summer road trips in the 2026 2500HD

[c4racer2]

Just got in two back to back road trips of about 700 miles each with my new 2026 2500HD trail boss.  Really nice highway cruiser.

Two very different trips - both loaded with gear for my band.

First trip was to Durango for an event with Indian Motorcycle - saw some really nice bikes while out there!

All mountain driving on back country highways - very pretty scenery - lots of hills along the way including a crazy pass that went up to 11,000 feet!

Overall MPG for that trip was 15, speeds were typically 60-70 range depending on road.

 

This past weekend was into rural Nebraska, so mostly fast interstate (76 and 80) with some fast 2 lane getting to / from the final destination outside of North Platt.

Speeds mostly ~80.  Also mostly flat although somehow dropped from 5K to 3K feet and then back up getting back into CO - didn't really notice it was subtle probably over a long distance.

Overall MPG for the trip was 14.

 

Truck is still barely broken in - just got past 2K miles on the second trip.

We survived some torrential thunderstorms in NE on Sat. night - especially driving to the hotel after the gig at 1AM.  Truck didn't skip a beat - I think the weight of these HD trucks really reduces the hydroplane chances.

 

All good - made it back to Denver area mid day on Sunday for fathers day.

 

I did a quick calculation to compare MPG and overall trip cost to my previous truck, a 2018 Colorado V6.  From previous experience I would have expected to see a 4mpg improvement on both trips.  Based on current gas prices which are starting to come down but still $0.75 to $1 higher than they should be based on barrel pricing, each trip was about $40 more.  Really not much of a concern in the grand scheme of things I must say.

 

[Chuck FB]

I am surprised you got 15 going across Colorado as the up and down and the high elevation over all are never kind to fuel mileage, however that also goes to show that the much easier drive to North Platt was worse in fuel economy which at least in my mind I conclude that forcing a brick through the air faster takes a lot of power !. Mind you that also depends on if one has a tail wind or head wind as that can change the picture big time but that is always the luck of the draw situation. 

 

Would I be guessing right that going to Durango you took 285 and then 160 and going over Wolf Creek Pass ?. I never had the chance of going over that pass myself, certainly a few other passes and the very interesting scenic 550 Million Dollar highway with Red Mountain Pass as one of them which is also one of the 11000 foot passes.

 

Did you pull it down into manual mode and shift down some to hold yourself back ?.

[c4racer2]

15 hours ago, Chuck FB said:

I am surprised you got 15 going across Colorado as the up and down and the high elevation over all are never kind to fuel mileage, however that also goes to show that the much easier drive to North Platt was worse in fuel economy which at least in my mind I conclude that forcing a brick through the air faster takes a lot of power !. Mind you that also depends on if one has a tail wind or head wind as that can change the picture big time but that is always the luck of the draw situation. 

 

Would I be guessing right that going to Durango you took 285 and then 160 and going over Wolf Creek Pass ?. I never had the chance of going over that pass myself, certainly a few other passes and the very interesting scenic 550 Million Dollar highway with Red Mountain Pass as one of them which is also one of the 11000 foot passes.

 

Did you pull it down into manual mode and shift down some to hold yourself back ?.

 

Yes that's correct on the route to Durango - we just followed what google maps recommended. 

That is quite the pass btw - very steep going back down.  I didn't even need manual mode - I just used cruise control and set the truck at 50 I think when it was a 45 posted speed and for the most part it just held it there by keeping it in the right gear - everyonce in awhile there is a sharper turn that I just braked for - but it was pretty smooth going down it on both sides.  Amazing views around there for sure - we had no real time to stop, were on the clock for a set-up time, but we did stop in some 2 horse town somewhere a couple hours oustide of Durango in the middle of nowhere for burgers.

 

And yes - lots up up and downs on the Durango trip but I think it's a big difference going 70 vs. going 80-83 with the aero in play with these big trucks.  Even the much smaller Colorado does reallt bad on gas going up over 70, I think I would have been lucky to get 18 on that trip in the Colorado honestly.  The full size is definately more comfy for a long road trip too, and the amount of gear we had would have meant two vehicles if I still had the Colorado.

[Chuck FB]

4 minutes ago, c4racer2 said:

 

Yes that's correct on the route to Durango - we just followed what google maps recommended. 

That is quite the pass btw - very steep going back down.  I didn't even need manual mode - I just used cruise control and set the truck at 50 I think when it was a 45 posted speed and for the most part it just held it there by keeping it in the right gear - everyonce in awhile there is a sharper turn that I just braked for - but it was pretty smooth going down it on both sides.  Amazing views around there for sure - we had no real time to stop, were on the clock for a set-up time, but we did stop in some 2 horse town somewhere a couple hours oustide of Durango in the middle of nowhere for burgers.

 

And yes - lots up up and downs on the Durango trip but I think it's a big difference going 70 vs. going 80-83 with the aero in play with these big trucks.  Even the much smaller Colorado does reallt bad on gas going up over 70, I think I would have been lucky to get 18 on that trip in the Colorado honestly.  The full size is definately more comfy for a long road trip too, and the amount of gear we had would have meant two vehicles if I still had the Colorado.

 

I am sure that was quite the pass experience and not a great place to experience during the winter when the conditions are not good. I've seen video of that pass and also more detailed information and pictures about the wrecks at that one hair pin turn where tractor trailers have flown right off the cliff and I am sure from all the warning signs that you know the exact curve that was !. After all there is a reason why a song was made about Wolf Creek Pass !. By the way and I didn't realize this either when I bought my truck as its nothing I even thought of that would be programmed into the cruise control and this occurs in either the basic or the more advanced cruise that controls your distance behind a vehicle and that is the brakes going down a hill are being applied as soon as the vehicle goes a certain speed over the set cruise speed. While it certainly does force downshifts in the transmission as you found out with cruise on while going down hill, its also dragging the brakes as needed to keep the speed controlled to what the cruise was set to. For me, I find that unsettling simply because I have no concept then as to how MUCH brake input is being used a and just how hot are those brakes getting and the wear factor as well. I can see that system getting a person into trouble on long mountain grades while pulling a trailer as it would not only be standing on the brakes of the pickup without any driver input, it would also be automatically applying the trailer brakes and it could cause a run away unit by overheating the brakes. Its one thing on a shorter hill and if the driver allows it to do its thing but on a long mountain grade is where things could get so out of hand. As someone a while back on this forum said, they had someone following them at night I believe on a down grade and had the cruise set and the person behind them could see the brake lights being energized all the way down the hill. I figured when I saw your comment that you didn't know and would have no way of knowing that your truck was applying the brakes and that you would and rightfully so assume you only used the brakes when you pressed on the pedal to slow down more than the cruise set speed for the slower sharp curves. So its good knowledge to know this about the newer GM trucks, certainly when doing any descending on long mountain grades. In the future try kicking off the cruise and use the the manual mode on a pass to see what that is like as I know myself when I first experienced it I thought no way can this engine be holding me back this well and tried the same hill in manual mode and sure enough the engine was revving way up and still could not hold the trucks speed down like it could in cruise mode. 

 

Fuel mileage, that is where a really low sleek type of car can do better at higher speeds, certainly it starts sucking fuel too but a tall pickup is pushing massive amounts of air and also allowing a lot more air under it and the tow mirrors as in elephant ears pushing through the wind  as well. Driving like grandpa is about as good as one can do when driving one of these if trying to get the best fuel economy they can. I bet these trucks would get the best mileage they can if driven on a freeway in Florida if not busy traffic at a sedate speed and that sea level elevation without hills, vastly different then Colorado !. 

[c4racer2]

1 hour ago, Chuck FB said:

 

