I like simple. I hate complicated. New stuff is complicated. Old stuff is simple.

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

Cool. story. Bro.

[@EShirako]

I have had the joy of puttering with Evapo-Rust in a scientific-ish fashion lately as I rebuild my 1996 car. I live up north in the USA, soooo rust does happen, but I got the undercarriage rust protector treatment when I bought it from the dealership so I actually still have a car with only 'spots of rust' and 'the suspension is pretty rusty' so I've needed to use a lot of this for suspension parts and bolts and whatnot. My pointers... DO NOT DILUTE THIS STUFF, not even with distilled water. It can be rehydrated using distilled water if the Evapo-Rust starts to evaporate, but keep any refills to near-or-below the amount of water it used to have. If it gets too diluted then the compound that does the magic 'magics itself apart' and the usefulness of the Evapo-Rust drops quickly. Like if you have 200ml of ER and it evaporates down to 100ml, it may still work, but will work better if you add distilled water back up to only 200ml again. If you go much beyond that...and I'm not sure exactly when it goes wrong, I never nailed that down...like 220+ ml as a 'pick a number', the ER color changes to a strange, sickly tan-yellow awfulness and stops being useful. When its pH goes too out of range, the complex breaks down, so... Add or remove water as you wish once it goes to that funny color, but it will never again be useful. It loses its 'doesn't cause rust itself' safety at some point too. Reconstituting condensed EvapoRust mostly works, but do not over-dilute it. IT WORKS FASTER WHEN WARM. It loves to be around 50C/120F or so. It'll eventually do its job at anything above "being frozen", but it is MUCH faster when warmed. If it freezes, it just needs to be thawed to go back to being useful. IT WORKS GREAT IN AN ULTRASONIC CLEANER. Toasty up your cleaner to 50C or so and ER can do amazing things. I have DONE amazing things with it in an ultrasonic cleaner. It breaks up the rust and flakes it out amazingly well. If a LOT of rust flakes off as I clean a part I will generally immediately drain the ultrasonic fluid into some other container (while filtering it...a coffee filter will do pretty well) and wipe out the rust-sediment manually. If you don't, ER will continue to 'eat it', consuming itself on useless material. Avoiding that if you're using it in an ultrasonic device can be a BIG boost to the lifetime of the ER. It eats ALL rust...even from the bottom of the cleaner. Super-rusty parts can ruin the liquid in just days if you leave flakes on the bottom of the bath/whatever. It'll slowly use itself up on the detritus. Wash/wipe it out and then put the solution back into the bath or a bottle or whatever. IF YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TO FILL AN ULTRASONIC CLEANER WITH IT, then just put some in a jelly-jar. Use thin glass or some kind of ultrasound-compatible plastic container. Float it in the ultrasound bath to heat up, then drop parts into your container-within-the-bath. It may not be AS effective as "direct baths without more containers to pass through" could be, but you CAN actually do ultrasonic-pass-through for most common types of household container materials. Just fill the main bath with normal hot water, or your degreasing solution or 'Simple Green' or whatever and float your container in that until it's up to temp. I use this a lot for small bolts and other threaded items. IF YOU DON'T HAVE PRIMER ALREADY CHOSEN OR WHATEVER, LEAVE EVAPO-RUST TO DRY ON IT. Set it aside in a climate-controlled area, somewhere where it won't risk getting too humid or rained on or anything, but if you have no better options, when you take your part out of ER, just shake it out and leave it to dry. It won't (unless you dilute it too much, or rub it off) rust for a couple of days, 'depending on factors', so definitely get rust-protection figured out soon, but ER itself can protect metal surfaces to an extent. Three days is the most I leave a thing if I can help it. YOU CAN USE IT REPEATEDLY. It isn't a catalyst, it's a 'complex'. It can be 'used up' once the ER has removed as much rust as possible, but by that point the liquid is red-almost-black in color. You can also put 'slightly red solution' back into the main bottle without harm, though I personally use a glass screw-top container for my long-term storage needs just so it can't possibly leak or get contaminated outside of what I do to it. Once ER's chemistry 'is full', it simply won't work. The chemical complex it's made of 'grabs iron oxide particles' by bouncing into them, so eventually the complexes are all 'full up' and the Evapo-Rust can't do anything more. USE DEGREASER OF SOME KIND IF YOU WANT TO RUST-REMOVE A PIECE OF METAL THAT IS OILY/GREASY. This stuff is not soap, it is not a miracle-worker that does everything, and you have to wash off the greasy-rusty-spots to make them available for ER to remove rust. "Simple Green" in an Ultrasonic cleaner is pretty good as a degreaser, but then you need to wash out the ultrasonic device between baths if you want to do the "ER in Ultrasound" thing. IF THE RUST IS SUPER-THICK then repeatedly come by the ER bath and scrub the rusty bits with a brass or stainless-steel wire brush or whatever to break it up as the ER weakens it. "Red rust' is larger than the 'iron' it had taken the place of (and also strange crystallography or whatever), and 'black rust' (which ER can cause, as can vinegar, etc) is 'smaller' than red rust, so vinegar or ER or whatever, as it works it'll 'shrink' the rust patch slightly from within, making it so it can often be brushed off by hand (with a wire-brush or whatever) a lot more easily before long. Since you don't have to let the ER do ALL the work it'll save time AND it'll save lifetime of the Evapo-Rust itself too. Any rust it doesn't 'pick up for you' is rust it can get from some other part later on. FILTER IT! When you're done using it, or 'whenever', run it through a coffee filter or something to get any lingering chunks out of it. Again, why let it pick up ALL of the rust in every speck of rust that sank to the bottom while a part was soaking? I like to filter it before I put it into a container for storage, and if its current container is too gross I filter it and put it back after I wipe the container out. This stuff is a tiny bit expensive, but WAY useful. Good luck, and have fun!

