Chevrolet Silverado 3500 reviews

2002 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 Driving Impressions

Silverado LT drives like a luxury car and is supremely smooth and quiet. That smooth, quiet, unified feel is largely due to the stiff frame, which isolates the running gear for reduced noise and vibration. A cast magnesium beam behind the instrument panel and a lateral steel beam between the magnesium beam and the right side of the dash further reinforce the stiff body. Squeaks and rattles simply don't happen. This is one strong truck, and its chassis rigidity allows the suspension to soak up and manage bumps and ruts and tar strips so well that its overall ride behavior is near the luxury class. A long, 143-inch wheelbase improves the ride further and enhances high-speed stability.

The 1500HD crew cab model does not ride quite as smoothly. When the bed is empty there is some road vibration, but drivers used to driving pickups should find it well within acceptable bounds and throwing some weight in the bed or adding a canopy should smooth it out some.

A big four-spoke steering wheel connects to a rack-and-pinion steering gear on 1500 4x2s; other models have recirculating-ball steering. Even the rack-and-pinion system has a fairly wide dead spot in the center when cruising, which Chevrolet says is designed to minimize steering corrections on the highway. The steering feels a bit too light, but Silverado still tracks beautifully and handles well on pavement, loose dirt, deep dirt, and off road.

Although the 4.8-liter small-block V8 is more popular in base models, the up-market LT Extended Cab comes standard with the optional 5.3-liter (327 cubic-inch) engine, rated 285 horsepower and 325 foot-pounds of torque. That's enough grunt to smoke the rear tires at will. The fat torque curve is useful for light towing and hauling, but it's also a lot of fun for commuting and touring. We recommend the 5.3 over the smaller 4.8. The big 6.0-liter V8 that comes on the 1500HD delivers a ton of torque for pulling big, heavy trailers.

Braking hasn't been a traditional strong point for U.S.-built pickups, but here again the Silverado breaks from tradition. Its four-wheel disc brakes are huge and powerful and come standard with ABS. Braking force begins only an inch into the pedal travel. A new feature called Dynamic Rear Proportioning improves stability under heavy braking, whether the truck is loaded or empty. Chevrolet promises excellent fade resistance, with long pad life and good heat dissipation; we worked the brakes hard on our truck and experienced no fade. Anyone used to the brakes in the previous-generation Chevy pickups and full-size SUVs should be very pleased with the brake-pedal response and stopping performance.