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3/4 ton duramax or 1/2 ton 6.2L for 7K - 10K lbs


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but ins't it really hard on gas compared to the diesel?

 

 

mine gets 2 mpg worse................diesel cost 40 cents more a gallon not to mention all the other bs it cost to buy one or upkeep it. do the math. to add my duramax was junk I owned it for 10 years from being 1 year old. prob spent enough to replace 2 or 3 ls engines in that time period in repairs.

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I get 13mpg's unloaded, and 9-10mpg's with a trailer. Gas is cheaper, oil changes are cheaper, fuel pumps are cheaper. Per mile this is the cheapest setup to get the job done.

 

 

Does the diesel get better mpg's? Absolutely. But I have NEVER not been able to maintain speeds safely. If I needed to go 15 above the speed limit on the highway all the time, never hesitate going up a hill and hauled every single mile, than maybe I would consider a diesel. But my truck fires up first try every time I hop in, and have never had a problem.

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I get 13mpg's unloaded, and 9-10mpg's with a trailer. Gas is cheaper, oil changes are cheaper, fuel pumps are cheaper. Per mile this is the cheapest setup to get the job done.

 

 

Does the diesel get better mpg's? Absolutely. But I have NEVER not been able to maintain speeds safely. If I needed to go 15 above the speed limit on the highway all the time, never hesitate going up a hill and hauled every single mile, than maybe I would consider a diesel. But my truck fires up first try every time I hop in, and have never had a problem.

Have to remember though guys

... he is comparing his 2001..

.which has a way more useful powerband for pulling than any 6 liter 2007 and newer. Your results will vary for mileage and otherwise. ...

 

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Are you saying the newer 6.0 drivetrains aren't as stout? I assumed the engines were the same, and the newer 6L80E would only be an improvement over mine.

Longevity is not what I am talking about ever in my posts. ... although I despise the 6L90E( they don't use the 80e in hds) it holds up fine. And yeah... the 6 speed behind your LQ4 would be an improvement.... but when you install rectangular port heads on an engine that flow way more than it could ever require and a dinky little camshaft you get a racecar powerband.... 4500 and up... that's it. Your LQ4 with VVT and a mild bump in compression hooked to the 6 speed would tow very well... but cathedral port heads promote torque at an rpm useful in a pickup truck too...

 

I have towed with my 05 for a long time... towed with the newer trucks from 07 up and now with my 2015 6.2. Although less power the torque in my old 05 comes in much like my 2015 and I don't have to Rev the truck to the moon to pull grades and maintain speed...

 

 

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Nothing wrong with revving. They are made to live at 4500rpm. Today 6.0 with 4.10 rear and 6 speed is night and day stronger than the previous gen's.

No they really aren't... night and day is a pretty bold outlook... if you stuck the 6 speed with 4.10s behind an LQ4 it wouldn't be beaten by them by much... actually at all. And sitting at 4500 rpm plus listening to that junk scream on every bump in the road or less than 3 grand... hmm... I will take the less than 3 grand approach. The gen 4 is no more better suited for rpm than the gen 3 trucks are.... whether they need to do it is something else entirely.

 

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I've towed about 9,000 lb camping trailer with my '10 Sierra 1/2 ton & a '14 Sierra 3/4 ton and I'd say if you're towing that kind of weight 3/4 weekends a month I'd go 3/4 Ton. The 3/4 is just built so much more heavy duty - brakes, suspension, everything. If you want to have your truck a LONG time, make the investment and go HD.

I towed 5500-6000 lbs for about 20 hrs straight with the 1/2 ton and it did it no problem at all, but if you're starting to push upwards of 8-9,000 lbs you will really feel the difference in brakes and chassis with the HD. It just feels so much more planted and secure.

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I will throw this out there just for information purposes.

A retired friend of mine has a 2010 Chev. crew, 2500 diesel, Allison trans. Bought new, Mobil 1 oil always and serviced regularly. He lives in Iowa but has a second home here in Colorado. His truck has about 110k on it, out of warranty. So it gets flat land and mountain towing duties.

He tows an enclosed trailer back and forth from Iowa and a 12k lb. loaded fifth wheel all over the south western US .

 

To the point:

He loves the truck for towing but last summer with his enclosed trailer in tow on his way to Colorado(6-7k lbs.) it would not pull at freeway speeds and had trouble in the mountains. It ran fine other than that. He stopped at two dealers on his way out and they replaced the fuel filter twice and said it was OK. Upon returning to Iowa not towing anything and taking the truck to the dealer where he bought it (he has done business with the dealer for over 20 years) they told a different story.

They rebuilt the fuel system, new pump, injectors etc.

The Bill was $8K. The truck pulls like it used to.

The diesels pull like no other but the cost can be substantial compared to a gaser, purchase price, fuel costs and maintenance.

