Opinions wanted

[CosmoAU]

I would like to get everyone's opinions on GM's 6.0. I'm considering an 03 1500HD with the 6L in it. I know they are thirsty and that's not a huge concern. I'm more interested in the longevity or any recurring problems it may have had. It has 140K on it now and wanted to see if anyone has one that has alot of miles, and if they have had any major problems. Thanks.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I would like to get everyone's opinions on GM's 6.0. I'm considering an 03 1500HD with the 6L in it. I know they are thirsty and that's not a huge concern. I'm more interested in the longevity or any recurring problems it may have had. It has 140K on it now and wanted to see if anyone has one that has alot of miles, and if they have had any major problems. Thanks.

Buying anything with 140,000 miles is sticking your neck out. That motor is pretty good and a good match for a 1/2 ton. Its a little weak in a 3/4 ton and up. I have had 3-4 friends/customers with them in 3/4 tons and have had no issues but had auto tranny issues on 2 of them.

Chris

 

[CosmoAU]

Yeah, anything with that high miles is a crapshoot I guess. I think I can get it at a good $ is what makes it tempting. Keep any thoughts and opinions coming please.

 

[grnspot110]

My 2001 2500 HD has 164,000 on it, just put new water pump, hoses & belts on for the first time. Only minor other problems! No transmission problems here. 140K, yes a lot of miles to be buying, at least would be for me! I'd rather buy around 35K, just let somebody else wear off the new price!

As far as weak, I wouldn't call it that! I pull trailers regularly, though not as heavy as I used to. Mine has pulled the 720D (around 8000#) + trailer & a second trailer w/4 bottom mounted plow on a second trailer often, including up a pretty good hill. I could gain speed all the way up the "river hill" near here, if I wanted to buy the gas! ~~ grnspot110

 

[bdeboer]

I had a 2002 K2500 6.0L/3.73 Suburban with the same suspension traded it in with 99,000 miles in 2008. I can't say that it had recurring problems.

I changed out what appeared to be the original brakes around 80,000 miles.

The last year I had it the gas line rusted off at the top of tank requiring a new fuel pump. I had a bearing go out on the end of the front axle that was $300 or $400 just for the bearing.

The 6.0L in it was a dog with the factory tune compared to my '05 5.3L/3.43 gear 1/2 ton work truck. It had decent power once it was rolling but getting a load rolling it kinda sucked. I put a "mail order" tune on it and this helped that out alot.

Another thing I didn't like about was that when I got it warm pulling our RV across long grades outside of Ohio it wouldn't cool down very quickly on either the engine or the transmission when you reached the top of the grade. I did put a larger transmission cooler that helped some.

It was a definite upgrade over the 1/2 ton it replaced, when it came to towing.

 

[CosmoAU]

Thanks for the opinion grnspot. I'm with you, it has plenty of power for me. I think I'll let this one go. BTW the 720 looks great. :thumbsup:

 

[Bikewanderer]

I have no direct ownership experience with the 6.0, but weak is the wrong word. I think the 6.0 will take my ford v10 any day of the week.

I'd think the 6.0 would be good up to 20k gvwr, much past that it's probably underpowered with the gearing in our class of pickups.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have no direct ownership experience with the 6.0, but weak is the wrong word. I think the 6.0 will take my ford v10 any day of the week.

I'd think the 6.0 would be good up to 20k gvwr, much past that it's probably underpowered with the gearing in our class of pickups.

You must be kidding. The 6.0 GM motor was made to compete with the Ford 5.4L

Even though the 5.4 Ford and 5.3 GM are often compared the 5.3 GM just could not make the torque. The 6.0 was able to do that but its no V-10 (6.8L)

Here are the numbers.

GM 5.3L makes from 285hp / 325tq to 315hp / 335tq
GM 6.0L makes from 300hp / 360tq to 345hp / 380tq

Ford 5.4L makes from 260hp / 360tq to 320hp / 390tq
Ford 6.8L makes from 310hp / 425tq to 362hp / 457tq

Chris

 

[Bikewanderer]

You must be kidding. The 6.0 GM motor was made to compete with the Ford 5.4L

Even though the 5.4 Ford and 5.3 GM are often compared the 5.3 GM just could not make the torque. The 6.0 was able to do that but its no V-10 (6.8L)

Here are the numbers.

