chevy 6.0

[Americamper]

Anyone carry their camper on a Chevy 2500 or 3500 with the 6.0 gas engine? With camper weight max 3000# how well does it do hills and mountains?

[JD5150]

Just seen Chevy/GMC came out with a new gas 6.2 Ecotec 3 engine for their heavy-duty trucks. Mated with a 10 speed transmission. Can't wait to see how well it does. I have a new Ford but have owned Chevy in the past and have no complaints with the Chevy's I have owned.

[Kalabin]

MORSNOW wrote:
I've been hauling my 3,000lb+ Wolf Creek and 16' trailer and SXS with my '12 GMC with a 6.0 all over Alaska's mountains without any issues. The newer (2011+) 6.0 trucks have a better/heavier transmission than previous models and a much heavy chassis and 36 gallon gas tank to extend your travel distance. I honestly have no need for a diesel, some folks do, it is a personal decision based on wants and needs.

We have about the same setup in the same city! I have my 2009 F350 hauling a 2018 Wolfreek 840 I picked up this past summer hauling a RZR 4 900.

[burningman]

I’ll add that decades ago I drove an F600 tow truck. It had a 300-inch six cylinder gas engine and it hauled all sorts of heavy stuff, for years and years. Just not quickly.
Next one was a Chevy C60 with a gas 366. Same story.
Every school bus a few decades ago had a gas 366 or a gas Ford 470 (a small-bore, long stroke truck version of the 429/460). The kids got to school.

None of us NEED a diesel pickup with 800 ft/lbs.
We LIKE them. A lot. But the 6.0 gas Chevy will get the job done for sure, even with a heavy trailer behind it. We ran them as work trucks for years, treating them terribly, working them to death. Except they wouldn’t die.

[HioSSilver]

I have a 03 6.0 4x4 gasser with a lance 845. Idk how some of you stay around 3k lb with a tc lol. I seem to end up around 5k lb of tc and **** on my truck. But it does fine. Worst part about the 6.0 is the way the cruise operates. There are many hills it will go up in od if you're working the throttle and only lose a few mph. But if the cruise is on then it will try to accelerate back to set speed. The diesels just chug on up in od and accelerate if needed.

[MORSNOW]

I've been hauling my 3,000lb+ Wolf Creek and 16' trailer and SXS with my '12 GMC with a 6.0 all over Alaska's mountains without any issues. The newer (2011+) 6.0 trucks have a better/heavier transmission than previous models and a much heavy chassis and 36 gallon gas tank to extend your travel distance. I honestly have no need for a diesel, some folks do, it is a personal decision based on wants and needs.

[Kalabin]

I had a 2009 Chevy 2500HD that hauled a slide in truck camper. The 6.0 will do perfectly fine, again these trucks were designed to pull an additional 10,000lbs behind them. Adding a 3,000lb weight in the truck wont stress the engine, it's more so on the rest of the truck.

[Fuller_Johnson]

A friend and I have went to the desert Southwest the last couple winters. He has a 2004 2500 6.0 with the 4 speed auto. The first downshift isn't bad but on the second one will jump to over 4,000 RPM and it sounds like it will self destruct and isn't getting anywhere. We have the same campers and my old 95 one ton dodge will go over the same mountain and not shift out of overdrive. Having said that I believe the newer 6.0's with the 6 speed do a lot better. I would consider one of those instead of a modern muffler juice DPF diesel when they get affordable.

[KD4UPL]

Americamper wrote:
I'm hoping the newer 6.0 does not have the deal where it drops out four cylinders at times. I know the newer 5.3 does have it and I don't like it.

I don't think the 6.0 ever had this "feature". I've had a 2002 Chevy 2500, a 2009 2500 Suburban, and a 2015 Chevy 3500 with the 6.0. None had cylinder deactivation. All were trouble free as can be. Of the 3 trucks I spent a total of $70 replacing a sensor in one of them. All were loaded and worked hard as work trucks or towing.

[dave17352]

I could see tranny considerations pulling a heavy trailer not much if at all with a Truck Camper.

[dave17352]

That's what I have and all though I have not been in the mountains I have been up and down some big hills. I have no doubt it will do just fine. If does just fine with a 4k payload and pulling a 3500 pd boat.

[Fishbreath]

I had a 2013 with the 6.0 and 4.10 rear end. I towed a 28ft fifth wheel and was satisfied with the results. It was necessary to wind it up when going up a steep hill, but you just need to accept the fact that the motor will run at a high rpm all day long.
I just got a 2019 3500 with the 6.0 and 4.10 gears. I now haul a Northstar pop up and tow a utility trailer. I love the motor. It just goes!
The 6.0 does NOT have cylinder deactivation
Good luck with your purchase.
Bill

[billtex]

Bob B wrote:
Don't forget about the tranny. I went diesel, so I don't know much about the tranny in the 6.0. I went with the diesel because of the Allison transmission.

If you blow a tranny you will eat up the cost difference pretty quick.

My previous truck lost the tranny twice ... hence ... go with the Allison. That was the tipping point for me.

Diesel = more power and torque = tougher transmission

Unfortunately that is true about th tranny. The tranny in my last gasser truck blew. The Allison in our current truck has been bullet proof.

Sure wish GM would pair the Alli with a gasser to offer more options.

[Bob__B]

Don't forget about the tranny. I went diesel, so I don't know much about the tranny in the 6.0. I went with the diesel because of the Allison transmission.

If you blow a tranny you will eat up the cost difference pretty quick.

My previous truck lost the tranny twice ... hence ... go with the Allison. That was the tipping point for me.

Diesel = more power and torque = tougher transmission

[Bedlam]

I used to tow an open bow inboard boat over the mountains with a little 4-cylinder gasser pickup. It did this reliably for years but at lower speed and more driver fatigue than a larger gasser or a diesel. I still tow a motorcycle or off-road vehicle with a 4-cylinder gasser car, I just don't attempt to tow my 20' enclosed trailer with the same (it sometimes gets a ride inside instead).