Hey whats up everybody.

We'll I've been having the itch for a diesel truck, mainly for the MPG, towing cap, and the sound of the engine. One thing for sure is I dont want a Ford, I test drove a 04 cummings ram, seemed alittle week and then test drove a 08 Mega cab with a new 6.7 l. diesel and that felt alittle better.
A duramax is what I really want, even though I havent test drove one yet. And I want a four wheel drive, cause I go to the beach and hate getting stuck. The 06 model is what I've been looking into, mainly because they have a 6 speed trans, but Im not sure if that makes it any better or not over the 5 spd auto. Does it?
Usually I see then go for about 33-35k for that year with low miles. But I came across one that is selling for 26k with 13k miles in the auto ads. crew cab, 4x4, 6 inch lift, and 20 inch wheels 35" tires. 2 second owenr. But it's a 4 hour drive from me.
From looking at the pictures it seems like its a lower model, it has the mauanl selector for the AC, no controls on the sterring wheel. And from the pics I cant see the 4x4 controls, it looks like it has a pocket in the location were there suppose to be. I asked the owenr over the phone and he said that it is a 4x4 but it has a manual shifter.
Im new to this, so my question is whats the deal with having the 4x4 floor shifter over the electronic control? Was it just a cost effective? Does it effect the driveability of the truck, is it harder to put in 4 wheel drive?
What is the difference in the lbz andd lly etc?
And what else should keep an eye out for if I go check this truck out?

Thanks

Hello,

I brought an 06 4x4 duramax last year. Cost me 34k with 22k miles. It was an LT3.

I didn't know that chevy offered a manual 4x4 recently. I always thought it was electronic Allison with electronic 4x4 selector. maybe wrong.

Is it possible for the seller to send you some photos etc? or it may just be worth a drive up if your really intrested.

My truck is an SLE, so it is relatively loaded, but it has the floor 4x4 selector. I had one in my old truck, and have had no problems with the one in my current truck. It always goes in really smooth, and basically works the same as the push button one. Still has auto locking hubs, and still has 4high and 4low and you still have to put it in neutral to get into 4low just like the push button. The only thing it doesn't have, which some push buttons ones do have, IIRC, is the ability to leave it in the mode wheres it 2wd then automatically switches to 4wd if there is wheel slip. I've never had need for such a feature, so I haven't felt as if I'm missing out. Also, with the manual floor selector I suppose there is one less thing to go wrong electronically wise.

I have the floor shifter in my truck. It is not a direct mechanical linkage. I believe it is still very similar to the push button system, it just has one less motor involved in shifting the transfer case. A sensor and computer still does the actual engaging of the case. I had push button in my last truck and the only difference in the driveability is that I now have to reach down, not a big deal. You can still shift on the fly except for 4lo, same as the push button. Still shifts easily.
Difference between LBZ and LLY i think is just tuning as long as its an 06. 6 speed transmission gives you one extra over drive gear of the 5 speed, which will result in a better final drive ratio on the highway so you will possibly get better fuel economy.

Great trucks. I love mine and would never trade it for a different one. When you go to look at the used one, i would check to see if it has a programmer on it and whether or not the transmission has had any work done to it to protect it from the extra power a programmer could have been throwing at it. If the driver has been running a big tune and never did anything with the transmission there could be damage done, especially with a 6 inch lift and 35s on the truck.

Welcome to the Diesel Place!

One point to clear up. The auto 4 wheel drive feature where it detects wheel slippage is not available on a 2500HD. That is available on the 1500 trucks and is pretty nice, esp when on a boat ramp.

I have had the floor shifter on older z71 trucks. I am assuming they are better now then back in the 90's. Back then they did not engage as fast and sometimes where pretty picky. From what I am hearing from guys now is that it works a lot better now. I have the push button and have to admit I prefer it.

The price is not bad but when you say a truck in the 33k range I would suspect it has a lot more options. You have to decide what is most important to you. 26k is a good price for a dmax but be very careful when you buy a truck that has been lifted and modded. If it was done with good parts and done right then you should be ok. Problem is if it wasn't you could have some issues creep up that could be a pain to fix because you aren't the one who did them and not knowing all the history. Also you could have some warranty issues with mods. Last but not least some and let me repeat that SOME drivers who do those mods to a truck are younger guys who hot rod the truck around. You have to decided if your willing to take that chance. Also, lifted trucks are going to get lower MPG which may or may not be an issue for you.

