Chevy Plans to Out Tow Ford in the Heavy Duty Truck Battle

(chinatrucks.com, Mar.15, 2010)The unofficial Heavy Duty truck war barely hit the public sphere a few days ago and already the stakes are being raised. According to a report, GM is hoping to make more improvements to its HD rigs to best the Ford Super Duty once and for all. Well, at least until the next round.

Jeff Luke, chief engineer for GM's full size trucks mentioned that they'll most likely revise the payload and towing capacities with a few easy fixes.

Ford's Super Duty with a 6.7-liter Power Stroke has a payload rating of 6520 pounds and a towing capacity of 24,400 pounds. Chevy's Silverado HD powered by a 6.6-liter Duramax, on the other hand, touts a 6335 pound payload and 20,000 pound towing limit.

"There's a lot of activity going on right now," Luke said. "It's not difficult [to raise towing and payload]. The trucks are extremely capable and we're looking at a number of options. Any increase would probably come from both better confidence in the trucks and engineering changes. Whatever we do, we'll be completely transparent."

The changes will likely occur within the next year, Luke continued. Ford continues to take the top spot when it comes to gasoline-powered V-8s in the segment. Its 6.2-liter Powerstroke makes 385-horsepower and 405 lb-ft of torque. We wouldn't be surprised if the Blue Oval is already preparing a counter-offensive on its diesel front.

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