GMC 1/2 vs 3/4 gasser; dramatic difference?

[Camper_bob]

I've read all over this forum and others how dramatic the difference is between towing with a 1/2 ton vs 3/4 ton.

I may have an opportunity to move from my 2012 Sierra 1500 into a certified pre-owned 2012 2500 optioned exactly the same way for VERY little money (virtually no change in monetary position) The 2500 has twice the miles of my 1/2 ton (48k) and is equipped with the 6L Vortec gas motor.

This is a great opportunity in my eyes because I ABSOLUTELY LOVE my 1/2 ton. And my truck tows our trailer just fine. Not great, but it's adequate, and I'm under all my numbers. But I constantly find myself wondering if it could be better. So this could be the opportunity I've been waiting for to make a dramatic difference in my setup. But just exactly how dramatic a difference should I expect realistically?

I guess my question is: how much difference should I expect between the two trucks? Like on a 1-10, 1 being "meh, maybe I shouldn't have traded my truck" to a 10 being "oh dear lord, what towing bliss is this?" And I might have to clean the seats because of my excitement.

[milw156]

8 or 9, because I wouldn't give a 10 unless I had a dually. The difference in both performance, stress-reduction, and confidence is that drastic.

[Ela1948]

I would expect that you will see a significant difference because you probably have a 3:73 gear ratio in your 3/4 ton. Most 1/2 tons don't come with ratios any lower then 3:55 unless they were special ordered. You still have a gas truck, so its not going to be a WOW, this thing is powerful. Thats what I would expect..

[Camper_bob]

My current truck is 3.42, I don't know yet what the potential truck has...

[Crabman]

Since you say you are under all your numbers and your truck does just fine pulling the trailer, my question would be do you pull the trailer often or far enough to justify the switch? The biggest difference you will have is payload capability and suspension stability with the 2500 (most noticeable on windy days), you will not see a HUGE power difference with the 6.0 that will blow your skirt up.

[Heady]

The 2500 will have a stiffer ride if it's your daily driver. Any difference in gas mileage between the two?

[Ela1948]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

My current truck is 3.42, I don't know yet what the potential truck has...

The heavier suspension and tires will give a wider margin of safety. If you drive the 3/4 truck 50 miles to work everyday, that same truck will ride rougher and give poorer fuel milage when not towing.
If the primary purpose of the truck is to tow, it should be the way to go.
I've never been around a 3/4 ton gasser that didn't have at least a 3:73 gears. The difference between 3:42 and 3:73 gears will translate into substantial pulling power!!!

[Camper_bob]

Thanks guys, this is really helping!

I'm relatively certain the 3/4 ton I'm looking at has 3.73 gears.

It'd be a daily driver. My commute is about 18 miles a day round trip, country roads, very little city, only 2 stop lights the whole way. My current truck is our trip vehicle because it's more comfortable than DWs XTerra even though she gets better fuel economy, it's usually not worth the butt hurt to us; the truck just rides and travels nicer. I would be surprised if the 3/4 ton rides anywhere close to as bad as the X! Our towing miles are about 3-4k a year for now, but I would like to start taking some bigger trips, but even then, it would only be once a year. We're having our first kid in October, so there's that additional weight to consider.

[WVCamper]

Starting with the 2011 models, GM updated the frame and brakes on the HDs. With a 2500 gasser they were built with either 3.73 or 4.10 ratio. I wend from an 09 to a 12 in March and the feel was noticeably different in terms of stability and breaking power. You'll get over the rougher ride over time, just part of an HD truck, can't have great payload and car quality ride in one rig.
You will not be disappointed with a 3/4 ton, Good Luck

[LiftedAWDAstro]

What mileage do you get with the 5.3? I wouldn't expect more than 14 or 15 mpg with the 6.0 and much heavier 2500HD. Towing is where you will really notice the added engine power as the 5.3 is pretty weak compared to the 6L. The 6L makes 50 ft# more torque and 45 HP more combined with the 3.73 or 4.10 gears and you'll definitely notice when pulling!

[Iraqvet05]

I was getting 16 mpg mixed highway/city in my 26 mile (1 way) commute to work in the 5.3 crew cab I sold recently. I haven't calculated mpg in the 2500hd I just bought. The 2500 has a GT5 PRO code...4.10 gears. We may go camping this weekend....I'll update you on the tow when I do, Camper Bob.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Iraqvet05

I was getting 16 mpg mixed highway/city in my 26 mile (1 way) commute to work in the 5.3 crew cab I sold recently. I haven't calculated mpg in the 2500hd I just bought. The 2500 has a GT5 PRO code...4.10 gears. We may go camping this weekend....I'll update you on the tow when I do, Camper Bob.

Thanks! I appreciate it!

The deal I mentioned will fall through. We're having a kid soon, and we just don't need to deal with it right now, especially since usage will likely be sparse for the rest of this year and into next year for our busy season. There's no hurry for now; with our short trips on mostly flat land, there's no real rush to get a new truck...