GM 5.3L makes from 285hp / 325tq to 315hp / 335tq
GM 6.0L makes from 300hp / 360tq to 345hp / 380tq

Ford 5.4L makes from 260hp / 360tq to 320hp / 390tq
Ford 6.8L makes from 310hp / 425tq to 362hp / 457tq

Chris

I'm not kidding. To me the 6.0 feels more powerful than my v10 with 4.30 gears. It's a heavier truck too, so that could be the difference.

I'm serious about gvwr too. You've got plenty of HP and torque to yank around that kind of weight with any of these engines with the exception of the 5.3. The v10 is used up to 30k combined weight and the chevy 8.1 is used up to around 45000 lbs.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I haven't checked any of my specs, but are you sure it's the 6L engine? That typically is for trucks over 8600 GVW, 2500 & 3500 GMs. Still too many miles.

They made a 1500 HD that had around a 7700# GVWR for a few years. It had a 6.0 in it. One of our pilots had one for awhile. Ford did the same thing. The Ford had weird 7 lug wheels and it was called F-150 7700. I have driven one once pushing snow. Every one I had ever seen of the Fords had the 5.4L, 4.10 gears, and were long bed regular cabs. Tough little trucks but not the best for pushing snow with the IFS. GM made the 1500 HD in a variety of bed and cab configurations.

Chris

 

[dex3361]

I have used 2 different 2500HD Chevy's with the 6.0 engines with auto trans and 4.10 axle gearing. They are strong running gas engines. The only towing I have used them for was pulling 75KW generators across the WV turnpike and that is some hilly road. The only get about 12 or 13 MPG with the set up that I have used.

 

[Reverend Blair]

The 6.0 is a thirsty engine, but there's lots of power there. They seem to run pretty much forever too...my BIL bought one at auction with about a 140,000 kilometres on it (around 100,000 miles) and expected to have to do some work to it (he's a mechanic, so often buys high-mileage vehicles and fixes them), but all he's had to do so far is clean the interior (covered in tar) and fix the front end (he's got stunt-drivers...er, boys).

 

[lostcause]

You must be kidding. The 6.0 GM motor was made to compete with the Ford 5.4L

Even though the 5.4 Ford and 5.3 GM are often compared the 5.3 GM just could not make the torque. The 6.0 was able to do that but its no V-10 (6.8L)

Here are the numbers.

GM 5.3L makes from 285hp / 325tq to 315hp / 335tq
GM 6.0L makes from 300hp / 360tq to 345hp / 380tq

Ford 5.4L makes from 260hp / 360tq to 320hp / 390tq
Ford 6.8L makes from 310hp / 425tq to 362hp / 457tq

Chris

i don't doubt any of the numbers, and i don't want to try to chase them down myself, since you probably can do it faster, but the one number omitted is the one following the @. short of any engineering voodoo, it has always been my experience that the smaller engines may be able to develop decent torque numbers, but they are at such a high rpm that anyone who uses the truck the way it was intended (not as a passenger car) is not likely to put it to those revs very often. even the numbers don't always tell the story fully. a lot of times you need to look at the torque curve and compare it to how you drive.

i've had a 6.0 for about 5 years now in a crew cab 3/4 ton with 4.10 gears. it replaced a nearly identical 3/4 ton crew cab with a 5.7/4.10 combo. both trucks were 4wd, and over 4-5 years of ownership and similar use of each, i pulled almost 1.0mpg better out of the 6.0 than i did with the 5.7 when empty. i was never able to get 15 out of the 5.7, but i have routinely managed 15 and a little change if i am not loaded. i can't give any accurate numbers on towing mpg - most of the time when i haul things it is not over the main roads for any distance to accumulate data. i find the economy is best at 45-55mph, but if you are on a good highway you can sometimes equal those numbers at 65ish. i know the numbers say it's more power, but i think the 6.0 is a pretty close replacement for the 5.7 in a 3/4 ton. i don't notice any drastic power differences. once thing i have noticed on here is that a lot of people talk about the 6.0 with 3.73's as the common ratio. around here you'd probably be hard pressed to find one that way. i'm pretty sure the dealers around here order their inventory stock with 4.10.