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

Cool story bro

[@ericbarenz5217]

In love my Denali 4x4 baby Duramax! 80,000 miles with 30% of the time my 20ftx8.5ft enclosed trailer hauling ultra lux to and from Florida. 13mpg@85mph with trailer 37mpg@60mph w/o trailer. It’s had an afe scorcher max blue on it for 30k with no problems other then the water pump failing at 60,000-ish miles and glow plugs just replaced because they were “exceeding learning limit”. Warranty has taken care of it all. Only 20k until warranty expires but it doesn’t worry me. I love the 10speed trans too. This Eric agrees with Eric. I think someone grabbed the green handle at the fuel pump but didn’t make sure green=diesel. Great job patiently taking that blob of steel/aluminum apart without breaking something!! Also, this engine runs up to 42,000psi injection pressure. Imagine gas/diesel concoction making a 42,000psi blow torch!!

[@alimechs]

Good update keep it up the good work 👍👍👍

[@onlywarrior5655]

$5k for a core charge? man thats about what im paying for my entire car

[@anthonybertone2336]

I can put a remanufactured motor and transmission in my 99 for $5000 installed, It’s nuts, but people keep buying it I won’t buy new ever , i’m not even sure the new Toyotas and Lexus are as dependable as they were 10 years ago. They’re still too new to see the problems.

[@HANZELVANDERLAAY]

​@@anthonybertone2336my 1997 Chevy van has 247k runs great....45 psi oil pressure....paid 2k..does have a front main seal leak..hello Lucas oil treatment

[@mann_idonotreadreplies]

The new Toyota Tundra is absolute trash

[@EricaMTB]

Guys, don't run your diesel on thermite.

[@Chris_de_S]

Dont run diesel Erica - grow up!

[@mikeversys]

I watch from the UK and I love your humour the more the better. I love when the engine is blown to bits 😂 Keep the vids coming

[@DH-mw5rz]

Hell yeah! This the one I've been waiting for

[@samh6761]

pistons like toasted marshmallows

[@hochhaul]

Someone's been playing with "tunes" that just play with fuel rail pressures.

[@sithus1966]

The black ones that come out on fire.

[@jeremymcauliff8485]

Once I learned this engine has its oil pump belt on the bell housing side made me go from Fo to No. Shame on GM for going that route.

[@darrellbobyk6363]

Whoever designed the oil pump belt on an expensive engine should be made to change the belt or pay for an new engine for a customer when the oil pump belt fails and destroys the engine. Just a stupid design.

