Should I Buy A 2008 Gmc 2500 Desiel?

2008GMC? · June 1, 2011

I currently own a 2010 dodge 1500... I need a heavier truck... I have never owned a desiel. I understand they are more minatencne. But I hope the trade off is better fuel economy and a longer lasting truck..

I stumbled on a 2008 2500 seriera. It has a 6 speed allisnon and the 6.6 duramax. Crew cab, 6 foot box, and only 95,000km's.. the asking price is 25,999 canadian. The truck is bare bones, no power windows etc.. rubber matting for floors.. I am ok with this as its a truck and trucks to me are for working lol.. the truck has a small dent in the right quatre pannel, a part of the bumper is pushed in and a tail light cracked. Other than that its in nice shape..

my qeustions are

- what kind of milage should i expect?

-If I do the mods (the deletes and add a chip) will I get better milage? how much better?

-any issues with this tranny? I know the older auto's had issues.

-is this the same motor as the older duramaxes with just more crap added to them because of government regs? Can I take the crap off??

-I believie the price is good. Am I correct?

any info on these trucks and advise would be great..

I hate my dodge and will never buy one again. I'd love to be a chevy/gmc guy again.

jro909 · June 1, 2011

the allison has been bulletproof since the begining, and yes it is the same 6.6 durmax that shook the truck world back in 01 with a few minor mods that make it stronger...to me it sounds like this truck has had the shit kicked out of it, probably a fleet truck that got ran to hell and back..id walk and find some old man's duramax that he wants to sell to buy a buick

2008GMC? · June 1, 2011

the allison has been bulletproof since the begining, and yes it is the same 6.6 durmax that shook the truck world back in 01 with a few minor mods that make it stronger...to me it sounds like this truck has had the shit kicked out of it, probably a fleet truck that got ran to hell and back..id walk and find some old man's duramax that he wants to sell to buy a buick

what about the truck makes you think it was treated like shit? Is it the dings? Or the km's?

I am going to get the trucks history tomorrow. I was told it was a one owner truck. But I'll find out if it was a work truck or ? I thought the allison tranny's in the dodge were constantly failing.. the 5 speed auto's I beleive? Did the GMC and dodge use different allisons?

Fobroader · June 1, 2011

Depending what part of Canada youre from, it sounds like an oilfield truck, RUN!!! Like JRO said, find an old man whos selling his. 100,000Km is kinda high for 3 years old, but the fact its got no options makes me think some yokel in Fort Mac used this truck before you.

2008GMC? · June 1, 2011

Depending what part of Canada youre from, it sounds like an oilfield truck, RUN!!! Like JRO said, find an old man whos selling his. 100,000Km is kinda high for 3 years old, but the fact its got no options makes me think some yokel in Fort Mac used this truck before you.

I live a couple hours south of fort mac.. I know all about oil feild.. Yes it crossed my mind except its a GMC at a ford dealership.. if it was a oil company's truck it'd be at a GMC dealership I would think.. Well I will get the history tomorrow and I'll share what I find out.. thanks again for the advise!

Fobroader · June 1, 2011

Being a fellow Albertan, I saw my fair share of oildfield trucks. A lot cleaned up nice, but I knew they were driven like rentals.

jro909 · June 1, 2011

the allison has been bulletproof since the begining, and yes it is the same 6.6 durmax that shook the truck world back in 01 with a few minor mods that make it stronger...to me it sounds like this truck has had the shit kicked out of it, probably a fleet truck that got ran to hell and back..id walk and find some old man's duramax that he wants to sell to buy a buick

what about the truck makes you think it was treated like shit? Is it the dings? Or the km's?

I am going to get the trucks history tomorrow. I was told it was a one owner truck. But I'll find out if it was a work truck or ? I thought the allison tranny's in the dodge were constantly failing.. the 5 speed auto's I beleive? Did the GMC and dodge use different allisons?

dodge dosen't use allison trannys atleast as far as i know...they have some name close to allison they use that makes it sound like a rip off brand lol...the dings, the fact that its bare bone and the mileage throws up red flags to me..its your money but i'd shop around, its semi cheap for a reason remember that

Fobroader · June 1, 2011

the allison has been bulletproof since the begining, and yes it is the same 6.6 durmax that shook the truck world back in 01 with a few minor mods that make it stronger...to me it sounds like this truck has had the shit kicked out of it, probably a fleet truck that got ran to hell and back..id walk and find some old man's duramax that he wants to sell to buy a buick

what about the truck makes you think it was treated like shit? Is it the dings? Or the km's?

