The 5.3-liter V8 engine is a member of GM's Vortec engine family. The 5.3-liter V8 is specifically a truck engine, and it replaced the manufacturer's 5.7-liter V8 from previous years. GM produced this engine beginning in 2002, and still uses it as of 2010.
The 5.3-liter V8 has a bore of 3.78 inches and a stroke of 3.62 inches. Bore is a measure of the diameter of the engine's eight cylinders, and stroke is the distance that the pistons, which are housed in the cylinders, travel when the engine is operational.
The 5.3-liter Vortec engine has compression ratios from 9.5 to 1 and 9.9 to 1. These high compression ratios mean that the engine can produce between 270 and 300 horsepower at around 5,200 revolutions per minute (rpm) and 315 to 325 foot-pounds of torque at 4,000 rpm, making it a popular engine for performance- and work-oriented consumers.
The 5.3-liter V8 appeared in a variety of GM-branded vehicles. In 1997 the manufacturer remodeled the engine, placing it in such vehicles as the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Sierra beginning in 1999, and the Chevrolet Colorado beginning in 2009.
