New 2500 HD

[lsbrodsky]

Thanks, Pat. Probably not back at Shenandoah, it was just not a great experience. We actually camp more in Virginia, it seems, than NC, our home state. Rudd's Creek is probably our favorite campground.

Larry

[Troutboy]

Awesome Larry!!! Now my 1150 payload looks even smaller. That is a great looking truck. Have you always been a chevy guy? Why not the ford superduty?

[Bgibbs]

The nice looking truck. Looks just like our new TV except ours has that little hood scoop that the new Duramax has. Just returned from 4000 mile trip to southern Utah and averaged 13.9 mpg for whole trip towing and non-towing. Just drove to Texas coast non-towing and got 19.9mpg with a slight tailwind. Been a Chevy man since the 80's when I had a full-size Bronco.

[lsbrodsky]

Rich,

I have never owned a Ford, rarely driven one. My first car was a Chevy(Corvair) and I have owned GM cars from Corvairs to Corvettes with a whole lot in-between, including trucks. When I drove company cars, they were GM. I once borrowed a Ford to tow a boat and I remember not liking it, but I do not remember why. It would have pained me to have to buy a Ford to get a better towing package so I was going to wait to see what GM did for 2019. But this one just appeared! Oh, as for service here, the Ford dealer has a terrible reputation, but the Chevy and GMC dealers are excellent. I have to say I am liking the load rating and the fact that I can put a cap on it. I was at the limit on my 1/2 ton.
Larry

[Mollysdad]

It's a beauty! Leather too!

[Troutboy]

Thanks Larry. I have been a Jeep guy and now looking at trucks. Seems everyone always talks about Rams and Fords. Looks like GM has some options. I have truck envy for sure. The cap will be nice.

[lsbrodsky]

Interesting factoid since I have been Airstreaming is that I see more GM's pulling AS trailers in campgrounds than other brands, although sales stats indicate otherwise for the total. Second seems to be RAM, I think because people like that diesel engine. I cannot tow mine until I get 500 miles.
Larry

[TravlinMan]

I got the ram cause I was a Jeep guy. It just felt nice and familar with the same (but much beefier) solid axles/coil suspension/manual 4 low/front/rear lockers/sawbar disco/billstein shocks, etc.... similar dash layout, same service guys... it was just the most similar to what I was used to with my rubicon. Not to say it's better or worse than the others but I have been very happy and impressed by it.

[cwf]

Congrats! Yep, that should do it!!! Our 2012 pulls comfy all day... I like our 4/4 for personal reasons (it really gets the job done when horsing the 34' around).

There were no replacement Goodyears when we needed 20" tires. Put on Michelin... still going over 50k and over 3 years... may replace soon, but doing so well....hard to do all...

However... last year we caught a spike through the tread and sidewall on rear... so replaced both... only need to replace front..

Anyway, fuel mileage was great.. now about same as our 1967 Ford F-150 towing a loaded 4 horse trailer back in the day.. boy do I feel special!

Once in a while I get teased with the commonly reported mileages but it doesn't last anymore.... it the exhaust pipe is clean... ;(

My son's FIL has a similar 2500HD with no 4/4.. pulling his LaCrosse SOB he gets 7-8 MPG.. city driving, no trailer.. 12-14. But it does giddy-up!

Hope you have great time... you will be amazed IMNSHO

[Troutboy]

Thx travlnman, didn't think of it that way. I'm bummed they wee bought by fiat. Want USA truck.

See you live in Staunton, i used to live in Waynesboro. Live that area.

[lsbrodsky]

Yeah, very nice area. I loved Lexington. As for FCA, I have heard it said that the RAM is just a shell for Cummins and to think of it that way. I am still amazed that "Chrysler" is still in business. But, brand loyalty seems to mean a lot, thus my new 2500HD.

Larry

[johnrobison]

We have a auto restoration business and have several 2500HD trucks for plowing and towing. All are the 2014-newer current generation. They do an excellent job, as I am sure the comparable offerings from Ford and Dodge will do

On long trips the crew cab trucks with long pickup beds ride noticeably better than the standard work trucks due to the longer wheelbase. That spreads the pitching motion from bumps and it makes a lot of difference. Otherwise the different models tow pretty much the same.

There is a lot of talk about the superiority of the diesel variants and at the risk of starting an argument I would just suggest it's not all that clear cut for most Airstream owners. The 380HP gas V8 is plenty strong enough to pull an Airstream anywhere you want to go.

The diesel has double the torque and half the rpm. When you get to a hill that means you push the throttle harder and it rumbles more and just goes up the hill. In comparison the gas engine shifts back 2 gears, winds up to 4,000 rpm and runs right alongside it. The two engines are within 7% of each other in total power but the diesel will deliver all its power without downshift and that is what makes it feel so much more powerful.

There is no question that the diesel will last longer, and it will get 12-13 mpg instead of 9mpg pulling the trailer. The diesel definitely pulls trailers with a lot less effort. You might say it is therefore obviously superior but there is a caveat . . . when you uncouple the trailer, the gas truck is generally better. The diesels do not like short trip driving. Their upkeep costs more. And they are $9k more to purchase new while only raising resale values by half that sum.