I am going to get the trucks history tomorrow. I was told it was a one owner truck. But I'll find out if it was a work truck or ? I thought the allison tranny's in the dodge were constantly failing.. the 5 speed auto's I beleive? Did the GMC and dodge use different allisons?

dodge dosen't use allison trannys atleast as far as i know...they have some name close to allison they use that makes it sound like a rip off brand lol...the dings, the fact that its bare bone and the mileage throws up red flags to me..its your money but i'd shop around, its semi cheap for a reason remember that

I think the trannys in the Dodges are called Aisin.

cciesli · June 1, 2011

I currently own a 2010 dodge 1500... I need a heavier truck... I have never owned a desiel. I understand they are more minatencne. But I hope the trade off is better fuel economy and a longer lasting truck..

I stumbled on a 2008 2500 seriera. It has a 6 speed allisnon and the 6.6 duramax. Crew cab, 6 foot box, and only 95,000km's.. the asking price is 25,999 canadian. The truck is bare bones, no power windows etc.. rubber matting for floors.. I am ok with this as its a truck and trucks to me are for working lol.. the truck has a small dent in the right quatre pannel, a part of the bumper is pushed in and a tail light cracked. Other than that its in nice shape..

my qeustions are

- what kind of milage should i expect?

-If I do the mods (the deletes and add a chip) will I get better milage? how much better?

-any issues with this tranny? I know the older auto's had issues.

-is this the same motor as the older duramaxes with just more crap added to them because of government regs? Can I take the crap off??

-I believie the price is good. Am I correct?

any info on these trucks and advise would be great..

I hate my dodge and will never buy one again. I'd love to be a chevy/gmc guy again.

The price seems a bit high for the mileage however check KBB or whatever is compareable in Canada. I would do my research on this before buying, as far as the Alison goes its a solid transmission, however remember that any mods or chips that you put on or take off will put extra stress on the engine and the tranny not to mention most will void any remaining manufacturer warranty, check with your local dealer for which ones are OEM approved if any. Also remember that the newer diesels are loaded with emmission controls, not to mention the injectors are ridiculously expensive, a problem which the duramax had experienced a few years back. It is recommended replacing all injectors when doing one, a job which will run you about $4000USD with labor costs if your lucky. With the stock crew and stock tires you should be looking at about 21 or 22 mpg if you drive nicely. I was born and raised GM, father and uncle have had Dmax's with few problems, they are nice and very strong, but can be expensive to maintain, oil changes more expensive, multiple batteries, hd parts as with any deisel. Good luck and happy hunting!

SWDoodle · June 2, 2011

I currently own a 2010 dodge 1500... I need a heavier truck... I have never owned a desiel. I understand they are more minatencne. But I hope the trade off is better fuel economy and a longer lasting truck..

I stumbled on a 2008 2500 seriera. It has a 6 speed allisnon and the 6.6 duramax. Crew cab, 6 foot box, and only 95,000km's.. the asking price is 25,999 canadian. The truck is bare bones, no power windows etc.. rubber matting for floors.. I am ok with this as its a truck and trucks to me are for working lol.. the truck has a small dent in the right quatre pannel, a part of the bumper is pushed in and a tail light cracked. Other than that its in nice shape..

my qeustions are

- what kind of milage should i expect?

-If I do the mods (the deletes and add a chip) will I get better milage? how much better?

-any issues with this tranny? I know the older auto's had issues.

-is this the same motor as the older duramaxes with just more crap added to them because of government regs? Can I take the crap off??

-I believie the price is good. Am I correct?

any info on these trucks and advise would be great..

I hate my dodge and will never buy one again. I'd love to be a chevy/gmc guy again.

I guess my question, what reason do you "need a heavier pickup" for? I don't know if I would trade a 2010 off for a 2008 with more miles unless I was towing regular or doing heavy work. Is you're Dodge bone stock as well or does it have some options? I may be completely wrong, but it sounds like you want a diesel and this is the only way you can get into one. But to answer you're questions, it will get less mileage than you're Dodge, probably 14-16 avg (that's what I and my friends get). Even if it gets the same as you're Dodge fuel is typically $0.20-0.40/gal higher over the past several years. The Allison is bulletproof if you don't mod the engine up like crazy. The LMM is the same block as the older LB7's (first generation) but components, programming, and emmisions are different on the LMM. Yes you can take the crap off, but you could void warrnaties, not pass vehicle inspections (if you have that in Canada), and plus it's very expensive to remove and buy all the stuff you need to do it unless you can do it yourself. As far as price, I don't know what the conversion in CDN is. Sounds high to me, but I would be guessing. The only extra maintainance over a gas (I've had both) is the fuel filters. Other than that it's about the same. If you want to get back to GM look at a newer 1500. They are pretty nice and now have the 6-speed autos. You can get a 6.2L in a half-ton with over 400 hp. Hope this helps.

born-to-fish- · June 2, 2011

I would have to agree that it may be a fleet truck, by the sounds of it.