i have had one problem with mine - at around 40k it developed a leaky front main seal. right now it's a nuisance, but i'm sure it will become more of an issue eventually. i can't say i've heard of anyone else with that problem though, and i know of a lot of people around here running around with that motor.

a friend has an 03(?) 1500 crew that is nearly identical to my 2500. the differences i know of are the gvw is 8600 on his as opposed to 9200 on mine. he has commented that mine rides a lot stiffer, so i assume they do actually have different springs. i don't know when they changed, but his is still the 6.5 foot bed. i know the newer 1500 crew only comes with an even shorter body now.

 

[dwhite]

I have an 02 1500HD and love it. It is a great driving truck and fits the bill between a 3/4 ton diesel (too heavy and expensive) and a 1/2 ton gas. If you don't need the capacities of the 3/4 ton on a regular basis, go with the 1500HD.

 

[grnspot110]

You must be kidding. The 6.0 GM motor was made to compete with the Ford 5.4L

Even though the 5.4 Ford and 5.3 GM are often compared the 5.3 GM just could not make the torque. The 6.0 was able to do that but its no V-10 (6.8L)

Here are the numbers.

GM 5.3L makes from 285hp / 325tq to 315hp / 335tq
GM 6.0L makes from 300hp / 360tq to 345hp / 380tq

Ford 5.4L makes from 260hp / 360tq to 320hp / 390tq
Ford 6.8L makes from 310hp / 425tq to 362hp / 457tq

Chris

Numbers may look good, but take one out & use it for a while to see how it performs! ~~ grnspot110

 

[CosmoAU]

As said earlier, I'm gonna pass on the high mileage one. To answer some questions, it was a 6.0L, 8600GVWR, 8 lug wheel. I'm not sure on the rear end but I think most all of the 1500HD's had a 4.10 rear end. I'm going to look at another one with fewer miles in the next few days. It's only draw back is the color-red. If I have to do any heavy hauling, I have access to anything from slightly larger to much larger trucks for that from family construction business. I like the 1500 HD's because I can load up the bed with lumber, plants, etc. and not squat them as much as a regular 1/2 ton. Also they are crew cabs, which is a must for me.

 

[Diamondpilot]

i don't doubt any of the numbers, and i don't want to try to chase them down myself, since you probably can do it faster, but the one number omitted is the one following the @. short of any engineering voodoo, it has always been my experience that the smaller engines may be able to develop decent torque numbers, but they are at such a high rpm that anyone who uses the truck the way it was intended (not as a passenger car) is not likely to put it to those revs very often. even the numbers don't always tell the story fully. a lot of times you need to look at the torque curve and compare it to how you drive.

i've had a 6.0 for about 5 years now in a crew cab 3/4 ton with 4.10 gears. it replaced a nearly identical 3/4 ton crew cab with a 5.7/4.10 combo. both trucks were 4wd, and over 4-5 years of ownership and similar use of each, i pulled almost 1.0mpg better out of the 6.0 than i did with the 5.7 when empty. i was never able to get 15 out of the 5.7, but i have routinely managed 15 and a little change if i am not loaded. i can't give any accurate numbers on towing mpg - most of the time when i haul things it is not over the main roads for any distance to accumulate data. i find the economy is best at 45-55mph, but if you are on a good highway you can sometimes equal those numbers at 65ish. i know the numbers say it's more power, but i think the 6.0 is a pretty close replacement for the 5.7 in a 3/4 ton. i don't notice any drastic power differences. once thing i have noticed on here is that a lot of people talk about the 6.0 with 3.73's as the common ratio. around here you'd probably be hard pressed to find one that way. i'm pretty sure the dealers around here order their inventory stock with 4.10.

