- GM confirms an all-new 8.3-liter Duramax turbodiesel V8.
- The engine will power refreshed 2027 Silverado HD and Sierra HD pickups.
- “Mongoose” is an unsubtle shot at Ford’s Scorpion diesel.
The horsepower wars are alive and well. They’ve just moved somewhere that weighs four tons and probably has a gooseneck hitch. General Motors has officially confirmed its long-rumored 8.3-liter Duramax turbodiesel V8, and apparently building an absolutely enormous diesel wasn’t enough. GM also gave it a name designed specifically to antagonize Ford. Meet the Mongoose.
That name isn’t some random bit of branding. Ford’s 6.7-liter Power Stroke diesel V8 has long been known internally as the Scorpion, and GM’s teaser features an actual mongoose hunting a scorpion. Just in case anyone missed the point, GM describes its new engine as “built to dominate” and calls the mongoose a better predator. GM didn’t go with subtlety on this one.
Read: Ram’s 2500 Just Out Muscled The Silverado HD And Ford Super Duty
The engine itself is more interesting than the trash talk. GM says the all-new 8.3-liter Duramax turbodiesel V8 will sit at the heart of the refreshed 2027 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD. Beyond displacement and cylinder count, however, GM isn’t ready to give us much more yet. Horsepower, torque, towing capacity, transmission details, and pricing remain under wraps.
For perspective, the current 6.6-liter Duramax makes 470 hp (350 kW) and 975 lb-ft (1,322 Nm) of torque. Ford’s high-output 6.7-liter Power Stroke currently manages 500 hp (373 kW) and a whopping 1,200 lb-ft (1,627 Nm). Ram’s latest 6.7-liter Cummins sits at 430 hp (321 kW) and 1,075 lb-ft (1,458 Nm). That gives GM a pretty obvious target.
Going from 6.6 to 8.3 liters also represents a massive 26-percent increase in displacement. And while size doesn’t automatically translate into class-leading output, GM would look rather silly after releasing a video about mongooses eating scorpions if its new engine couldn’t at least make Ford sweat.
There are plenty of other unanswered questions, too. GM hasn’t said whether the 8.3-liter will completely replace today’s 6.6-liter Duramax or become a higher-output option. We also don’t know which Silverado HD and Sierra HD configurations will get it. Those details are coming later. For now, we just know the target and that GM is reasonably confident that it’s about to outduel Ford.
