Wifey Bought A Suburban

[bucket]

My wife went and bought us a new(er) Suburban today, it's an '00. Newest vehicle we've ever had. Well, newest model year... I had a '93 Z34 in '03. Not sure when I'll actually get to see it besides pictures.

 

[Georgeb]

And a 3/4 ton to boot! Nice, nice. Other than the issues mine has had as I get it back up to par I sure do like it.

 

[Old77]

Nice!

 

[bucket]

Yeah, 3/4 ton was a must for us. For the year ranges were were looking at, they all have some miles on them and I didn't want to deal with a smoked 4L60 or a blown 10 bolt. I also need the bigger brakes and leaf springs. And more power is nice too.

I had really wanted an 8.1 Burb, but just couldn't find one in decent shape without spending a whole bunch of money. The 6.0 will do.

 

[Old77]

Yeah you'll like that 6.0 plus parts are easier to come by for them since they've been around longer and the 8.1 was such a short production run

 

[bucket]

Yeah, but the 8.1 has a hell of a lot more grunt right out of the box. It's alright though, the 6.0 should do OK for what I want. Everything else about the truck is exactly how I would have ordered one when they were new, it was just to good for us to pass up. It was very hard to find one with charcoal bench seats that wasn't a base stripper model.

 

[donmateo]

Congrats! I'm sure you'll like the 6.0...lots of mods out there too if you decide you want more gusto out of it.

 

[Mr Clean]

just think of all the parts you can swap out.




I sure like them there wheels....LOL don't tell her I said that, don't want to be shot if I'd ever meet her.

 

[bucket]

I'm not up to date at all on the LS stuff. Is there much that can be done without a whole lot of effort, that really makes a difference? Ain't no way I'm tearing deep into this thing, stuff like cam and heads are staying put. Would headers/exhaust make a noticeable improvement? Everything I've ever read about the different intakes says the truck unit is pretty good.

 

[Old77]

I'm not up to date at all on the LS stuff. Is there much that can be done without a whole lot of effort, that really makes a difference? Ain't no way I'm tearing deep into this thing, stuff like cam and heads are staying put. Would headers/exhaust make a noticeable improvement? Everything I've ever read about the different intakes says the truck unit is pretty good.

Honestly, the biggest thing you can do to improve performance without getting into the internals is a tune. I got a Blackbear Tune on our 07 and it made a HUGE difference!!! Headers/exhaust don't really make a huge performance impact because from factory the system is already pretty good.

 

[HotRodPC]

Yeah, 3/4 ton was a must for us. For the year ranges were were looking at, they all have some miles on them and I didn't want to deal with a smoked 4L60 or a blown 10 bolt. I also need the bigger brakes and leaf springs. And more power is nice too.

I had really wanted an 8.1 Burb, but just couldn't find one in decent shape without spending a whole bunch of money. The 6.0 will do.

I'd have taken the 6.0 over the 8.1 anyday, especially in that year range. Be thankfull you got the 6.0.

 

[Green79Scottsdale]

Honestly, the biggest thing you can do to improve performance without getting into the internals is a tune. I got a Blackbear Tune on our 07 and it made a HUGE difference!!! Headers/exhaust don't really make a huge performance impact because from factory the system is already pretty good.

Tune is definitely a must! I just went for ride in my buddies '01 6.0, and wow! He bought HPTuners and is messing with it himself, but with just the small tweaks he has done, it is a completely different truck. All he has done is reduce Torque Management, changed shift points, disabled EGR, and is running strictly off MAF readings. Throttle tip-in is noticeably more aggressive (but not overly aggressive), and it pulls hard all the way past 6000 rpm! You won't regret a tune! Oh, and his MPG's have improved by a couple.

 

[Tranz Zam]

I'd have taken the 6.0 over the 8.1 anyday, especially in that year range. Be thankfull you got the 6.0.

x1000

That 6.0 will respond to mods very well. I had a 99 Silverado that I did long tubes on with no cats, CAI, and a healthy tune, and it move pretty well for its size. It sounded like a muscle car too!

 

[bucket]

Not 6.0 bashing here (I did buy one after all), but most people that favor the 6.0 in a big heavy truck have never spent much time (or any time) behind the wheel of an 8.1 truck. Peak output is one thing, but overall output is another. Really though, comparing the two motors is an apples/oranges type comparison.

 

[HotRodPC]

Yes it is apples and oranges, but for reliability and longevity the 6.0 wins hands down. Granted the 8.1 has more grunt, but 6.0 has enough to get it done too. Your overall cost of ownership will be much less with the 6.0 all things considered. Mpg, maintenance, reliabilty and repairs etc.