2007 Chevrolet Silverado

GM's full-size truck engineers and designers knew they had their work cut out for them. Ford's latest F-150 had raised the bar for interior refinement and chassis dynamics, and Dodge's Ram for cabin roominess and performance. Then came Nissan with a tough-as-nails full-size Titan, and Toyota was soon to follow with an outstanding new Tundra.


"Our mission was clearly to be the best in specific attributes that are critical to a pickup truck buyer," says Silverado Vehicle Line Director Mike Tulumellow. "That evolved into six main pillars: exterior styling, interior styling, the depth and breadth of the portfolio, exceptional driving experience, our commitment to safety and security and unique features and options."


For starters, the 2007 Chevy Silverado's new fully boxed frame is much stiffer than before, enabling the development engineers to tune it for both smoother ride and more athletic handling. Its precise rack and pinion steering is big-time better, its braking feel is hugely improved, its new front suspension is a highly tunable coil-over-shock design, and its tracks are wider (three inches in front and one in back) for much-improved road-holding and stability.

Styling

The new look is crisp, clean, broad-shouldered and powerful. The big Chevy signature grille, bumpers, front fenders, vertically stacked reflector-optics headlamps, power-dome hood, tail lamps, box design and flared rear fenders are all unique to Silverado, not shared with GMC's Sierra. The "fast" 57-degree sloped windshield highlights the substantially sleeker shape and attention to detail that—along with GM's cylinder deactivating Active Fuel Management (AFM)—provide class-leading EPA fuel economy. Three cab styles (regular, extended and crew), three trim levels (WT, LT and LTZ), three bed lengths and three wheel sizes (17, 18 and 20-in.) are offered, and there's a handsome LS optional exterior package.


Uniquely in the class, Silverado offers two completely different interiors: a bench-seat, column-shift "pure pickup" cabin in WT (work truck) and LT models and a bucket-seat, big-console luxury interior (shared with Chevy's top-of-the-line Tahoe SUV) in LTZs. Both offer a large double glovebox and ample storage capacity, including a huge console box in the LTZ and a laptop-size lockable bin in the pure pickup's 40/20/40 bench seat's center section. Both available new instrument panels are pushed down and forward for better visibility, making the spacious cabin feel even roomier than it is. Door pulls are large grab-handles designed for easy use with gloves, as are all major controls.