Chevy Silverado 6.2-liter V8 Named to Ward’s 10 Best Engines List
2019 Silverado’s optional 6.2-liter L87 V8 engine praised for its Direct Fuel Management technology.
The 2019 Chevrolet Silverado has won a 2019 Wards 10 Best Engines Award. The award-winning 6.2L V-8 employs industry-leading Dynamic Fuel Management or DFM to save fuel without sacrificing performance.
“General Motors’ thundering 420-horsepower V-8 in the Silverado exemplifies how engineers continue to find ways to improve efficiency without giving up something in return. DFM determines 80 times per second exactly how many cylinders require fuel to meet power demands. And, incredibly, it uses as few as two cylinders to propel the full-size pickup down the highway,” says Senior Content Director Drew Winter. “The truly amazing part is the cylinder deactivation is imperceptible, so seamless that the only thing the driver notices is fewer stops at the pump.”
For the competition, WardsAuto editors evaluate every all-new or significantly improved engine or electric propulsion system available in production vehicles in the U.S. Vehicles must have a starting MSRP less than $64,000. The editors score eligible vehicles on horsepower, torque, technology, observed fuel economy, relative competitiveness and noise characteristics.
The 6.2L V-8 and the available 5.3L V-8 are the first V-8s available with Dynamic Fuel Management. Compared to Active Fuel Management, which alternates between eight- and four-cylinder modes, DFM features 17 cylinder patterns. That greater authority mixes cylinder patterns constantly to optimize efficiency and power delivery at all speeds.
“Chevrolet first introduced its Active Fuel Management cylinder deactivation system in 2005, and Dynamic Fuel Management is a natural progression of the technology,” said Jordan Lee, Small Block chief engineer. “Dynamic Fuel Management enables only the cylinders needed to deliver the power you want, seamlessly delivering the best balance of power and fuel economy.”
The 6.2L with DFM — the largest and most powerful gas V-8 in the segment — is manufactured at GM’s Tonawanda engine plant in New York. It is SAE-certified at 420 horsepower (313 kW) and 460 lb-ft of torque (623 Nm) and paired with a Hydra-Matic 10-speed automatic transmission.
The 2019 Silverado is larger than before, including a wheelbase that is up to 3.9 inches (100 mm) longer and an overall length that is 1.6 inches (41 mm) longer, enabling both more cargo volume and more interior room for all cab lengths. Remarkably, it’s also lighter, weighing 450 pounds (204 kg) less than today’s truck when comparing crew cab V-8 models.
Silverado 1500 offerings include regular cab, double cab and crew cab body styles, all available with 4WD.