Superduper
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2006
- Messages
- 523
- Location
- Somewhere, over the rainbow.
- Tractor
- John Deere 3120, Kubota BX2350, Deere X740
Ok, it's been a little over 2-months since I purchased my 2012 Chevy. I am happy to report that so far, the truck has performed flawlessly. I did have one of hubcaps stolen while parked in my driveway... got the pry marks on my 20" alloys to prove it but whatcha gonna do. Luckly, a new one from GM only costed $29 which was less than I expected. What I don't understand is why people would risk prison to steal a $29 item.
Some of you may remember that I asked about real world fuel mileage. I now have an opinion but it's not so simple to just blurt a number. Let me first say that I live in a urban environment so one should factor that in when reading what I have to say. Anyhow, here is what I learned about my truck:
(1) City mileage is poor. I don't know exactly since it's hard to put a number on it but I would say it ranges from around 8 to 15 or so. The range is large, I know but I'll explain later.
(2) Combined city/freeway driving, I am averaging about 15.5 or so.
(3) The DIC does not display a running total on average fuel mileage. According to the manual, it displays an average of the last 60 miles (if I recall correctly). Why 60? I dunno. But it could confuse you if extended periods of high or low mileage in the history 59 miles back begin to scroll off the memory map because you may see sudden increases or decreases in your present mileage inconsisent with current driving patterns.
(4) Mileage during regeneration will drop your fuel mileage on the freeway by as much as 3-4mpg, maybe more.
(5) ** important note: I learned that for me, freeway mileage will steadily drop until approximately 16.5mpg. That is around the time that the engine will begin a regeneration cycle. It takes about 30 minutes of freeway driving I guess to complete the cycle. However, once complete -- fuel mileage suddenly increases a lot. I have got as much as 22mpg immediately after a regeneration cycle. Not sure how to explain this except that I suspect that the DPF might gradually clog up a bit increasing backpressure and thus reducing mileage? When cleaned, mileage goes up noticeably. Also keep in mind that the DEF is injected into the exhaust. This fluid does contain significant amounts of a white residue. Not sure if this white residue contributes to the DPF needing regen.
(6) Speaking of which... the truck will consume approx 2% in DEF vs Diesel. So after approx 125 gallons of diesel consumed, you will need (1)x 2.5gal jug of DEF. It costs $12.50 around here for a 2.5gal jug.
(7) DEF leaves a very unsightly residue wherever it lands. It's not visible in liquid form and is hard to see where you dripped it. But in a few hours, you will see all the places that you dripped it. Supposedly it's not hazardous but it can corrode parts (great!). Also, the filler neck gives no warning when you are filling that it is about to overflow. So it is hard to top it off without overflowing. There IS a funnel shaped contraption that drains back into the tank if you overflow. But when it overflows, it's hard to stop it on a dime and it could spill off. Also, I didn't know at first but that funnel will drain back to the DEF tank. So if you were thinking of hosing off the excess spills to prevent residue, keep in mind that spraying that funnel is a no-no. That's because you will dilute the DEF if water drains into the tank and your computer will tell you it doesn't like the fluid. Great, now what?
(8) This engine takes a lot of oil. I forgot how many quarts but I think it's 10 quarts. You can expect your oil change to increase in cost due to that. On the other hand, the DIC is suggesting to me that I will be able to go almost 10k miles between changes. Last check, I have about 2200 miles on the odo. Oil change meter is reading 75% remaining.
(9) Unlike gas engined vehicles, the fuel cap doesn't like to stay tight. At each fill up, I notice the cap loose. Not sure why?
(10) Ride on the freeways is pretty good. But on rough roads, this thing skitters around the road. Could be due to the fact that I drive mostly unloaded and the tires are 70psi or so.
(11) Turbo lag, diesel lag, or just plain lag.... whatever. Point is that there is not an immediate throttle response, especially on freeway speed when you want to pass.... there is a slight delay between pouncing on the throttle and when it comes on. But oh, when it comes on....... Not sure if this is normal or not. But it's there.
(12) If you want, this thing is brutally powerful. I once hit the throttle to pass some idiot and it all happened so fast so I'm not even sure but the truck took off like a rocket and not sure if the rear tires were frying or simply bouncing around but it definitely felt like the drive tires weren't all connecting to the road... sorta hard to explain. It was over in an instant as I was already up to the speed limit and I don't speed. :laughing:
(13) Interior quality could be better. It's not terrible but I feel like the plastic skin around the door handle is sorta squiggly. Seeing as this is brand new, I hate to think how it will feel in a dozen or two more years.
