It is a 2002 Chevy 2500hd with the 6.0 gas engine. The thing that is enticing about it is that it has a flatbed on it. Which is also something that I would like. I know this will not tow anything like a diesel. And I also know the 6.0 is a good engine and gets poor mileage. This has been a work type truck. Has low mileage for the year. But has probably been used a bit on the hard side. Hard to know for sure. Is definitely in the budget. I know it is a Chevy and pushing 20 years old. Needs tires and I am thinking it will need a fuel pump but currently runs good. Has a door dent, some minor left corner panel damage. Neither which is a deal breaker for me.
No leaks. The 4wd drive works. Steering seems good. Minimal rust. AC and radio work. Rear door latches need replaced. Yada, yada, yada.
It will be a work truck that will make occasional 1000 mile trips. I am thinking seriously of purchasing. But with a bit of a pit in my stomach. Can you guys tell me about this vintage of the 2500hd.
In 2004 I bought one with a duramax but did not have it long. Ended up trading it on a 2005 version of this truck. Had a bad pinon gear from the factory and traded in for a new Tundra in 2005. That has been a long time ago. Thanks guys.

I'd stay away from the 6.0L

quote:

I'd stay away from the 6.0L

Why? I have a friend who's dad has a wheel repair business. He travels from dealership to dealership pulling a 7K pound enclosed trailer with his 2002 Silverado 2500 Extended Cab 4x4 with the 6.0 Gas. He's about ready to turn 300K on this truck (bought it new) and other than gas mileage he has no complaints about the 6.0 in it.

I'm no GM fan but the truck has been solid for him.....

I’ve got a 2001 3/4 ton 4wd suburban with a 6L. It’s got close to 200k miles on it. No problems at all with the engine. It was purchased used from my SIL, who had the oil and filters changed at approximately the right interval, and that’s about all. It has a 4.10 axle ratio and gets about 13mpg most of the time. Less pulling a trailer.

I’d say the engine is an okay design except for the fuel economy.

The transfer case shift mechanism on mine partially failed, causing it to not reliably shift to 2wd. If that happens and it gets driven at highway speed on dry pavement in 4wd the transfer case won’t live very long, and replacing the transfer case is an expensive repair. It wasn’t easy to tell whether it stayed in 2wd when you selected 2wd.

I had a 2000 Chevy 2500. You should plan on replacing the brake lines if they are original. They corrode and leak.

Thanks guys, I believe the engine
(the 6.0) is a solid power plant. Chevy in general are not without issue's and not my first choice. This one has around 133K, so should have lots of life left. But you just don't know on a used work rig, 20 years old. Chevy guys?
Thanks BigSwede, As a Chevy homer I was hoping you would chime in

6.0 is a great, reliable engine. many of my customers are riding around with 2-300k on them

I have a large restaurant chain as a client, I have been selling them 2500 Express vans with the 6.0 for over twenty years, they own hundreds of them. They ride them till they die which is about 3-350k, the engine is fine, it's the rest of the van that's had it

Get it inspected, check for codes

quote:

6.0 is a great, reliable engine

Exactly. It's a thirsty engine but that is expected. I know a few mechanics that consider them "Bulletproof".

Biggest PITA with those are exhaust manifold leaks. The bolts have a tendency to snap off when attempting to remove them. If lucky you have enough to grab and remove with Vise Grips. If not and in a restricted access area the head is going to have to come off.

That was mainly with the early 2000's trucks.

One thing never reuse those manifold bolts! Buy new ones.

SH, is that a big enough issue in your opinion on an 02' to make it a no purchase? I respect your opinion. Thanks for that info.

The exhaust manifold bolts are not enough of an issue to worry about. It’s typically the pass front and/or driver rear bolts that break, and I would say that most of them on the road have at least one broken. You might get a little noise for a minute or 2, then everything seals up as it gets some heat in the manifold. I have also never had to pull a 6.0 head for this in 20 years of wrenching. Any good mechanic can get either one of those out without too much trouble.

The biggest problem with those trucks is the brake lines, get a stainless kit installed, and never worry about it again. Very rarely one will eat a lifter and wipe the cam out, but it’s a one in a million kind of thing.

Good luck with the purchase.

^^^ I'm not who you asked, but I'd say no...not enough worry there to pass on an otherwise good truck.

You gotta think...there's a reason damn near every "swapped" off road truck and nearly every buggy runs an LS or Vortec. They are simple, make good power, last forever, and parts are available everywhere.

I'm in the "LS swap all the things" camp, for what it's worth. I also have a gas F250, so I like non-diesel heavy duty trucks. (In the name of full disclosure)

- Brian

As others have said, brake lines, brake lines, brake lines!
Sounds like you are planning to do the fuel pump so just go ahead and pull the bed and do all the lines hard and soft while you have it off.
Also would suggest the fuel lines while you have the bed off as well. I got all my lines from
www.linestogo.com and they all fit great.

I have the 2002 HD with the 8.1L and I absolutely love it. You might check one of them out if you can find one.

^^^^ That's a Hoss right there, backed up by the Allison trans or a 6 speed manual

Another vote for the 496 with a 6 speed.

Thanks guys. A few things. I really want a full size truck with a flatbed. I can carry all kinds of things at times. Having the flatbed will make a lot of things easier for me.

The extended cab vs crew cab is fine. If I was buying new I would opt for the crew. But I cannot spend that kind of $ right now. So the extended would be fine. I could sleep back there if need be.

I would prefer a diesel. But finding this configuration in a diesel with 160k miles or less is going to be pushing $30k. Again no budget for that right now.

I do need 4wd

This rig will not be much of an upgrade in towing over my Tundra with the 5.7. It is a beast for a 1/2 tonish truck.
But the 2500hd will be something that will have a bit more towing and hauling capacity and will allow me a rig to do that without using the Tundra.
I am thinking the worse case scenario on this rig it need tires, maybe a fuel pump. Then if the tranny dies. All of those thing will set me back another $5k. With the lower miles this has I am thinking it should be good to go. And I would still be into it for around $13k at that point. So feeling like it would be a good purchase.

Will decide soon. I appreciate all your input.

I understand about the 8.1 version. But I have been looking for this type of a rig for several years and nothing has really popped up except items that are considerably over my budget. This one is checking a lot of the boxes (not all) of them.

If I get this truck. Do what it needs. Put thirty or 40K miles on it. Still should have a fair amount of value if I chose to upgrade. If it turns out to be a gem then all the better. It is not going to be a daily driver.

Thanks again for the great input.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: old rugged cross,

No, the exhaust should not be a dealbreaker, just wanted to mention that also.

The brake and fuel lines were a problem with all the GM trucks of that area, once GM started making replacement kits with all the steel brake lines and the replacement fuel lines were still available it was not a big deal either, more like a PITA.

Usual body rust in rockers, rear cab corners, rear wheel openings and tailgates.

Some problems with the stepper motors in the I.P. Cluster, used to be that the clusters had to be sent to GM authorized repair centers but that has loosened up the last few years, think you can even buy do it yourself kits for those now.

That should have a 4L80E transmission, good transmission, evolved from the TH 400.

Transfer case, if you have problems with it look into a GM Powertrain transfer case. 3 year/100k warranty. Biggest piece of advice, if you go with one of those SHOP PRICE. The big boys in that business, Level One Powertrain dealers, those are the place to shop price. They buy those by the truckload, a bit over fifty at a time, they get aggressive discounts, they want to move them somthey usually sell them low. I was in that business, still have some contacts if necessary in Southeast Michigan.