Avalanche

The Chevrolet Avalanche is Chevrolet's sport utility truck. It is a four-door, six-seat pickup truck with a somewhat SUV-like flavor, known as a "sport utility truck". more...

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Avalanche is based on the full-size long-wheelbase General Motors SUVs (such as the Chevrolet Suburban), and itself forms the basis of the upscale Cadillac Escalade EXT. On Chevrolet's website, the Avalanche is listed as an SUV.

Avalanche features four full-size hinged doors with seating for 6 (with bench seats) or 5 (with bucket seats). The open pickup bed in back can be extended into the back seat area by folding down the rear wall of the cabin and removing the rear window. GM marketers call this the "mid-gate system". A series of three removable panels provides a watertight top for the cargo bed. Additional storage is provided behind each wheelwell, accessed by locking flip-top panels and can be useful as self-draining ice chests.

The truck's midgate construction allows two fullsize sleeping bags to be laid out in the bed when the midgate is folded down, protecting the occupants from the weather. GM markets this truck as a choice for active outdoor adventurers in part due to its optional four wheel drive.

First Generation

Avalanche was launched in 2001 as a 2002 model on the GMT800 platform. First year Avalanches featured light gray plastic body cladding. This provided needed visual distinction from the Suburban/Yukon XL. Avalanche also gave the public an advance look at the next generation of front fascia designs for the entire GM line of trucks. A full-length chrome strip splits each lamp assembly and the grille, with a gold Chevrolet "bow tie" in the center. The hood and fenders featured aggressive folds, in contrast to the soft box of the other GMT800 models.

2003 models featured darker cladding, but GM's new president, Rick Wagoner, demanded deletion of this "unpopular" trim (as did certain elements of the public). From mid-year, Avalanche could be ordered without the cladding. The uncladded model, known as the Without Body Hardware (or better by its acronym "WBH"), and alternatively called "slicksides" by GM marketers, resembles the 2003 and 2004 Silverado in the front.

Avalanche was nominated for the North American Truck of the Year award and was Motor Trend magazine's Truck of the Year for 2002 .

There are two engine choices: A Vortec 5.3 L V8 producing 290 hp (216 kW), for the half-ton 1500 series; and an 8.1 L V8 with 325 hp (242 kW), for the three-quarter-ton 2500 series. The drivetrain is rear wheel drive or available with selectable high/low four wheel drive.

Second Generation

The GMT900 Avalanche was introduced at the Chicago Auto Show in February of 2006. Production of the redesigned Avalanche begins at Silao Assembly in March. The Avalanche maintains the styled front end much like its sister vehicles, the Tahoe/Yukon and Suburban, yet it still has the distinct midgate and integrated bed as found on previous incarnations. It has all the same standard and available features as the Suburban and the Tahoe.

Read more at Wikipedia.org