08 CHEVY

[Dmace]

Even the "best drivetrain" argument is not a deal breaker anymore since you can get a Cummins diesel with an Aisin transmission in the RAM. Factory jake brake, inline 6 with decades of proven performance, and a transmission that has been on just as many heavy duty trucks as the Allison.

I would take either GM or Dodge for heavy duty trucks but the Dodge just has a better interior and layout in my opinion and when I am hauling cars/tractors from auctions 300-500 miles away, I like comfort.

 

[Diamondpilot]

When I talk fit and finish I am talking the whole truck, not just the interior. Mine rattled, my neighbors is falling apart, especially the doors. The body lines are not uniform or tight like a Ford or the Foreign competition. The paint on all 3 of my GM's has been horrible. The Blazer and all late 80's GM vehicles simply peeled off. My Dmax had to have the bed repainted due to the paint flaking off behind the wheels, ect.

They have a decent product, they are just a step behind the others on the small things. I am by no means a Martha Stewart but I do expect them to be as good as the next guy on the finished product and they simply are not.

Chris

 

[bjess8]

I did not mean for this to be get out of hand but I will say this is my first chevy truck and I have no problems with it yet and I say yet.I like it and have to say I work with some guys who drive dodges and fords and they all have problems so lets keep real.If you have a dodge and ford and say you never had problems or you don't know any one that has problems either then sorry you are lying.just keeping it real.I like all the BIG three trucks and just bought a chevy cause I liked it.If I bought a dodge or ford I would probably like them too.just my opinion.

 

[wkpoor]

The paint on all 3 of my GM's has been horrible. The Blazer and all late 80's GM vehicles simply peeled off. My Dmax had to have the bed repainted due to the paint flaking off behind the wheels, ect.

You can thank our lovely guvernment for the paint issue. Like everything else they mandate what kind and how to build a car. I remember dad talking about the paint problem being the water based paint they were forced to use. Its been for the most part solved but don't think for a minute it was just a GM problem. There is a Ford PU in the lot at work with the top all peeled off. Its hard to say what other factors play into paint like where the plant is located or the volume they use. In the end we just blame the mfg even though their hands are many times tied on what products they can use or how they can use them.

 

[Builder]

Come on Duane..... GM trucks have been noted for the past 5 years of having leaking trans cooler lines. Has GM done anything about it.. Nothing!!!!!!!! Just keep replacing the ones under warranty and charging the others........ There are so many home made kits you can buy to fix this its sick, WHY>> Cause GM is not fixing the issue... I have gone through 2 sets in on my 08 in 30K and my old 2003 went through 1 set 42K. If this is the best drivetrain, then there are some issues. Back 5 years I think they had the best tranny, but now, everyone has caught up. The front end on these trucks is not built for abuse. The tie rods and ends are very good examples of that. Can and will the front end work hard. Yes, but not without wearing out very fast.

I am thrilled you like you chevy... and I do not mind my GM. It was the best choice at the time i bought. And it still might be right now since the 6.4 is going to die soon. But by no means is this truck without flaws, and some major ones. And I do not think this truck would be the hardest worker out of the big 3....

My transmission lines don't "leak", they "seep" just like the main seal seeped and eventually leaked oil on all the sooperduites I owned. I have 4 foot diameter stains on my shop floors from them, so I guess phord is worse.

Tell me how the other 2 trannies have "caught up" to our Allison trannies. I see no features a torqshift has that make it as good or fully featured as my ally. Dodge (fiat)? um, no.

Gun against their head, 9 out of 10 would take an allison transmission over a phord or fiat built transmission, and you know it.

I don't see any major flaws in GM trucks. Any vehicle with "major flaws" would not sell 1 million units per year, not to mention 1,000.

As far as the front ends go, it's a trade off. It amazes me how simple it is to understand, but most guys don't grasp this. GM front ends are softer & more delicate than phord front ends. I have never denied this. The trade off is in the ride. GM rides better/softer.

If your intention is to drive over rocks & logs or plow snow, you'd do better with a ford if you want better off road clearance. If your intention is to drive mostly on roads and do some occasional off roading (as in my case), then get a GM if you want your OTR experiences to be more comfortable. I'm not a macho-man that takes my truck off road to impress my s/o or off-road as a hobby or plow snow because I realized after 10 years it isn't worth it, so I don't need a Ford.

Truth be said, 95% of all phord guys that brag about their trucks' off-road prowess over GM never even put the truck in 4x4. I'll never exceed the ability of my GMC's off road capability and neither will 95% of their owners. It will do anything I want & more, so I don't need Fords SFA or their 5 speed in-house tranny, 2 year-run 6.4L diesel with flame thower tailpipe, removable cab for injector work, tailgate step for the 5' high truck bed, or dummy gauges that jump into the red zone after it's too late..

I'm real happy with my GMC. If they would make their paper GVWRs higher to impress their prospective customers that they're the same as Ford, they would sell a lot more product. I believe that is their biggest fault right now-they don't impress the "brochure" experts.

 

[nmu98]

My transmission lines don't "leak", they "seep" just like the main seal seeped and eventually leaked oil on all the sooperduites I owned. I have 4 foot diameter stains on my shop floors from them, so I guess phord is worse.