(14) I love the blue tooth phone thing... It connects to my iPhone automatically as soon as I enter the vehicle and while the quality on the other end is not great, it's better than any speaker phone I've ever used and probably about as good as you are going to get in a speaker phone used inside a diesel.
(15) Has a powered USB port in the glove compart. What a great addition. Can use it to charge or power a USB device, or connect to an ipod which can be controlled from the radio while the ipod remains safe inside the glove. Also, has a power (cig) adapter inside the glove too so i can charge my navigation or other device).
(16) Mine has great leather seats but they a very light gray (almost white) color. In a truck. Need I say more?
(17) Back seats fold up for additional storage space. I wish they could be easily removed... they are not.
(18) Parking in parking lots is not easy. Very glad I didn't get the LB or DRW options or I would already be regretting the purchase. However, on the plus side, the rear view camera helps a lot, and offers a terrific rear view look. Accurate too as I can now confidently stop an inch or two from obstacles in the rear. In the past, this required a helper to guide me and make me look like a student driver. Too bad no front camera though. Yes, I'm serious.... that big hood makes it hard to judge frontal distance. In tight parallel parking situations, every inch is important.
All in all, it's a great truck and I'm quite happy. Wish the turning radius was better as I have grown accustomed to the very tight turning radius of my avalanche and I thought this guy would not be much different (both short beds although 5.5' vs 6.5') but there is a night/day difference in turning radius. As for fuel mileage... forget it. With the DPF and regen cycles and the variable mileage between cycles, it's a moving target. All I can say is that freeway mileage will be between 16.5 to 22 when not in regeneration mode. In and around town... highly dependent upon what type of around town driving. It's not only the speed but also how many stops and how long are the stops. Think 8 to 15mpg.
Anyhow, that's my 2.25 month impression, for anybody considering a duramax.
One last thing I want to say.... I was undecided in whether to go with the Ford superduty or the Duramax. I'm not married to any manfacturer. But then I read the reviews and saw the videos on the Chev website with Howie Long narrating. The videos convinced me, quite persuasively to go with the Chev. Especially the frame stiff test. That was an eye opener. Then I was suprised at the performance tests as well. Anybody with about 10 minutes is encouraged to view the videos and give their take. I know I was pursuaded by the videos. It's early and hope I didn't make a mistake but so far, so good.
Some of you may remember that I asked about real world fuel mileage. I now have an opinion but it's not so simple to just blurt a number. Let me first say that I live in a urban environment so one should factor that in when reading what I have to say. Anyhow, here is what I learned about my truck:
(1) City mileage is poor. I don't know exactly since it's hard to put a number on it but I would say it ranges from around 8 to 15 or so. The range is large, I know but I'll explain later.
(2) Combined city/freeway driving, I am averaging about 15.5 or so.
(3) The DIC does not display a running total on average fuel mileage. According to the manual, it displays an average of the last 60 miles (if I recall correctly). Why 60? I dunno. But it could confuse you if extended periods of high or low mileage in the history 59 miles back begin to scroll off the memory map because you may see sudden increases or decreases in your present mileage inconsisent with current driving patterns.
(4) Mileage during regeneration will drop your fuel mileage on the freeway by as much as 3-4mpg, maybe more.
(5) ** important note: I learned that for me, freeway mileage will steadily drop until approximately 16.5mpg. That is around the time that the engine will begin a regeneration cycle. It takes about 30 minutes of freeway driving I guess to complete the cycle. However, once complete -- fuel mileage suddenly increases a lot. I have got as much as 22mpg immediately after a regeneration cycle. Not sure how to explain this except that I suspect that the DPF might gradually clog up a bit increasing backpressure and thus reducing mileage? When cleaned, mileage goes up noticeably. Also keep in mind that the DEF is injected into the exhaust. This fluid does contain significant amounts of a white residue. Not sure if this white residue contributes to the DPF needing regen.
(6) Speaking of which... the truck will consume approx 2% in DEF vs Diesel. So after approx 125 gallons of diesel consumed, you will need (1)x 2.5gal jug of DEF. It costs $12.50 around here for a 2.5gal jug.
