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2005
CHEVROLET NEW TRUCK MODEL GUIDE |
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| CHEVROLET
TRUCKS |
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 Sure,
there are conventional trucks in the
Chevrolet line for 2005 as cast in conventional
formats of mid-size, full-size and even
super-size measurements with Colorado,
Silverado LD (light-duty) and Silverado
HD (heavy-duty). But Chevy offers other
ideas, like Avalanche -- which has the
abbreviated bed of a pickup plus the
cabin of a sport-utility wagon with
four doors and two rows of seats for
six -- and the slick SSR, a retro-mode
pickup that looks like a hot rod but
can shed its cab lid like a sporty roadster.
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| Chevrolet
SSR |
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It's a two-seat roadster and an airy
convertible; although with that obvious
truck box in back there's no doubt it's
also a pickup. Chevrolet calls this
unique vehicle the SSR -- Super Sport
Roadster. Think of it as a cross between
a truck and an open-top roadster, but
don't expect to see anything else on
the road quite like it. There's that
bed in back like a truck, but also a
retractable hardtop that converts the
vehicle via power controls to a breezy
convertible. The lid folds in two pieces
and tucks vertically behind front seats.
Frame
and chassis for SSR were lifted from
Chevrolet's mid-size TrailBlazer SUV,
and for 2005 the powertrain comes out
of a new Corvette. The new 6.0-liter
LS2 V8 thunders with 390 hp and huge
torque. To handle such muscle, SSR gets
a heavy-duty Hydra-Matic 4L65-E HD four-speed
automatic transmission or optional Tremec
T56 six-speed manual gearbox. Wheels
and tires are the largest stock rollers
in the GM warehouse, with 19-inch alloy
wheels in front and vast 20-inchers
in back with Goodyear Eagle RS-A performance
rubber.
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| Chevrolet
Avalanche |
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Constructed
on the chassis of a Silverado LD truck
with a cabin fashioned from the super-size
Suburban wagon, the Avalanche discards
the Suburban's rear bay in favor of
the shortened bed of a pickup. There's
a husky V8 engine under the hood, a
four-wheeling traction mechanism that
automatically channels torque to all
wheels, and a heavy-duty automatic transmission
to manage all the power. The back wall
of the cabin also works as a door. It
folds flat after the back seat tumbles
forward and forms a generous extension
of the truck box. The rear box has high
walls and indentations to rig tiers
or segment cargo, and a detachable tailgate
folds down to extend the floor of the
box.
A
deluxe cabin in the Avalanche resembles
the Suburban in layout with seating
for five or six. The Avalanche comes
in 1500 or 2500 series with RWD or 4WD
traction. The 1500 extracts power from
a 5.3-liter V8 that makes 295 hp while
the 2500 packs GM's 8.1-liter big-block
V8 with 320 hp. GM's OnStar telecommunications
system is standard for Avalanche in
2005, with power adjustable brake and
accelerator pedals available in add-on
equipment packages.
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| Chevrolet
Colorado |
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Chevrolet's
pickup for the mid-size class is called
Colorado. Sheet metal styling employs
design elements from the TrailBlazer
SUV and projects a powerful face dominated
by the horizontal strip of chrome splitting
in half the grille and corner headlamp
clusters. Linear dimensions vary due
to the size of the cab and the length
of the truck's rear box. Cabs include
a two-door Regular Cab, the Extended
Cab with two rear-hinged doors set behind
the two front doors and the Crew Cab
with four conventional front-hinged
doors.
A
rear box for the Colorado Regular Cab
and the extended version stretches 73
inches long, while the box on a Crew
Cab chops off 12 inches to keep the
wheelbase at a reasonable length for
maneuverability. To propel these trucks,
two new engines were devised with in-line
cylinder arrangement. The base Vortec
2800 2.8-liter four-cylinder engine
punches up 175 hp, while an optional
Vortec 3500 3.5-liter in-line five-cylinder
plant produces 220 hp. Colorado offers
three suspension packages (standard,
sport or off-road), plus traction modes
for rear-wheel-drive (RWD) or four-wheel-drive
(4WD). And 2005 models gain a new paint
shade called Superior Blue Metallic. |
| Chevrolet
Silverado LD |
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Best-selling
vehicle for General Motor happens to
be the full-size Silverado LD truck
from Chevrolet. The series is extensive,
with pickups cast in 1500 (half-ton)
and 2500 (three-quarter-ton) weight
classes and rigged with various cab
sizes, plus short or long box and standard
Fleetside body styling or rakish Sportside
on the 1500 Silverado. New models for
2005 include a gas-electric hybrid version
of Silverado's 1500 Extended Cab.
Hybrid
power combines a Vortec 5.3-liter V8
with a 120-volt electric motor to improve
fuel economy numbers by 10 percent.
Engines start with a 4.3-liter V6 at
195 hp for Regular Cab. The Extended
Cab has a 4.8-liter V8 for 285 hp. Silverado's
5.3-liter V8 reaches 295 hp (or 310
hp for the 4WD Silverado 1500 Extended
Cab), while a 6.0-liter V8 makes 310
hp. For even more power, there's Silverado
SS packing a high-output version of
the 6.0-liter V8 hiked to 345 hp. The
option of four-wheel-steering (4WS)
continues with the Quadrasteer system
that dramatically reduces the turning
circle of a truck and brings improved
high-speed stability plus low-speed
maneuverability. Other options range
from a DVD-based entertainment system
to XM satellite radio service. |
| Chevrolet
Silverado HD |
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Chevrolet's
heavy-duty work trucks under the Silverado
banner appear in 2500 (three-quarter-ton)
and 3500 (one-ton) packages. They're
built on a modular structure to allow
multiple configurations for cabin size
and box length. For 2005 a face-lift
forges a redesigned hood and grille.
The trucks conform as a two-door Regular
Cab, four-door Extended Cab, four-door
Crew Cab and no-cab Chassis Cab.
Powerhouse
engines and strong transmissions apply,
including two gasoline Vortec V8 choices
and a Duramax turbo-diesel V8. The Vortec
6000 6.0-liter V8 is the entry plant
with 300 hp. A Vortec 8100 8.1-liter
big-block V8 with 330 hp is optional
with either a ZF six-speed manual or
Allison five-speed automatic. The Duramax
6600 6.6-liter V8 direct-injection turbo-diesel
puts out awesome power and torque ratings,
and it too mates with the ZF six-speed
manual or Allison five-speed automatic.
The Silverado HD 2500 Crew Cab shows
optional Quadrasteer 4WD. |
[MORE
INFORMATION FROM CHEVROLET]
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