[DirtyLarry]

For whatever it is worth…. my 5.3L Z71 Hoe averages around 18 MPG but it doesn’t see many miles. It pretty much only hauls my skinny butt and 30 lb suitcase and laptop bag back and forth from the COS airport so it only sees highway miles.

I am often amazed how much power the 5.3L doesn’t have in a Hoe with 3:73 gears. Living at 5,000 ft elevation doesn’t help much. It feels like it needs one more gear in the trans to make the powertrain work in symphony. First gear acceleration is decent, second gear okay but the 2-3 shift the 5.3L and 4L60E falls flat on it’s face. I swear there are toe nail marks in the floor mat just to keep up with traffic.

One of the most annoying things with this powertrian combo is when I encounter this particular large hill I often encounter when the cruise is set and the trans downshifts from 4th to 2nd gear and the RPM’s jump wayyy the hell up. The 5.3L sounds like the pistons are swapping holes at that point. The RPM jump always scares me to so find myself tapping the brake pedal to release cruise and relax the engine. I am not impressed with the power that my 5.3L delivers in a SUV anyway living at high altitude. Maybe in a lighter truck it would be adaquate.

I actually hate this damn Tahoe and want to off it for a Poncho G8 but my wife really likes it and it is 5 payments from being paid off so I guess we are stuck with it for a while. SUV’s aren’t worth 50 cents in resale right now anyway.