anyone have good/bad opinions on duramax/allison

[Hemmen1]

I am considering purchasing a C-4500 Chevy duramax/allison auto



Anyone with opinions or real world experiences please respond



Darren

 

[MABurns]

I am very impressed with the D/A combo.



I have no first hand info on the C-4500 (second hand is that ride is harsh) I assume it would pull better with the lower gears.



My experiences with the Duramax (with two CTDs prior to that) is that it gets 1-2 MPG less than the CTD--both empty and towing.



D/A pulls better in my opinion, I guess alot of that is because the Allison is so good.

 

[LSMITH]

I have driven the 2500 and the 3500 and liked them very much. The allison is the way an auto transmission should be, and the Dmax runs well. Stock to stock it is the king.

 

[HC]

I chose the CTD, and have been extremely happy. I still consider the Duramax a "new" design. But to answer your question, I have a friend with a Duramax who is just as happy as I am. The engines and trucks have very different characteristics, and because of that each one will appeal to different people. Driving the CTD with a manual, and the engine noise of the 2001, makes it feel like driving a "little big rig". (Professional drivers please take no offense - I KNOW it's not really a big rig and I'm just a wannabe. ) Driving the Duramax is a much more civilized experience. If you're not in a huge hurry, just ask people at the fuel pump: Ever have any problems? Happy with the truck? What kind of mileage do you get, towing, or empty? You'll probably get to a point where you know which one is best for you.

 

[Alan Reagan]

The only Duramax I've driven seemed to shift alot. I don't know if the ECM is set up to keep the engine wound up or if the transmission needs the higher RPMs to perform. The shifting was very irritating to me.



The truck is quiet but it seems that about 2500 RPMs the pilot injection goes off and it gets some noise to it.



Filter prices seem to be a little high (fuel and oil) from talking to guys at the pumps. I haven't bought any so I can't factually address that but I don't see any reason for them to lie.

 

[Dane]

I've driven the Duramax/Allison combo in a 3/4 ton cheby. The tow/haul mode was impressive as the transmission downshifted like I would in my six speed. I did not get the impression that the Duramax had more power than my HO six speed which is stock except for air box mods.



If it was me, I'd get an extended warranty for peace of mind. I got one on my Dodge that is refundable if I don't use it.

 

[Mike Ellis]

Around my part of the world, a LOT of the folks who used to drive CTDs have switched over to the GM brand and Duramax / Allison combo. 4 or 5 of these guys in our immediate circle of friends (horse trainers etc) have these trucks now, and they are mighty well pleased with them.



A couple have mentioned that the Cummins seemed to have more low-down grunt for working around the barns and pulling trailers through muddy lots, but on the highway they say there is no contest - Duramax is claimed to feel much stouter than a stock Dodge. This is 2nd hand info, so take it for what it's worth...

 

[J DeMaio]

I have two buddies with Duramaxes and they are both well pleased with them. The one is a 3500 with a six speed, he's had it less than a year and has around 20,000 miles on it and uses it farming full time. From what I've seen I'm very amazed with it and he seems to like it as well. He had 7 ton on it one night and I rode with him, he was jamming gears and kept the pedal to the metal and it didn't feel like anything was back there.



My other buddy has a 1 year old truck with the allison and about 13,000 miles on it. He hasn't pulled anything with it yet but does a lot of driving and he's been happy with it. Starts good, powerful, around 16 MPG, and he two little engine problems. A lifter was stuck on an exhaust valve and a wire was grounded out and didn't allow it to start. Under warranty though so it really didn't affect him. He loves the transmission, we'll have to see. His last truck was 2 years old and had 52,000 miles on it



John