Tell me how the other 2 trannies have "caught up" to our Allison trannies. I see no features a torqshift has that make it as good or fully featured as my ally. Dodge (fiat)? um, no.

Gun against their head, 9 out of 10 would take an allison transmission over a phord or fiat built transmission, and you know it. The 1 of 10 that won't take it have blue oval on the brain and won't drive anything else.

I don't see any major flaws in GM trucks. Any vehicle with "major flaws" would not sell 1 million units per year, not to mention 1,000.

Let's get real for a minute Brian, I like you but, you're a very picky guy. You had problems with previous brands and complained about them, too and that's OK, but I think the things you nitpick about wouldn't bother most people.

The things I liked about the Torqshift were small, but nice. It could handle way more power than the allison before it hicupped. Was it slipping clutches, who knows, you would know with the allison. I liked the gearing a little better in the torqshift. It seemed to fit the truck a little better. I like the fact that I could lock the Torq-converter to help warm the engine. And small things like that.

I don't hate GM trucks, but i think its fair to say that the quality of them is sub par to ford. I would love to have a Dura-Ford. In fact I had a good talk with Merchant about building me one before I decided it was too much money.

Yes, i am pickey, and I over analize decisions, and I read too much. But trust me, when it was below zero for most of the midwest, the diesel place was full of people with the same problem and codes. I really hate the limp mode, especially when it shuts the truck down over stupid problems that would not endanger the motor.

If you have the tranny line "seep" and you do not take care of it, it will soon be a "leak" then it will be a "stream" and then there will be a failure. They only get worse. Been there.

I honestly miss the old Duke, Hellbent on Fords

 

[Builder]

Even the "best drivetrain" argument is not a deal breaker anymore since you can get a Cummins diesel with an Aisin transmission in the RAM. Factory jake brake, inline 6 with decades of proven performance, and a transmission that has been on just as many heavy duty trucks as the Allison.

I would take either GM or Dodge for heavy duty trucks but the Dodge just has a better interior and layout in my opinion and when I am hauling cars/tractors from auctions 300-500 miles away, I like comfort.

Only on the cab/chassis. Not available on the Ram pickup.

 

[Builder]

The things I liked about the Torqshift were small, but nice. It could handle way more power than the allison before it hicupped. Was it slipping clutches, who knows, you would know with the allison. I liked the gearing a little better in the torqshift. It seemed to fit the truck a little better. I like the fact that I could lock the Torq-converter to help warm the engine. And small things like that.

That's your opinion and you're entitled, but allison does that to protect the tranny. That's the smart thing to do. If you have a trans that won't slip or limp, it won't protect itself. Again, you're in the vast minority, you want to hotrod your trucks for 2X power, so the trans that doesn't protect itself as well appeals to your individual needs better. Vast majority of truck owners don't hot-rod. They want the best truck drivetrain off the dealers lot with no mods and best warranty.

If you don't believe me, ask a transmission expert what is better, a trans that protects itself, or one that will let you add power, then destroy itself with that power.

Lock the torq converter? Go research and see who's transmission locks the TC in more gears and get back to me.

 

[nmu98]

That's your opinion and you're entitled, but allison does that to protect the tranny. That's the smart thing to do. If you have a trans that won't slip or limp, it won't protect itself. Again, you're in the vast minority, you want to hotrod your trucks for 2X power, so the trans that doesn't protect itself as well appeals to your individual needs better. Vast majority of truck owners don't hot-rod. They want the best truck drivetrain off the dealers lot with no mods and best warranty.

If you don't believe me, ask a transmission expert what is better, a trans that protects itself, or one that will let you add power, then destroy itself with that power.

Lock the torq converter? Go research and see who's transmission locks the TC in more gears and get back to me.

I like the fact that the alli limps with power, but I have put way more power tot he TQ shift, and according to Bully Dogs monitor, never slipped the trans. BUT, without the monitoring equipment, your right, it would genade. My point there was not clear, but that the TQshift would take more power (stock). But I do not play HP games any more, so.......

Ford has what they call upfitter switches available for thier trucks. You could wire those in to lock the TC at idle to aid in warming up the engine. That was cool. There were many options available with those switches that it seems no one but Ford has come up with.

I agree, I like the tow haul of the alli... But its not the end all be all of options.

 

[Builder]

I like the fact that the alli limps with power, but I have put way more power tot he TQ shift, and according to Bully Dogs monitor, never slipped the trans. BUT, without the monitoring equipment, your right, it would genade. My point there was not clear, but that the TQshift would take more power (stock). But I do not play HP games any more, so.......

Ford has what they call upfitter switches available for thier trucks. You could wire those in to lock the TC at idle to aid in warming up the engine. That was cool. There were many options available with those switches that it seems no one but Ford has come up with.

I agree, I like the tow haul of the alli... But its not the end all be all of options.

Here's some more features: How about an extra (6th) gear? How about more gears that lock (2-6)? How about bigger input/ouput shafts & tailshaft? How about manual shift feature? How about much longer warranty? How about a proportional trans temp gauge instead of a dummy gauge?

I'll take those over a trans too "dumb" to not slip before it grenades inside and costs the owner thousands in repairs!!