re: Any baws had any problems with the 6.6L Duramax?

I’ve got a 2500 and I have pulled a heavy 5th wheel camper all around the US. I added air bags and it is really smooth. I love my truck but am looking to trade in for a 3500 for a little extra peace of mind since I am pushing the weight rating on the back axle.
That being said....I just hit 120k on it. About 3 months ago I had to replace the EGR bypass cooler valve. I’m pretty good with vehicles so decided to do it myself and save a couple grand. It was by far the biggest pain in the arse fix I’ve ever done. It’s on the backside of the engine and sucks more than you can imagine.
Now, about 2 weeks ago I started getting another sporadic emissions MIL. I’m pretty sure the DEF pump is going out.
If I was going to keep the truck long term I would prob delete it. I’ve been looking for a new one but the lots are slim picking right now.

The duramax is a beast and you would have the Allison transmission behind it which is by far the best transmission out there… pulling that tractor and camper behind you, you would hardly notice it’s there

Downshift nailed it.


But if you’re still hellbent on buying a diesel, go get a dually. The difference between the two was well worth the extra money to me when I did it and I’d do it again if they hadn’t made diesels such a PIA to own and ridiculously expensive.

quote:

---

Gassers have surpassed diesels in reliability and are quickly catching up in longevity.

---

This.

We keep our 3/4 & 1 Tons on average 6 years, (~150k miles).

We went to big gas burners and our down time & maintenance costs went to nil.

I’m convinced that DEF systems were instituted to make consumers eventually accept any other alternative.

Shoot up here amongst us, one of us needs some REE-LEEF!

I’d much rather own a gasser but the torque is almost half of the diesel. Seems like quite a liability when towing.

You can still get a dually gas burner from every manufacturer as far as I know. You get way more comfort and safety from having a 1 ton dually than you get from the engine. They can all drag 30k lbs up a mountain, the diesel will just do it way faster and far less dramatically.

I have a 3/4 ton diesel and I can definitely tell you that I wouldn't bother with it again, at least not a 3/4 ton. The towing capacity is way too low because of the additional engine/transmission weight. I wish I had bought a 1 ton dually, or just a gas 3/4 ton. BUT in that moment when you go up a really long grade without slowing down or down steep grade with the engine brake roaring and not gaining any speed, its totally worth it.

Deleting is not an option in 2021 IMO. If you are shopping new, don't bother. The new ones are as good as they've ever been. Chevy is using a new fuel system that has been great so far. Dont go buy a $50k plus truck planning to put many thousand into it to make it reliable. Think about how ridiculous that sounds. If you don't trust it 100%, buy gas.

You gotta let the gas motors spin up. They can all handle running at peak hp basically indefinitely. Itll sound like bad stuff is happening,but it isn't. Just let it run 4k rpm till it doesn't need to anymore. I've towed a whole lot with a 3/4 ton gas truck, both Chevy 6.0 and Ford 6.2. 280k miles on the chevy with no problems. Smash the gas and let it eat. The gas motors today are more powerful than diesels were 10 years ago.

Again it comes down to whether or not the added cost and liability is worth it to you. An injector job can be $6k. You can replace the motor in a gas truck for what many repairs on a diesel cost. Is it worth the price tag for that to you? Only you can answer that. For me it was and I dont regret buying the diesel (yet), but I do regret getting a 3/4 ton and not a 1 ton dually.

quote:

---

I’d much rather own a gasser but the torque is almost half of the diesel

---

Forget that concern. They all have at least a 6 speed now, and ford has 10 behind the 7.3 gas motor. They pull extremely well. Just gotta let them rev. The Ford 7.3 with the 10 speed is going to kill a whole lot of diesel sales. Its a real trend setter IMO. I drove one and its very very powerful.

Another thing to consider is that the diesel trucks all have torque management to some extent. The engines can make massive power and torque but the PCM will only allow it to happen in certain conditions. The drivelines can't handle the engine doing whatever it wants. This is much more pronounced in the dodge than the other two but they all do it. Very aggrevating to get "dead peddal" when you paid for 900 ft lbs of torque but can only use 400 of it because of the gear you're in.

What kinda person are you? Do you want the cheapest thing that will reliabily and safely do the job? Diesel aint for you if so. If youre a dick measuring kinda guy, diesel absolutely is for you.

Are you shopping new or used?

Reason I'm asking is that there are some years where the duramax used a bosche CP4 injection pump without a lift pump and those are kinda prone to failure. The new ones have an excellent fuel system and I wouldn't hesitate for a second about the reliability of those.

quote:

---

Another thing to consider is that the diesel trucks all have torque management to some extent. The engines can make massive power and torque but the PCM will only allow it to happen in certain conditions

---

Good to know this. Will give the 2500 gasser a hard look.