Hi, new member. I'm thinking about buying a used Duramax. It will be a crew cab, and probably a short bed. It will also be an automatic. Are there any certain years or models to be concerned about, or all all equal? I want to end up with a dependable, long lasting truck, not someone's lemon. Also curious about the typical mpg you guys are getting.

My experience with diesel trucks has been with Cummins. Don't beat me up too bad.:lol: I had a '93 Dodge, a '79 Chevy K30 crew cab converted to Cummins, and now a '00 Dodge. I've always been happy with the engines, but only my crew cab had enough room. My growing kids need more room than what they have in the quad cab, and I don't think there's enough more in the '03 and later quads. We just got a boat, so there will be more trips with the whole family in the truck.

Just looking for a little guidance before I start heading for the dealers.:rolleyes: Thanks, Fitz

Great idea. Calif diesel is 70cents higher then unleaded. Its been higher (by some margin) ever since I bought my truck. Im sure glad I got a diesel. Oh and now I have to worry about a 7000 dollar injector repair bill. Did I mention how glad I am that I bought a diesel?
Oh yeah and the stealer took an extra 7000 out of my wallet when I bought it.

That 21000 (6 yrs inflated fuel/extra fuel filter/ fuel filter kit/ oil bypass kit/etc//7000 extra cost/7k injectors) sure would buy a lot of (cheaper) unleaded.

My last fill up was 3.13/gallon x 50 gallons= $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Yup. Buying a diesel really dosent make sense these days.

Only way you might come out ahead is if you made your own biodiesel on the cheap.

21MPG on the highway empty and 14 towing. my friends with the same trucks with small block gas models are getting just under 15 highway when babying them on the highway empty and 10 towing. 25% less fuel, and diesel isn't close to 25% more at the pumps yet, so it's still more economical on fuel. I paid $4500 more new, don't know how much more the diesel will run vs gas on a used one, but they do have better resale so I think you will get much of that premium back when you sell it in the future. The only ones I would stay away from are 01/02's that are close to 200,000 miles and haven't had all the injectors replaced, you will likely be buying them on your own in the future, about $4500. If you get the VIN on a truck, you can post it on the board and find out what's been repaired at the dealer on it.

Thanks for the helpful input, srode. So, 200K is about when injectors need replaced on those? Proud of those things, aren't they $$$? Seems like all the trucks on ebay have 100K plus. I won't buy an ebay truck - I want to see and drive it first, but I have been looking there to see what's available and prices. Thanks for the tip on the VIN.

I have been getting about the same mpg numbers as you with my CTD truck. If it's much lower for a Dmax, I'll consider gas. I don't tow the weight I used to, so diesel is more a choice for mileage than towing power now.

BTW, I can buy diesel here for $2.25, and gas is running $2.55. I'm sure it's on it's way up further though.:mad:

There have beed several good deals on here in the for sale section. Check there. I am happy I got my truck. I pick it up last year with 68K miles and now have 98K. It is a blast to drive. Fuel prices - - dont fret. Unleaded is close to the same here. I am so glad I got rid of my gasser. TOO little power.

WELCOME to the best site for Duramax trucks!

Ben

jfitz, 200,000 is when gm warranty expires on 01/02injectors, have vin checked and if you can find someone to check with tech-II or other to check diesel flow rate. look at tsb for injector replacement, will give idea what to get checked. best

Bought a tank of Diesel yesterday for $2.31, and unleaded was $2.35, guess it depends on where you live. CA has some crazy fuel prices! Most are finding injectors replaced before 200,000 miles, but most are covered by warranty. All the diesel brands are having the same injector problems with the highpressure injections systems out for the last 3 years. The reason I said under 200 for an 01/02 duramax, is they have an injector warranty extended till 200,000 all the other models are only till 100,000 for now. The 01s through 04s seem to get better fuel economy, have heard lots of complaints about the 04.5s and newer on poor fuel economy and overheating when towing loaded. Not all of the trucks but many. I'd try to find alow mileage 03 or 04 if I was shopping for a used one.

Hi everyone I'm new here and posting my firts post. I have an 02' 2500HD cc sb. I recently drove to Las Vegas from San Francisco and I averaged 20+ mpg. It's pretty stock except for a Hypertek chip set at stage 2. How I figured 20+mpg is because I left S.F. with a full tank and when I stopped for gas I filled it back up with 12+ gal. and the trip meter said 245 mi.

Fuel prices keep going up, but at least it's not like CA.:eek: Here this morning, gas is 2.65, and diesel is 2.48. That's at the truck stop where I get the best price on diesel usually.

My preference - 01-02 in Chevy or 01-04 in GMC. Do not care for the look of the 03 and up Chevy front. My dad has an 03 Chevy 1500, and I just can't get used to the look.

I need to get out and test drive some crew cabs, and compare GM vs. Dodge as far as back seat room, and powertrains.

We checked out an '06 Chevy gasser crew at a dealer yesterday. There is definitely more room and a more comfortable seat in the rear of the GM crew cab vs. Dodge. So, now I know what we want. Just need to find the right truck and the right deal. That dealer is going to look for one for us. I'm going to call another dealer we've dealt with a couple times before and have them look too. Saw a used '05 GMC at another dealer who was closed. It looked like the perfect one, but probably pricey.

It took a while, but I finally found the right truck and deal, and bought one. First I had to sell my Dodge. Then find a truck with the features we wanted. I had to drive 3 hours to a Chevy dealer who was the nearest dealer who had the right truck, and acted like they wanted to deal on it. I don't know if it's the employee pricing deals on new trucks affecting their attitudes, or just that there aren't a lot of used Duramaxes available, but most dealers did not seem to be interested in dealing. This one was good as dealers go, and took my wife's minivan off our hands too.

Anyway, it's an '03 GMC 2500HD SLE crew cab 4WD automatic, blue with graphite cloth buckets. It had 20K miles, was "GM certified" and was basically new inside and out. Couldn't find anything wrong with it except the "chrome" trim strips along the doors have some small bubbles, and there is a slight play of some kind in the steering. It still has some b-b warranty left, so I'll have that looked at.

I am so impressed with this truck! Better than I expected. I had three Dodge diesels, and I guarantee this one would out run and out tow all of them. Let alone the ride and drive quality, and room in the back seat. Bought it Saturday, and hooked up the trailer and towed my Jeep 100 miles to do some 'wheeling on Sunday. Between the Jeep and trailer, it was only pulling about 6,000 lbs. and I had about 250 lbs. in the bed. It rained most of the day, which was good for the 'wheeling. I had to take off real easy to avoid spinning the tires, even with the weight in the bed and the trailer tongue weight. Also the Allison is awesome in two/haul mode. OK, I'll stop blabbering on.....but I like my new truck.:cool2: