New Truck

[hawkeye08]

Unless something happens to suddenly increase the bank account, I'll have my 2011 until I stop driving.

Nice truck, enjoy it

 

[timswi]

You'll love the L5P Duramax. With the integrated exhaust brake and tow haul mode on I go down 12% grades towing a 16k lb 5th wheel camper without having to touch the brakes.

And going up the grade I'm holding the speed limit at under 2k RPM

Thanks for the info..Haven't towed with it yet but hoping it's all that you mentioned. The exhaust brake should be nice because I tow in the PA mountains a lot.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I hardly tow with my Duramax but was pleased to notice yesterday how my old 08 doesn't seem to use any more fuel loaded up. I guess that's where the Diesels shine. Cruising along at highway speed with the thing doing 1200 RPM is a good feeling! That's like idling!

 

[timswi]

I hardly tow with my Duramax but was pleased to notice yesterday how my old 08 doesn't seem to use any more fuel loaded up. I guess that's where the Diesels shine. Cruising along at highway speed with the thing doing 1200 RPM is a good feeling! That's like idling!

Yeah, that is a big difference. Only have a couple of hundred miles on it but it hasn't seen over 2k rpms yet. Running it a couple of hundred miles this weekend..See how it does. 16mpg average so far. I'm ok with that.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I never could brag about my fuel economy, but it wasn't any worse than my two Dakotas, a 6 and an 8.

 

[timswi]

Very nice.

i have a '15 half ton. I love the crew cab and 6.5 bed combo. next one could be a 3/4. the half did tow about 7k from Michigan to Colorado with no trouble a couple weeks ago though!

I had a 2016 All Terrain X 1500 4x4. It pulled my 8k net 32' TT well power wise...The problem was getting blown around on the interstate. It also didn't have an integrated brake controller, only a GM add-on. The integrated systems tow so much better in every aspect.

 

[oosik]

timswi - I didn't have any choice of color on the Taco Wagon. Dark, metal flake blue. You should see what it looks like after going down my MILE LONG gravel driveway. That's OK. The cow poo that loads up in the wheel wells and the dust/dirt are all blasted off with the garden hose - every Saturday.

BTW - 6400 miles on the Taco Wagon now. Overall mileage - 18.2mpg. I'm very pleased.

 

[tmcj]

Thanks for the info..Haven't towed with it yet but hoping it's all that you mentioned. The exhaust brake should be nice because I tow in the PA mountains a lot.

Congrats on the new Denali HD! I had been looking for one also but recently traded my '07 Sierra 2500HD 6.0 gas for a 2018 Silverado LTZ 2500HD Duramax instead. It just turned over 3k miles when I bought it so it is practically new but for substantially less. I've used it to pull the same 10k dump trailer and equipment trailer as with the old truck and the Duramax seems to pull the same load almost effortlessly. The 6.0 pulled very well, but I found that I usually needed to manually control the shifting to optimize power in most situations. The diesel definitely shines starting from a dead stop and as you've said, over the Pa mountains and ridges in my area and I rarely feel the need to shift manually. I get better mileage with the Duramax pulling 10k than I did with the 6.0 daily driving on the same loop of roads. The exhaust brake is great also. I'm sure you'll enjoy the total package!

I even had the opportunity to haul a buddy's broken down Ford F-150 on my trailer to a garage to be repaired. Any day that you get to use a Chevy to tow or haul a Ford is a good day, LOL.

 

[timswi]

An update. Pulled my 32' Travel Trailer nearly 100 miles home from the mountains on Sat morning. All I can say is WOW! Guys around here told me you'll barely know it's back there and they weren't kidding. Barely had to give it any gas going up some very steep roads, and the engine brake is fantastic for going down steep hills as well. Virtually no interstate sway with this and that was my main issue.

Always pulled this trailer with 1/2 ton gassers before. While horsepower and braking were never an issue with them, the 2500 is night and day more stable. The 2500 is nearly the net weight of the trailer so that adds some stability along with the heavier suspension. As a bonus, got 12-13 MPG even though that wasn't my primary concern.

I'd say I'm very happy at this point.