 

It's a big decision but if you have the money DIESEL 2500 being it sounds like you will be towing a lot.

 

To me these new vehicles are just like owning a BOAT, I say this from experience.

Break

Out

Another

Thousand !!!!

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Longevity is not what I am talking about ever in my posts. ... although I despise the 6L90E( they don't use the 80e in hds) it holds up fine. And yeah... the 6 speed behind your LQ4 would be an improvement.... but when you install rectangular port heads on an engine that flow way more than it could ever require and a dinky little camshaft you get a racecar powerband.... 4500 and up... that's it. Your LQ4 with VVT and a mild bump in compression hooked to the 6 speed would tow very well... but cathedral port heads promote torque at an rpm useful in a pickup truck too...

 

I have towed with my 05 for a long time... towed with the newer trucks from 07 up and now with my 2015 6.2. Although less power the torque in my old 05 comes in much like my 2015 and I don't have to Rev the truck to the moon to pull grades and maintain speed...

 

 

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I have a 07 ly6 6l90e ive never had to slam it to the ground like that to pull a grade. usually stays 4k and under. ive driven several 4l80e 6.0 they are a dog compared to the lower geared 6l90e 6.0. not to mention I can get 17-18 mpg on the highway unloaded in it.

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nekkidhillbilly, on 02 Feb 2016 - 09:57 AM, said:

 

I have a 07 ly6 6l90e ive never had to slam it to the ground like that to pull a grade. usually stays 4k and under. ive driven several 4l80e 6.0 they are a dog compared to the lower geared 6l90e 6.0. not to mention I can get 17-18 mpg on the highway unloaded in it.

That's nice lol. I would love to hook my 05 to an equal size trailer and outpull yours on any grade but you are a couple thousand miles away... as always lol. You don't have to agree with me but I don't care. Put a real set of heads on that thing and make a truck out of it, lol.

 

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That's nice lol. I would love to hook my 05 to an equal size trailer and outpull yours on any grade but you are a couple thousand miles away... as always lol. You don't have to agree with me but I don't care. Put a real set of heads on that thing and make a truck out of it, lol.

 

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sorry you are talking out of your butt. a ly6 makes peak tq at 4500 and makes around 20 ft lbs more than a lq4. 376-380 depending years. a lq4 makes peak at 4000 but makes 20 ft lbs less. 360-370 ft lbs depending on the year. the ly6 at 4000 rpm is making the same 360 as the lq4 but builds on up to its peak tq curve at 4500 pushing the engine 20 ft lbs more. the 6l90e backing also has a much larger gear range with lower first gear and higher top gear taking much more advantage of the power. a 4l80e first gear is 2.48 its final is .75. the 6l90e is 4.03 its final is .67. a ly6 makes 370 at around 4200 for the later lq4s 370 at 4000. so yes it makes tq at lower rpm. 200 rpm..................amazing isn't it. however it still has around 10 more if at a whopping 300 rpm more.

 

 

so I could put the older heads and intake on I guess that will make it a real truck. just a less powerful one. not even going into the hp gains.

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sorry you are talking out of your butt. a ly6 makes peak tq at 4500 and makes around 20 ft lbs more than a lq4. 376-380 depending years. a lq4 makes peak at 4000 but makes 20 ft lbs less. 360-370 ft lbs depending on the year. the ly6 at 4000 rpm is making the same 360 as the lq4 but builds on up to its peak tq curve at 4500 pushing the engine 20 ft lbs more. the 6l90e backing also has a much larger gear range with lower first gear and higher top gear taking much more advantage of the power. a 4l80e first gear is 2.48 its final is .75. the 6l90e is 4.03 its final is .67. a ly6 makes 370 at around 4200 for the later lq4s 370 at 4000. so yes it makes tq at lower rpm. 200 rpm..................amazing isn't it. however it still has around 10 more if at a whopping 300 rpm more.

 

 

so I could put the older heads and intake on I guess that will make it a real truck. just a less powerful one. not even going into the hp gains.

You never account the LY6'S utterly useless powerband based on the cylinder heads. The L92 heads are awesome for horsepower at high rpm

... mid range and low end torque they are not.... The improvements from the transmission are offset by it having no low end power.... Peak torque numbers aren't what a person should care about.... it's a entire curve of power where the LY6 real world falls terribly short in the real world. In fact the LY6 has absolutely pathetic numbers overall for such an "improvement" over the previous cathedral head trucks if you look at the lackluster pcm tune and the fact they allowed to rev to 5200 rpm but rated them at 4400 rpm only. The LY6 rated at 4400 rpm like the lq4 was is only around 330 hp... so the gains with the added technology isn't a lot.... and then you factor in how they pull below 4500 rpm....No. You could add vvt in the LQ4 and walk an LY6 anywhere but maybe if you want to run redline all day.

 

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