They are so heavy, aren't they? Someday when I find $2500 in the couch, I want to get the Firestone air bag kit. You remove all but the one main lead, install low psi air bags and long arms to control the axle. It has an onboard air compressor that automatically keeps the truck level by adjusting pressure. The ride when empty is apparently much much better. But you don't loose the ability to carry a ton of weight.

My friends call me when they need to move heavy things because their 1/2 tons can't do it. Pallets of bricks, 3 cubic yards of dirt or mulch. All weigh between 2 and 4 thousand pounds.

I love my truck but damn it's rough. It starts to smooth out with 500 lbs in the bed and really gets smooth with 1,000.

I've heard about that happening. I'm hoping that keeping them clean and the fact that the truck sees salted roads only a couple of times a year will help. Some people actually clear coat the bodies before installing. I may do that next time.

They were 126 lbs per spring. Plus helpers and hardware. It was an adventure. (This is the same truck we put a diesel crate motor in about 8 years ago).

I miss my 3500. It's nice when they can just drop a pallet of brick pavers or a pallet of bags of gravel in the back and you drive off. However, my 3500 Chevy rode far better than that 2001 F250. My truck was stiff, but it was Cadillac comfortable compared to the Ford. It was also a ton lighter.


As for this truck, the Bilstien 5100's are cheaper than the 4600's (no clue why). So....since everything says they are internally the same, the 5100's will be my choice.

I received a response from Undercover about my tonneau. He's sending me out a repair kit with oversized screws. So I should at least get that fixed up soon.

I had a fully loaded 2014 z71 Tahoe and it did all right at best towing the Camaro.. not enough power. Picked up a 2016 Ram Rebel and its been doing a good job. Has factory air ride which makes hauling a trailer easier and been avg 16mpg..

This truck makes more power than my 2007 6 liter did. I pulled up an exit ramp (where you turn and go up hill from the road under the freeway). I was doing 70 mph a ways before the merge zone while pulling the Camaro. I could have merged at 80 or close to it. I mean, I'll ALWAYS take more power for towing, but I don't feel like this is particularly underpowered. My 3500 made "good"power, but this makes more. And the two trucks weigh within 100 lbs of each other empty.

Which engine did you get in the dodge?

I have a 2011 Silverado now. I may have to try these shocks too. Any suggestions on exhaust?

I put Bilstien 4600 shocks on my 2007 3500 and it's the best thing I did to that truck (my friend put them on his F250 and felt the same way). It's worth the upgrade.

I've never done an exhaust on my trucks. I didn't want the noise/drone. I considered it and left the stock exhaust. Though I'm sure someone here has to have changed theirs.

On thedieselstop.com, they'll say the same thing about the shocks.


As far as the exhaust goes, do it once and do it right. Cherry Bombs

I am a little hesitant on exhaust because I do not want it to sound like a work boat like the rest of the trucks in my area. I hate trying to listen to sound clips. Hopefully I will hear one soon I like in person and I can ask the driver. Mine is a flex fuel truck. I have had it about a month. So far it tows ok with the 20' boat behind it. It is a little bouncy for my taste so I can guess it will be worse with the car. I'm not impressed with the e85 mileage at all but it does seem to run better with it

I really like magnaflow's exhaust. They are very free flowing but their mufflers have a great sound that's actually pretty mellow.

I opened a "ticket" directly with Rhino Liner. They called the dealer who basically told me "it's not ready for a respray" and they offered to patch it with urethane again. I'm really irritated with this thing. When we removed the F250 springs it tore more holes in the Rhino Liner. I'm going to see if another dealer will just spray it again and see what they will charge me to do it. Or maybe I can strip it and have Line X redo it. I'm really cranky at this point.

I sent Rhino Liner another email regarding my liner. I'm waiting to see if I hear back from them at all this time. I'm really getting tired of dealing with this issue and so far Rhino Liner hasn't been much help at all. I'll keep you posted.

I received word yesterday that the Corp office told the local dealer to "make him happy...whatever it takes...and respray the truck". So it's scheduled to go back next week. I guess we'll see how that goes.

The Rhino Liner was resprayed. It's about 3-4 times as thick as it was. It looks much better and I think it should hold up this time.

