Anyone own a GMC or Chevy 2500HD

I love my 2006 Tacoma to death, and plan on keeping it (I’ve had it for almost 8 years so far) but I always like to research trucks, and think about what I would buy if my truck were to get totaled or have some major mechanical issue. I bought a Prius a couple years ago when I was commuting 110 miles a day and I use it for other long trips, so I’m not super concerned with needing a really fuel efficient truck, and my Tacoma only gets 15-16 mpg anyways.

So, since I really just need my truck now for doing truck stuff like hauling firewood, homeowner projects moving lumber and landscape materials, occasionally towing equipment, going mountain biking and surfing, etc. Nothing too crazy and I don’t want a diesel, but I have heard the 2008-2019 GM 2500HD’s with the 6.0 gas engine are super reliable and powerful, but not great on gas. I like the idea of having higher payload and tow capacity, and they also can be found for reasonable prices. Has anyone ever owned one of these trucks and what was your experience? My other thought is something like a newer F-150 with the 2.7 engine, but it seems hard to find a used one that has the payload and towing package, and isn’t just a barebones grocery getter.

Let me know your thoughts and thanks in advance!

 

@ColoradoTJ, I think this one's for you!

 

I have owned 2 2500hd's, but they are the older 2002 varieties. The 6.0s are decent. I have one of the rare 8.1 motors now. If you are not towing more then 7,000lbs regularly you dont need one.

I suggest a Tundra.

 

Tundra would get the same mpg, but a fraction of the payload and towing abilities. I’d go 6.0

 

I have thought of Tundras a lot and I know the 5.7 is known to be reliable, but I think they are ugly personally, and as aggietaco said they don’t provide much payload capacity compared to the 2500hd and also get poor mpg. I also like the looks of GM’s 1500 trucks but the lifter issues with the 5.3 worries me.

 

If you need that much payload then yes, a 3/4 ton truck is the right choice. But I'd take a Tundra over a 2500HD any day... Unless I needed to tow 7,000lbs or regularly haul 2,000lbs.

 

What kind of mileage do you get with the 2500’s? Do they just have horrible ride quality and need a ton of weight in them to ride decent?

 

Tundra will never break down or be in the shop for repair but yes, they don't have great payload or gas mileage

From what I understand GM 5.3 lifter issues got a kinda straightened out after 2016/2017 or so..

 

Don't own one but I do work on them quite often at the shop, they are certainly alot easier to work on than an F150.

The 6L80 (1500) and 6L90 (2500/3500 6.0) transmissions fail quite often in the 100-200k range especially it seems on the 14+ trucks but the 6.0 has proven to be pretty solid aside from oil leaks from the oil pan and rear cover on higher mileage engines.

The AFM lifters are definitely problematic on the 5.3 engines, the main thing you can do to try to prolong them is run the correct oil that is Dexos spec and change it every 5k or less. If you use the oil life monitor use a scan tool and set it to 80% instead of 100% when you change oil.

 

The torsion front IFS on my old '02 is decently comfortable. It rides ok. With my 6.0 I would get 15 if I drove like a grandma, and 8 towing. With my 8.1 I get 8mpg all the time, but thats diesel torque and power with no diesel maintenance.

My only lingering question is what it would be like to tow with a diesel truck of the same generation. Would an LB7 truck make sense since I am at altitude in colorado? I like the 8.1 for the allison. It was the main reason I sold my 6.0 to get the 8.1.

Overall I am happy with the truck

 

Thanks for all the responses, definitely some things to think about. Do any of you have experience with 2018+ F150s with the 5.0? They seem to be capable and a buddy of mine has a 21 with no major issues so far. Could be a good compromise and seems like maybe more reliable than the GM 5.3?

 

I'd take a GM 5.3 or 6.2 over a Ford 5.0 or 3.5EB. Just get a reliable shop to do a AFM (DOD) delete.

 

I think I'd rather have a 11-17 with the 6 spd transmission than the 18+ with the 10 spd, too many issues with the 10 spds and also the newer ones with the plastic oil pans are a mess to change oil on due to the placement of the drain plug. Not to mention the 21+ 5.0 has a belt driven oil pump

 

Is that a big job/expensive to get that deleted?

 

Def system SUCKS. ENOUGH SAID!

 

Yes, it is. It requires a new cam. You may as well wait until the lifters fail, which will show up as misfires. You can also disable the AFM with a tune, or a $200 OBDII port plug. But that of course still leaves the volatile lifters in the engine, they just don’t do the intended collapsing act all the time, which prolongs their life span.

The 5.3 is kind of a dog tho; the 6.2 is worlds better, but much rarer. I have 126k mikes on mine, still on the original 6L80 as well, and no issues. Since GM went from a relatively simple 4cyl deactivation to a hugely variable running combination, the lifter issues unfortunately got way way worse.

 

Yea if I had one I think I'd do a tune then do the full delete if/when they fail.
You can also prolong the transmission with a tune by changing the TCC lockup so it's not trying to be in lockup all the time at low speeds as the TCC is what kills most of them by coming apart and destroying the pump.

 

Yup, that’s precisely what I did. Plus I swapped the transmission’s cooler bypass valve for a new one with a 158F thermostat. Apparently even GM realized that the original 194F was too high, hence the updated part. You can read about it here:
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2021/MC-10207911-9999.pdf