• GM is tightening engine quality controls ahead of next-generation truck launch.
  • Some manufacturing is moving in-house for greater oversight and consistency.
  • New V8 arrives after 6.2-liter recalls damaged confidence among truck buyers.

Truck buyers love talking about horsepower, torque and towing numbers. What they don’t love talking about is whether their new pickup’s engine will still be running 100,000 miles later. Unfortunately for GM, that’s been a conversation its V8 customers have been having a lot lately, but one the next buyers might skip.

As the company prepares to launch the redesigned Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra in 2027, it reportedly isn’t just developing a new V8 engine. It’s also taking steps to make sure buyers don’t spend the next decade wondering whether that engine is going to become the subject of another series of recalls, many of which have led to class action lawsuits.

Read: GM Faces Massive Lawsuit After Tens Of Thousands Of Complaints Over Its V8

According to a new GM Authority report, GM is introducing stricter quality controls for key components in its upcoming Gen 6 Small Block V8. As part of that push, some critical parts and manufacturing processes are reportedly being brought back under GM’s direct control, rather than being handled by outside suppliers. That might sound like a boring industry detail, but it could be one of the most important developments surrounding the next-generation trucks.

After all, this comes just a year after GM recalled nearly 600,000 trucks and SUVs equipped with the 6.2-liter V8. Investigators linked engine failures to manufacturing and quality issues involving internal components. The issue became one of the biggest black eyes for the company’s truck business in recent memory, and against that backdrop, the timing of these reported changes doesn’t feel accidental.

Corvette Offers Some Clues

600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House

The new Silverado and Sierra are expected to replace today’s 5.3-liter and 6.2-liter V8s with fresh 5.7-liter and 6.6-liter Small Block engines. The 2027 Corvette‘s 6.7-liter, 535 hp (542 PS) version of this engine was revealed in March. GM has already committed enormous sums toward production, including an $888 million investment in its Tonawanda facility to support the next-generation V8 program, and the engines will also be built at two other plants, one of them in Canada.

Related: GM’s Next-Gen V8 Just Picked Up A Third Plant, And It’s Not In The States

Whether the new engine design and the decision to bring more production processes under direct control translates into bulletproof reliability remains to be seen. Engines earn their reputations on highways, job sites, and towing routes, and that takes time. But after the bruising few years GM’s V8s have endured lately, tighter oversight may be exactly what truck buyers want to hear.

600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House
600,000 Recalled Trucks Later, GM Pulls Key Parts Of Its Next V8 In-House

US Design Patent drawings of the 2027 Chevrolet Silverado, debuting later this year.