Chevy's new model mixes the best of pickup and SUV

srobertson

The engineers at Chevy must have had a ball designing this week's test vehicle. I'll bet they grew up playing with those cool little metal toys that morph from a skateboard into an airplane into a military tank. The Avalanche is just like that -- one minute it's a pickup truck; the next minute it's an SUV. I have no idea why they named it "Avalanche" É perhaps all the engineering drawings kept sliding off the table? I like the name "Morf" better É it's much easier to spell.

But no matter how it's configured, the Avalanche is a unique engineering feat. Ford doesn't have anything like it; neither does Dodge. Called a "crossover truck," it was designed to incorporate the best aspects of sport-utilities and pickups into one package, and hopefully knock the best-selling pickup, the Ford F-150, off its pedestal. If Chevy can maintain the sales momentum that began in 2001 when the Avalanche debuted, it just might have a chance, because the Avalanche is selling well above predictions.

Who is buying Chevy's do-everything pickup? Everyone, apparently. It appealed to everyone I showed it to, men and women alike. The big, chunky, styling sports a new front fascia with styled headlights and exaggerated wheel arches for an aggressive look that you don't see in other pickups. The Avalanche is based on the same chassis as the full-size Suburban, so you know it is built "like a rock." The controversial full-length plastic body cladding adds to the macho style, but if you don't like the look, the truck is now available without it. But I liked it, and it seems to me that it would provide excellent protection from stone chips resulting from fast trips down your favorite gravel road.

OK, what's so different about this truck? Everyone makes a four-door pickup with comfortable rear seats. Both Ford and Subaru have SUVs with short pickup beds behind the passenger cab. But only Chevy has eliminated the solid walls between the passenger cabin and the cargo box, replacing them with a new flip down divider wall and removable rear cab window. When the divider wall is up and the rear seats are in position you can carry five people in the cab and all their stuff in the 5-foot truck bed. Bad weather? No sweat. The Avalanche is equipped with a removable three-panel truck bed cover that keeps the rain out, and also provides a nice big platform where you could entertain friends at the next soccer game. If I'd had this truck in 1972 it would have been the perfect perch for photographing the nightly streakers at the university dorms, or the UFOs over in Piedmont, Mo.

The panels lock into place, while the tailgate is equipped with a lock, just like the trunk on a car. So your gear stays safe, dry and out of sight. Just imagine, pickup owners, how convenient it would be to access your stuff in the pickup bed without getting out of the cab. With the rear seats flipped forward and the divider wall flipped down, the entire truck bed becomes part of the passenger cab. If you have a dog, he'll love it. If you don't, you could set up you old Lionel train set back there and entertain yourself while the wife drives down to your Florida vacation spot.

If your wife is like my wife, you'll never get her out of the driver's seat, anyway. This truck may look macho, but it's a pussycat on the highway. Power everything, including the adjustable brake and gas pedals. Lots of power from the Vortec 5300 engine. Four-speed automatic transmission. Four-wheel drive, and a towing rating of 8,000 pounds. All that adds up to a harsh, truck-like ride and terrible gas mileage, right? Wrong! In over 100 miles of city and highway driving we averaged 15.5 miles per gallon while enjoying the plushest ride ever put under a pickup. The Avalanche may be built like a rock, but it rides like a big, plush Suburban.

If your driveway needs an Avalanche, you can slide down to Coad Chevrolet in Cape Girardeau and pick one out. But don't be put off by the $42,981 sticker price! Salesmen are offering irresistible rebates and financing deals. It seems everyone is getting swept up by this Avalanche.

Steve Robertson of Robertson's Creative Photography is a car enthusiast and a former writer/photographer for the Southeast Missourian.