Hello. I am looking into buying a Silverado 1500 5.3L truck. Before I know what years to look at/for I am trying to find out the following info. If forum members could supply this I certainly would appreciate it. Here goes: What year did the electric/electronic throttle body/gas pedal (fly-by-wire) appear on this truck? What year did the 'engine fuel management' (shuts off the cylinders) appear on this truck? I am looking for an older model truck so the electric/electronic throttle body may be in my 'years to look for'. While I see a L O T of posts in numerous forums regarding the 'loss of power' and it typically goes back to the throttle body/accelerator is it really an issue? What bothers me is the truck can just slow down/stop and leave me stranded without any notice. Bottom line if you were looking for a range of model years that had the least amount of this new technology what years (starting at 2000) would you concentrate your search on? THANKS for any information given.

 

I just got a 2000 and love it. I know the 2007's and newer 5.3's had oil consumption issues (a fix has been found)

My only gripe is the 1.5 din stereo. 03 and newer came stock with double din, so even that is a fairly simple fix, just gotta get stereo and ha cradle and trim bezel from a donor truck.

If memory serves the afm stuff came in around 05, but I could be wrong.

 

I think you're overthinking this. These trucks are some of the most reliable on the planet. My '01 has 225k miles, my '08 has 150k miles, and my '09 has every possible option like a heated steering wheel. All three trucks are dead-nuts reliable, all the options work, and they all have the original powertrain.

The '07+ trucks have Active Fuel Management in the 5.3, and I believe it is a flawed design and will never own one. That being said, you can't go wrong with any 2000-2006 5.3-equipped truck, nor a 2007+ 6.2 or 6.0 equipped truck. You'd have to do some Googling to find out exactly when the AFM was added to the 6.0 and 6.2 motors.