[@jeremybroderick9465]

@@darrellbobyk6363 I changed one in just over an hour first time

[@francisbeaudry8598]

@@jeremybroderick9465 bullshit

[@pomz3604]

The belts are supposed to be good for 200,000 miles? I put about 6,000 miles per year on mine so I'll likely never hit that mark.

[@garrettsmith7244]

Ford is using an oil pump belt on the 5.0 2021 and newer... The belt removes some harmonics within the engine.

[@mousehole1990]

As someone that probably helped assemble this engine it brings me joy watching you take it apart

[@CPhillips5481]

My first full complete watch through. Great video

[@corruption1724]

Man, modern engines are such a mess with all the BS hanging off it.

[@davidporter7051]

someone didn't drink their Ovaltine

[@deadfox852]

Shame they don't have Sleeves in them like they do in Semi truck's and old tractor's (Least used to Dunno if they do that still) that block Might have been saveable with a new sleeve for the piston's that got burned out. But seeing as there's Metal in the oiling system I doubt it would be usable again. Thanks for the Video Eric I always look forward to these on the weekend's!

[@bradhaines3142]

they're sleeved but not in a way that can be replaced unfortunately

[@khillsy4489]

Great information and great presentation. You are a natural young man. 👍👏👏👏👏👌

[@birdmandave]

Awesome video Eric

[@TheIcyWizard705]

What's the weight difference between the REALLY melty one and a good one? i'm curious to see how much material was lost from the piston

[@zxggwrt]

I’d be curious too. I bet some aluminum exited the turbo and got melted in the DEF device

[@m.kriddick2731]

I come here to see blue, that other guy, Eric or whatever his name is ain't bad either but blue is the real draw...

[@anthonybertone2336]

Yeah, me too blues the main character of the show

[@ryanskare6670]

That CCV is a serviceable part. The grease used cannot stand up to the temperatures and gums up. If you where to pull the cap with just the clips (not the screws), you can clean out the bad grease and relubricate it. Mine is currently in the shop going into week 5 of waiting for a new one. Yes the LZ0 Duramax (mine) still has the same problems.

[@JaimeRestrepo61]

Great video!!

[@Flies2FLL]

Is it just me, Or is an oil covered rubber belt a BAD idea~

[@bobcoats2708]

Not just you

[@LucasLeCompteMusic]

It is. should have made it gear or chain driven like every other awesome diesel.

[@hochhaul]

It's a Kevlar belt and they actually look great at 150k miles. Ford uses the same belt in the 5.0 Coyote and 2.7 Ecoboost.

[@hochhaul]

@@LucasLeCompteMusic Diesels really shouldn't have chains because the soot in engine oil causes them to wear. This engine is identical to the BMW B57/M57/N57. Those have used chains for the oil pump and have had issues with chain wear. The belt is likely better than the chain version. It's kevlar and the load it sees is very low. The only way it's going to fail is if the 200k mile service is ignored for too long or something else catastrophic happens that puts a shock load into the belt that damages it... at which point it won't matter if the belt fails because the engine has already failed.

[@bobcoats2708]

@@hochhaul Brought to us by the same fine folks who gave us the 3 valve 4.6, Powershit transmission, the internal water pump in the 3.7…. What could go wrong?

[@yourfavoritelawnguy2722]

I remember when these came out people in the Duramax tuning world all jumped on the bandwagon of offering tunes and turbos for these, they all found out quickly they stop being happy and surviving pretty rapidly if you add anymore juice to a factory motor. They aren't exactly like their bigger brothers that can be pushed a decent bit. After seeing the head off, YIKES that thing was tuned pissing hot looking at the melting from the spray pattern

[@bigdaddymak1439]

Yes that spray pattern was insane obviously don't by an amateur tuner! Gale Banks has multiple videos on what happens when you add fuel without adding air!

[@karlschauff7989]

The fact that the block is aluminum should be been an obvious clue that GM didn't add the engine to the lineup so tuners could turn it into something else. It's a good engine in stock form, especially the 2nd gen LZ0 with upgraded injectors, head design, steel pistons, and turbo. The only reason to mess with tuning with this engine is to delete it.

