Someone Convince Me Otherwise

yz2009 · September 30, 2011

I currently have a 04' 1500 sierra extended cab with a 5.3. I love the truck and it does everything i need it to. I just wish i had a diesel. Not that i need one, its jsut something i want. I wish GM would have made the 4.5l duramax and put it in the 1500.

So anyway im thinking about trading in my 04 sierra for a ~07 2500HD with a duramax either extended cab or CC. I tow boats 2-3 times a week in the summer, but my 1500 is sufficient. They are only 5000lbs. More braking power would be nice but not necessary. So basically i dont need the 2500HD i just really want the diesel. I need someone to convince me out of trading in my 1500 for the 2500HD. I know maintenance would be a little more expensive and the ride would be a little stiffer.

Stevens03 · September 30, 2011

Everything cost more and it cost more to fix But if you have the money, there's no need to talk you out of it.

Post photos when you get it

Superperv23 · September 30, 2011

I think you should look at the prices of replacing things on a diesel before you buy a 4 year old one, might help make up your mind haha

Shaners · September 30, 2011

I love my Duramax when I pull my boat. I get 16.5 MPG's towing it on the highway and have plenty of power to pass on 2 lane roads if necessary. My boat is a 20' fiberglass ski boat with a 350 in it.

Kodiak450 · October 1, 2011

Price of diesel fuel is always high >con.

Unless you gotta pull heavy equipment on a regular basis, loads that are over 15,000 lbs a gasser like a 6.0 will take care of alot of things. I had an 06 duramax crew cab LTZ short bed, loved the power! Especially loved how easy it would pull heavy machinery with ease, but didn't need the expensive fill up prices for doing what I could achieve in my 6.0. I was considering getting a plow for it, but was concerned about the front end too much with the added weight of the duramax so after not needing the duramax basically for anything else, I sold it. That truck had a set of balls on it, if I held down the brake and did a burn out, it would keep spinning until I let off the gas. The following year (late 07 with NBS) is when the restrictions came into place.

lineman · October 1, 2011

Duramax is cool to drive until injectors and other issues strart to cause you problems. In my opion you want to have a trailer on 95% of the time when you have diesel. But that is my opion. I just laugh at the guys at work that are pulling there diesels in the shop at work in the winter after the gell up on them.

cghbuilder86 · October 1, 2011

I've got a friend that says his Dmax avg. 13 mpg empty! And thats with the higher cost of diesel...

Doug_Scott · October 1, 2011

I've got a friend that says his Dmax avg. 13 mpg empty! And thats with the higher cost of diesel...

You may find that he also gets 13mpg towing as well. It is the towing where the diesel starts to be more efficient.

8100 Power · October 2, 2011

Duramax is cool to drive until injectors and other issues strart to cause you problems. In my opion you want to have a trailer on 95% of the time when you have diesel. But that is my opion. I just laugh at the guys at work that are pulling there diesels in the shop at work in the winter after the gell up on them.

While that's true on LB7 model Duramax, from 05 (LLY) up injector issues are pretty rare. And, if they do go bad they are MUCH easier to change since you don't have to remove the head.

RockySierra · October 2, 2011

Injector issues are VERY rare now and there are really not all that many problems overall with the truck, it is very solid and tops the Ford and Dodge diesels in all regards (Even the truck magazines agree) (up until the 2011/2012 year when Dodge and Ford finally could come up with something that can match or slightly beat the torque and HP levels that the Duramax has held onto the lead for since 2001. All that piddly stuff aside, As long as you don't heavily mod the truck with performance tunes (you will need to upgrade the transmission if you want to go above 75HP tune) The Duramax is a solid truck that will last many hundreds of thousands of miles with not too many problems if it is taken care of.

City MPG- 14-17

Highway MPG- 17-21 MPG on my 2008 Duramax, 2500 long bed completely stock.

RCman · October 3, 2011

Coming from someone who went from a 5.3L w/ 4.10s 1500 to a Duramax 2500HD, there is no comparison. They are to totally different classes of trucks.

My DMax stops better loaded & unloaded. I get similar mileage unloaded ~18mpg, and significant better mileage loaded ~12-13mpg vs ~9mpg with about 9k to 11k lbs back there.

Maintenance is going to be more costly, but it sure is worth it, IMO. I'll probably never own another gas truck.

nbuchanan · October 4, 2011

The grass isn't always greener on the other side, especially when things start breaking on the diesel motor. I have a 6.0 2500HD and it does everything I ask of it. So if you don't need it then I would save your money.

RockySierra · October 4, 2011

Just what things are you referring to? The Duramax has been a VERY reliable engine and is not subject to frequent breakdowns.

nbuchanan · October 5, 2011

Just what things are you referring to? The Duramax has been a VERY reliable engine and is not subject to frequent breakdowns.

Oh believe me I'm not saying the Duramax isn't a dependable motor, If I could afford a one I would gladly drive one. I was just saying that when things do start to go wrong with diesel motors the repairs are usually more expensive. He said to convince him otherwise so thats what I was doing.

Diesail · October 6, 2011

Coming from someone who went from a 5.3L w/ 4.10s 1500 to a Duramax 2500HD, there is no comparison. They are to totally different classes of trucks.
My DMax stops better loaded & unloaded. I get similar mileage unloaded ~18mpg, and significant better mileage loaded ~12-13mpg vs ~9mpg with about 9k to 11k lbs back there.

Maintenance is going to be more costly, but it sure is worth it, IMO. I'll probably never own another gas truck.

^X2, I went from a Yukon XL which barely towed the boats I pull to a '08 2500 dmax. I do two long trips, 1200 miles each way every year as well as a several local tows. On the highway it is night and day towing. Is it worth it? Here are the things to consider.

1) Ride Quality

2) It's a big truck, a CCSB is over 20 feet long, add two feet for a long box.

3) Fuel costs are pretty much a wash. Diesel is more but the mileage is better so its a wash IMO

4) Maintainance, 10 quarts of more expensive oil is a lot. DIY and it is going to cost you $60+

Also be very careful if buying a '07.5 and up. Warranty is 5 years 100k, but if the previous owner has EVER installed a programmer warranty is out the window.