I am sure that was quite the pass experience and not a great place to experience during the winter when the conditions are not good. I've seen video of that pass and also more detailed information and pictures about the wrecks at that one hair pin turn where tractor trailers have flown right off the cliff and I am sure from all the warning signs that you know the exact curve that was !. After all there is a reason why a song was made about Wolf Creek Pass !. By the way and I didn't realize this either when I bought my truck as its nothing I even thought of that would be programmed into the cruise control and this occurs in either the basic or the more advanced cruise that controls your distance behind a vehicle and that is the brakes going down a hill are being applied as soon as the vehicle goes a certain speed over the set cruise speed. While it certainly does force downshifts in the transmission as you found out with cruise on while going down hill, its also dragging the brakes as needed to keep the speed controlled to what the cruise was set to. For me, I find that unsettling simply because I have no concept then as to how MUCH brake input is being used a and just how hot are those brakes getting and the wear factor as well. I can see that system getting a person into trouble on long mountain grades while pulling a trailer as it would not only be standing on the brakes of the pickup without any driver input, it would also be automatically applying the trailer brakes and it could cause a run away unit by overheating the brakes. Its one thing on a shorter hill and if the driver allows it to do its thing but on a long mountain grade is where things could get so out of hand. As someone a while back on this forum said, they had someone following them at night I believe on a down grade and had the cruise set and the person behind them could see the brake lights being energized all the way down the hill. I figured when I saw your comment that you didn't know and would have no way of knowing that your truck was applying the brakes and that you would and rightfully so assume you only used the brakes when you pressed on the pedal to slow down more than the cruise set speed for the slower sharp curves. So its good knowledge to know this about the newer GM trucks, certainly when doing any descending on long mountain grades. In the future try kicking off the cruise and use the the manual mode on a pass to see what that is like as I know myself when I first experienced it I thought no way can this engine be holding me back this well and tried the same hill in manual mode and sure enough the engine was revving way up and still could not hold the trucks speed down like it could in cruise mode. 

 

Fuel mileage, that is where a really low sleek type of car can do better at higher speeds, certainly it starts sucking fuel too but a tall pickup is pushing massive amounts of air and also allowing a lot more air under it and the tow mirrors as in elephant ears pushing through the wind  as well. Driving like grandpa is about as good as one can do when driving one of these if trying to get the best fuel economy they can. I bet these trucks would get the best mileage they can if driven on a freeway in Florida if not busy traffic at a sedate speed and that sea level elevation without hills, vastly different then Colorado !. 

oh ya that's good to know - I would rather use a gear than the brakes down a long hill.  I would not let cruise control take over on snow or towing a trailer for sure on hills anyway.  

 

The other thing about the CO trip was that was all done above 6K feet for the most part, so that has to use more gas as the motor is down a good amount of power up there.

 

If I drove my 2016 Camaro with a very similar V8 to this 6.6 it would probably get about 23-24 on the fast run up to NE.  But the premium fuel premium is steep here in CO, so it would still only save about $40 in overall costs for the round-trip.  And you sure can't carry much gear in a convertible camaro!

[Chuck FB]

I knew when I bought my truck that it had off road hill decent or craw control or whatever they call it and rolled my eyes at that but it gets throw on with other options my truck has, I just never had a heads up if the highway speed regular cruise setting had anything to do with the brakes and that took me by surprise. If you've ever been to the top of Pikes Peak and watched those ahead of you on the way down with their brake lights on constantly, one can guess they are probably not gearing down or not enough anyway if their vehicle will allow and a good reason their is a brake check spot part way down where they use an infra red heat gun to check how hot ones brakes are front and rear. 

 

Your right that once one gets out of the front range by Denver and I've not been on that stretch of 285 between Denver and Fairplay myself but I know its high and Fairplay at 10000 feet, Buena Vista at 8000, it drops a bit from there but then your going back up and over the 11000 pass and Durango is at 6500 . So yes your definitely right that 6500 and a lot higher is the theme of going anywhere out in that direction from Denver but hey, the down hill sections give fantastic fuel mileage !. 

 

I don't even look at the fuel pumps for what premium costs here, since I live on a farm and up to this point get fuel delivered I am rarely in front of a fuel pump and when I am, I am often using card lock bulk fuel stations so it tells me what the price is AFTER I buy the fuel. Looking up on gas buddy and converting to US gallons but in Canadian dollars, regular on average of the prices listed was around 5.95 and premium is around 7.00 . That was one reason I did not go for the 6.2 half ton aside from its lack of carrying/towing if one was going by the rule of using premium fuel and until recently one could only buy regular farm gas if playing the few cents off game for farm dyed fuel for a "farm licensed pickup". But yes I hear you on the fuel price difference and like the diesel theme with it often being more expensive then gas it doesn't have quite the charm to it either as it once did although right now here for some reason the price of diesel has come down more so its now inline with the price of regular gas.