I am trying to sell my MH and want to buy a used Duramax and a used 5er. I am thinking 30K for the truck and 20K to 25K for the trailer. I have seen 05 or 06 Duramax and REALLY like them... This Thread will be fun to watch and learn...

I have so much to learn about the truck and the trailer....

On edit; Does the Duramax have a exhaust brake?

The Duramax engine in the light duty trucks don't have a factory exhaust brake, only the 2006 and up LBZ engines in the medium duty trucks have it. Also, I'd suggest steering clear of the 2004.5 through 2005 LLY engines, some had overheating issues and buying a used one off a lot might get you one of the ones that GM couldn't fix.

I'd strongly recommend the 2006 - 2007 LBZ or an early 2006 with the LLY engine. Also, the 2001 throughthe mid year 2004's with the LB7 were great but had less HP and torque than the later models.

Click here for a link to a good used 2002 with the LB7, I know the truck and it's well cared for with low miles.

My '01 does an awesome job towing my 5er.

We have a 05 DuraMax 2500 double cab-short bed. We tow a 32' Keystone Couger. NO problems with 34Kmiles on it. I went with AmsOil after the 1st. 10K miles. We do not know the 5th is back there. We are fixing to trade the 5th for a Slid in camper so we can tow our new Jeep unlimited Rubicon out west..
Have a great day .
Walt

My 05 GMC duramax/allison has never overheated and I have never talked to anyone who has one that has either. I have 30 grand on mine, driven it all over the Rockies pulling 14000 5'ver and pulls like nothings back there. Keep looking for an 05, you'll not go wrong. JWB

jwb,

Glad you got a good one.

Fortunately for GM, all the 04.5 and 05's weren't over heaters. But, as member "Dave" could attest in this 2005 thread, his was not repairable and GM bought it back. I can only wonder how many others were just sold or traded in exasperation.

I've got a Kodiac C4500 with a 6.6L Duramax in it, it pulls like a BEAR

Ron,

How's the ride on that C4500? What sort of fuel mileage are you getting?

Richard,
With the air seats not to bad bob tailing The 5er smoothes things out nicely. Truck has no millage on it yet, but the run from MA. to ME. got me 9.6 mpg.
Have a good day,
Ron

I have the 04.5 LLY and no probs with overheating, but I pull a small fiver. Really happy with the truck - almost 60K on it now with no issues. I get nervous when I read about overheat problems and if I were buying a used one today, the LBZ would be my choice.
Dodge is very nice, but when I bought mine, the Crew Cab size was just too small, and the Ford was to new (6.0 - glad I avoided that). I think all three today offer a great truck and it's really just a matter of personal preference.
Good Luck

On a trip comming back from Maine in October my 06 LBZ got a little warm twice on the hills. It got up to the 3/4 on the temp gauge and cooled quickly as we went down hill. I took it in and the dealer said the truck was a little low on coolant. So far everything good but not been in mountains since.

When I shift my truck into 4WD LOW..the indicator light flashes, does this indicated the transmission is "IN" 4X LOW and ready? the 4WD HIGH light indicator is on as well?(no flash) I didn't see anything about this in the Owners Manual. I still don't know all the basics about the truck,...other than its a real work horse....Brad

When mine goes in low range the light stays on. I think the light flashing is telling you that it didn't go into low range.

Make sure you are in neutral and have your foot on the brake pedal then try it again. If it keeps flashing move the truck a few inches, it should drop in and the light will stop flashing.

Alright Richard. Thanks. Will try this and let you know how I make out. There is a lot to learn, especially for someone TOTALLY "green" with diesels.

Pick a truck after you settle on a trailer. Remember one thing. All 3/4 ton trucks with diesel motors will be very close to the manufacturers gross vehicle rating. What that means in real world is that a 3/4 ton truck will have a net cargo carrying capacity of around 1800 to 2000 pounds. So you must be very careful that your intended load does not over load a 3/4 ton truck. Also please bear in mind that a fifth wheel trailer when loaded and ready to camp will have a pin weight of right at 20% of the trailers GVWR. You will get a lot of " aw this 3/4 ton diesel can pull anything" to "you really need a dually for any fiver" Neither is accurate. The old saying 'you can never have too much truck" is more true in fifth wheel pulling.
To those that have not had their LLY over heat, thank your lucky stars or what ever you believe in. There are a lot of us that did have problems with our LLY motors. Personally I would shy away from any LLY equipped truck in favor of the later versions. Again this will depend on your budget. GM does not equip their diesels with an exhaust brake. Check with a dealer about warranty if one were added. They rely on the function of the Allison automatic transmission to do the job. And quite frankly it does a good job of holding speed on the down hill. Numerous times I was able to go down a 6% grade fully loaded at 22,000 pounds and not use the service brakes except when I came to some one who was in total panic mode and ridding their brakes down the hill.