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Nell · 12-31-2007, 04:17 AM

Good morning,

We've been looking at a 2004 Chevy Silverado 2500 6.0 liter with the 4:10 rear. It has 32100 on it.It'a a crew cab. Anyone have any experience with this vehicle? We aren't happy with the Mega Cab and want to go back to a Chevy. And this way it'd be a even swap out. I had a 01 Suburban with the 6.0 and 4:10 rear and it handled the camper we have fine.

Anything we should know about or be aware of?
Thanks,
Nell

Nell · 12-31-2007, 04:17 AM

Good morning,

We've been looking at a 2004 Chevy Silverado 2500 6.0 liter with the 4:10 rear. It has 32100 on it.It'a a crew cab. Anyone have any experience with this vehicle? We aren't happy with the Mega Cab and want to go back to a Chevy. And this way it'd be a even swap out. I had a 01 Suburban with the 6.0 and 4:10 rear and it handled the camper we have fine.

Anything we should know about or be aware of?
Thanks,
Nell

CD · 12-31-2007, 05:49 AM

Nell
I agree with Seth about using diesel for a tow rig. Definitely go with the 410. I had 2 '01 Dodge dullies. The first was a 354. On the same trip I got about 1/2 mpg less with the 410 and much better performance. Now that I have learned to keep the my foot out of it and stay under 60 I get much better milage.

Randy the sly old fox · 01-01-2008, 12:26 AM

I have a NBS 07 6L 6sp 4x4, and 4.10 rear end. It is my daily driver and on weekends it gets to tote my 24' TT around. I have not driven a 6L 4sp combo - but the new 6sp auto does a great job. With the tow/haul mode on, it does a fantastic job with my 5600lb TT. It actually gets up into 6th on the flat while towing and the worst case I have had is 4th gear on grades - still making 55-60 and turning 3500-4000 RPM - which is the sweet spot for this engine.

I average a little over 12MPG - hy/city/towing. I notice very little drop in MPG towing and usually get 14 hy empty and 11 towing.

30000 mi is low for that age truck - was it used for towing? was it well maintained?

Nell · 01-01-2008, 03:47 AM

Good morning all!

Happy New Year!

I'd thought about the diesel, but honestly couldn't even consider it because the cost here is way out of my pocket book range.

And that while we need a tow vehicle, we haven't towed the camper for 18 months due to my Mother's stroke-she's 84 and it's not easy leaving her alone at her house with out any means to get around-I am her wheels.

But I wanted to get something that could still do the job when we'd get a chance-plus take my oldest off to college next summer, field hockey, soccer gear and any other stuff we can think of.

I went over the truck yesterday with a fine tooth comb. Took it on a 45min test drive on a bunch of different roads-highway, 2 lanes and dirt. It'd snow 7 inches around here the night before-great way to see how it does in weather stuff.

It's very well take care off, it's GM certified and the carfax had no blemishes at all. The truck hadn't been driven more than about 9800 miles a year since it was bought. There was one tiny scratch on a fender-but only because I was looking for anything and everything. It's showroom clean inside too-no wear or tear-it was pampered. It's Forest Green with gray leather-same exact colors of the Suburban that I had.

Well..... long story is that I got the truck, got cash back from trading in the Mega Cab, and it cost me all of $66 for fees to DMV. That's a good deal. I even got to take it home with me on the spot.

It drove like a dream, I averaged 16-17 miles to the gallon on the way home-that was nice. I filled the tank-26 gallons-and it ran me about $30 less than the Mega Cab. Another bonus. It's not my daily driver-I've got a Civic to go to work in. So it's a occasional weekday/every weekend driver. I only fill up the truck up about 1 time a month that way.

So thanks for the replies-it's nice to be back in Chevy again.

Nell

Robbins · 01-01-2008, 08:13 PM

Nell-
The gasser community used to love the big block 454 (7.4L) with 290hp and 400 flb torque. Now we have a 364 (6.0L) small block with 300+hp and 360+ flb torque. Remember, Chevy replaced the 454 with the 6.0L. The 454 built more torque in the lower rpms but the 6.0 builds rpm quicker and holds longer in the hill at the higher rpm.
I have a 2004 2500hd silverado ex.cab with a 6.0L and 4:10 gear ratio. Yes, the gas mileage is not good but I really try to match speed and rpm to gain maximum advantage. When I bought this truck , it wasn't for the mileage it was for the cost. It was approx. $8,000 less than the diesel, but, also got 0% financing on this model at the time. This adds up to approx. $15,000 savings at the time of purchase.
I have over 110,000 miles and approx. 50% is towing some sort of trailer over 9,000lbs. Runs like new, looks almost new and don't plan on changing anytime soon. I check for codes and change fluids often. Like on my heavy equipment; maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. Things last almost forever. Now that I have it almost paid off, it's hard to justify another 45 grand for a diesel. WOW! a lot of gas for 40 grand. I can drive 2-3 mph slower over the Sierra peeks, I travel the speed limit anyhow.
Great buy on your truck.
Good luck and have fun.
See Ya on top
Keith

Rick A · 01-02-2008, 03:37 AM

I personally am a Ford man, but have nothing against GM. GM builds a great truck. I made the switch from diesel to gas. With the delta between gas and diesel prices I am actually saving money even with the lower mileage for daily driving. With the dditional price for a diesel motor, it just made sense to go with the gasser since we only tow occasionally.

