Sept. 29, 2006
 
ON THE ROAD: Chevy Silverado Stars at State Fair in Big D
 
By Richard Williamson
Scripps Howard News Service
 

The 2007 Chevrolet Silverado LTZ Extended Cab. (SHNS photo courtesy Chevrolet) Click to Enlarge

Dallas, TX (SHNS) -- Amid the aroma of corn dogs and funnel cake, General Motors aims to strengthen its grip on the Texas truck market with its State Fair intro of the 2007 Chevrolet Silverado.
 
Next door to Ford's display of its best-selling F-Series pickups, Chevrolet dished out barbecue and cobbler as its marketing execs talked up the all-new Silverado to the accompaniment of country band Montgomery Gentry.
 
This week's coming-out party for the Silverado gives Chevrolet the jump on the new Toyota Tundra, which will be rolling off a San Antonio assembly line for the first time in 2007.
 
At the Toyota display, fairgoers see signs that promise "another reason not to mess with Texas: the full-size Tundra from Texas." Toyota has its own established challenger in the Nissan Titan, built at the new plant in Canton, Miss. And DaimlerChrysler continues to keep pace with its powerful Ram.
 
While Toyota's truck sales are still far behind those of GM and Ford, Toyota has already surpassed Ford in total vehicle sales and is closing in on GM as the world's largest automaker. As a category, full-size trucks are down this year due to higher gas prices. But success in the segment remains critically important to all the players.
 
Gary A. White, GM's vice president for full-size trucks, seems almost convincing as he claims to welcome increasing competition in the state that ranks tops in truck sales.
 
"We asked ourselves: As the leader in full-size pickups, what are we going to do about it? And none of us were just going to sit on the lead," White said.
 
Advantages for the Silverado and sibling GMC Sierra include a higher degree of brand loyalty compared to the competition, White said. Since 2001, GM has outpaced Ford in annual truck sales, White said. With full-size-truck sales growing by 340,000 since 1999, GM accounted for 150,000 deliveries, he said. Though GMC and Chevy sales combined surpass those of Ford, the Ford F-Series remains the single best-selling vehicle of any kind, a claim Chevy would dearly love to capture.
 
A couple of weeks after the State Fair each October, Ford and Chevy do battle against other competitors for the title of "Truck of Texas," bestowed on a vehicle tested at the Texas Auto Writers' annual Truck Rodeo in Fort Worth.
 
Silverado's claim to supremacy will come from its bold but evolutionary styling, its superior fuel economy, athletic ride and remarkable level of interior refinement, White said. As in the past, Silverado will be offered in so many permutations that buyers can virtually custom-order.
 
The 2007 Silverado and Sierra extended-cab pricing begins at $23,605, and the crew-cab versions start at $27,000. Those prices include a standard 4.8-liter V8 engine.
 
"Nearly half of the 2007 Silverado and Sierra models are within $300 of the models they replace, with added standard equipment such as OnStar, tire-pressure monitoring, StabiliTrak and improved fuel economy," said Troy Clarke, president of GM North America.
 
The '07 Silverado light-duty models will appear in volume in November, with heavy-duty models available in the first quarter of 2007. Three cab styles -- regular, extended and crew cab -- can be fitted with three cargo box lengths: 5-foot-8 inches (short), 6-foot-6 inches (standard) and 8-foot (long). The pickup is available in three trim levels: WT, LT and LTZ. Buyers have a choice of rear-drive or 4-wheel drive. LS badging is available through an exterior styling option package on this year's model. And, of course, there is a Texas edition for the Lone Star State.
 
Built on GM's new full-size truck platform, the '07 Silverado has a fully boxed frame, coil-over-shock front suspension and rack-and-pinion steering. Buyers have a choice of five suspension systems. The track is about 3 inches wider in front and 1 inch wider in the rear.
 
Chevy claims a segment-best towing capacity of 10,500 pounds and a maximum payload of 2,160 pounds.
 
On the interior, designers maintained their reputation for a clean, ergonomically efficient layout while giving the cab a more carlike ambience.
 
Standard on crew-cab models and available on extended-cab models is a new stadium-style rear seat with a 60/40-split design and folding center armrest. The seat can be folded up with one hand, without using a release handle, to expand interior cargo capacity. Rear-access doors that open 170 degrees make passenger loading easier. Power-operated rear side windows lower completely.
 
Engine options range from the base 4.3-liter, 195-horsepower V6 to the 6-liter, 367 horsepower V8. The mid-level 5.3-liter, 315-horsepower V8 will attract most buyers.
 
Equipped with Active Fuel Management technology, the V8 lays claim to the best fuel economy in the class, though the actual figures have not been reported yet. White said the 315-horsepower V8 is expected to average about 20 mpg, which he says is 2-4 mpg better than a similarly equipped competitor. A FlexiFuel engine that uses E85 ethanol, gasoline or a combination of the fuels is also available.
 
Perhaps the only Texas credential the new Silverado lacks is an in-state assembly line. While full-size sport utilities emerge from the GM plant in Arlington, the pickups come from Oshawa, Ontario, and Silao, Mexico. Is that Toyota over there, waving the Texas flag?
 
Richard Williamson writes about automobiles for Scripps Howard News Service.