Unfortunately, I was out on my friends farm two weeks ago and I noticed I seemed to have a slow leak in a tire. I took it to the tire shop and naturally the hole was in the sidewall and couldn't be patched. Apparently, I ran over a thorn from a locust tree. Awesome.

At 16k miles I have about half the tread left on my tires. Truck tires wear fast at first and more slowly as they get to the end. Since the truck has an AWD transfer case I shouldn't run mismatched tires. It's unfortunate, but I wound up putting 4 new tires on it today (being an adult sucks). It now has a shiny set of Goodyear Adventure A/T tires with Kevlar reinforcement. I hope I like them. I didn't hear any unusual noises on the trip home so they don't seem to be too loud (which is good) and they should be even better off road than the factory Wrangler SR-A tires. So much for buying more Camaro parts this month...

These are the tires:

https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/wrangl...rrain-adventure

Other than the bedliner issues, is the truck treating you well in the first year of ownership? I'm going to be looking for some leftover '16s in the spring. I can't get myself to like the Ford trucks (disliked every ecoboost I've driven, 5.0 is a torqueless wonder, interior is too big for a person my size and I can't get comfortable), and the Ram is cool but I would NEVER buy a FCA product (my mom is on her second '16 grand Cherokee, giant POS lemon).

Overall I like it. I don't love the transmission calibration, but it's decent. The fuel mileage is quite good for a brick. It towed the Camaro from Michigan quite well (with the exception of shocks that suck from the factory).

Honestly, buy one and just expect to put a set of Bilstiens on it. I was looking at doing just that soon, but my recent tire purchase put a dent in the fun money budget and it got cold finally so I'm not driving the camaro (not that I have it fixed yet) and I'm not working on the truck outside. It will get shocks this spring.

The bedliner was installed aftermarket for me, it wasn't a factory spray in. I had the original drop in removed and scrapped so I could have the Rhino Liner done. The issue was my local dealer and not the product. I think that's all behind me now.

If I couldn't fix the bedliner issues through Rhino Liner, I was actually going to trade this one on a 2016 or 2017. So I guess I'm admitting that "I'd buy another one".

That's good to hear. I would definitely get the factory sprayed liner, they do an excellent job. There is a small chance I might lease, but if I buy, small things like shocks and calibration don't bother me, I don't mind a little fine-tuning to make things exactly how I want them. Glad to hear it handles towing the Camaro well. I towed mine with a 14 F150 with the 5.0 and it did a miserable job.

What Kevin says. Our '02 GMC 2500HD has been about the best new vehicle we've bought. We got the D/A version, but it's been a beast. All we've done is tires, which, as Kevin has experienced last way fewer miles than they should, and Bielstiens, which we ordered from Sam before the break-in period was up.

I just recently replaced the light lenses, because what we had we're showing their age, and because factory OEM pieces were still available, and stupid-cheap. Now, the truck looks brand new. That, and replacing the lights with LED, and they should last a while. Speaking of which, if you get one, immediately replace the DRL lights with LED. The reduced heat of LED bulbs will help keep the sockets from burning up.

A friend recently traded his Chevy 1500 for a new GMC 1500HD, and says the 5.3 with the new automatic is a great tow vehicle for his BSP Vette on an open trailer.

Call Sam, and have the shocks waiting for the truck to come home. Other than that, enjoy!

The shop that did my liner says they do the liners for the dealer up the street. I am not completely sure, but I got the feeling the spray in bedliner trucks are done locally after they arrive at the dealer. The problem isn't the job they do spraying it in, it's how thick they spray it. If it's thin, it just tears.

I had the Camaro on a 1750 lb open trailer (that car is likely 3,800 lbs, or close to it) and with the cruise set on 80 mph I was seeing 14.7-15.2 mpg. My 2007 single rear wheel 3500 didn't get that mileage unloaded and totally empty (6 liter, 4L80e/4.10 gears). I turned up a ramp (one of those where you cross under the freeway so the ramp is a fairly steep uphill) and hit the throttle, I merged into traffic (pulling the trailer) at 70+ mph. A weight distributing hitch might help it settle down a bit too (I'm used to having springs for a 3500 so that truck didn't care what I hung on the back of it).

My best 50 mile "rolling average" MPG is showing as 22.1. That was running 75, then 77 and finally 80 mph on cruise control in some traffic. That's absolutely unreal out of a 5600 lb brick.

