My first post...


A month ago I took my friend's advice and ordered an '05 Duramax / Allison. I haven't received the truck yet and expect it to take another month or two. Since then I have checked out a couple of forums (including this one), only to find a lot of owners with issues with either their Duramax LLY or tranny (mainly torque converter, I guess). There are a few happy owners, but for a high-dollar work truck, you'd think it'd be a little more reliable without problems with torque converter, injectors, overheating, etc. If given the opportunity to change the order, I was leaning toward an 8.1L and manual transmission. I plan to use it as my daily driver as well as hauling a car to the track on a regular basis. (I'm not concerned about fuel mileage.) I don't mind paying extra for the toughest clutch made if necessary, and also want to know if anyone makes an aftermarket twin turbo for the 8.1L (mainly just to boost the torque a little and not for racing). The truck is a 2500HD ext cab 2WD.


Thanks in advance for your candid & frank replies.

Man O war --- word of advice...use a different font!! Your post is almost impossible to read!

My second post... (partsguy662: is this easier to read?)


A month ago I took my friend's advice and ordered an '05 Duramax / Allison. I haven't received the truck yet and expect it to take another month or two. Since then I have checked out a couple of forums (including this one), only to find a lot of owners with issues with either their Duramax LLY or tranny (mainly torque converter, I guess). There are a few happy owners, but for a high-dollar work truck, you'd think it'd be a little more reliable without problems with torque converter, injectors, overheating, etc. If given the opportunity to change the order, I was leaning toward an 8.1L and manual transmission. I plan to use it as my daily driver as well as hauling a car to the track on a regular basis. (I'm not concerned about fuel mileage.) I don't mind paying extra for the toughest clutch made if necessary, and also want to know if anyone makes an aftermarket twin turbo for the 8.1L (mainly just to boost the torque a little and not for racing). The truck is a 2500HD ext cab 2WD.


Thanks in advance for your candid & frank replies.

Actually, Man O, raise the font SIZE, and you'll be in good shape http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/smileys/hihi.gif
At any rate, I traded my 01 2500hd zf6 8.1 combo in on my LLY/ZF6...The
8.1 was a great powerplant, but I haven't had a lick of problem with
the LLY either...You can't beat the diesel for mileage.....Also, the
twin turbo 8.1 sounds neat, but you would have to do too much to the
internals to make it worthwhile (lower compression, different
cam) I think you'll be quite happy with your diesel once you get
it http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/smileys/smiley17.gif

Thanks for the encouragement. I hope I don't have any problems with the Allison. I haven't driven an auto for about a decade or more! I'm sure I'll enjoy it pulling the car.

I think most of the Allison problems is from guys raising the power levels it ain't nothing to get anther 220hp or more out a D-Max. There is no turbo setups for 8.1 but there is a Paxton and Whipple blowers for a 8.1

Is the Whipple positive displacement (roots-type blower)?


Too bad the 8.1 doesn't have forged pistons, huh?

Whipple is a twin-screw positive displacement blower...I am running one at 8.5 lbs of boost on an internally stock 8.1. You will notice more of a gain due to the efficiently good ZF6...through the allison you can expect mid 300's for rwhp and mid 400's for rwtq. It should meet your needs for towing..off idle throttle response is simply amazing.


www.whipplesuperchargers.com (http://www.whipplesuperchargers.com)


8.1http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/smileys/hihi.gif

Go allison, resale is much higher and believe it or not it's usually cheaper to fix an auto tranny nowadays

I just traded in my 2004 2500LD 6.0L 4x4 Crew SB for a 2004 3500 8.1/Ally 4x4 Crew LB and love it. My truck previously to the 2500LD was a 2001 Duramax and having owned all three, my favorite is the 8.1/Ally combination.

No flaming from the diesel crowd as the Duramax is a fine engine, but it wasn't for me as I have a wife who constantly complained about the noise, the smell and mostly about the time it took for it to warm up in the winter. Great engine, great mileage, great durability but not my "cup of tea".

Now that I've got the 8.1, this is what I needed all along as it does the job that I need it to do and all for 13 miles per gallon - the same mileage I was getting with my 6.0L. And the Allison, it speaks for itself...a terrific tranny that is made to take a beating and keep rolling. I love this truck!