Would you honestly recommend a 6.5l for towing?

[brinkmanj]

Hopefully I can get some of the 6.5 gurus to respond here... I'm currently running a 7.3 IDI ford which is rusted beyond logical repair and am looking to get back into a chevy, ideally a 6.5TD, which it looks like it will most likely be a '96-00 to get the creature comforts my wife wants and the availability of custom ecm tunes. I have no issues doing all of the recommended upgrades and have an intake exhaust pmd relocate kit, heath tow tune, boost controller and dmax fan swap on my wish list already. BUT... after the initial buildup of the truck I dont want to be under the hood every weekend, I dont have time to work on my junk for fun.

I'm looking for an ex cab long bed 4x4 auto and its primary purpose in life will be to haul a small 5er @ around 5-6k wet through the hills of southeast indiana and possibly all the way to florida once a year.

I'm considering buying a dirt cheap 6.5 suburban I found locally just to see what I would be getting myself into, but I just need to know if all the horror stories on these engines are really a reality and if anyone in my situation would go for this truck.

Sorry for the long post and thanks for any and all advice.

 

[lindstromjd]

I'm not much into the 6.5's, but I can tell you that from what I've heard, the 6.2 with a 6.5 turbo set up is actually a stronger, more reliable engine.

 

[Black dawg]

the 6.2 and 6.5 have many more surprises than a 6.9 7.3.

 

[towcat]

6.2/6.5's are good motors for passenger use.
you do need to make sure the cooling system is at 110%
I am no fan of the computerized 6.5, but there are still many in service.
i tend to stay with the mechanical versions....... less stress

 

[sog-wap]

Not a fan of the 6.5 my dad has one, had to give him my old volvo so he can get around now. Loved my old 6.2 suburban though. I must add when it did work it towed great, we made a 24' tandem axle trailer out of a Mobile home and loaded it up with all sorts of crap and it pulled just fine. I have no idea how much weight.

 

[Steve83]

Mine seems to be running perfectly, and my father put it through its paces for 13 years. It has a lot of grocery-getter miles on it, but it also has a trip to Alaska with a ~28' bumper-pull, several trips back&forth between TX & AL with a ~40hp tractor & implements, and he hauled all the materials for his house, bunkhouse, boathouse, & 5-bay shop from ~130 miles away over several years. He's gone through at least 3 PMDs, but that's the biggest problem he had with it. I advised him against it (like I advised against his new Cummins), but it runs surprisingly well. And now that I've fixed all the little things he let go, it's almost like new.

 

[Matrix37495]

We've got a 98' we use on the farm and it's a real dog... Doesn't want to pull itself and it's nearly overheated a few times (started derating the engine...didn't know it would do that...).

On the other hand, our 92' (when it starts) is very peppy and seems very strong.

 

[Matrix37495]

We've got a 98' we use on the farm and it's a real dog... Doesn't want to pull itself and it's nearly overheated a few times (started derating the engine...didn't know it would do that...).

On the other hand, our 92' (when it starts) is very peppy and seems very strong.

 

[LSOSGT1109]

I had a 96 K1500 with the 6.5TD for a few months. Honestly the only reason I sold it was because I wanted a 3/4 ton truck. I did some extensive research while I had this truck and from what I found they can be very reliable with a few mods and some general maintenance. The first thing you must do is check the harmonic balancer and pully. Most of the dead 6.5's in the junk yards are a result of a busted crank caused by a bad harmonic balancer. Apparently the balancer and pully was a weak point of the 6.5TD. I didn't really know how to tell if my balancer and pully were bad, they weren't making any noise or anything but I wanted to make sure so I just replaced them. Got the new balancer and pully for about 110 bucks from Autozone. Borrowed a puller from my buddy and completed the job in about 2 hours. That was my first real mechanicing task so if I could do it, anybody could. Next you should relocate the PMD. Relocation kits are available for about 50-60 bucks for just the kit or about 200-300 bucks for the kit and PMD. If you get one with a PMD included you simply unplug the harness from your existing PMD and plug it into your new PMD. If I had the money I would get one with a PMD included cause the PMD its pretty hard to get in there and remove the PMD from the pump and you can just leave it there unplugged when you install the new PMD/relocation kit. I put a new Diamond Eye 4" straight through turbo back exhaust on mine and it helped alot and sounded great. I was really happy with the performance of the engine and if it had been in a 2500 rather than a 1500 I would still have it. I pulled my 16' trailer with my 3 commercial zero turn mowers on it and it did fantastic. It pulled them better than my '93 F250 IDI N/A. If you get a '96 or older 6.5 you should also get the cooling upgrade kit. Apparently in 97 GM went to a higher flow water pump that helped keep it cooler. All the 6.5 gurus that I talked to said that the 6.5 didn't need to run over 210 degrees for any length of time. With these few mods, I wouldn't hesitate to have another 6.5.

 

[Steve83]

Where are you finding a PMD relocate kit that cheap? I'm seeing $140 just for a heat sink & pigtail. This one is $450:
http://www.amazon.com/Mounted-Fuel-Solenoid-Relocation-Package/dp/B000RO2YV2/

 

[LSOSGT1109]

Ebay. Here's one with a pmd included.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GM-T...r_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item45fc934d09

There's a metric crap ton of them on there, just have to search thru them for the good deals. Don't fall for SSdiesel supply's expensive one. It mounts on top of the pump which is still right in the hottest area of the engine.

 

[Black dawg]

I would recommend towing one to anybody. Ive towed mine atleast 10 times in 5 years.

 

[spencergt66]

Ive had 3 6.5 chevys never an issues with any of them go to ssdieselsupply.com they have all the 6.5 stuff you need. I towed with mine all the time never an issue the last one I had was a 96 with a PMD heat sink marine injectors chiped and stright 4" exhaust that truck would straight up move If you like the truck Id buy one.

 

[Diesel_brad]

I would recommend towing one to anybody. Ive towed mine atleast 10 times in 5 years.

 

[Thatguy]

Ive had 3 6.5 chevys never an issues with any of them go to ssdieselsupply.com they have all the 6.5 stuff you need. I towed with mine all the time never an issue the last one I had was a 96 with a PMD heat sink marine injectors chiped and stright 4" exhaust that truck would straight up move If you like the truck Id buy one.

I would not buy anything from SS even if they were the last place to buy anything ...... would not buy anything from Pensacola either.

strictly heath for me .... and if he doesn't have it, he will recommend something.