Dual piston calipers too. Man my truck is one stopping ***** luva.
Keep in mind drum brake technology has continued to advance over the years. The less drag of the drums may save a 10th or so of mpg too.
For the first few hundred miles I could smell the brakes after shut down as they burnt in. They are really progressive. If you press the pedal to a certain position to come to a stop, as you slow down you have to let off gradually or you will stop too soon.
The proportioning is better than the old Disc drum setup that got 15k front and 99k rear. The drums really come into play now. The whole system has been revamped.

Read All About It

 

I work at a dealer. we just had a seminar about brakes last week. they went back to drums because of complaints of rotors rusting and having excessive thickness variation (pulsating) caused by the brake pads not being able to scarpe rust off the rotors. they can';t scrape rust off because the material they use is not as aggressive as the material used 10 years ago. this is for quieter brake performance. the 05 trucks have the new more agressive pads in the front. they are expensive though. they cost about $230 at the dealer. the drums brakes don't stop better. they do have better pedal feel but won't stop as good a discs. this is why the 2500's still have rear disc. so they can keep thier high towing capacity. with drums in the rear you can't tow as much. also the SS still has rear brakes. and yes the rear e-brake sucks on the 99-04 trucks. the drums will fix that problem. me personally, my rear discs work great.

 

Well it is hard to argue with a dealer guy. From fellow whom attended a dealership meeting on the subject, I have to respect what you are saying but I got to say this.
I have had just about every GM year model 1/2 ton truck since 1987. What ever configuration they had, the brakes to me, sucked, being only just good enough to get by. But I am a Chevy man.
I did the full Praise dyno thing, high dollar fluid, and SS lines on a 97 disc\drum truck. Although improved, they sucked in comparison to the 05 system.
The spec sheets do not reflect the towing differences you state above in comparison the the earlier year models.
What you say about the rear drums not having an effect is not consistant with the article SEE HERE relesed by GM to the press. They have proportiond more power to the rear than ever before and the drums are the largest in the industry on any 1/2 ton truck. They even have load sencing. You make it sound as if the rear drums are just improved parking brakes.
What ever the case, the brakes on my 05 are awsome in compariso to any GM truck I have ever driven. It's not how hard you have to press the pedal anymore, but how far.

No offence intended, but somthing is off here.

 

yeah i read that. i still think its mostly because of the rotors rusting. the drums are more maintance free you could say. disc brakes will always stop better than drums. theres no doubt they reengineered the drums so they work better though. i think if they really did work that good then the 2500s, 3500s and SS would have drums also. unless the SS has disc still just for the bling factor. i havnt driven an 05 yet so i can't comment on well they actually do stop. i have seen them though. those drums are huge. GM is also testing out some hardened rear rotors on 28 trucks up in maine. the rotors are a black color. they also used some process that puts a coating on the outside of the rotor for corrosion resistance. they havn't had a single inch of rust yet on any of them. downside to it is because they are hardened they don't stop as well. they also cannot be cut because of the coating on them. since they don't stop as well these rotors won't ever be used as service parts, but a new brake system would have to be designed for them (bigger rotors and pads). so maybe we'll see them on the next generation trucks.

 

They are great right off the floor but burn in and improve inside the first 1k miles.

 

I wonder if these rear drup brakes can accomodate a 15's rim?

 

I don't think so- I heard the drum itself is almost 15" in diameter, not to mention the front rotors are huge, which is prob. why the standard size rim is 17"

 

Don't know about the rear but 17's are a must for the front.

 

My 02 hd was nice with the hydro boost and 4-wheel disc . pedal feels better in the 05 but I have a shake in the drivers side front wheel from 75 to 50 . My dealer confirmed the EBD enhancements along with increased size fronts .

 

they probably went back to drums because the rear rotors and pads were starting to look like this after 50k miles: