2500HD....but which one?

shelby27604

shelby27604

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2013
Location
Efland NC
Looking to consolidate a few vehicles into one general purpose vehicle, front of the line is your standard NBS 2002-2007 classic, in a 4wd Crew/SB configuration, STRONG preference for manual transmissions.....Options are:
2500HD 8.1l w/ZF6
2500HD Avalanche (not a fan of the 4l80 in this configuration)
2500HD LLY Duramax w/ ZF6
2500HD 6.0 w/NV4500

In general the Dmax falls to the bottom of the list, most seem to command crazy money with well over 250k miles on the clock, I know the 8.1l gets crap fuel economy, but initial purchase price, and reduced maintenance costs more than cover the first couple years of fuel short comings.

General towing duties are in the 8-10k range with the odd 12k if I have to move around a 50hp tractor.

Looking to hear from anyone who has any of the configurations above, towing the suggested loads above....and what your suggestions would be.....cummins is mostly out of my price range, and all the 12v only came in "quad cab".....I had the suicide door extended cab 1500 years ago, and it was my least favorite part of the truck.
Ford.....drove a 7.3l w/ZF6 years ago.....I suppose if I could find one I would consider it....but that would be the only Ford that would make the cut.
 
If only that generation definetly 8.1 with an allison, crappy fuel mileage but damn they pull good and give few problems
 
Jason W. said:
If only that generation definetly 8.1 with an allison, crappy fuel mileage but damn they pull good and give few problems
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This. I have a 6500 box truck with this configuration and it doesn't blink at 26k+. You don't pull hills at 70mph but it doesn't sound like it want to die either. Never had a motor problem with that truck in 14yrs of ownership.

Jason W. said:
With that weight, 6.0 gas with a 6spd auto all day
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No way in hell. I have 2 3500 box truck's (early years 08ish) with 6.0/6l80 and the transmissions are not up for heavy hauling. We've replaced 3 so far.

shelby27604 said:
6L80 didn't come with the 6.0 is the NBS generation, you get the NV4500 or the 4L80E.
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0 problems so far with 4sps
Jason W. said:
I know, just saying the 6.0 gas with 6l80 is wonderfull.
Sorry I got off track
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No again lol
 
My 3500's leave the yard 12-15000lbs daily fwiw. All 4l80 equped trucks have 200-300k on the clock
 
GM ZF6s aren't known for their longevity. Allison all day, ftw!
 
@adamk just bought an 06’ 2500HD with the 8.1/Allison, 400k miles and that thing ran off and left most of us on the way to Harlan the other week. That thing just flat out worked and he still got 10+ mpg.
We all hit Fancy Gap and he was gone, didn’t see him for 30 minutes. He’s really happy with it and honestly I wish I’d bought it myself o_O after seeing it tow so well.
 
What is the weak point in the zf6? I seem to remember GM doesn't have the oil cooler and ford does. Obviously at some point the dual willmass flywheel will need to be replaced/upgraded.
@adamk was your rig a fleet vehicle, or a well maintained rig to hit 400k?
 
Just FYI, they did make the 2002-2005 1500HD and 2500HD with quadrasteer, which would propel those to the top of my list. They are hard to find though.
 
There was a thread recently where someone was looking for a tow rig, and I suggested the denali, after he voiced concerns about parts availability, I did some digging....most of the hard parts can be sourced, but some of the electrical parts (in particular a steering position sensor on the rear axle) are basically unobtanium....made obsolete by GM and no aftermarket or home gamer is repairing them yet.

I have seen a few 2500HD's with quadrasteer that are on my short list....but price wise they aren't competitive enough to push an 8.1l or LLY out of the running.

Doing some digging at the moment on the Dodge V10.....the 2500HD I want might be a long term hunt, I am about to be down a tow rig, and may snap up a cheapo V10 as they seem to be more available in 4wd and Stickshifts (unfortunately, still no true crew cab).
 
My 05 2500HD with 217k 6.0 auto crew cab may be for sale after the detailer gets done with it.it is only 2 wheel drive though.I may have had 12k behind it once and may have pulled our 5k travel trailer up 226 for the shortcut to the campground. It pulled it but she was singing.i am on the fence of another 2500 6.0 or the 1500 with 6.2.
 
shelby27604 said:
Doing some digging at the moment on the Dodge V10.....the 2500HD I want might be a long term hunt, I am about to be down a tow rig, and may snap up a cheapo V10 as they seem to be more available in 4wd and Stickshifts (unfortunately, still no true crew cab).
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@BigClay has a dodge V10 and gross’ 18k with his normal load. It does quite well, little slow on the hills and drinks the fuel but it gets the job done for sure.
 
shelby27604 said:
What is the weak point in the zf6? I seem to remember GM doesn't have the oil cooler and ford does. Obviously at some point the dual willmass flywheel will need to be replaced/upgraded.
@adamk was your rig a fleet vehicle, or a well maintained rig to hit 400k?
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You hit it, the ford version has a pump and cooler where as the gm version doesn't. The clutch was a weak point on bot .

Adams was a fleet truck but was well maintained from the looks of it.
 
Mainly the lack of a pump, from what I remember. I guess GM was like hey, we like that ZF6 thing, but we don't need no oil pump. It'll be fine....
 
PTO cooler is just an aluminum bowl with heat sink fins milled into the sides....maybe I will wait for Gale Banks to do a full study on them before I would invest in one.
 
shelby27604 said:
PTO cooler is just an aluminum bowl with heat sink fins milled into the sides....maybe I will wait for Gale Banks to do a full study on them before I would invest in one.
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Although the design of the cooler is effective I doubt you'll see any benefits. Terrible airflow under the truck, plus the trans is essentially a large aluminum heat sink anyways. If I were worried about it I'd buy/make an aluminum pto cover, drill and tap it for a temp sensor and rock out. If you observe temps getting out of hand then I'd drill and tap it again for an inlet/outlet to add in a universal pump and cooler.
 
I'd just keep your crew cab OBS truck. Unless it is a diesel it'll do everything the other trucks will do. I've had both NBS 6.0L 2500 trucks and OBS 454 trucks. The best truck I ever had was a 454 Vortec Burb. I might be biased, but that was by far the best towing gasser truck I've ever owned.
 
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