Diesel vs gas......................

rcpd34 wrote:

waynec1957 wrote:

Taco wrote:
You think you bought so much extra power for 8k but what it really shakes out to is only a couple extra mph up a hill.

I think it’s a little more complex than that. I’m probably the dumbest guy participating in this discussion from a “technical” aspect. I don’t know all the internal workings of gas OR diesel engines, but here is what I came up with when comparing the EXACT same trucks 2013 Silverado, 2500HD, 2WD, CC, standard bed (6’6”), LS work truck—one 6.0l Vortec, the other 6.6l Duramax/Allison. Keep in mind that when I was making this comparison I was looking for a truck to pull (eventually) a 9,500 lb. fully loaded (give or take) 35’ TT, knowing that at times this truck would also be a “daily driver”.

The gas version of the truck has roughly 350 more pounds of payload (because of the extra weight of the 6.6l engine).

Max conventional trailering for the 6.6l version with 3.73 gears is 13,000 lbs.
Max conventional trailering for the 6.0l version with 3.73 gears is 9,700 lbs. (It’s 13,000 lbs. with 4.10, but then it’s not the EXACT same truck is it?)

Max 5th wheel trailering for the 6.6l version with 3.73 gears is 17,400 lbs.
Max 5th wheel trailering for the 6.0l version upgraded to the 4.10 gears is 14,300 lbs. (3k lbs. less than the 6.0l with 3.73)

Cross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating for the 6.6l version with 3.73 gears is 24,500 lbs.
Cross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating for the 6.0l version with 3.73 gears is 20,500 lbs. (4k lbs. less than the 6.6l)

Horsepower for the 6.6l—397 hp @ 3000 rpm
Horsepower for the 6.0l—360 hp @ 5400 rpm

Torque for the 6.6l—765 lbs. @ 1600 rpm
Torque for the 6.0l—380 lbs. @ 4200 rpm

Another key factor for me was the Duramax/Allison has an exhaust brake and the Vortec does not.

These numbers are factory published numbers. They’re out there for anybody to take a look at. This is a straight up apples to apples comparison. The ONLY difference between these two trucks is one has the 6.0l Vortec and the other is a 6.6l Duramax/Allison. According to the factory, on THIS particular truck, you get more horsepower, more torque, more GCVWR (by 4k lbs.), more conventional trailering capacity (by 3,300 lbs.) and more 5th wheel trailering capacity (3,100 lbs.) with the 6.6l Duramax/Allison versus the 6.0l Vortec.

Regarding gas mileage, I’m only seeing a 2.5-3.5 mpg difference between my old 5.3l and this 6.6l. Given there’s just under 3k on the 6.6l and that’s been on winter fuel, I don’t think that’s too bad. Having never owned a 6.0l I can’t make a comparison here but I seriously doubt it does any better than my old 5.3l.

As far as gas mileage towing, as far as I can tell that seems to be the one area where everyone agrees…diesel does better.

To me, all that adds up to more than just a couple more mph going uphill.

This is a good common sense approach that explains the differences and advantages in laymans terms. However, the haters will be along shortly to diassemble everything you said and again point out why gas is superior to diesel. :S Simply amazing. Ayone have a dead horse we can beat on some more? :?

I can't argue anything he said. The 6.6l is a larger and more powerful engine than the 6.0l gasser and has a turbocharger. I personally haven't ever argued against diesels getting more miles to the gallon. I have just said that they are losing their advantage these days and that diesel fuel does cost more.

Gassers have less torque and really need the lower gearing to provide a similar experience to the diesels. By similar I mean assuming that someone disabled their tachometer and wore earplugs.