It all comes down to what is more important to you. I bought my 06 used in Feb and payed 31k out the door and its an LT3 that is loaded and only had around 24k miles on it at the time.

I also looked at trucks like what your looking at and decided I would rather buy a none modded truck and if I choose to in the future I can do them myself and know what I did to it. I plan on keeping it mostly stock, esp till the warranty is up in 5 years.

Dave

Here is what the floor shifter looks like.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v140/5.slow/interior.jpg

I was told how these allison transmission work, from what I was told is that if the truck has a tune and it goes into limp mode it wears down the transmission. But lets say the transmissio has a 100% life span when new and with a tune its gone into limp mode 3 times and each time it wears out 15% so that means the transmisson still has 55% of life left. If the tune is taken off before the trans completly wears out, then the truck trans will still work flawlessly. How true is this?
I just got some pics from the seller today. From what I know he said he's not the orignal owner, he said he bought it 8 months ago. And the reason why he is selling it is because he cant afford it anymore. He says its payed off but needs to pick up the pink slip. He sounds like hes about 30-40 years old.
What questions would you guys ask him?
I didn't see any gauges in the pics, it has a chrome exhaust tip possilby an exhuast not sure. The intake looks stock. Not sure what brand lift it is, and/or if it was done while he owned it.
I'll post the pics.

Thanks everyone
http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/518/wdmaxxk9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/2020/wdmax2cp0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/2970/wdmax3ee5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/1313/wdmax6ey1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/7294/wdmax4wr8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Good looking truck.

What are you talking about with the limp? Did the guy say this truck has gone into limp 3 times? I have never heard of your logic of % of damage etc, the limp mode is to protect the tranns or engine with limp mode. If there is much of a tune there should have been an upgrade done to the trans. If they left it stock and added more then 50-75 hp to the engine then the trans can be effected and cause premature wear and failure.

Again, be very very careful about buying a modified truck. Also keep in mind that even though it has low mileage if there has been a programer added there is a good chance the dealer will void your warranty for items effected by the tune. That may include the 100k mile engine warranty. As anyone will tell you diesel repairs are expensive!

Not to worry you but if the truck is paid for and the guy can't afford it would worry me. There is just something that does not seem right with what he is telling you.

Run a vin check here on this site and run a carfax if your serious about buying it. I found what seemed to be a good deal on an 06 that was loaded from a dealer in OH and after running a vin report found out it was a GM buy back, the dealer said nothing in their add about that.

Buyer beware.

Dave

The limp theroy thing was told to me by another dmax owner in a different forum, not sure how true that is though.

The owner of this truck hasn't mentioned anything about engine mods, from the looks on the engine I doubt a tuner was installed, but can't be to sure. Do the Dmax carry a 100k mile warranty? Or is it the same as all GM 3 year/36 month?
Im serious aobut buying this truck, I just have to go over the loan with the owner, since it's a 4 hour drive I dont know if he would be willing to drive to my local bank to pick up the check. If not I would have to go through a bank near him, either way Im going to have to make a drive there to check out the truck before agreing to anything. Im probaly going to call him tonight, any other questions I should ask him or anything you would want to ask the seller if you were buying? Anyway of telling if the truck has a tune if test driven? Shift points?
How do I do a vin check on the site?
Also anyway of telling what kind of lift it has?
Thanks

I was told how these allison transmission work, from what I was told is that if the truck has a tune and it goes into limp mode it wears down the transmission. But lets say the transmissio has a 100% life span when new and with a tune its gone into limp mode 3 times and each time it wears out 15% so that means the transmisson still has 55% of life left. If the tune is taken off before the trans completly wears out, then the truck trans will still work flawlessly. How true is this?

its not true. All allisons are different. Some will limp three times and be all done, others you can limp dozens of times and the truck will still drive. Every time the trans is limped it gets weaker. Sometimes 2% weaker, sometimes 20% weaker...

ben

How do I a vin check on the site?

There is a vin section towards the bottom of the page by the for sale section. Create a post with the vin number in the message and you should have a response pretty quickly. This is a free service that some of the members of dieselplace provide, its a great service and please remember to thank them!!!

