Issues with GMC 6.0 L

As a previous poster said, a little late now but since you asked... :)

I've owned a '98 Chevy 1500 with a 350, an '01 CC 2500HD with the 6.0L, an '01 Duramax CC, and now an '07 Duramax CC, all 4WD. When I moved from my '98 350 to the '01 6.0L, I was very disappointed. The 6.0L pulled but it wanted to rev high in the RPMs to get power. Compared to my 350, which had tons of low end grunt, pulling my long, steep mountain road, at low speeds, about stalled the 6.0L engine without me keeping it in 1st gear. I was amazed at the low fuel economy of the 6.0L. This was all with just pulling my 4K lb. boat. The truck didn't last long and I went to the diesel. Never looked back. I still think affectionately about the '98 350 - great truck with loads of low end torque but the diesel is right for my needs now. The newer tunes and 6 spd. transmissions may help highway pulls but the low end, slow pulls is what I did not like about the truck (not to mention hitting 4K RPM pulling a big hill at freeway speed with the 6.0L).

I suspect the new Vortec engines all make their peak power at the higher RPMs for a few reasons. #1 they can keep the gas mileage claims higher; and #2 they can publish higher horsepower numbers to the public. Horsepower is the relationship of torque (which is measurable) to RPM, so the higher the RPM for a given torque value, the higher the HP number. From memory the formula is Torque*RPM/5260 (not sure if I have the divisor/constant correct).

Enjoy the truck and be your own judge.


Phil

Pulled a Crossroads Cruiser TT with mine. They were a good fit, even with the 4 speed that was in mine. Still have it with over 240,000 miles on it. It did not do as well with the Chaparral 5vr, so the dually took its place.

I have a 2011 Chevy 3500 SRW 6.0. Over the past two summers I have put over 13,000 miles on it in the Rocky Mtns, pulling a loaded (12,000lb) fiver. I now joke about the little engine that could, because that truck/engine kicked butt. I averaged about 8-9mpg in the mtns, not bad considering I get 11-12 just driving around the city (in flat Michigan). There were a couple biggins in Colorado that she bogged down a little, slowing down to 40ish, but that just allowed me to enjoy the scenery a little bit better. Enjoy your new truck!!

Had an 02 CCSB with 6.0, now driving a 2012 Dmax/ALlison.

The 6.0 is a good reliable motor but lacks any real low end torque. IMO its a 1/2ton motor in a 3/4 ton truck. The truck could handle a lot more weight but the motor just wasnt up to the task unless you like spinng 4K+ RPM and getting 7-8MPG doing it. I do a lot of mountain towing so it was not a good fit for me and why I moved to the Dmax. Will never go back to a gasser in a HD truck...

Good engine for medium size trailers.

I'm using a 09 GMC Sierra 2500HD for towing my 10,000 lb Jayco fifth wheel with the 6.0 and six speed tranny. It's working just fine for me also. In May 2012 we towed the 5ver from Wichita to Albuquerque, to the Grand Canyon, to Las Vegas, to the California coast then home. I only had one area on the way home that was a pretty long 6% uphill grade where I thought it struggled. It was turning close to 4500 rpm and only making 40 mph at the top of that grade.

I have an 06 Duramax and 6 spd and I got 10.8 Wbnd from VA-OK-Belen NM via Santa Rosa and Vaughn (climbs 18 in/mile to around 6000 ft, Creede Co via Wolf Creek Pass. return, Creede-ABQ-OK-N VA got 9.7 but ran sort of fast as my brother had died.

What? Me worry?

The 6.0 is a powerful engine it will do just about anything but pass a gas station. In my opinion it really is nothing to worry about. Everyone knows you get horrible gas mileage pulling something the equivalent of a parachute down the road. Just this last weekend I pulled mine to Caseville in Michigan with my 2013 Silverado 1500 Crew with 5.3 and 6 speed and got about 11 mpg. On the way home pulling into a stiff south wind I got about 8 mpg. I have just learned not to worry about mpg's and worry about things like maintenance and watch the trans temp.

You be good to her and she will be good to you. I really think there isn't too many bad engines out there it's just all on how people take care of them. If you tow a lot then up the maintenance.

Good luck and like was said in the previous post enjoy it!

Jason

I'm using an 07 Silverado 2500hd for towing my 10,000 lb fifth wheel. The six speed tranny helps. It's working just fine for me.

I love my 6.0! A little thirsty on the gas but hey, if I was worried about mpg I wouldn't have taken up rv'ing ;)