I am new to GM and planning to trade in my tow for a Duramex/Allison,3500,2wd,long bed,EC, dually ,to tow 5er 12000LBS all over North America.
Cannot afford a new one so looking in the range 2001-2003.
I am not familiar with the options that are there in theese models regarding engine,ratio,pkg to achive better towing power, I do not want to upgrade or put any chip ect.
Please write in "normal" launguage what are your suggestions(if you use abriviations spell them out for me please).
Thank you,
Daniel

:welcome2: First off, welcome to the board! You are pointed in the right direction; you've choosen the right truck and the right board! The people here are the best around. Read, read, read; do a search for anything you can't find; and ask away for anything that you still can't find. Opinions vary, but the facts stay the same. The stock Duramax will tow anything within it's recommended weight limits and more; it's what it was made to do. The truck comes with a tow package that gives you what you need: 3:73 rear end, transmission temp gauge, tow-haul mode ('03 and up?), etc, a 100k mile warranty on the motor, and don't forget the Allison. But of course if you go over to the "dark side", enough is never enough! You'll see. Welcome!

I have a high mileage 04 for $26,5 if that interests you. Check the ad here
http://dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=21283

Welcome to the forum. Since I own just about what you are looking for ( mine is a 4x4) I will tell what I think. I pull a smaller 5ver, 9500 lbs loaded, and as yet have never had an issue with my rig. It is an '01 3500 4x4 LS ext cab dually with the Duramax/ allison combo. My suggestions are look for a truck that has the power mirrors instead of the GM tow mirrors (they suck to the nth degree), I would also look for an LT model as the heated leather seats are better...in my opinion. I say this because my truck is an LS...cloth seats, but my wife has an '04 2500 Suburban LT with the heated leather seats....way better. FYI Tow/Haul mode came on all 2500 & 3500 models '01 & up. Also, the warranty on injectors is 7 years or 200K miles (early models seemed to have a problem, but mine is still going strong). What ever truck you become interested in get the VIN and run this number through your GM service provider. This can tell you all problems handled under warranty and with any luck will clue you in to what kind of service was performed, i.e. air/fuel/oil filter changes, chasis lubes, tire rotation, trans service, etc. Then look for signs of modifications....like "A" pillar guage pods, or a pyrometer bung hole usually drilled in the passenger side exhaust manifold. It will either still be there or removed and plugged. None of this is bad, per se, but it may be an indication of a truck that was run hard.....not that anybody on this forum would do that...:muahaha: My point is if you find a truck that is all stock and not modified chances are it will be a better truck to start off with....then YOU can mod the heck out of it....):h I towed with mine stock for a couple of years and I never NEEDED any more grunt, however, I sucumbed to my WANTS. Good luck and don't forget to use the search feature, there is a ton of info available for your reading enjoyment. Oh and one other thing, don't be to quick to discount 4 wheel drive....it only has to save you once and it will be money well spent.

JP

Amen regarding the 4 wheel drive! Mom still has the family farm, and after walking back for a tractor 3 times, the 2 wheel drive Cummins went down the road. VERY LITTLE mud, just a bit of slime on top and that heavy engine in a 2 wheel drive means your walking.

Is the Duramex the version sold south of the border? ;)

Is the Duramex the version sold south of the border? ;)

That was good!! I think the DuraMEX are shipped from Mexico.






.

HI DANSHULA, the easiest way to look for a "USED TRUCK" is to go to = www.gm.com (http://www.gm.com/) Then click on model on the left side. Then click on "Certified Used vehicles" at the top. From there, you can put in the: yr; make;model; price & zip code. Then arrange by price & the higher price truck will be HD. I found 175 in my area alone!! 4 duramax= 2 crew cabs & 2 ext.cabs.

Danshula,

Welcome to the site--you'll be overwhelmed by the amount of good information you'll find on this site and all in one place. Here's my take on a tow. I have a 5th wheel that weighs 11,500 lbs. and tow it just fine(even stock) with a 2500 HD Ext. cab. It does have the plow package which I believe gives a little extra in the suspension department. I really don't feel the need for a dually, just keep good tires on the rear for sure. It is also a short bed and have no problem. They make slider hitches which I considered( for short beds) but after reading on thsi site, those that have a slider don't even use the slide function. I wanted the short bed because they look a lot better unless you do hauling in addition to towing, then by all means go for the long bed. Mirrors, mine came with the standard mirrors so I got add on extension mirrors at the local RV dealer and they do just fine and are removable. But, here's what I did. For $275(free shipping) on Ebay I purchased a rear view 5" color digital LCD monitor and camera system. The monitor(with mirror image) is small and thin enough to mount over the rear view mirror since you can't see out the back when towing anyway, run the din cable back and mount the camera on the back of the RV. This makes passing and backing much easier and now you'll know exactly what and who is behind you.:cool2: Ditto on the 4 wheel drive. Towing something that heavy, for sure you'll want 4WD. A little bit of mud, wet grass--get stuck and you'll wish you had opted to go 4WD. It's not a matter of if-it's a matter of when. I have read several times here in the towing section down below where others have also reccommened 4WD for that very reason. Good luck on your search for the perfect tow. Oh yea, the standard gear ratio of 3.73 does great and gives better fuel economy than the 4.10, also the 2003 and newer gives you the Overdrive lockout( which you'll need on anything other than level towing) on the gear shift. You can add it later by installing a simple toggle switch on the 01 and 02. Do a search into whats involved, I'm not sure there since mine came with it.

Listen to Howard_m18 he knows what he talks about. And good luck in your quest for your truck.

Cheers