Anyway, as far as mileage goes for the 5.3, I haven't measured it in a while because it was getting kind of depressing, but last time I toggled through the DIC, it said 14.5, but there was some towing mixed in there; I get around 8-9 mpg towing. 16 mixed city/highway is about what I was getting IIRC. Empty hwy mileage is pretty good though.

If we end up keeping this truck to tow with, I'll probably look into getting a Diablo tuner and a Diablew tune... we'll see... The way I see it, I could put a couple grand in the truck to make it better (still never great), or I could pocket that money, deal with what I have, and get a bigger truck later.

[Redhorse 823]

Camper Bob,
I made the jump to the 2012 2500 from a 2004 1500.

The 1500 towed ok. As you are aware.
However, I did not want to be limited by weight on the next TT

Could not be happier with the 2500.
Towing is a dream.
The 6.0 L gas runs fantastic.

MPG;
Was getting 16/17 in the 04 and now 12.
All city
With the TT on the 2500

Does the new truck have 48K miles or is that your truck with twice on the 2500?

BL
Go for a 2500, I don't think I will ever go back to a 1500

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Redhorse 823

Camper Bob,
I made the jump to the 2012 2500 from a 2004 1500.

The 1500 towed ok. As you are aware.
However, I did not want to be limited by weight on the next TT

Could not be happier with the 2500.
Towing is a dream.
The 6.0 L gas runs fantastic.

MPG;
Was getting 16/17 in the 04 and now 12.
All city
With the TT on the 2500

Does the new truck have 48K miles or is that your truck with twice on the 2500?

BL
Go for a 2500, I don't think I will ever go back to a 1500

You nailed it on the head "I don't want to be limited on weight with my next TT". Though it's not the weight of the trailer I'm concerned about. I'm more worried about bringing more junk along while towing my current trailer (payload). With a baby on the way, our days of packing light are numbered. Me and DW only add about 50 lbs of stuff to our normal load for an average weekend (food, clothes, etc...); just the stroller and pack 'n' play weigh that much!

For now, my truck meets my needs because I don't tow very much, and it's still a daily driver and road-trip truck. I can handle the extra baby weight for now with strategic packing, but I see the writing on the wall. Even still, I'm going to wait a little while for the timing and budget to be better, but once I make that leap, I don't see any reason to go back... at least not any time in the foreseeable future.

The 2500 I was looking at would have had a little more than 2x the mileage of my 1500. Other than being 3/4 ton and the mileage, it would have been the exact same truck (same model year SLE optioned the exact same way, different colors).

[mcfarmall]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

The 2500 I was looking at would have had a little more than 2x the mileage of my 1500. Other than being 3/4 ton and the mileage, it would have been the exact same truck (same model year SLE optioned the exact same way, different colors).

How many miles are on the 2500?? 48,000 or 96,000.

Based on your previous post, we can't tell if your 1500 has 24,000 or 48,000 miles on it at this time.

The following statement: 'The 2500 has twice the miles of my 1/2 ton (48k) and is equipped with the 6L Vortec gas motor.' can be interpreted either as the 2500 having 48k or the 1500 having 48k.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by mcfarmall

How many miles are on the 2500?? 48,000 or 96,000.

Based on your previous post, we can't tell if your 1500 has 24,000 or 48,000 miles on it at this time.

The following statement: 'The 2500 has twice the miles of my 1/2 ton (48k) and is equipped with the 6L Vortec gas motor.' can be interpreted either as the 2500 having 48k or the 1500 having 48k.

Sorry, my 2012 1500 has 20k, the 2012 2500 I was looking at has 48k.

[Redhorse 823]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

Sorry, my 2012 1500 has 20k, the 2012 2500 I was looking at has 48k.

At 48K miles on the 2500, I would say it is a good deal...

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by Redhorse 823

At 48K miles on the 2500, I would say it is a good deal...

Definitely a good deal, just not quite right for right now... AND it would take a lot of leg work to make it happen.

[Livinglife2]

Going from a 1500 to a gas 2500 would not be worth the jump if the 1500 does the job for me to do it. My coworker traded her brand new chevy gas 2500 for a 1500 after 6 months, it was a pig on fuel and really rough riding. We had a gas dodge 2500 for 12 years and will never own another gas 2500. We made the leap to a 2500 diesel two years ago and couldn't be happier with it with the plan of getting a larger camper in the future. It has saved us money with twice the gas milage as a daily driver and rides 10x smoother than our gas did. This year we have pulled over 8k miles on trips that we would of never done with our gas 2500 and it pulls our new 5er like its not even back there. The upfront cost difference has been well worth it (the diesel motors slowly loose there value but the gas 2500 are worthless in 10 years) I could of gotten 12k more in trade if my old truck was a diesel. You can find good deals on used low mileage diesel they just don't stay on the lots very long and you have to be ready to jump when you find one.

[Socalken]

the 6.0 with twice as many miles as you have might be a bad idea....those 6.0 motors are dead at 125k you will start throwing a ton of money at it soon. I would keep what you have and add a few things to help with the power and torque. try cold air intake, tuner, exhaust to name a few....you still have low miles keep it and drive it till you can get a great deal on a Diesel