Hitchhiker · 01-02-2008, 03:44 AM

FWIW, if anyone is searching ads for a well maintained diesel, take a look at this one.

450Donn · 01-02-2008, 04:24 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Nell:
Good morning,

We've been looking at a 2004 Chevy Silverado 2500 6.0 liter with the 4:10 rear. It has 32100 on it.It'a a crew cab. Anyone have any experience with this vehicle? We aren't happy with the Mega Cab and want to go back to a Chevy. And this way it'd be a even swap out. I had a 01 Suburban with the 6.0 and 4:10 rear and it handled the camper we have fine.

Anything we should know about or be aware of?
Thanks,
Nell </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yes, in a crew cab it will be marginal at best pulling. Crew cab is a lot of weight for that motor. Not my personal choice, but then again I don't have to pay your fuel bill. Not sure why you don't like the mega cab, but to each his own.

Nell · 01-02-2008, 05:44 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by 450Donn:

Yes, in a crew cab it will be marginal at best pulling. Crew cab is a lot of weight for that motor. Not my personal choice, but then again I don't have to pay your fuel bill. Not sure why you don't like the mega cab, but to each his own. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

The Dodge honestly IMHO was cheaply made. It always appeared to be rushed into market-the quality just wasn't there-paint runs,orange peel paint job, door handles that were cracking, the leather seats came undone from the seat frame. Add too that the seats were the most uncomfortable I've ever had in a vehicle-I am 5'3 and I just couldn't get my legs to be where I needed to drive it-even with the adjustable pedals. If I lowered the seat a bit, I couldn't see over the hood well. Power wise was good and handled towing well. But we both were disappointed in the Dodge-it was a Laramie and should have been much better than it was-it was chintzy.

The Silverado isn't all that heavy-my Suburban with that was a 2500 6.0, 4:10 rear weighed in at 6250=the Silverado-5995. So far I've been getting about 14 around town-a bit more than the Dodge did. And since I fill up maybe once a month-@69.00-that isn't bad at all.

I never had a problem pulling my camper with the Suburban and I don't expect any problems with the Silverado.

Nell

Nell · 01-02-2008, 05:49 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Robbins:
Nell-
The gasser community used to love the big block 454 (7.4L) with 290hp and 400 flb torque. Now we have a 364 (6.0L) small block with 300+hp and 360+ flb torque. Remember, Chevy replaced the 454 with the 6.0L. The 454 built more torque in the lower rpms but the 6.0 builds rpm quicker and holds longer in the hill at the higher rpm.
I have a 2004 2500hd silverado ex.cab with a 6.0L and 4:10 gear ratio. Yes, the gas mileage is not good but I really try to match speed and rpm to gain maximum advantage. When I bought this truck , it wasn't for the mileage it was for the cost. It was approx. $8,000 less than the diesel, but, also got 0% financing on this model at the time. This adds up to approx. $15,000 savings at the time of purchase.
I have over 110,000 miles and approx. 50% is towing some sort of trailer over 9,000lbs. Runs like new, looks almost new and don't plan on changing anytime soon. I check for codes and change fluids often. Like on my heavy equipment; maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. Things last almost forever. Now that I have it almost paid off, it's hard to justify another 45 grand for a diesel. WOW! a lot of gas for 40 grand. I can drive 2-3 mph slower over the Sierra peeks, I travel the speed limit anyhow.
Great buy on your truck.
Good luck and have fun.
See Ya on top
Keith </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Thanks Keith,

My friends have a Suburban with the 454 in it-makes a great town vehicle. But not for everyday hauling kids around town.

I thought long and hard about a diesel-I just couldn't do it-the price of fuel here is almost $4.00 a gallon and since I hadn't towed my camper since Sept.2006, it didn't make sense in case we still didn't get out camping for a while. I drive a school bus and go to work twice daily-50 miles. When my daughter has to borrow my car, I'd rather use a gas truck over a diesel to do that. I had considered a Mega Cab diesel when I first bought mine-I am so glad I didn't do it.

I got what fits us best and our needs. For a little towing we do-won't be more than 600 miles total now, it's what fits the bill and wallet.

Nell

Nell · 01-02-2008, 05:54 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Rick A:
I personally am a Ford man, but have nothing against GM. GM builds a great truck. I made the switch from diesel to gas. With the delta between gas and diesel prices I am actually saving money even with the lower mileage for daily driving. With the dditional price for a diesel motor, it just made sense to go with the gasser since we only tow occasionally. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I liked the Fords, but couldn't find one around here with a motor larger than the 5.4 and then we'd have to gone with a diesel-like you-we don't tow but occasionally. That would be overkill for us at this stage in our lives. Maybe after the kids are all out of the nest-8 1/2 more years.

I'll be 50 and ready to retire from driving a school bus and to hit the open highway a bit more.

Nell

Rick A · 01-03-2008, 07:18 AM

Unfotunately the Ford V-10 is very tough to come by. I got lucky that I came across a used one when I was truck shopping, otherwise I was going to have to order a new 2008 and wait. I would never get a 5.4 in a superduty. Under powered for anything other than running around town.

**NLOVNIT** · 01-03-2008, 04:21 PM

Nell-

I LOVED our Chevy 2500HD. It was fun for me to drive - I got lots of comments at gas stations when little me climbed down from the cab of such a big truck! It was well matched with our 5-r & did a good job towing it. I can see me owning one again, someday.

L-