(7) DEF leaves a very unsightly residue wherever it lands. It's not visible in liquid form and is hard to see where you dripped it. But in a few hours, you will see all the places that you dripped it. Supposedly it's not hazardous but it can corrode parts (great!). Also, the filler neck gives no warning when you are filling that it is about to overflow. So it is hard to top it off without overflowing. There IS a funnel shaped contraption that drains back into the tank if you overflow. But when it overflows, it's hard to stop it on a dime and it could spill off. Also, I didn't know at first but that funnel will drain back to the DEF tank. So if you were thinking of hosing off the excess spills to prevent residue, keep in mind that spraying that funnel is a no-no. That's because you will dilute the DEF if water drains into the tank and your computer will tell you it doesn't like the fluid. Great, now what?
(8) This engine takes a lot of oil. I forgot how many quarts but I think it's 10 quarts. You can expect your oil change to increase in cost due to that. On the other hand, the DIC is suggesting to me that I will be able to go almost 10k miles between changes. Last check, I have about 2200 miles on the odo. Oil change meter is reading 75% remaining.
(9) Unlike gas engined vehicles, the fuel cap doesn't like to stay tight. At each fill up, I notice the cap loose. Not sure why?
(10) Ride on the freeways is pretty good. But on rough roads, this thing skitters around the road. Could be due to the fact that I drive mostly unloaded and the tires are 70psi or so.
(11) Turbo lag, diesel lag, or just plain lag.... whatever. Point is that there is not an immediate throttle response, especially on freeway speed when you want to pass.... there is a slight delay between pouncing on the throttle and when it comes on. But oh, when it comes on....... Not sure if this is normal or not. But it's there.
(12) If you want, this thing is brutally powerful. I once hit the throttle to pass some idiot and it all happened so fast so I'm not even sure but the truck took off like a rocket and not sure if the rear tires were frying or simply bouncing around but it definitely felt like the drive tires weren't all connecting to the road... sorta hard to explain. It was over in an instant as I was already up to the speed limit and I don't speed. :laughing:
(13) Interior quality could be better. It's not terrible but I feel like the plastic skin around the door handle is sorta squiggly. Seeing as this is brand new, I hate to think how it will feel in a dozen or two more years.
(14) I love the blue tooth phone thing... It connects to my iPhone automatically as soon as I enter the vehicle and while the quality on the other end is not great, it's better than any speaker phone I've ever used and probably about as good as you are going to get in a speaker phone used inside a diesel.
(15) Has a powered USB port in the glove compart. What a great addition. Can use it to charge or power a USB device, or connect to an ipod which can be controlled from the radio while the ipod remains safe inside the glove. Also, has a power (cig) adapter inside the glove too so i can charge my navigation or other device).
(16) Mine has great leather seats but they a very light gray (almost white) color. In a truck. Need I say more?
(17) Back seats fold up for additional storage space. I wish they could be easily removed... they are not.
(18) Parking in parking lots is not easy. Very glad I didn't get the LB or DRW options or I would already be regretting the purchase. However, on the plus side, the rear view camera helps a lot, and offers a terrific rear view look. Accurate too as I can now confidently stop an inch or two from obstacles in the rear. In the past, this required a helper to guide me and make me look like a student driver. Too bad no front camera though. Yes, I'm serious.... that big hood makes it hard to judge frontal distance. In tight parallel parking situations, every inch is important.
All in all, it's a great truck and I'm quite happy. Wish the turning radius was better as I have grown accustomed to the very tight turning radius of my avalanche and I thought this guy would not be much different (both short beds although 5.5' vs 6.5') but there is a night/day difference in turning radius. As for fuel mileage... forget it. With the DPF and regen cycles and the variable mileage between cycles, it's a moving target. All I can say is that freeway mileage will be between 16.5 to 22 when not in regeneration mode. In and around town... highly dependent upon what type of around town driving. It's not only the speed but also how many stops and how long are the stops. Think 8 to 15mpg.
Anyhow, that's my 2.25 month impression, for anybody considering a duramax.
One last thing I want to say.... I was undecided in whether to go with the Ford superduty or the Duramax. I'm not married to any manfacturer. But then I read the reviews and saw the videos on the Chev website with Howie Long narrating. The videos convinced me, quite persuasively to go with the Chev. Especially the frame stiff test. That was an eye opener. Then I was suprised at the performance tests as well. Anybody with about 10 minutes is encouraged to view the videos and give their take. I know I was pursuaded by the videos. It's early and hope I didn't make a mistake but so far, so good.
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