In a back-and-forth duel of product development and marketing Chevrolet has yet again upped the ante with their HD trucks.

 First it was the protracted release of the horsepower and torque figures of both the 2011 Ford Power Stroke and the 2011 LML Duramax. Ford released their numbers, claiming the crown of most powerful diesel engine with 390hp and 735 lb-ft, until shortly after Chevrolet touted their 397hp and 765 lb-ft, just barely edging out Ford.

This time around it's the payload numbers. Ford has a claimed max payload of 6,520 lbs and max towing from a conventional hitch at 16,000 lbs. Those were all touted as best in class when the numbers for the Chevy looked like this:

Turns out, they weren't really left-handed

Now that Chevrolet has reevaluated its new high-strength steel bed supports, its numbers for payload are now 6,635 lbs.

Directly from Chevrolet:
"Based on further testing in varied terrain, grades, and climates while pulling the maximum trailer weight to confirm predictable and stable handling, the maximum 5th-wheel towing capacity was increased to 21,700 pounds, and conventional towing capacity increased to 17,000 pounds."

Ford still has the edge with the 24,500-lb 5th wheel towing capability of the F-450, but until these weight ratings are certified by some sort of standard, third-party testing, they're just numbers. Not that it isn't fun to watch the battle of the HD trucks from the sideline. As long as each new generation of truck get a little bit stronger and a little bit more powerful, we're all for Ford and GM to keep duking it out for the top dog HD, we're just waiting for the Ram to chime in.