This 2020 Chevy Silverado HD 2500 has an all-new 6.6-liter gas V8 engine. This is our first opportunity to see what’s this new Corvette-derived engine can do in a new heavy duty truck.
As always, we are doing the performance test at IMI Motorsports track.
2020 Chevy Silverado HD
This new gas engine is a direct-injected engine that has a similar architecture to the 5th-generation LT1 small block V8. It utilizes push-rod activated valve-train with a variable timing.
The power rating is 401 hp and 464 lb-ft of torque. This is a significant improvement when you consider that the outgoing 6.0-liter Vortec V8 was rated at 360 hp and 380 lb-ft of torque. The new 6.6-liter gas V8 engine is meant for commercial truck use, thus the relatively low power output when compared to the 6.2-liter V8 in the half-ton trucks.
The new 6.6-liter gasser is mated to an updated 6-speed automatic transmission. The gas engine is paired to a 3.73 rear axle ratio. This is currently the only choice for the rear-end ratio.
We previously tested a new 6.6-liter Duramax diesel V8-powered 2020 Silverado HD 2500 truck. The turbo diesel ran a 0-60 mph at 8.00 seconds at our test track, which is approximately at 1-mile above sea level. The new diesel is paired to a 10-speed automatic transmission and a 3.42 rear axle ratio.
The new diesel/10-speed combination costs approximately $10,000 over the gas v8/6-speed setup. How much performance are you gaining for that $10,000? Here you go.
Spoiler: the best time we get with the 6.6-liter gas truck is 9.05 seconds 0-60 MPH.
In the end, the new gas-powered HD truck is about 1 second slower at 0-60 mph performance.
Check out all the details in the video below.
