Little vs big V8 2025 Tahoe

[Foxy]

Unless you're planning on towing over 8,000 pounds it's a waste to go diesel. If you're doing a lot of heavy long haul towing then diesel is the way to go. But if you're occasionally towing then 5.3l or 6.2l will be more than enough.

 

[Antonm]

You got that right; I can't believe what a big deal people make out of what they think is such huge maintenance with a diesel. I can promise you it doesn't take me 10% more time or effort of any gas vehicle I have ever owned. The benefits far far outweigh the very little bit more of work you have to do.... I don't know who brainwashed all these people. I don't even look under the hood of mine for months at a time. Never uses a drop of oil, Can change the oil in 30 min or less with a drain valve, and maybe take 20 min to change the fuel filter every 30K. Diesel IS more expensive than RUL now, sadly.. But you go 40% further on it and it sure isn't cheaper than premium. I can go 3 weeks on a tank, and I run around a lot. But to each, their own.....

I'm a diesel guy, I also own three Cummins powered trucks and one diesel tractor, love me some diesel power. That said, I wouldn't touch the baby Duramax in these 1/2 ton trucks.

The emissions equipment on them WILL cause early engine failure, not to mention the stupid rubber belt that drives the oil pump at the back of the engine. Great idea, lets make a rubber belt that as it wears , its sheds rubber pieces to clog up the oil pump pickup, not like that has ever caused problems before and resulted in class action law suits.

The baby Duramax is a great idea (again love diesels, especially inline 6 cylinder configuration diesels), but the cost cutting execution GM used to implement it and emissions equipment make it a NO-GO.
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[xycrazy]

Diesel always sounded like a great idea to me until I learned that the first Duramax version needs a significant amount of labor to replace the belt at 100K miles.
Second thing that is hindering me now is that they say (e.g. TFL Truck on youtube, this forum) it consumes DEF like crazy when towing. It would annoy me to fill up DEF every other gas station visit. No, but no thanks!

Personally, I own the 6.2 but love the 5.3. I think the 5.3 is the sweet spot overall if you occasionally tow. If you're towing every day than it might be different. But gas mileage on the 5.3 on Highway and in city is way better. Like 1.5 - 2mpg than with the 6.2. Personally, I would not have any concerns with the 5.3.

That said, it's wrong that the 6.2. requires premium fuel as some here stated. It is only recommended! I drive mine primarily with Midgrade and it does great with both: Regular and midgrade. So no issues and cost savings in particular to the octane grade

 

[Stbentoak]

Whoever got out there early in 2018 and poisoned these people about this belt in the back of these 3.0 Duramax's did a dang good job. I can't even believe that topic comes up anymore. Has anyone ever heard of one failing? Yet, brand new 6.2's are shredding metal everyday requiring complete engine replacement....
The new estimated lifespan of these is plus 200K miles. By the time the majority gets there they will have changing these down to a reasonable science and cost if its ever needed. Most people won't keep them anywhere near that long. But again.... to each his own....
As far as DEF consumption goes if you bought this vehicle to tow 75% of the time, to me personally I wouldn't buy anything but a three-quarter ton or up.
I do tow with mine, but it's less than 500 miles a year, and it does consume more DEF but in the realm of its towing usage it's still a very small issue.

 

[Antonm]

Any oil soaked wet belt in any engine, regardless of where is it in the engine, or what its driving , is just a bad idea. Its the cheap way to get it done, not the best way.
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[A320Guy]

When they advertise 8200lbs towing 2WD, does that mean only on 2WD model, or as long as towing in 2WD even though the vehicle is equipped with 4WD?

 

[WalleyeMikeIII]

When they advertise 8200lbs towing 2WD, does that mean only on 2WD model, or as long as towing in 2WD even though the vehicle is equipped with 4WD?

Only 2WD model, the 4WD models are reduced by a few hundred lbs due to the additional weight of the 4WD driveline.

 

[petethepug]

Nice to see so many enjoying the baby diesel. My buddy has the 6.6L Duramax V8 turbo diesel in his 13 Chevy quad cab ext bed p/u. Both love the range and Indi diesel shops that treat the motors like their own kids.

Other buddy got a 3.0L TD in his 22 Sierra p/u. Both use them for work and play. The BabyMax can have its 24gal tank replaced with a 43 if you don’t like filling up or drive by the worlds best buy on fuel occasionally.

You”ll have a decade go by with the all aluminum baby diesel and worry more about a possible windshield crack than a power train issue.

I’m waiting for my 09 Esky ESV w/ 6.2L to crap out. At 185k, no cylinder deactivation / AFM running on 100 octane corn / e85, it runs cooler, faster and without carbon buildup. Here in SoCal it’s $70-$80 for a fill up vs $160 for our 91 Premium.

After four years ownership, fuel savings paid for the truck & its new transmission last year.

Resale on the 6.2 & Diesel will always be higher. The torque of both is what you’ll miss, not the hp. My plan is to eventually get a preloved Esky w/ a diesel they discontinued this year.

Our 09 Esky was under rated for longevity due to its one year only L9H 6.2L motor. The 3.0L baby diesel’s are the same. Let the diesel fuel savings pay you back and enjoy going to the gas station half as often. Figure diesel cost savings at least free tires, mount & bal for life.

 

[dcyy]

Many have said the DEF consumption of the 3L duramax is pretty high under towing loads, just something to consider. I love towing w/ the 6.2. Had 5.3 in all my previous rides. Never going back.

