Giving the gas motor a shot

Another JR · January 26, 2023

On 1/25/2023 at 10:25 AM, Jettech1 said:

The diesel option in both the 2500/3500 give you the 12" rear diff. But they both get the 11.5" when they are gassers from what I've read. I could be wrong as I am most of the time...lol....

My understanding is the diesel 3500 has the larger rear differential, but not the diesel 2500. I am not positive this is correct though.

Edited January 26, 2023 by Another JR

Jettech1 · January 26, 2023

49 minutes ago, Another JR said:

My understanding is the diesel 3500 has the larger rear differential, but not the diesel 2500. I am not positive this is correct though.

Because I'm often wrong I thought I would dig in a bit and try to find the correct answer. From my research the 11.5" (GT4) 3.73 rear end is used in both the 2500/3500 gassers. The 12" (GU6) 3.42 rear end is used in the 2500/3500 diesels. Just because of my research doesn't mean I'm 100% correct, it only means what I was able to find using a differential supplier website.

Doodle · January 27, 2023

On 1/25/2023 at 12:25 PM, Jettech1 said:

The diesel option in both the 2500/3500 give you the 12" rear diff. But they both get the 11.5" when they are gassers from what I've read. I could be wrong as I am most of the time...lol.... And you're right about the payload capacities between the two. The 3500's generally have about 500lb extra payload capacity due to the rear helper springs. The overall spring pack is identical between them both. I guess a 3500 gasser might be useful if you're more looking for payload capacities and not necessarily towing abilities. And that brings up one other option that I had to have and would totally recommend for anyone buying a HD truck, and that is the 5th wheel/gooseneck prep. It's about a grand but gives you more options. We probably will never buy a 5th wheel, but who knows, it's always nice to have the ability if needed. To me that is the one option, even if you never use it, to always select or look for when buying a HD.

Usually I just install the B&W turnover ball but this 23 came with the factory prep package. I personally don't like it. I like the B&W better, but I don't own a fifth wheel either only gooseneck trailers. I hate the fact you can turn the ball over and it seems to "rattle" (for lack of a better term) a lot more. Plus I don't like the fact the ball sits up off the bed higher than the B&W. But it is a nice deal that it's all setup when you get it and you don't have to drop it off and get it installed.

CRApex · January 27, 2023

How will the ride compare between the gas/diesel. It seems like the diesel might have a nicer ride given the additiuonal weight. I was convinced I was giving the gas motor a shot but I'm starting to waffle again. The dealer still has time to change my order.

77xbody · January 27, 2023

17 hours ago, Another JR said:

Just as a data point:

The RGAWR on my 2021 3500 hd cclb srw gas truck is 7,250 lbs. The tires (stock Michelins on 18s) are rated at 3,640 lbs single at 80 psi, so the simple tire limited axle limit would be 7,280 lbs. My payload rating is 4,054 lbs, which I think is about 1,000 lbs more than a typical 2500hd.

My understanding from what MTU has posted is that, in addition to differences in the rear overload springs, the basic rear spring pack on the 3500 has one additional spring relative to the 2500.

My 21 CCSB Custom 2500hd gas had around 3480 of payload and my 22 CCSB LT 2500hd has around the same as far as payload. I wanted a 3500hd for the extra 600lb ish of payload but it was really hard to find my 2500hd and I couldn't find a 3500hd that had what I wanted.

Pryme · January 27, 2023

35 minutes ago, CRApex said:

How will the ride compare between the gas/diesel. It seems like the diesel might have a nicer ride given the additiuonal weight. I was convinced I was giving the gas motor a shot but I'm starting to waffle again. The dealer still has time to change my order.

Negligible difference I’m sure.

Another JR · January 27, 2023

7 hours ago, CRApex said:

How will the ride compare between the gas/diesel. It seems like the diesel might have a nicer ride given the additiuonal weight. I was convinced I was giving the gas motor a shot but I'm starting to waffle again. The dealer still has time to change my order.

I wouldn’t let ride decide your diesel vs gas decision. Capability needs, purchase and maintenance cost, and reliability track record would be the drivers for me.

If you look at the chart for which torsion springs and front axle weight ratings apply to the various configurations, you can see they bump up the spring and the rating by 400 lbs for the diesel in a given body configuration. So the front of the diesel will be heavier, but the stiffness of the front suspension as loaded would be similar.

Dr1ft3r · January 27, 2023

On 1/26/2023 at 3:23 PM, Jettech1 said:

Because I'm often wrong I thought I would dig in a bit and try to find the correct answer. From my research the 11.5" (GT4) 3.73 rear end is used in both the 2500/3500 gassers. The 12" (GU6) 3.42 rear end is used in the 2500/3500 diesels. Just because of my research doesn't mean I'm 100% correct, it only means what I was able to find using a differential supplier website.

I can state for a fact that my 3500 gasser has 3.73 gears.

Another JR · January 28, 2023

2 hours ago, Dr1ft3r said:

I can state for a fact that my 3500 gasser has 3.73 gears.

Yes, all gas are 3.73 and all diesel are 3.42. What we were discussing was whether all diesels have the larger ring gear diameter. Jettech1 is correct I believe that all diesels have the larger gear set. I just remembered that the difference between 2500 and 3500 gear set size (not ratio) I had seen in a video was for the pre-2020 gas models.