Travelrider73, you are in luck. DW & I just completed a 7800 mile- 6 week trip with a 2009 GMC D/A 2500 crewcab shortbed combo with a full profile 34 ft 5W. Weighed truck & trailer right before we left on cat scales, combo weighed total of 19,300lbs. We pulled this setup through 13 states in nearbout every possible scenario you could imagine. Beginning at Texas to S Dakota, then to Y-stone, on to Crater Lake, then to Redwoods. Onward to Yosemite, stopped at Hoover Dam, across Arizona & N Mexico. I was concerned about having enough power & being able to stop; (truck does not have exhaust brake). My worries were first addressed in this forum. I was told correctly,do not worry- duramax & allybaby will get you up & then back down. Only issue I had was truck & tranny warming up higher than normal going up extreme grades for 8-10 miles stretchs. I just pulled over & cooled er down. Arizon & Texas had 25+mph wind, this was one of the few times that I felt a 3500 dually would have fared better; (even though we never come close to loosing control of combo). I also would have liked a better weight cushion; I was only 30 lbs from being overloaded on drive axle. I compensated by not filling up my 50 gal aux tank. I just kept approx 10-15 gallon cushion to keep the weight down. The newer D/A's have 400hp with over 800ftlbs Torque. My truck has 385hp with 660torque. With truck in T/H mode (with cruse set) , I would pass right by the 18w's just barely making it up the steep passes. I had plenty of power to run, but I always stick to around max speed of 65mph, (Most of time just slowing down to 50-55 & enjoying the ride). You would be suprised how much cooler your engine & tranny run when slowing down to 55.
