Am I better off getting a 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton pickup, for uses described?

Copperhead · Feb 27, 2016

Z-Michigan said:
For anyone interested, we bought a 2015 Chevy 2500 4wd crew cab with the 6.0L gas engine and 6.5' bed, back in December 2014. I've had it about 14 months now and I think it was a good choice. The chassis, brakes etc. are all comfortable towing the same 3-horse slant load gooseneck trailer that we had before and still have. Gas mileage isn't great - we can hit maybe 16mpg with no trailer at a steady 55 or so, but around town is 11-12 and towing the horse trailer is 10-11 at moderate speeds and 9 or even a bit less at 70mph. Not good, but within our expectations. (Current gas prices, that I never expected to see again, are appreciated.)

The possible switch to a smaller trailer is on the back burner. If we had already made that switch then a 1/2 ton probably would have been a good choice, but towing the 3-horse with the 3/4 ton gas I really wouldn't want a 1/2 ton to try and pull it.

Another positive is that the Chevy has a payload rating around 2700lbs. Since my wife doesn't always consider the weight of stuff she wants to put in the bed, this greatly decreases the chance of overloading the truck.

Compared to the Dodge we had before, ride quality is FAR better, a combination of longer wheelbase, independent front suspension, and slightly larger tires. Going from a quad-cab (extended cab) Dodge with a 5'9" bed to a full crew-cab with a 6.5' bed has also been interesting in terms of difficulty in parking. It's a long truck.

The Nissan Titan XD that just came out would have been a top pick if it had been around when we were buying, but it wasn't.

Congrats. I did the same thing in buying a 2015 Silverado 2500HD 6.0L DC Z71. Definitely meets all my needs comfortably. I haul more than I tow. I needed more payload than a 1500 can comfortably do. Filled it up, with two people on board and about 200 lb of gear in the back, I took it to the scale at the local grain elevator and weighed it. About 7200 and change. That left about 2300 lb of payload capacity left to get to the 9500 GVWR. I will probably never pull anything that even approaches the max towing capability.

Thus far, primarily on E15 fuel which is about 10 cents a gallon cheaper than E10 in my area, I have averaged 14-15 mpg in summer and 13-14 in winter. That is all miles.... hauling, highway, driving to town, in town, gravel roads, off road on the property, snow, dry, mud, etc. On road trips, a little better. Did a 1500 mile road trip around Memorial Day last year and averaged 17-18 mpg for the entire trip, primarily on E10 fuel. I can live with that.

Only complaint, the stock Michelin LTX AT2 tires. They have got to go. Terrible performers for rural gravel, mud, snow, and off road. As a street, highway tire, not bad. Pretty sad when you slide sideways down wet hillside on the property while my son in his new Jeep Trailhawk did the same hill without a hiccup. Wife get's a little tense when driving this pickup down the two miles of muddy gravel road to the highway. Yep, new tires going on soon.

rankrank1 · Feb 27, 2016

Copperhead said:
....Thus far, primarily on E15 fuel which is about 10 cents a gallon cheaper than E10 in my area, I have averaged 14-15 mpg in summer and 13-14 in winter. That is all miles.... hauling, highway, driving to town, in town, gravel roads, off road on the property, snow, dry, mud, etc. On road trips, a little better. Did a 1500 mile road trip around Memorial Day last year and averaged 17-18 mpg for the entire trip, primarily on E10 fuel. I can live with that....

Wow, I know the GM twins starting with the 2014 motor redesign that the refreshed 6.0 gets slightly better mpg than the older 6.0 version, but your mpg is some mpg that most simply do not see with the 6.0 even in 2wd let alone 4wd. You definitely got a good truck an no chance at all that would I let the dealer reflash my pcm for fear of losing that stellar mpg.

My next truck is likely to be a 2500 as that is about the only way to get an extended cab longbed (8'). Only Toyota and Ford still offer it in a 1500 series and I have never been a Ford man. Nothing against the Toyota other than looks are not the best, no auto 4wd is a bummer on their 1500, plus low mpg for a 1500. So 2500 is likely my next truck in a few years to get more of what I like hopefully.

I have no doubt the GM 6.0 is likely the most most bullet proof engine platform. I have several friends with them and all with 250k plus miles on them and they still run great...but they do like gas...still the best "base" gasoline engine offered by truck manufacturers in 2500HD trucks for well over 15 years now...

Zerk · Feb 27, 2016

So what did the guy get?

I don't have much faith in Dodge.

I am a little curious about 1500vs2500 gas or diesel. I got 100k on one GMC and 200k on other gas 1500s. Never pulled anything big. Took my tractor home with 22 foot tilt trailer, and **** it was slow. If you are in a flat part of the country, it may be different. But I don't pull often, yet. Not sure if I would want to take it on the freeway.

Copperhead · Feb 27, 2016

Yeah, I got a keeper. Not the perfect pickup, but I am not impressed with anything on the market right now. But this one was a great buy and it will do the job. My vehicles really never see a dealership again unless there is a warranty issue. So no risk of a dealer refreshing the ECM on this one. The L96 6.0L is the last of the Vortec line. Might be replaced soon. They haven't yet because it is such a strong, reliable motor. And since 3/4 of those that buy the HD pickups from GM are commercial buyers, GM doesn't want to play fast and loose with engine changes like they do with the 1/2 ton products. If an OEM ticks off their commercial buyers, it really means a serious hit in sales and it takes a long time to regain those customers.

If one has to tow heavy and often, no doubt a diesel is the better way to go. I don't have that issue. I primarily need the payload rating of the 2500, so the 6.0L does a great job hauling heavy. My towing is relatively light. I doubt I will ever have more than 8000 lb hooked up in the foreseeable future, and most times no more than 5K. But it is hard to put a ton of stuff in the back of a 1/2 ton without issues.

Z-Michigan · Mar 1, 2016

Zerk said:
So what did the guy get?

If you mean me (the OP), I detailed it in post 46. That's the only reason the thread was bumped in the last year or so.

Zerk · Mar 3, 2016

Would have been quicker for you, to just write, I got 2500 gasser.

handirifle · Mar 4, 2016

I used to have a 1/2 ton Toyota, the first version. It was fine for everything I did, including hauling some fairly hefty trailers. It was only rated for 7K so a little different. Getting to the point, it was a fine, reliable truck, but when we started 5th wheel pulling I went diesel. My only cash outlay has been maintenance and for the record, diesel here is less then reg gas, so fuel cost is relative.

For what you want, I agree a gasser 1/2 ton will certainly do the job. As was also mentioned, the truck you have (is probably paid for) and if you start doing some of your own work, it will be a lot cheaper than buying a new truck.

The 1/2 ton trucks will ride smoother, no doubt. Gas mileage, my Tundra, with the 4.7L got 15 hwy, and 13 combined. All factory stock. My diesel (2006 GMC) gets 18.5 combined, and 20-21 hwy. There is no comparison to the rides empty, the Tundra was way nicer on the back.

If i were looking at a new 1/2 ton today, I would look real close at the Ecoboost (Ford) or Ecodiesel (Ram). Heck the new GM mod sized trucks with the 2.8L Duramax is rated to tow 7K, and it rides like a car. Some friends we RV with, pull one behind their motorhome.