i have had one problem with mine - at around 40k it developed a leaky front main seal. right now it's a nuisance, but i'm sure it will become more of an issue eventually. i can't say i've heard of anyone else with that problem though, and i know of a lot of people around here running around with that motor.

a friend has an 03(?) 1500 crew that is nearly identical to my 2500. the differences i know of are the gvw is 8600 on his as opposed to 9200 on mine. he has commented that mine rides a lot stiffer, so i assume they do actually have different springs. i don't know when they changed, but his is still the 6.5 foot bed. i know the newer 1500 crew only comes with an even shorter body now.

I got the numbers strait off the net so no manipulating them. The guys I know with the 6.0 GM motors have like them and like you said all I know have had 4.10 gears. The motors, like most GM motors, have been bullet proof but they are by no means a power house. Like said, they do a pretty good job for what they are though and they make the power where its needed unlike some of these high revving motors. The only issues I have seen like I said were 2 tranny failures. One, the guy lost his pulling a 8,000# camper with a 2500 HD and the other a guy stopped at a rest stop to use the rest room. Came out and started it and would not go. Again on a 2500 HD.

Chris

 

[Builder]

Numbers may look good, but take one out & use it for a while to see how it performs! ~~ grnspot110

grnspot110,

You're wasting your time......Check your PM's.

After seeing the road tests between the latest 2 diesel offerings from Ford & GM, I can easily see why a GM 6L would be more powerful than a Ford V-10.
What some here fail to realize, as the latest tests prove, is that flywheel HP is NOT the way to rate a truck for power. The way to rate the HP you pay your hard earned money for is RWHP (rear wheel horepower). THAT tells you how much power actually makes it to the pavement.

GM gives you a more efficient lock up transmission that puts more power to the pavement. Don't believe me? Look at the last GM v. Ford diesel truck test. GM went into the test with less flywheel HP, but made more RWHP. GM's "lower powered" truck blew away Ford's higher powered truck. Reason? More efficient transmission of power to the ground, where it counts.

Chevrolet Challenges Ford to a Heavy-Duty Towing Showdown! - PickupTrucks.com News

 

[Diamondpilot]

grnspot110,

You're wasting your time......Check your PM's.

After seeing the road tests between the latest 2 diesel offerings from Ford & GM, I can easily see why a GM 6L would be more powerful than a Ford V-10.
What some here fail to realize, as the latest tests prove, is that flywheel HP is NOT the way to rate a truck for power. The way to rate the HP you pay your hard earned money for is RWHP (rear wheel horepower). THAT tells you how much power actually makes it to the pavement.

GM gives you a more efficient lock up transmission that puts more power to the pavement. Don't believe me? Look at the last GM v. Ford diesel truck test. GM went into the test with less flywheel HP, but made more RWHP. GM's "lower powered" truck blew away Ford's higher powered truck. Reason? More efficient transmission of power to the ground, where it counts.

Chevrolet Challenges Ford to a Heavy-Duty Towing Showdown! - PickupTrucks.com News

While the tranny may be part of the equation you know darn good and well the altitude had more to do with it. I have nothing bad at all to say about the 6.0L GM motor but its not a Ford V-10 or a 8.1L GM. Its comparable to a 5.7L Dodge and a little better than a 5.4L Ford.

GM stacked the test in in their favor. Ford or Dodge would do the same thing. When these test are run by a independent firm there is always one that does this better and the other brand does that better. GM just picked the test they were better at. That simple, and if you think otherwise I have been giving you too much credit all these years we go back and forth.

Chris

 

[coobie]

I would like to get everyone's opinions on GM's 6.0. I'm considering an 03 1500HD with the 6L in it. I know they are thirsty and that's not a huge concern. I'm more interested in the longevity or any recurring problems it may have had. It has 140K on it now and wanted to see if anyone has one that has alot of miles, and if they have had any major problems. Thanks.

Read here GM Piston Slap -- Like a Knock