If it's white, I'd almost guarantee it...lol

If you want a diesel for towing, you can't beat it.

I can tow my 31' travel trailer in BC and still average around 14mpg.

My trailer weighs in at 10,000 lbs. and the duramax pulls like it's hardly there at all.

Can average around 21-22 mpg empty.

As long as you do routine maintenance (oil chgs, fuel filter, coolant chg.) when recommended, the diesel should run for a loooooonnnnnggggg time. I wouldn't suggest a tune, it should make all the torque you need to tow anything.

2008GMC? · June 3, 2011

I guess my question, what reason do you "need a heavier pickup" for? I don't know if I would trade a 2010 off for a 2008 with more miles unless I was towing regular or doing heavy work. Is you're Dodge bone stock as well or does it have some options? I may be completely wrong, but it sounds like you want a diesel and this is the only way you can get into one. But to answer you're questions, it will get less mileage than you're Dodge, probably 14-16 avg (that's what I and my friends get). Even if it gets the same as you're Dodge fuel is typically $0.20-0.40/gal higher over the past several years. The Allison is bulletproof if you don't mod the engine up like crazy. The LMM is the same block as the older LB7's (first generation) but components, programming, and emmisions are different on the LMM. Yes you can take the crap off, but you could void warrnaties, not pass vehicle inspections (if you have that in Canada), and plus it's very expensive to remove and buy all the stuff you need to do it unless you can do it yourself. As far as price, I don't know what the conversion in CDN is. Sounds high to me, but I would be guessing. The only extra maintainance over a gas (I've had both) is the fuel filters. Other than that it's about the same. If you want to get back to GM look at a newer 1500. They are pretty nice and now have the 6-speed autos. You can get a 6.2L in a half-ton with over 400 hp. Hope this helps.

THanks for the input.

I need a heavier truck because I have to haul all my water for a house I bought. literally every drop of water the the house uses has to be brought in with a tank. So If I haul 350 gallons=3500lbs.. thats almost 2000lbs over my current trucks limit. I will not put in air bags like some suggested to me (not here) because air bags take the wear off the suspension, not the bearings, axles, diff, tires, rims etc... I probbaly haul in total about 1200 gallons of water every 2 weeks. So thats 4 trips with 3500lbs of water for a 15 min drive at high way speeds up and down some good hills. I can't tell my truck is going to die if I do this for any longer.. Going up and down hills is hard on eveyrthing. The fuel it costs me to haul the water is retarded as well.

I found more out about the tuck. It was owned by a local man who used it to pick up fresh sea food from the city 3 hours from here and haul it back in truck to here. So high way, locally owned by one owner and used to haul seafood 2 or 3 times a week. Never used in the oil patch.

The dealership is offering me a good deal on that truck and good price for trade in for mine. I also talked to my buddy who is a diseil mechanic and he says its a great truck.. So I think I am going to do it.

cgalford · June 4, 2011

How about a trailer for the tank? I'm sure that 3500 lbs is well below that rating.

jro909 · June 4, 2011

how about indoor plumbing?

2008GMC? · June 8, 2011

Just wanted to let everyone know, I bought the truck.. THe dealer gave me more for my truck than it was worth and I called my buddy who is a diseil mechanic and he said I am gettign a very good deal on the diseil.. THe price is good for my area in canada. ANd the truck was gently used as I was able to get more info about it.

Anyways I will stay on this site, but I'll be heading over to the dieseil sub forums on here for some reading.

About all the comments about modiying my truck or buying a trailer.. I only put 2000 lbs of water in my truck and it almmost squashes it. THe bumper literally is inches from the ground. I haul this much water 3 times a week. So not only is the suspension being wreaked, but the bearings, axle, brakes, tires, rims, frame.. it doesn't make sense to use the truck. The air bags only add 500lbs each for my truck. So yes it would fix the suspension but not the rest of the stuff. Trailer? I can do this but than the onnly time I can get water in town (15 mins drive) is on trips to town just for water. I can't take the trailer to work or to the gym and grab water afterward on the way home. just wouldn't work. But with the heavier truck I can keep the tank in the truck and grab water on the way home from work or the gym. I really only go to town for work and gym. So any trip to town with a trailer just for water is a waste of gas.. Plus the cost of the trailer that will hold 3000lbs is pretty high. Literally 3000$ from what I have seen when I looked. And when hauling a trailer I get worse mileage..

best long term solution was to cut my looses on my dodge and buy the 3/4 diseil..

thanks for the help!