I don't know if any vehicle is perfect...or maybe I'm just an extra picky pain in the ass but I'd buy another one of these. I think it's the best option in its class (if you don't want/need a 2500 or a diesel, etc). And it's been awesome in mud/mushy grass 6" deep, truly amazingly good.

Also, the Weathertech floor mats are amazing. Order those the day you pick it up. While you're at it, get the "no drill" mud flaps from them too. The mud flaps have kept most of the gunk off the paint and all the mud and crap I've thrown all over them has never done anything to even remotely damage or bend them. They are a great product and they use a very solid mounting design that doesn't require you to drill holes in the truck. And the mats cover the floor extremely well and protect the carpet. The rear mat goes from the front seat to the rear wall and side to side. The niece and nephews can track all the mud in there that they want, it's all covered (just keep the feet off the seats....lol).

14 towing/ 22 average is impressive for sure. The '16 Grand Cherokee with the v6 barely manages to average 21mpg. Weight distributing hitch is a good idea, especially since I will need to purchase a new one with the truck. While a 2500 would be cool, I can't justify having one. I would choose better gas mileage and more comfortable ride over towing, since I would most likely only tow my car to track days a couple times a year. I live so close to a few tracks that it's not worth throwing the car on a trailer.

Re: factory bed liner. While I don't doubt your place does trucks off the lot for a local dealer, Chevy offers a factory sprayed liner that is incredibly high quality. It's very thick, and it's done by robot so the thickness is even, and the tape lines are perfect. I was at the CT auto show yesterday talking to a Chevy rep about it. At a $335 option, I think it's an absolute steal. I'm hoping there are plenty of leftover '16's next year, I would love to find a 1500 with the "custom" package (body colored bumpers and aluminum wheels). Time to start saving for that deposit.

+1 to the weathertech stuff. I won't let family members buy new cars without it.

My V6 Jeep liberty got 17 highway and 13-14 MPG in town. The truck gets much better mileage. I was a little shocked. And that "14 towing" was mostly "hauling butt". It wasn't just 65 mph. It was 75-80 on cruise (literally). I can't argue with that one bit.

I like the 18" wheels (and I prefer the non-Z71 wheels with the split spoke design). I've been in pretty deep mud/goo and never scratched the face of the wheel. The 20" wheels don't have the wider tire sidewall to "open up" the channel in the mud and it looks like you can scratch the face of the wheel if you get in the deep stuff (and there's less sidewall before the wheel is below ground level). If you don't plan to go off road, it really won't matter.

Interesting, I didn't know for sure if GM was doing them or taking them to the local guys to spray in the "factory liners". Some of the trucks on the lot looked very well done. The guys that did my 3500 were awesome. It was amazingly uniform and the cut lines were perfect. I was amazed they could do such a nice job. It looked like a robot did it (it was hand sprayed). My friend had one done by some guys in Zanesville, OH and it looks like my old one. The lines are perfect and the thickness is just like my old one. I was thinking about taking my truck to them to respray it. The new job they did on mine is much, much thicker, but they have tape under one little corner behind the cab and it's going to do the trick, it's not up to the standards set by these other shops that make "artwork".


My current work truck is a 2015 Silverado "WT" package with 5.3 liter/3.42 gears. It's a 2wd, regular cab long bed. I don't think the fuel economy gauge has ever been reset and it's showing an average of 19.8 mpg since it was new (it has 16k miles on it). It's a lot quicker than my 4x4 crew cab since it's likely 1,000 lbs lighter. I just wish the seat went back a bit. I'm only 5'11" and I could use another inch of seat travel in the standard cab.

Wow these tire wear stories are a bummer. My Colorado is a 2wd regular cab and is nearing 70k miles with at least 10k to go on the original tires.

That's pretty impressive. I put 60k mile tires on this time (it had 50k tires). Unfortunately it appears that my "in town" mileage has dropped 1-3 mpg. It also got cold at the same time so I can't nail down how much of it is the weather (cold weather tends to cause poor mileage too). I'll likely get some freeway miles on it over the holiday weekend and then I can see what my highway mileage looks like.

I almost put the stock tires back on it, but I wanted something a little better suited for mud at the farm and decided to try these. I hope I'm not sorry.