If the truck does not have a tune then I would be a lot less worried about doing the deal. If you are worried about a loan go to lendingtree, they can get you a loan quick and the lenders like road loan, capital one etc will fedex you a check which you can make payable to the seller and all is good. Be sure to make sure he is ok with excepting a check from them. PLEASE NOTE: Read the fine print of the loans, some require you to purchase from a franchise dealer aka chevy, ford etc not an individual or a used car lot that is not a factory store. There are lenders who will loan for a direct purchase. Also, if you have good credit you might just call GMAC direct. You can also find a local dealer and offer to pay them $500 to do the financing for you. Most will do it, they make money on the paper ie the loan, they can offer you an extended warranty if you want to buy one which they would make money on. Pay them the paper work fee ie tags and licence, $500 bucks for their time and drive away. I did this once on a truck I bought years ago, the dealer didn't have to carry the inventory etc and made a quick $500 in less then an hour and did not have to pay any commissions etc to a sales person. Just walk in and ask for a general manager.

The warranty for all trucks up until 2007.5 is 36k 3 years bumper to bumper and 100k on the duramax. Some trucks will have a deductable on the duramax warranty after the 36k and some do not. Mine has a $100 deductable after the 36k but I have an extended warranty for bumper to bumper that takes the whole truck to another 5 years and 96k miles. So I am pretty much covered.

Hope this answers all your questions. Good luck working the the seller. Remember that he will be hard pressed to find anyone who has cash and can write him a check. He is going to have to work with you a bit so you can get financing.

Dave

By the way, if you go to a lender like lending tree they claim they require zero down etc which is true but I have found that if you ask for $30k they will offer you $27k, the online lenders seem to always offer a few thousand less then your asking for. So if you need 30k ask for 35k. Its a sneeky way for them to get you to put money down.

I was all set to do lendingtree financing on the truck I bought in Feb. The loans were at good rates etc and it was easy to deal with since I was buying it from a Chevy dealer. But....When I told the dealer I was going to do that he asked if he could see if he could beat the rate, I of course said sure! He went to GMAC with the rates I had (I also already had blank checks from 2 lenders sitting there waiting), GMAC lowered their rates and ended up beating all of them by over 1%. Even better then that is I was delayed a week flying down to get the truck do to a work emergency. The fed dropped the rates that week and GMAC dropped my rates over another 1%, that dropped my monthly payment almost $20 bucks! So the moral is shop around and ask people to work for your financing business, GMAC sure did! I walked into the dealership and had left in less then 30 min with my new truck. I just drove it, looked it over and signed papers, I did zero down. I did not give the dealer a single penny and drove away.

Dave

Here's the vin check that was ran here, awasome.
http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=241014

Well it has never been in for any warranty service since it was purchased, thats a good sign. Go buy the truck!

I emailed him regarding a couple questions and the loan issue, I'll see what he say's.

Thanks

Hello,

I brought an 06 4x4 duramax last year. Cost me 34k with 22k miles. It was an LT3.

I didn't know that chevy offered a manual 4x4 recently. I always thought it was electronic Allison with electronic 4x4 selector. maybe wrong.

Is it possible for the seller to send you some photos etc? or it may just be worth a drive up if your really intrested.

I have a 07 classic and mine has the manual shifter and no need to shift into N. I did a shift at 35 mph and it was smooth, I do know if you use the low gear you will have to shift it to N.

I think the truck has a salvage title, dont know why it wasn't mentioned earilier. Looks like he bought the truck from an auto auction to make profit.
This sucks, I've been eager to get in Dmax

WOW!!! How did you find out? Did you run a carfax or did he tell you? If you read one of my earlier post I said something about the deal seemed a bit odd. Anyone who has a truck that new that is paid for yet says he can't afford it seems fishy. Also the price was pretty good for a truck that new. I wonder what happened to it to be salvaged.

If it is a wrecked truck or you think the guy is shady stay away from him and find another truck!

Oh and by the way, I looked hard for 2 months to find just the right deal. Be patient, its well worth it!

If you look closely, it states that the truck was branded!! Be very carefull. Ask lots of questions and be aware!!!

what does branded mean?

I think the truck has a salvage title, dont know why it wasn't mentioned earilier. Looks like he bought the truck from an auto auction to make profit.
This sucks, I've been eager to get in Dmax

I relooked at the vin report and at the very bottom of the report it does state its salvaged. I wonder if GM does not have to warranty the truck. I would stay long long long way away from this truck, thats a bummer!

Damm I cant believe I missed that.

