CHICAGO, Illinois: If I ever actually bought something from the full-size truck/utility side of the automotive menu, it would be a Chevrolet Avalanche.
Avalanche struck me from the beginning as being an eminently sensible choice for someone who actually needed to carry a cluster of people and/or a shipment of stuff. After all, the clever Midgate technology that allowed the wall between the cabin and the pickup bed to disappear introduced a level of flexibility that set it above and beyond traditional pickups in utility, while maintaining traditional SUV comfort and convenience features.
So I was ready to like the second generation of Chevrolet Avalanche that debuted at the auto show here recently and will be on Canadian roads this spring, and I was not disappointed.
Roughly speaking, the utility levels of Avalanche have been enhanced a good deal in the new model, while the creature comfort aspects and the mechanical fittings have been improved considerably. While there is no paradigm-shifting new technology to report for 2007, the new Avalanche will get more power while using less gasoline, and will be capable of running on flex-fuel.
Most of the improvements in the new Avalanche come from the fact that it's based on GM's new full-size SUV platform, which is simply more refined and sophisticated than the current model, which is itself more than competitive. This should show up in a sharper and more precise driving feel, and a quieter cabin, Chevrolet general manager Ed Peper promised.
The interior improvements were visible on the show floor, and are a direct result of GM's promise to upgrade its interiors.
With gas prices and the volatility of the global oil industry playing an increasing role in the world's 4:00 a.m. worries, it's probably worth pointing out right away what GM has done to make this big vehicle less susceptible to such issues.
At the start of production, said Peper, Avalanche will come to market with the 5.3-litre V-8 with Active Fuel Management technology that seamlessly switches from eight-cylinder to four-cylinder operation to save fuel. Later, a new and more powerful, all-aluminum 6.0-litre V-8 with Active Fuel Management and variable valve timing (VVT) will be available.
Cylinder-deactivation systems like the one on these two engines save fuel no matter how they're driven, but they are particularly good at saving fuel when the vehicle is driven calmly at reasonable speeds on the highway.
E85, a renewable fuel that uses 85 percent ethanol from corn and other agricultural products, can be used in one of two versions of the 5.3-litre engine, and we can probably expect more of that in the future. GM vehicles with E85 capability can run on any combination of E85 and regular gasoline.
As well as coming from foodstuffs we grow in North America, Peper pointed out, E85 also burns cleaner than regular gasoline, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The problem with E85 is finding it, but the supply of that should rise with demand or there is absolutely no hope for the future of private enterprise in this world.
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| (Photo: General Motors) |
So I was ready to like the second generation of Chevrolet Avalanche that debuted at the auto show here recently and will be on Canadian roads this spring, and I was not disappointed.
Roughly speaking, the utility levels of Avalanche have been enhanced a good deal in the new model, while the creature comfort aspects and the mechanical fittings have been improved considerably. While there is no paradigm-shifting new technology to report for 2007, the new Avalanche will get more power while using less gasoline, and will be capable of running on flex-fuel.
 |
| (Photo: General Motors) |
The interior improvements were visible on the show floor, and are a direct result of GM's promise to upgrade its interiors.
With gas prices and the volatility of the global oil industry playing an increasing role in the world's 4:00 a.m. worries, it's probably worth pointing out right away what GM has done to make this big vehicle less susceptible to such issues.
At the start of production, said Peper, Avalanche will come to market with the 5.3-litre V-8 with Active Fuel Management technology that seamlessly switches from eight-cylinder to four-cylinder operation to save fuel. Later, a new and more powerful, all-aluminum 6.0-litre V-8 with Active Fuel Management and variable valve timing (VVT) will be available.
 |
| (Photo: General Motors) |
E85, a renewable fuel that uses 85 percent ethanol from corn and other agricultural products, can be used in one of two versions of the 5.3-litre engine, and we can probably expect more of that in the future. GM vehicles with E85 capability can run on any combination of E85 and regular gasoline.
As well as coming from foodstuffs we grow in North America, Peper pointed out, E85 also burns cleaner than regular gasoline, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The problem with E85 is finding it, but the supply of that should rise with demand or there is absolutely no hope for the future of private enterprise in this world.