alaska

Hello, I am living in Homer, Alaska. I am trying to buy my husband a new to us truck. He is on a long hitch on a tugboat and I need to make a decision before he gets home, due to moose season and just his limited time off. His current truck is a 1500 gmc with 175,000 miles. It has been a good one but with his new commute and insistence on driving I told him he has to have a new truck.

I really want to buy a 2500 because I feel like it is a safer and solid vehicle. I test drove one and really liked it. I also test drove a 1500 and was not as impressed. It reminded me of driving in a Toyota Tacoma or 4 runner. It felt narrow and high or tippy. I have looked at all of the specs and there is very little difference in the width of the vehicles, the cabs are very similar as well. But they really felt like completely different vehicles.

My husband will be commuting once every other month from Homer to Valdez. For those of you who aren’t familiar with this commute it is 515 miles (about 10 hours) it also goes through several mountain passes to include Thompson pass which is the snowiest pass in alaska averaging 500 inches. Additionally we have a boat that at max weighs around 6,000 lbs, and a travel trailer that weighs about the same. Our old gmc always had some difficulty in pulling these. Feeling swaying with the trailer and lots of pull with the boat.

We have 2 solid vehicles that we are considering.

The first is a 2021 1500 Chevy Silverado with 31,000 miles. It comes with an extra set of rims with studded tires and a tonneau cover for $40,000. Also has 4 years remaining on a dealership warranty. This truck is a friends and has been lightly used, never offroad.

The second is a 2022 2500 Chevy Silverado with 29,000 miles. It is a certified used vehicle with a 12 month/12,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty. Then a 100,000 mile power train warranty. This is for $44,500.

thank you for reading this far. I would appreciate any insight towards helping me make this big decision.

jfmorris

I assume both of these are 4x4 (4WD) trucks since you deal with so much snow and ice.

From everything you've said, plus your own preference during the test drive, on paper, I would go with the Silverado 2500 without question. It has a heavier suspension, and is meant to tow heavier loads. Even if the 6000 pound boat and trailer are within the towing limits of the 1500, the 2500 will have an easier time with them.

That said, if you read this forum, you will see MANY issues with recent model Chevrolet truck engines and transmissions are being reported. Based on THAT consideration, I would think hard about going with whichever truck has the longest remaining time/mileage on the power train warranty. Here's some reading:

https://chevroletforum.com/forum/201...-alone-113971/

https://chevroletforum.com/forum/sil...e2/#post493473

If the vehicle has the Ecotec technology that turns off half the cylinders in the V8, that seems to be the source of many of the issues. Folks seem to find that buying a simple "dongle" that plugs into the ODB2 connector under the dash which disables that mode, keeping all 8 cylinders running all the time, seems to resolve many of the issues that lead to premature engine failure.

Here is the general discussion forum for the 2019 and later trucks:

https://chevroletforum.com/forum/201...do-gmt-t1-114/

alaska

Thank you for your insight. The technology where the cylinders shut off seems like a big headache so we are not choosing one that does that. As much as I would like entertaining an older truck without all of the computerized aspects it’s a limited market up here and limited for getting a loan on a 7 + year old vehicle. Also with higher mileage. Hoping to get a no headache reliable and solid truck. Thanks again

jfmorris

Unfortunately I think *ALL* V-8's they are selling in the past decade or so have the technology to turn 4 of the 8 cylinders off on demand.

Thankfully, you can spend about $200 (I think) on a little device that plugs into the vehicle diagnostic port and disables the feature, without modifications to the vehicle required. I can't vouch for them, but here is an article about them:

https://roadweekly.com/best-afm-disabler/

As the article points out, by disabling AFM (Adaptive Fuel Management), you keep the truck in V-8 mode, and the stress to the valve lifters is lessened. The lifters seem to be the failure point on the truck engines over the past several years.

Reading about the class action about GM indicates this issue dates back to 2014, and affects 2014-present Silverados. And it seems to be that when the AFM disables the cylinders, the valve lifters on those disabled cylinders undergo additional stress, don't get lubricated, etc. Disabling the feature will likely prolong the life of all these engines.

https://www.carcomplaints.com/news/2...-lawsuit.shtml

Hopefully someone else other than me can chime in, since my experience is mainly with the older GM trucks!