I've towed my SeaRay which is close to 6300lbs. with both the 5.3,6.0 and 6.2--5.3 just ok on level roads but on hills it worked hard..6.0 better..6.2 is a beast

 

[Sean Michael]

Lots of good discussion on towing and MPG differences with the three engine options being shared here. On the other side of that discussion, I went with the 6.2L simply because it hauls butt and is fun to drive.

 

[petethepug]

Oh yea, what he said. The 6.2L does kinda give a certain feeling. Can’t put my finger on it

 

[DontTaseMeBro]

I have two 2024 Tahoes. 1 with 5.3 the other a 6.2. They are identical otherwise. Both z71, airride.

1. Towing - air ride is a must. Don't think you don't need it. It helps in every possible way.
2. If towing 6.2 or Diesel. Honestly around town the 6.2 just costs more because you have to run 93 octane. Otherwise there isn't a huge difference, but there is when towing. I am picking up my 2025 Tahoe z71 later today. I ordered it with the 5.3 due to the reason I just stated. I have a 3500 Sierra I use when I tow, so in my case I didn't need the 6.2. If i could have ordered the diesel I would have, as I like diesel engines.

Air ride is a good thing to have but to say it’s a must is a bit of an exaggeration. A properly setup WDH can get rid of the majority of the squat. My XL tows our Sundance 24BH like it’s not even there up here in the mountains of Idaho.

 

[WalleyeMikeIII]

Gotta tell you, took a 240 mile road trip to mom’s for thanksgiving yesterday evening…several 2 lane roads where I needed to pass, and every time, that 65-90MPH after the downshift, coupled with the 6.2 V8 growl, and the smile factor was real. BTW, filled up w/ 92 octane at Costco and got 20.9 MPH over these 240 miles, with my Blizzaks on and doing 75MPH on the mostly interstate drive.

6.2 is super fun to drive…yes range is 400 miles vs 600 in the babymax. Yes it needs premium….but the smile is worth it when you mash the gas.

 

[WVBKW]

Air ride is a good thing to have but to say it’s a must is a bit of an exaggeration. A properly setup WDH can get rid of the majority of the squat. My XL tows our Sundance 24BH like it’s not even there up here in the mountains of Idaho.

I understand what you are saying. The OP asked specifically about options of a vehicle with the future towing of a travel trailer in mind. If I was buying a new Tahoe with towing in mind I wouldn’t want one without air ride, same as I wouldn’t want want without max tow and trailer brake switch.

Can you tow without these things, of course. Is it easier to already have them from the factory, yes.

Same with air ride. I would argue there is no comparison in comfort and stability when towing with air ride vs non- air ride. You can do it and not saying your setup doesn’t work well. I just feel if I was checking boxes to tow I would want that box checked. My experience is if the vehicle is already level when setting up the WDH it puts far less stress on components than if your trying to use the WDH to raise the rear suspension to level it.

 

[DontTaseMeBro]

I understand what you are saying. The OP asked specifically about options of a vehicle with the future towing of a travel trailer in mind. If I was buying a new Tahoe with towing in mind I wouldn’t want one without air ride, same as I wouldn’t want want without max tow and trailer brake switch.

Can you tow without these things, of course. Is it easier to already have them from the factory, yes.

Same with air ride. I would argue there is no comparison in comfort and stability when towing with air ride vs non- air ride. You can do it and not saying your setup doesn’t work well. I just feel if I was checking boxes to tow I would want that box checked. My experience is if the vehicle is already level when setting up the WDH it puts far less stress on components than if your trying to use the WDH to raise the rear suspension to level it.

I agree with one exception. If I was shopping for a new vehicle I would look for one with air ride. The way you worded it made it sound like it’s a deal breaker without it. It’s not if the deal is a very good one for one that say has max tow but not air ride. Back when I was in the market for my XL, it came with everything except air ride. Couldn’t pass up on an exceptional deal so I bit. Have zero regrets.

The stress on traditional suspension components is moot considering air suspension is not known for being the most reliable thing. And it too will experience additional stress/wear from towing.

 

[fondupot]

I've never driven the 6.2. But my Yukon has the 5.3. It seems powerful enough for me. But for towing sake, I would definitely go with the 6.2 or the 3.0.

The most towing I will do with my Yukon is the occasional utility trailer around town.

 

[GoNoGo]

Duramax is my #1 preference.. IF my local stations (here in the boonies) didn’t have nasty diesel pumps plus positioned further away and spillage for me to stand in.

 

[blanchard7684]

Any oil soaked wet belt in any engine, regardless of where is it in the engine, or what its driving , is just a bad idea. Its the cheap way to get it done, not the best way.
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It’s really oil soaked?

Edit…Lol yep it is. Wow.

 

[jd08]

When we were looking for our 23 Tahoe z71, my requirements were 6.2L and air ride and wife wanted black. My wife said the 5.3l would be fine, then she didn't need to use premium fuel. Well it was hard to find one around me and didn't want to order one. We were about to give in and get a 5.3l but one Saturday morning I did a search and found exactly the one I wanted, called and drove 1.5 hours to buy it. The dealer received it Friday night and was still in the back lot. We did have to go back in the week to pick it up after they did their PDI. Now that we had it for over a year we are glad we got the 6.2L and the wife agrees.

Our Tahoe 6.2l out performs my 21 Trailboss 5.3L towing either our horse trailer or our UTV trailer. And it still gets decent mpg all around. Now I wish my Trailboss had the 6.2L!!!

 

[Antonm]

It’s really oil soaked?

Are we arguing about what the definition of oil soaked is now?

Its not submerged in oil, but its inside the crankcase where there is oil being thrown around everywhere by the spinning crankshaft.
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