[@feloniousmonk3049]

That's the power of German Engineering.... stock, it's designed within and inch of it's life. They don't take mods making more torque and HP with boost and fueling. Goes to junk almost immediately.

[@bigdaddymak1439]

@@feloniousmonk3049 problem is most tuning is garbage. Gale Banks talks about it all the time

[@yourfavoritelawnguy2722]

@@bigdaddymak1439 it was a lot easier to get quality and reputable tunes with support and updates back before the EPA went full insanity. I'm lucky i got my sets of tunes before hand. Its nothing but shade tree ripped library guys, or the know nothing but just adds fuel guys. Otherwise its carb/cleanair/epa compliant only tunes that aren't even worth paying for.

[@agenericyoutubehandle]

Videos like this make me feel a lot better about losing all my money right before ordering a new truck lol So many modern breakdowns have absolutely insane parts placement

[@user-tt2lg5kg1t]

When I worked for a dealership, you were to keep the warranted engine until a certain date and if they hadnt called for it by then you junk it and I cant recall them ever wanting an engine back.

[@SarahJones-ik6jh]

Your videos are seriously cool, keep 'em coming!

[@volvo09]

Bot

[@4literpowered]

If you look at the tops of the piston after they been cleaned, you will a starburst type pattern, indicating that this engine was sligthly "tuned", which voided the warranty.

[@hochhaul]

Probably that AG Diesel module that messes with the signal for fuel rail pressure.

[@HomelabExtreme]

Every diesel have this pattern, it is completely normal, and in no way an indication for tuning.

[@philipmackin1025]

@@HomelabExtreme Shouldn't have a pattern, or very little, outside of the centre bowl.

[@haroldryan1265]

Great break down

[@rmpbrown01]

This engine may have accidently had gasoline ran through it.

[@rideswift]

Yup, buddy let his wife borrow the truck and she thought it would be nice to fill it up with gas for him. Engine knocking and dash lights flashing, but don't pull over, oh no, keep it floored till you get home and then its someone else's problem LOL, ask me how I know.

[@marlu6373]

it was you

[@gregorylyon1004]

Diesel engines that require DEF are all junk. I ain't buying no diesel. No matter how good the fuel mileage is. That engine probably costs in excess of $15 thousand dollars to replace. I can buy a lot of gasoline for my truck for the 15 grand

[@hochhaul]

This engine failed because some clown paid for a garbage "tune" module that just messes with fuel rail pressure. That extra fuel made the star pattern burned onto the pistons. This is one of the best engines available in any half-ton on the market today as long as the owner isn't a fool that thinks they can get 45 extra HP by just connecting some $500 junk module.

[@user-tt2lg5kg1t]

@@hochhaul and your the kind of guy thats gonna pull the engine every 150K to replace that oil pump belt?

[@mfree80286]

@@user-tt2lg5kg1t You'd be pulling the transmission at 150K to change the belt, and thinking about it... look at all the stuff bolted to the front of that engine, imagine removing all that to change a belt versus dropping the transmission (and it getting a good poke and prod while it's out too). As long as it's longitudinal and the transmission it a relatively easy drop, these back-end belts and chains aren't so bad anymore. If it was a deal where all I had to do up front was get the water pump out of the way, then yeah... the engineer gets a slap for using a rear belt. But nowadays the front cover coming off means shifting a mile of wire and hose and dozens of accessory components, sensors, and associated crap to break and replace in the act. All I'm saying is *maybe* today it has a point.

[@bradhaines3142]

​@@mfree80286in the back isnt as big of a deal as using a belt. the belt is just stupid. you're right it's easier to drop the transmission than fight with the cluster up from but the fact you have to for a maintenance item is just stupid

[@karlschauff7989]

@@user-tt2lg5kg1t 200k mile oil pump belt and you'll be doing the timing chain service before that belt is anywhere near failing. You don't have to pull the engine to service the belt either.

[@codo7]

Good show, thanks.

[@UncleRay1000]

Thinking about going diesel in a half ton pickup. Appreciate the tear down to see how it was made.