I replaced the factory tires with the next size up on our GMC, and saw an immediate 1.5 MPG drop. I figured it was because I'm actually going faster than indicated, but when passing those stupid radar trailers, it seems we're pretty close. I guess it could be because there's more rotating mass to have to overcome, but still not certain.

The Tahoe was doing pretty good at around 17-18 MPG when we first got it, then it almost overnight dropped to the low-15s. I never have figured out why, in spite of cleaning the MAF and TB, replacing the plugs and wires, which I probably didn't need to do. I also dropped a K&N into the stock air filter box, so the filter was at least new, too.

I recently filled the tires to the cold pressure (they were about 2-4 psi low), and now the mileage is in the low-to-mid 16's. There's a bit more road noise, but I can live with that for more mileage. We also replaced the Tahoe tires with the next size up, but it didn't affect the mileage like it did on the diesel.

I went from the stock Duelers to equivalent size Mud Terrains on my '97 Ram back in the early 2000s and immediately lost 3 MPG.

Kevin, could be winter blend fuel since you are in the northern part of the country. I know my jeep drops around 2 mpg on that crap.

I don't know how you guys get that many miles out of tires. I guess I really live by the motto kill all tires.

The temp was in the mid 20's today and I've been using the remote start. That's why it's really hard to tell exactly what the mileage is like and when it's cold the mileage seems to tank in all my vehicles. So, tires and cold weather got here together. I'll know more after I run around this weekend and I can report back.

I don't know how they do it either. I'm glad I am not the only tire killer here lol

So how is your mileage doing?
I'm looking at a '14 1LT and a '15 LTZ, but I'd really like to see as close to 20 as I can.

Did you ever change the rear shocks?

Thanks

My '16 LTZ averages high 18mpg (18.5 to 18.8) when I plug in the numbers after a full tank of gas. Most of that is rather hilly mileage, I have a higher mpg displayed on the way to work and a lower on the way home. After a long highway stint it showed 21+ (up to the hills). My truck has 5,300 miles, the worst tank was 16 with a few miles towing and the highest 50 mile average (coming down the mountains of eastern PA) shows 24.2 mpg.

I haven't done the shocks yet. I'm going to do them this spring (once it warms up outside). In the cold weather and using remote start and such....mileage is lower. However, it was 42 degrees today and we drove up to a place we like for breakfast (45-55 mph backroads) and then out to look at a house (more of the same) and my average went up from 12 mpg (based on the last 50 miles) to 18.6. We didn't go 50 miles total, so we were doing better than that, but the last of my 1 mile drive to work and using remote start were likely dragging it down a bit.

I've heard that the good cold air kits can be worth 1-2 mpg, but I haven't installed one yet. It's been on my list, but I've been busy with the Camaro and "winter".

No... Who is saying that and about which kit?

For diesels they are, because diesels are awesome.

A friend has been running them on his Tahoe and his previous Tahoe. I think he said he's seeing 1-2 mpg on average after installing the cold air kit. I believe he's using the S&B kits. I've been looking at adding one, but haven't yet. He is not running the newest engine though, so it could vary on the new trucks. but when I was reading reviews on that kit, I was seeing guys saying they were seeing similar gains.

A friend of mine has a 2015 Silverado 1500 that has damage to the chrome bumper in the front. It looks like it's a $400-$500 part but I can't seem to find any schematics on how to replace it.

Any links?

This is the best I could find:

http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/topic/1803...15-sierra-1500/

Thanks!

Thought I'd chime back in if you don't mind...I ended up buying a 14 LT. Looks just like the pics on the first page.
Pulling from a few different post in this thread...I too am interested in fixing the off-idle response. I have EFI live and looked at Black Bear performance someone suggested. More to come on that, but I did discover this about air intakes on their site.

http://blackbearperformance.com/IntakeTestResults_2016.asp

Other than fixing the lack of throttle response, I'm not looking to increase HP either but a MPG increase I'll take. I'm just not sure these intakes are anywhere near worth what they want for them. They seem to like the AFE.

Get the Air Raid MIT. IIRC, it's not terribly expensive, and netted the best inprovements per dollar. A drop-in K&N dry filter, and you're about as good as you can get. You can lurk on the various truck forums and watch for someone selling theirs cheap. That's what I did. They make the truck sound great at WOT, too.