The guy told me it didnt have a clean title, he said it was hit on the drivers side, he said a body shop did the reapirs to it, and that they did a very good job.
I dont want a salvaged title vehicle, because I know it decreases the value and doesnt help with the resale if ever needed.
Well since I know all the 06's are a tad bit over than what I can afford, Im thinking about an 05, I dont want the 04 cause of the early modles that had the injector problem and I like the fornt end of the poest 05's. But I know the 05 isn't the same as the 06 lbz, but what exactly would be different in the two?
I found a 05 4x4, with a 6" rcd lift, 22" rockstar wheels, heated leater seats, exhaust, intake, and edge chip/controller. Those are the mods he has listed on his ad, with 42k miles and is asking $27,000.
I know the performance mods wear down the truck, should I steer away from it the lift and wheels are a plus for me since thats the kind of style I want. Now im a big time hot rodder and love performance, but should I shy away from a diesel truck that has already been modded?

i wouldnt make your decision based on the injector problem...all the duramax's have the problem where when one injector goes bad...the rest will go out one at a time....but the best thing to do when shopping for these trucks is to find a truck thats stock, and thats been takin care of. Even though these trucks that are lfted etc look real good and real clean, the majority of them have had the dog piss run out of em. plus its always a good feeling to know that you built and customized the truck yourself and that it's unique because of what you've done....


and when you see guages like the ones in the pic u posted earlier it almost always implies that there was a programmer, chip or custom tune on the truck....try to stay away from that when buying...


hope this helps ya

I know it's better to buy stock and build on your own, no better feeling than the finished result. But in my case I really want a lbz but since its not in my price range, Im thinking I should by something that I can afford right now, and when the time comes I can upgrade later. Im sure I'll be changing the exhaust intake, and let the local tuner work a hp tuners tune, he says he has some siliar to ppe.
What would be somethings to look for on a truck with mods, Im sure he's had to of ran it hard before. But is there anything I can do/watch/hear/check when test drivning the truck to check for bad signs or damage?
I think the pic with the gauge was posted by another member, the truck I posted pics of was stock other than the exhaust tip or so the owner said.

Thanks
Apprecaite the replys everyone

What is your price range?

The price for the truck with Rockstars seems to be good but I would have to see it. You have to figure the wheels are worth 1800 or so depending on size and finish. If you want all that stuff then buy one done if you prefer, just be aware of who may have drove it prior to you owning it. Its kind of like buying a truck that was owned by a construction company or a farmer, they will have been used more then others. It is not a bad thing but the price should reflect its history. Go to youtube and search for dmax, there are a lot of young guys who have drove their trucks hard! With that said the Duramax is one hell of a tough engine.

As for the older trucks I would not worry about any of them. The ones that had injector issues GM put a warranty on them up to 200,000 miles. In some ways its a better deal since the warranty is double what a truck that didn't have that history.

Like I said I paid 31k with taxes and all for an 06 LBZ LT3. The LT3 is a high end package, I have every option except for a sun roof. From what I could tell most trucks with more miles and older weren't really any cheaper then the one I bought. The duramax trucks really hold their value. With the slow economy dealers are going to need to deal more so keep your eye out, and don't be impatient the deal will come.

PS for that truck to be totaled from being hit in the driver side you figure it had to have at the very least have 18k in damage. That is a lot of damage, it had to be super jacked up.

Dave

The truck is black or the charcoal color with black rockstars.
I'll attatch the photo he has on his ad.
I emailed him a list of questions last night, and I sent him another email today this is what he told me earlier.
"The truck has never been offroad and never towed anything bigger than a pair of jet skis.
95% of the 42,000 miles are freeway miles. Hope that helps."
He gave me the vin so I put a requst for the vin check already.
If you guys were to buy a pre owned dmax what would be somethings you would look for? I own a Fbody and almost know these things inside out from working on it so much, Im sure theres a couple things you guys know about the Dmax that would help out new buyers.
On his ad it also say's, it's fasfter than any gas truck out there.
Thanks

http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=241514
Looks like it's has some service done to it. I think its says the trans was replaced, and im thinking it had a fix on the injector issue that lly's have with rubbing and injector replacement, and fuel delivery maybe a careless owner, and two tow's.
Let me know what you guys think about this.

Thanks

Well most of his big issues where very early on with the tranny. Looks like he ran out of gas once. I wonder though at around 30k miles it was towed twice but there was not any warranty claims. Makes me wonder if something broke that was not covered under warranty because of mods.

