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'Killing a Duramax' Gale Banks YouTube series methodically tunes a diesel to death

Learning or perfecting a skill by watching YouTube videos is known as attending YouTube University. GM Authority picked up on one of the video site's more fascinating courses, hosted by Gale Banks; in a fair world, he should be referred to as Professor Banks when it comes to diesel engines and truck tuning. A few months after GM introduced the updated L5P 6.6-liter Duramax diesel V8 in the 2020 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD that ships with 454 horsepower and 910 pound-feet of torque, Banks decided he wanted to methodically tune the engine to death. The purpose of the resulting series, called "Killing a Duramax," is to push more power out of the engine in order to discover which parts break and when — or, as Banks puts it, force-feed the Duramax "until the crank hits the street and the heads hit the hood." With that knowledge, Banks can figure out all the weak points on his way to building what he calls a "Superturbo," that being a supercharged, twin-turbo race engine with more than 1,000 hp. What makes the series fascinating is Banks' knowledge, paired with the company's comprehensive iDash engine monitoring system that keeps tabs on a glut of parameters every step of the way. So for instance, you get Banks explaining the differences between inches of mercury and barometric pressure, how those are different from the water content of the air measured in grains, then showing those readouts on the iDash, then explaining in detail how they affect the air density in the Duramax system. The stock Borg-Warner variable turbo gets a lot of airtime — Banks accuses it of being "out to lunch" because he feels it's the weakest link on the engine. That turns into a turbo teardown and a deep explanation of performance pitfalls, such as when air pressure on the turbine begins to diverge from the boost pressure coming from the compressor. Banks says he can keep close tabs on where power's coming from, because the iDash monitors the horsepower contribution provided by the ambient air, the turbo, and the intercooler separately. The major changes so far are a stouter Precision 7675 turbo and TurboSmart wastegate (episode 5), a twin intake (episode 6), a custom liquid-cooled intercooler from a marine engine, a new GM oil cooler and synthetic oil (episode 10), and new injectors (episode 11).

Next GMC Sierra Denali accidentally leaked on consumer site

Thanks to the quick-to-screen-shot folks at GM Authority, we now have our first look at what is likely the 2014-15 GMC Sierra Denali. GMA reports that the image you see here was temporarily posted on the GMC consumer site, though as you can see now, when you scroll over the "trucks" tab, the image has been removed.
GM Authority states that because the truck in this image wears a blacked-out lower bumper, redesigned grille insert and shiny wheels, this has got to be the upmarket Denali version of the fully redesigned 2014 model year Sierra. The Chevrolet Silverado will be getting a similar treatment, as we've seen in recent spy shots, dubbed the High Country.
Expect the Sierra Denali to ride on large, unique wheels (the one we spied earlier this year was fitted with 21-inch rollers), and feature a huge helping of luxurious interior amenities, as well as premium features like xenon headlamps. An official on-sale date for the Denali has not been released, though it's been reported that the high-grade Sierra, along with its Silverado counterpart, will arrive after the Texas State Fair this summer.

2025 GMC Terrain spy photos show it inside and out

Chevy recently introduced the redesigned 2025 Equinox, but GMC has, so far, been silent about the Terrain, the Equinox's fraternal twin. But it does seem that there is a redesigned 2025 GMC Terrain on the way. These spy photos show the new model, and they reveal that the GMC will be even more distinct from the Equinox with this generation than the previous ones. From the outside, what we can see suggests the new Terrain will be more evolutionary than the Equinox. It still has a fairly upright nose with a tall grille and the C-shaped headlights. Along the side, there's still a distinct kink up at the back of the door that carries into the rear quarter window and around the back. Not many details are clear at the back, but new to this Terrain are visible exhaust outlets, a pair of rectangular ones sitting in cutouts at the base of the bumper. The inside is a massive change from the current model, and one that is quite welcome. The design clearly borrows from the also recently redesigned Acadia. It's centered around a monolithic screen with a center control knob and a set of physical switches at the screen's base. There doesn't seem to be much panel on either side of the screen, so the air vents may sit at the top of the screen. The instrument cluster is another screen, but a wide landscape-oriented example. The rest of the dash will probably be channeling some modern industrial looks with rectangular, horizontal and beveled panels. Since the new Equinox is launching this year, we're expecting this Terrain to launch this year, too, or ever so slightly later. It should be revealed in a few months to fit that launch window. It will undoubtedly get the same new platform used by the gas-powered Equinox, along with the turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder with 175 horsepower. All-wheel and front-wheel drive should be on offer with an eight-speed automatic or CVT respectively. The GMC will also surely get a luxurious Denali trim and an off-road-oriented AT4 trim, the latter of which will probably get the addition of amber marker lights over the wheel arches like on the pickup trucks and the Acadia AT4. Related Video: