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I can’t believe General Motors is actually doing it. There was a rumor more than two years ago that GM would stuff an 8.3-liter Duramax diesel into the Chevy Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD, but at the time, it seemed like little more than a pipe dream. Fast forward to 2026, and the manufacturer itself just confirmed it. The gargantuan power plant is nicknamed the Mongoose, and as you can tell by GM’s Monday morning announcement, it’s aimed squarely at trouncing Ford’s Power Stroke diesel.
GM didn’t reveal any details aside from the displacement and the cylinder arrangement. It’ll be a turbodiesel V8, just like the diesel Chevy and GMC HDs have had for generations. Intriguingly, though, this is the first Duramax in a pickup to exceed 6.6 liters—they’ve been that size since 2000. (It’s unclear if GM will offer the 8.3-liter alongside the 6.6-liter, or if it will replace the old engine entirely.)
The sorta-cheesy teaser that GM posted on Monday morning shows a Mongoose with Bowties in its eyes fighting a nasty scorpion. In case you didn’t know, the 6.7-liter Ford Power Stroke is sometimes referred to as the Scorpion, so this ad is especially pointed. Maybe they’re working on an AI-generated video of a mongoose eviscerating a ram next. I mean, stranger things have happened.
The All-New 8.3L Duramax Turbo-Diesel V8
To beat the Ford Power Stroke, the 8.3-liter Duramax will need to make more than 500 horsepower and 1,200 lb-ft of torque. If it can do that—which I imagine it will—it’ll also beat Ram’s 6.7-liter Cummins inline-six, which makes 430 hp and 1,075 lb-ft of torque. For what it’s worth, GM hasn’t topped the hp or torque charts since the L5P generation Duramax launched in 2017.
I’m eager to see what this bad boy can do in the real world. With displacement like that, the sky is the limit. Just don’t be surprised if the other truck makers follow suit with larger engines of their own.
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From running point on new car launch coverage to editing long-form features and reviews, Caleb does some of everything at The Drive. And he really, really loves trucks.
