I can tell beyond any doubt that your giving advice that you've never used and your a French internet model. If you can do a set of heads on a late model GM small block for a couple hundred, you have a new very lucrative career. We start at 8 am

Heck with the dealer ! Try to find a reputable bissness and have them break it down . If it's just the lifters . install a lifter kit but if your cam is jacked up you may won't to consider a jasper . Because you will still have metal inside your motor regardless of a cam/lifter job . A jasper LH6 is prob going to run you around 6k installed . If you can just replace the lifters for 1000 to 1500 make sure you turn off your AFM . Active fuel management is what jacked your motor up .

Mike, I had the same symptoms, on the same cylinder on my 07 Suburban. I figured it was my cam or a lifter (based on the internet horror stories)until I pulled the valve cover. With valve cover off and engine running, my valves were moving like they were supposed to. I had no compression on that cylinder.
I pulled the head and thankfully I found a burnt exhaust valve on that cylinder. Napa had the valve in stock.
Doing it all myself was about $150. New valve, head gasket, head bolts, valve compound and fluids. I didn’t replace the intake gasket, based on recommendations from a LS engine forum. I rented the valve spring compressor from Advance for free.
It's been over 6,000 miles and the spark plug still looks great.
Hopefully this is also your problem.

Been going strong for 95K miles since I made the change. Doesn't burn any oil. Original engine was burning a quart every 1000 miles. Damned active fuel management system. All of the 07-09 GM 5.3 models end up in this situation. They fixed these issues starting with the 2010 models.

Thats exactly what caused the damage to my Silverado.
I had that schit deleted when we replaced the cam.
I always hated it anyway. I bought 8 cylinders, I want it to run on 8 cylinders, ALL THE TIME!

They do burn valves a good bit, I invested in a camera so I could pull the plugs and check that without pulling the heads, it's a cool little gadget. Takes a lot of guess work out of it

And no Outback you cannot borrow it to use in the ladies room at Walmart

Installing a Range Technology module will keep the AFM from activating.
We currently have 2 of these in use.

For all that's holy and sacred we need carbed pushrod V8s as good Lord intended.

If your truck ain't got a carbed pushrod V8 and mud tires as it should that will result in extra years in purgatory. Choose wisely my friends.

There are usually signs that you have a blown head gasket. Loss of water in radiator, water or steam coming from exhaust or even the smell of antifreeze in the exhaust. I replaced the lifters in a Chevy Nova in 74. They were making a clattering noise. It was a pain too.

After working on those for years, good luck with that! Sure they are great on the weekends but the adults here are talking about daily drivers.

last time i swapped a head at the exchange it cost me 170 dollars x2 thats $340 plus a gasket set and a little time in the garage you could do it yourself.

I'm just jealous you guys know how to do all these mechanical things. My Dad wouldn't/couldn't even pump his own gas.

Yep, I'll take reliability of a modern engine anyday.
BTW, the engine we are talking about is a pushrod V8.

Wrong. The problem goes thru 2013. I rebuilt my 2012 at 110,000

Wes, I'm hopeful that your problem is my problem. Going to investigate more.

[quote=hoggin]They do burn valves a good bit, I invested in a camera so I could pull the plugs and check that without pulling the heads, it's a cool little gadget. Takes a lot of guess work out of it

A real mechanic would run a compression test on each cylinder and find the average THEN check with your camera then pull the heads if needed. Besides the head gasket leakin on combustion side, might be an intake gasket leaking too but doubt it. You called that guy an internet french model cause that motor has no distributor.

A REAL mechanic would tell you he don't fix trucks over the internet that's the reason someone with the sense God gave a rock would realize I've not said what's wrong with it or what I'd do to fix it

I put a Diablo in my 07 Tahoe last year to take care of the AFM and no more oil consumption

Did they fix it? I have heard of it in 11 and newer engines. I have heard of cutting the fuel management stuff off to prevent it but I have seen trucks older that 2010 claiming same problems. I am not a mechanic though.