I am about to buy a 2500 hd for towing a 33 ft travel trailer and am wondering if a 6.0 would be better than a duramax? Reason for asking is that I already have a 1500 4.3 silverado for my work and running around. My tow truck would sit a lot and only be used to tow trailer and maybe a boat to lake few times a year. Any help with this will be greatly appreciated.

 

Don't know the weight of your travel trailer......but there is probably no comparison in the ability of the 6.0L gasser versus the 6.6L Duramax. With the diesel, you probably won't even know the trailer is there. With the gasser, you'll feel it dragging you every time you hit a hill.

The higher up-front cost of a diesel will take a long time to recoup, but might pay off in the long run.......and you will likely get more for it when you trade it in or sell it. Also, the Duramax means that you can get the heavy-duty Allison automatic transmission - which I do not believe is available with a gasoline engine.

Diesel fuel costs more (about 25 to 30 cents per gallon), but you will get more miles per gallon. Additionally, the diesel will last longer and you don't have to worry about spark plugs, ignition coils or anything like that.

I'm partial to diesels (since I drive 18-wheelers for a living) if you do a lot of heavy hauling or put on a lot of miles, even though I have a 5.3L gas engine in my Silverado.

I suspect that others will chime in on this thread also. Good luck with whatever option you may choose!

 

if you get the 6.0l make sure it has 4.11 rear end. my 2006 2500hd has the 4.11s and it has tons of power. i only tow 6000lbs but don't feel this weight at all during any driving condition. I've heard that the 6.0ls with lower ratio rear ends feel sluggish.

i've driven trucks with both gen duramax engines. the 2nd gen blow the 6.0 and 1st gen out of the water. I wasn't that impressed with the first gen duramax's that i have drove.

if your towing heavy; the diesel's will have better mileage