Silverado 1500... Enough?

Dcarner wrote:
It sounds like your mind is made up. Go with the 1500, I don't think you will see 10mpg out of a 2500 though. 13-14 yes, 10 no.

One thing I'm am sure on is don't believe the I pull 7k lbs and don't know it's there crowd. My neighbor regularly goes with us to the lake. He pulls my 5k boat and trailer behind his 15 gmc 1500. He gets 8.5 mpg and can't hold a hill without the truck Erving to the ceiling and falling behind. So yes it will pull your trailer, probably hundreds of thousands of miles. But you WILL, know it's back there and you will be exhausted if traveling a long distance. Every hill you come to will require a lot of pedal and down shifting to minimize speed loss.

I really appreciate all the input... It really is helping me think this through. I just don't know that a 2500 gasser wouldn't also have about the same experience? What do you think? I mean, you're gaining payload but you're not necessarily gaining much in way of powertrain with the 2500 gas. My current 1500 does downshift, obviously, when heading straight up Blood Mountain, you for sure know it is working, but it gets the job done without a ton of fuss. Jerry is right about the HP and torque numbers for the 2013 vs the 2000. I'd be gaining about 50 hp and 50 lb/ft... give or take... Nothing too significant, but it is an increase.

Too bad you can't test drive trucks with a trailer hooked to them!