Introduction

The Chevy Avalanche successfully combines the hauling capacity of a short-bed pickup with the comfort and capability of a five-passenger SUV. It switches between these roles using its ingenious Midgate, a removable rear bulkhead between the passenger compartment and the pickup bed. Along with a hard, tonneau-like bed cover, the Midgate allows the Avalanche to be configured as a Tahoe-sized sport utility with a five-foot pickup bed and comfortable, five-passenger seating. But fold down the rear seats and open the Midgate, and it's a pickup with an enclosed eight-foot bed, capable of securing valuable gear from thieves or shielding drywall from weather. Remove the rear glass and the tonneau panels and it's capable of hauling an ATV. Unlike a pickup, however, there is no full-height barrier between long loads like that and the front seatbacks. Versatility is what makes the Avalanche so desirable. It offers an 8,000-pound towing capacity, making it an excellent choice for pulling an enclosed car trailer or a fairly big boat. It's as long as a Chevy Suburban and can haul a lot of stuff, with payloads over 1,300 pounds and a bed designed for abuse. The 2009 Avalanche comes with a six-speed automatic transmission, replacing the four-speed automatic on the 2008 model. New for 2009 is an available integrated trailer brake controller (a great feature), more features for the LTZ model and more options for LT versions. First launched for the 2002 model year, the Avalanche was redesigned and re-engineered for 2007. Changes since have centered on refinement, tuning and packaging. We've been impressed with the Avalanche. As good as the first generation was, the revised version (2007 and later) is better, with vastly superior driving dynamics, including an improved ride and taut handling. The previous-generation Avalanche handled well for a Suburban-sized truck, but this latest generation model handles much better. The Avalanche is well-designed throughout, with impressive attention to detail. The cabin is nice, with a car-like look and feel, a well-designed dash and comfortable seats. Creature comforts and integrated driver-assist and entertainment features make traveling in the Avalanche enjoyable. The Midgate, removable rear window, tonneau covers and other features snap together nicely, and everything appears to be of high quality.

Walkaround

The Chevy Avalanche is a truck, and it's a big truck. In fact, the Avalanche is just an inch shorter than a Chevy Suburban. The Avalanche rides on the GMT900 platform, sharing its basic structure with the Chevy Tahoe, Suburban and Silverado, the GMC Sierra, Yukon and Yukon XL, and the Cadillac Escalade. From the front doors forward the Avalanche shares sheetmetal with the Tahoe, with only slight differences such as grille material and colors to distinguish it. A high-relief lower fascia houses tow hooks and tries to look like the leading edge of a skid plate. Order the Z71 package and you get a real skid plate. The side aspect is gracefully sculpted without the body cladding of early Avalanche models. Gaps between body panels are tight. Full-round door handles accommodate gloved hands. Squarish wheel wells look under-filled, even with the optional 20-inch wheels. Essential as the signature feature of the Avalanche are the angular flying buttresses connecting the roofline to the prominent plastic bed cover; and the only design cue that clashes with the sleek look of the current model. Rear doors are lifted straight from the Suburban and, unlike the Tahoe, have no wheel cutouts. This means easier loading of the rear seat, whether it's folded or not. It also means rear-seat passengers and dogs can have the window all the way down, assuming they can behave themselves. The tailgate looks like something from a traditional pickup. The tailgate is spring loaded to lighten its perceived weight, but it still seems heavier than its counterparts on the Ford F-150 and Toyota Tundra.

Interior Features

The interior of the Chevy Avalanche breaks with Chevy tradition much more than the exterior does. The cabin marks a watershed in ease of use, not to mention ease on the eye. This is a roomy truck. It's like sitting in the first two rows of a Chevy Tahoe. We thought the bucket seats could use more thigh support, however, and they felt more bench-like than sporty. The rear seats offer adequate and decently contoured space for adults, even those a few inches taller than six feet. The rear seatbacks don't recline, nor do they fold all the way flat with the head restraints in place, unless, that is, the front seats are moved almost all the way forward on their tracks. The fit and finish impressed us. Tolerances between panels were tight. The wood grain trim didn't quite pass the authenticity test, but it added at least a hint of upscale. The optional leather upholstery and other materials favored durability over luxury without looking or feeling cheap. Everything about the dash and instrument cluster is lean and clean. A large, round tachometer and matching speedometer dominate the gauge cluster, complemented by four smaller dials reporting information vital to the operation of a truck capable of hauling heavy loads or pulling large trailers or transporting as many as six occupants. The center stack houses controls for stereo and climate management, two power points, and buttons for optional features such as the power adjustable pedals. Cubby storage: Models with bucket seats have a center console with a large, open storage bin outfitted with a removable dual cup holder. Aft of this is an equally large, but not especially deep storage compartment beneath a padded, hinged cover that doubles as a center armrest. The standard 40/20/40 front bench seat incorporates some storage in its center section. The glove box isn't as expansive as it looks when closed. Front door panels have hard-plastic fixed map pockets with molded-in can holders. Outward visibility is about what's expected from a full-size pickup. On the Avalanche, the hood drops away fairly steeply from the base of the windshield. The flying buttresses hamper quick lane checks, although the large outside mirrors compensate somewhat. When deployed, the roof-mounted, rear seat video screen for the optional entertainment system effectively fills the middle portion of the inside rearview mirror. The Midgate is what separates the Avalanche from other pickups. With the Midgate and bed cover in place, you have a four-door truck with a huge, lockable trunk. Fold the seats down and the trunk gets even bigger. Lift off the bed covers, fold the seats back up, and it's a pickup with a short bed. Finally, fold those rear seats and the Midgate and remove and stow the back window and bed cover, and it's transformed into an open-air hauler with room for all sizes and shapes of cargo, from regular-size sheets of plywood to a brace of off-road motorcycles or an ATV. Folding the Midgate but leaving the back window and bed cover in place provides 101 cubic feet of enclosed, mostly secure, contiguous storage space, about the equal of seven-plus car trunks. The bed measures 63.3 inches with the Midgate in place, 98.2 inches with the Midgate folded down. By comparison, an F-150 SuperCrew's short bed is 67.0 inches long. The structure of the bed cover will support a 250-pound man, or a lot of snow. This can be a useful feature. We've walked on the cover and found it quite stable. The cover incorporates two lockable storage bins on each side just forward of the tailgate, but the height of the bed's walls makes them hard to reach by anybody shorter than five-foot-eight. On the other hand, they are water-tight and fitted with drains, making them usable as coolers. This last feature can make the Avalanche the center of activity at a tailgate party, unless the other guys bring a Dodge Ram Box. If they do that, you'll have to focus on showing off the Midgate. We found converting the Avalanche from SUV to pickup to be a fairly easy process, once learned, for the type of people who buy full-size pickups. But it does take some time, patience and even a little strength because the panels covering the bed weigh 20 pounds a piece and can be awkward to handle. It's best to leave them at home when not being used. Also, the rear glass panel must be carefully snapped into a holder when removed. Don't let your buddies do this for you. All of this takes a few moments of unhurried activity to perform. It's serious car stuff, sort of like putting up the top on an old convertible, but not as serious as trying to put the soft top back on an old Jeep.