Chevrolet Avalanche
This unique four, five or six passenger sport utility truck offers versatility with a long wheel base like the Chevy Suburban and Cadillac Escalade, but it has an open pickup-up truck bed that features a midgate, which opens to the back seat with a folding panel and removable rear window when you need more hauling space. It features locking flip-top, self-draining ice chests behind each wheel-well that can be used for storage or stocked with your favorite beverages or camping food. The second generation GMT900 Avalanche went into production in 2007 that still has the mid-gate construction.
With a powerful Vortec V8 engine, it now features 'Active fuel management' that deactivates four of the eight cylinders, to make it more fuel-friendly. The Chevrolet Avalanche was originally marketed for the ability to change from a pickup truck to an SUV through closing the large plastic bed cover and utilizing the configuration of the mid-gate and removable back window.
It is a versatile pickup truck, especially considering its characteristic versatility in fuel economy or power hauling, pick-up truck or SUV and its ability to survive through the automotive changes that have hit the Pickup/SUV market and the American automakers from the price spikes in gas prices.
In an effort to continue to offer the full size luxury that Americans want in a pickup or SUV with the option to save fuel costs, the Chevrolet Avalanche is still a great deal with an MSRP that starts at $35,460. It comes in 8 different trim model and options packages with seven of them under the $45,000 mark and only one the goes slightly over.
According to Edmonds, "it is one of the more versatile vehicles on the road today. It successfully blends the comfort and passenger capacity of an SUV with the cargo flexibility of a pickup truck." That is exactly the market that General Motors has been hoping to capture with this unique design.
The removable wall the separates the cabin and the bed is something unique, but some don't like the limited vision and blind spots, which can make it hard to maneuver in tight spots. There is a little bit of work involved in the mid-gate/removable back window configuration, but most Chevrolet Avalanche owners like the flexibility anyway.
Both models of the Vortec V8 engine come in six speed transmissions, whether you choose the standard 5.3 liter, 310 horsepower or the optional 6.0 liter with 366 horsepower. It has predictable handling for a workhorse pickup but has a smooth and comfortable ride with precise steering, considering the massive, full-size.
Perhaps, General Motor's biggest mistake with its full size line of vehicles, including the Chevrolet Avalanche, was the fact they had not anticipated the huge increase in fuel prices that would make them almost unaffordable to drive.
To the fans of the Chevrolet Avalanche, it seems that most of them need the versatility and can't go without a work truck and the comfortable riding SUV combination, no matter what fuel prices are. The new 'Active Fuel Management' system certainly makes it a more affordable option for those that love everything else about it,