I've been unhappy with the shocks on this truck since I bought it. I've been trying to convince myself they aren't that bad....but they really suck and they aren't getting any better. My wife gets car sick in vehicles that have "floppy" shocks with no rebound. She got sick in my Jeep, she got sick in the Camaro (until I got the Strano UMI coil overs) and she's been getting sick in the truck lately. So I decided to finally order some shocks and I waited long enough that the Bilstien 4600's are now available. I had Sam Strano send me a set and they came in a few days ago.

I wasn't sure what kind of a pain in the ass the installation would be, but it really wasn't too bad. I removed the three bolts from the top of the shock assembly and the two from the bottom, pushed the shocks off the lower control arm and lifted them out of the top. I saw lots of things saying to disconnect the upper ball joint but I'm not sure why. We looked at it and said "Gee, I think those will come out of the space in the upper arm"...and they did.

I grabbed my spring compressors (which barely fit the springs due to the coil diameter being so large) and wound the springs down. I have Craftsman compressors, and they are forged steel. The jack screws bowed considerably, but they didn't have any issues. I swapped things onto the new shocks and bolted it back together. The new upper nut for the front shocks is a "jet nut" (crimped locking nut) and it wouldn't go on with the impact. I had to use an adjustable wrench to hold the shock shaft and I wound the nut on with a ratcheting box end wrench. I sprayed the threads with WD40 before putting the nuts on and it seemed to help. That was probably the worst part of the install. Make sure you keep track of which stud (of the top three that attach it to the chassis) is closest to the wheel (I put a nut on that one so I could keep track). Swap the shocks and install. I used a floor jack with a 27mm deep well socket to push the shock up enough to get the lower mount on the LCA in the front and a pry bar to wiggle the bolt holes into place.

The rears took about 4 minutes per side with an impact gun and a 21mm socket and 21mm wrench. The top nut is captive and the bottom mount has a nut and bolt. Zap them off and swap the shocks. Easy.

I should have done this when I bought the truck. The floaty feeling is gone and it no longer bounces off the swaybar in corners. The stock shocks have virtually no rebound in them and the truck just wallows around corners. With 600 lbs or so in the bed, the back end just bounced down the freeway (with stock shocks). Towing the Camaro home (last year) was awful due to the lack of damping. The Bilstiens ride well, and it's a controlled ride (more like when you put Koni's on a Camaro). I really should have done this sooner. My 2007 got new shocks at 1,200 miles. I should have done the same this time.

If you have one of these trucks, order the Bilstien 4600 shocks. Just do it.

Our '02 GMC still had paper tags on it when we replaced those gawd-awful shocks on it. The new OEMs were so bad that the front bump stops were shattered.

It's sad they've made replacing those things such a chore with the front struts. IIRC, the GMC was about a half-hour job for the whole set. I can't imagine what the shocks will take to replace on our Tahoe. Luckily, the PPV shocks/struts seem to be a bit better at damping than the more 'civillian' set.

On my 2007, I never even lifted the truck. I turned the front wheels and did the fronts, rolled under it and did the rears. I had new shocks on it by 1,200 miles and it was really worth it. The 2015 shocks weren't quite as bad as the 2007, but they weren't really much better. I should have followed my instincts and just removed them when it came home, now I'm really sorry I waited this long.

Ive been debating this on my 2014 far too long as well! Nice to hear a solid opinion and looks like ill be getting a set as well

Yup. Don't wait any longer. I already wish I hadn't put it off this long.

A few notes:

The 3 bolt flange on the upper mount is not symmetrical. There is a certain way it goes in. Once the spring is released, it's tough/impossible to turn by hand. Once I put the first one together, I figured out which stud needed to be "out" (towards the tire) and put a nut on it. Then I put the spring compressors back on and spun the lower shock to be 90 degrees to it (so it would fit on the LCA). If you drop the shock assembly out and note which way that stud is positioned, you can swap them directly and reassemble. Or, put one of the nuts on it like I did. Then you can't screw it up.

Bilstien sends a bump stop cap that fits their shock. It's different than the OEM one, and you put it on the shock body and tap it on with a hammer. Make sure you put the "ring" (sits on the snap ring and supports the lower spring perch) and the lower perch on first. I wound down the spring compressors, zapped the top nut off the shock, pulled the shock out, swapped hardware and slid the new shock right into the assembly. Line up the bottom mount (90 degrees to the bolt with the nut on it) and tighten the nut on top of the shock. When you slide the new shock in place, the snap ring (already on the new shock) will pick up the bumpstop and everything drops right into place.

To get the lower shock mount in place, I used a deepwell socket on a floor jack to fit up between the LCA shock mount holes. That let me lift it a bit, push down on the wheel studs (by hand) and pop it in place. Line it up with a pry bar and put the bolts back in place.

And you don't reuse the factory "tinnerman nuts" from the original shocks. Bilstien sends 15mm (wrench size) nuts to bolt the new shocks to the lower control arms.

Oh, and a bunch of idiots online are claiming these shocks mount with the bodies up and the shafts (and rubber boots down). I can't imagine why you would do that? It will just result in the lower dust boot being full of water and junk. The OEM shocks were "right side up" and I put these in the same way. It makes no sense to place them upside down so the open ended dust boots collect dirt and water.... I installed them so the decals were right side up.

I found one more possible option for the throttle response. The thing I like about this is that you don't have to flash the computer. I'm "assuming" they programmed a more linear throttle curve into it (basically turning the factory "slow opening" into more normal operation, but I'm not 100% sure that's true). I like that you can remove it for service and such (if you wish). The computer apparently keeps track of how many times it has been flashed, so that could be a bigger warranty issue (and that's why I haven't tuned mine yet). If this really works, it might be a good option.

Does anybody want to donate to the "test a throttle body fund"? lol.

http://www.jegs.com/p/JET-Performance/JET-...944748/10002/-1

http://www.jegs.com/i/JET-Performance/561/76108/10002/-1

Installation instructions:

https://c1.rt-static.com/shared/pdf/manufac...nstructions.pdf


And after driving the truck more....DO THE SHOCKS!

I'm wondering how much of a difference there is in the Z71 vs. the base model shocks. I hear many people complaining about the shocks but I don't really find them annoying and I had 5100s on my previous truck. Either the Ranchos are better or I just don't get it!

I saw a few guys in forums who dumped the Ranchos and pronounced the Bilstiens much better. And there was one guy who had Rancho's and put 5100's for a day (I did 4600 shocks and they seem to be different...potentially) and put something else on his truck the following day and was bitching about the "waste of $640" or whatever he spent to put the Bilstiens on for a few hours. So it's hard to tell without driving them.

I drove a Z71 when I first started looking, but I can't remember how the shocks felt on it. At least not in any detail.

The stock GM shocks have virtually no rebound in them and minimal compression. I think I mentioned that we had 3 people in the cab, a T56, a 20ton shop press, a pair of snow tires and wheels off of a friends 2004 half ton and some "stuff" (washer fluid, things he removed from his truck to take it to service) in the bed and the back end just cycled up and down the entire way to drop off the contents of the bed. It just did a slow "pogo" down the freeway, like waves rolling in. Boing, boing, boing......

The stock shocks on mine made the factory F-body DeCarbon shocks look like Konis....they were even worse than the OEM F-body shocks by a decent margin.

Today I noticed that when I put the transmission in gear, the body no longer rocks back and fourth from the "jolt" of it dropping into gear....if that tells you something.

Did you ever find any info on the difference between the 4600 & 5100?....thought I read earlier you were considering 5100"s

The 5100s have multiple front spring perch locations to change the front ride height. Then you can just put a block in the rear to lift the truck. However, there has been much debate about how they ride and if they ride better lifted or stock height, etc. And since I didn't manage to validate any of this and I was not planning to lift the truck, I did the 4600 shocks and they are what I used before. Originally the 5100 shocks were all that was available. Now we have options....but I don't know a lot about the differences.

ok, not sure where I'm going with mine yet. I wouldn't mind leveling it a touch but it's the wifes DD so it can't be harsh.

That said, my son put the adjustable 5100's on his '12 Sierra at the highest position. I didn't drive it that much before hand but I will say it is a little stiffer than before and has no problem with control now. His ride is not at all harsh, just stiffer. Some of it I assume comes from the heavier lug tire he put on. Don't know what they are off the top of my head.
We towed his 2nd gen to the Cam Challenge in Peru last year and I was really impressed how it handled that trip for a 1/2 ton crew cab loaded with tools, jack, parts, etc...we're in Md.