2015 Silverado 2500HD 6.6 Duramax Build - Go-Rig /Overland/Recovery Setup

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dMAXOVRLND

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Contributor I

60
Lake Arrowhead
First Name
Kole
Last Name
Chadwick
New to this group, excited to join the community to share and learn from fellow members.

I’m creating this thread to catalog the on-going build process on my ‘15 Silverado 2500HD 4x4 / Crew Cab 8ft bed. Eventually the Duramax will become strictly my recreation vehicle; but as for now she’s my daily driver, so a lot of thought goes into how each modification will affect the truck overall.

This truck is certainly not your typical “overland” platform, but such a capable rig nonetheless. Also why I love it so much is because of how uncommon of a platform it is within this space.

Anyway, I believe in establishing a “philosophy of use” for your rig and then building accordingly. I also believe in buying once, crying once and building once! I tend to shoot for quality because I know how closely it is tied to reliability. With that said, my goal is to outfit this land yacht with the best to prevent wasted money from being spent later down the road.

My POF for this truck has ultimately been inspired by Mike Glover of Field Craft Survival. Although he’s using a Ram 2500 Cummins as his platform; the intention for my truck is the same. A truck that has ample off-road capability, that is rugged, reliable and can go the distance on long treks.

Currently as the truck sits, the following mods have been done: (Nov. 2019)

Engine/Intake/Exhaust:

- PPEI ECM + TCM tune & delete (Running factory GM horsepower settings for max reliability)
- 4” AFE turbo-back exhaust w/ muffler
- SB Cold Air Intake
- PPE Transfer Case Brace

Suspension / Wheels / Tires:
- Cognito leveling kit w/ Kryptonite ball joints
- Fox 2.0 mono shocks / front & rear
- PPE Stage 3 Extreme Duty tie rods
- 18” Method NV HD wheels
- Nitto RidgeGrapplers/ 35x12.50 R18

Additional Mods:
- FabFours Headache rack
- Diamondback HD bed cover
- Tepui Kukenam3 Ruggedized RTT

Being a WT trim model; I also did some interior upgrades to get me some of those “creature comforts” that it was previously lacking. Being a daily driver, these were necessity in my opinion.

This included:
- OE 8” Touchscreen infotainment w/ factory navigation and Apple CarPlay. (Programmed by WAMS)
- OE Tailgate Handle Backup Camera
- z71 color LCD dashboard info cluster (Programmed by WAMS)
- Leather steering wheel w/ full audio + cluster controls.

These interior upgrades have given me pretty much all the “luxury” options you would see in the higher trim levels while retaining the ruggedness of the rubber flooring and vinyl seating of the WT trim; which is awesome for my outdoor focused lifestyle.

I love how the truck has come along thus far; but am far from finished.. Which seems to be always the case, right?

Some things that I hope to accomplish by the end of 2020:

- Upgraded Lift Pump (Still undecided on brand)
- CP3 injector pump conversion.
- Steel F&R Bumpers
- Swing-out Tire Carrier
- Auxiliary Fuel Tank
- 16.5k Winch
- BDS Coil-over conversion w/ Fox 2.5 resi shocks (Still undecided as to 3” or 6.5”; would appreciate feedback here.)

I appreciate you all taking the time to checkout my build! Please give any feedback/input that you think will help me achieve my build goals and to help make her more capable while on the road and out in the wild.

Hoping to inspire more guys to get into full sized rigs and see the many benefits they can offer. Stay tuned for updates and to see her in action [emoji41] God bless!IMG_3778.JPGIMG_9114.JPGAdjustments.JPG
 
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samsara

Rank IV
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

1,116
Glendale, Az
First Name
Samuel
Last Name
Winham
Member #

5064

I too have a white '15 silverado 2500, only i have the gas version. I love it, not sure why so many think chevy is junk, it's had zero problems the five years i've owned it. Good call on using the kriptonite ball joints, the Cognito one's went to crap in a year, the Kriptonite ball joints have been great and they have a lifetime warranty.
 
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Cummins_Overland

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Launch Member
Member

Enthusiast III

1,003
Fairfield, CA, USA
First Name
Bradley
Last Name
Davidson
Member #

17660

Good looking truck and mod list is interesting aren't too many folks running tuned and deleted diesels or many mods giving horse power. If you're still undecided between lift pumps I'm assuming you're trying to decide between either air dog or fass, I personally went with Air Dog as it was a bit cheaper I've had it on the truck for about 2 years now with no issues at all. If youre not dead set of BDS for your suspension set up check out icon vehicle dynamics if you haven't already, just another option, but no coilover option like you were looking at with BDS and it looks like they only do rear lift blocks they don't make add - a - leafs or leaf pack lifts.
 

buddy10mm

Rank 0

Contributor I

68
Utah, USA
First Name
Brett
Last Name
Miller
That's a nice rig. I've currently got a 2007.5 that I'm considering building into an overloading rig. It's a long-bed, so it will not be a rock-crawler! I'll be following your progress, taking notes!
 

Waaazooo

Rank III
Member

Enthusiast III

646
Middle River, MD, USA
First Name
Waz
Last Name
Zoo
Member #

42715

I have a 2017 2500 that I‘m starting to prep for a pony express trail adventure this summer with my son. Glad to see that someone else is out there doing the same thing with a big Chevy.