2005 Chevrolet Avalanche Preview

Mixing Up the Truck Market

Chevy isn't known for radical thinking but with the new Avalanche, which combines the best aspects of a SUV with those of a pickup, they get it right.

One of the reasons for the sport utility vehicle boom is that, for most people, having at least one large-capacity vehicle is absolutely essential for shuttling kids, sports equipment, baby strollers, et cetera.

But even most large SUVs can't carry sheet rock.

As a result, about one million buyers each year opt for full-size pickup trucks with extended cabs instead, so they can carry both family and large loads -- and they don't have to worry about griming up the interior of the truck when they need to haul garden equipment or building materials.

But this scenario also has its limits. That trip to Home Depot for lumber and drywall can turn pretty messy if, when you emerge from the store to load up your pickup, it starts to rain.

To bridge the gap between trucks and SUVs, Chevrolet came up with the Avalanche, priced between $30,965 and $33,965. What they did is rather simple -- but brilliant. In essence, they cut the rear of the cabin off a Suburban SUV, right behind the second row of seats, and then converted that back portion into a five-foot pickup truck bed.

Yes, you've seen short-bed trucks before -- and they aren't long enough to hold standard-size plywood or even most skis. So Chevy -- which wants to sell 100,000 Avalanches a year -- went further, and gave the Avalanche truck bed two tailgates. The tailgate at the back works just like a standard-issue pickup unit, but at the side near the passenger compartment, another tailgate flips into the cabin. When you do this, you also flip the second row of seats down and forward, like you would for the pass-through in a sedan. And you can also remove the rear window and slide it into a neat sleeve, so the entire back of the cab can swallow both long and tall loads.

Suddenly, the Avalanche goes from a five-passenger truck with a five-foot bed to a two-passenger truck with an eight-foot bed.

Simple enough, but what makes the system even more creative is the hard-shell cover ("tonneau", in carspeak) that fits over the cargo box. When this cover is in place, it seals out all moisture, so that your drywall stays dry. And because the cover is lockable, you can also park the Avalanche without fear that whatever you left in the bed will be stolen.

All this adds up to a new kind of car, one that has all of the attributes of both an SUV and a pickup -- but few of the limitations of either.