If you have a 15,000 pound load the diesel is essential. For a 6,000 pound Airstream it will be great pulling but probably more than you need, and it carries a premium of cost and upkeep you will probably never get back.

But they are cool; the Range Rovers of the towing world and for many . . . that is reason enough.

In the final analysis either the gas or diesel variants of the 2500HD will do a great job with most any Airstream.

The longer the truck the more stable it will be and the better it will ride, but the tradeoff there is that they get huge and are hard to park. I strongly suggest getting a 2500 with factory tow package because it includes trailer sway stabilization via automatic braking, and the big mirrors are much better. I believe Ford and Dodge have similar systems but am not personally familiar as all our company cars and trucks are GM

[lsbrodsky]

I concur. I never considered a diesel. Don't want the maintenance costs, the DEF, or the operating parameters. Diesels are happiest running and my truck sees plenty of short hop use, death for a diesel. My 5.3 pulled the trailer just fine, at least anywhere in the East. The 2500 HD brings some other things to the table.

Larry

[rocco52]

Congratulations on your new truck! I did the same thing. Here is my post from another thread explaining why: "I am not going to take sides here. I am just going to give you some real world observations from a non-engineer. I have a 2015 25Fb. I use a Blue Ox Sway pro. My first TV was a 2015 Audi Q7 TDI. The power and feel were great but the AS pushed the Audi around quite a bit. My 2nd TV was a 2016 Silverado Crew 4X4. Gross Vehicle Weight Rating on the door sticker was 7200 lbs. I took the Chevy to the scale and weighed it with a full tank of gas, bed cover, myself and about 150 lbs of gear. 6240 lbs. Add the tongue weight (as measured with a tongue weight scale), 890 lbs plus two generators, two 5 gal cans of gas, BBQ, fire ring, lawn chairs and tools plus my better half and total was 7,630 lbs. Make your own conclusions. I was told that to be safe you need a margin of 10% in capacity. I now have a 3500 HD Duramax."

[lsbrodsky]

Just got back from a 300 mile trip in the truck to put some miles on it so that I can tow. Amazing how comfortable and quiet they build a 3/4 ton truck these days! Just normal driving averaged 16 mpg and used less than half a tank of petrol. I am going to like this truck!

Larry

[cwf]

Do these explain your new truck gizmos:
https://youtu.be/lBp5ag6SJH4

How about that Tranny... for those who have seen the original, here is a Dodge version... the engineer is a funny guy.. https://youtu.be/UyRllRWfLJE

[KJRitchie]

We test drove a 2015 2500 Duramax as well as a Ram 2500 CTD. They were within a few thousand dollars of each other with the Ram being cheaper. The wife didn't like the Chevy seats and there was some nuances with the Chevy in dash system I didn't like vs the Ram. I didn't even consider a gas 2500 as I figured the extra weight of the 2500 frame etc would make it not perform as well as the 2010 Tundra 5.7L I was replacing. We ended up getting the Ram. After 3 days of traveling to get back from Yellowstone a week ago my wife is complaining on the comfort of the Ram seats. I can't win.

My towing mileage is between 11 and 13 hand calculated but I only have 16,000 miles on the Cummins if that makes any difference. While its similar mileage to the Tundra I find I can cruise faster than the Tundra and get the same mileage as the Tundra towing at 60mph. I also get 100 miles more on a tank as the Ram has a 31g tank vs the 26g tank of the Tundra.

It will be interesting to read your towing reports with the 6.0L especially when you hit long grades up and down. I really like the exhaust braking, tow haul and integrated brake controller integration on the Ram and the power going up hills without running the rpms up to 5k at 3rd gear to maintain 60 mph like I had to do with the Tundra.

However if I start to have issues with the diesel emissions before the warranty expires in August 2018 I may change back over to a gas truck.

I'm getting used to purchasing diesel. Just returned from Yellowstone and I managed to refuel using the auto diesel pumps vs the truck stop large capacity pumps. I've had issues with the large flow pumps where I get overflowing and one truck stop the large nozzle got stuck in my fuel filler pipe. Gradually jingled it out. Pros and cons with each type of tow vehicle.

Kelvin

[lsbrodsky]

Kelvin,

Very true, but I would consider a diesel way overkill for my 25, especially since I think there are lot of inherent negatives with a diesel that may be acceptable if you need the torque.
Again, my driving would be death for a diesel as my normal driving just wouldn't even get it warmed up. Towing, a different story. I have had diesel engines and I am happier with gas.

Larry

[Ruscal]

Larry,
We used the same logic when selecting a tug for our Bambi 19. We went with a 1500 Silverado LTX 4x4 crew with max trailering. We do a lot of short trips and like you wanted a truck that would be nice to drive around town. I went with the 6.2 for its abundant power, and fairly decent mileage. We are enjoying the truck. You will too! Our tongue weight is 600, so the lighter truck works. It is still a pain to park, but I find that backing in is easier than pulling in forward due to the great rear view camera and the front wheels just pivot around allowing for one shot parking. These are nice looking trucks too which doesn't hurt.
Enjoy the new truck,
Russ

[lsbrodsky]

Nice! Now you need a bigger trailer to justify that truck....
Larry