If it was me I would keep looking.


So what is your price range? Have you checked out autotrader.com? Where are you located?

Not sure what color you want but here are some trucks I found.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?ct=u&rdpage=thumb&car_id=242238465&dealer_id=98759&car_year=2005&model=CHEVC25&num_records=25&systime=&make2=&start_year=2002&keywordsfyc=&keywordsfyc=&keywordsrep=&keywordsrep=&engine=&certified=&body_code=0&fuel=Diesel&awsp=false&search_type=both&distance=0&marketZipError=false&search_lang=en&make=CHEV&keywords_display=&color=&page_location=findacar%3A%3Aispsearchform&min_price=&drive=4+wheel+drive&default_sort=priceDESC&max_mileage=60000&style_flag=1&sort_type=priceASC&address=60540&advanced=y&end_year=2006&doors=Four+Door&transmission=Automatic&max_price=28000&cardist=783

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?ct=p&car_id=238212716&dealer_id=61955213&car_year=2004&model=CHEVC25&num_records=25&systime=&make2=&start_year=2002&keywordsfyc=&keywordsfyc=&keywordsrep=&keywordsrep=&engine=&certified=&body_code=0&fuel=Diesel&only_price=1&awsp=false&search_type=both&distance=0&marketZipError=false&search_lang=en&make=CHEV&keywords_display=&color=&page_location=findacar%3A%3Aispsearchform&min_price=&drive=4+wheel+drive&default_sort=priceDESC&max_mileage=60000&style_flag=1&sort_type=priceDESC&address=60540&advanced=y&only_photo=1&end_year=2006&doors=Four+Door&transmission=Automatic&max_price=28000&cardist=1498

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?ct=p&car_id=240304784&dealer_id=62181243&car_year=2004&num_records=25&model=CHEVC25&systime=&make2=&start_year=2002&engine=&keywordsrep=&keywordsrep=&keywordsfyc=&keywordsfyc=&certified=&fuel=Diesel&body_code=0&only_price=1&search_type=both&distance=0&marketZipError=false&search_lang=en&first_record=26&make=CHEV&color=&keywords_display=&page_location=findacar%253A%253Aispsearchform&min_price=&drive=4%2Bwheel%2Bdrive&default_sort=priceDESC&max_mileage=60000&style_flag=1&sort_type=priceDESC&address=60540&only_photo=1&advanced=y&end_year=2006&pager.offset=25&transmission=Automatic&doors=Four%2BDoor&max_price=28000&cardist=582

If you do a autotrader search for chevy dmax under $28,000 under 60k miles and a 2002-2006 I found over 1700 trucks! I did not even do a search for GMC. Lots of choices out there!

It says it was towed once at 15k and at 16k, and was serviced a next day with revised injectors at 15,485 miles. Im thinking the 16k miles was just a geuss when towed. And the last time it was seviced was at 30k for injectors.
If the warranty wouldn't cover due to mods, would they void and list on service records?
I want to keep the finacing price under 29k with taxes and all, so 27k is about max. AT first I would search autotrader for 06 around $33k and was only considering trucks with under 36k miles that way they were still under warranty or if they had the extended warranty. But I doubt that is going to happen Im going to try to look throught the autotrader again with a differnt mind set.
Im in Central California.
Any pointers when looking at a used turck?
Thanks sinceraly apprecaited

I just bought a truck with a bunch of mods from 1100 miles away, different country. Saved a lot of cash. I just had the pinion bearing replaced on warranty, but I was wondering the whole time if I would get hassled about the mods voiding warranty. I suppose I might be living in fear of having to fix something that isn't covered, but right now, it's worth it to me cause I love the truck. Hopefully that doesn't happen. I guess what I'm saying is that you should be prepared in case something comes up and causes you problems. Especially with mods and no warranty.

Good Luck!!

Too bad you weren't looking for a single cab.

I think you should just hold out and don't rush. With fuel prices the way they are guys are parking their trucks and there is also a bunch of folks who just bought a diesel because they wanted one but didn't tow at all and the fuel prices have them sucking wind. Bottom line I'm sure there is one out there if your patient enough.

I found out the owner of the truck owns a clothing company, he sponers skaters and snowboraders...etc
Im going to see if the guy has time this weekend for me to check out the truck, it's about a 3 hour drive.

Any thing inpaticular I should keep an eye out for?