Open To Your Ideas

Sierra 05 · June 9, 2007

I currently have an `05 Sierra Crew 2wd w/ MANY Brake issues still unresolved. I am having a hard time swallowing going back to GM, but I get Employee pricing, and will not look at a Ford, Nissan , or Dodge, for uh I dunno, too many reasons to list!!

I drove the Tundra Crew= Too much money, weak sheetmetal, cheesy stereo, and climate control knobs!!!

Not worth it!! MSRP 44K

GMC Sierra Crew= Did not like the ride! Looking for a better ride out of it, and I was not inpresed. Although I think it is the tires!! (Generals). MSRP 34K

Chevy Avalance= Wonderful ride. Great ideas in the bed. I would do a bed liner and tonneau anyway and this is built in!!! Great braking 4 wheel disc! Very impressive. MSRP 36K.

Curious what problems others are expeiencing. What fuel mileage your getting, especially the Avalance!! I do want to know what your opinions are.

And before you chime in, please keep in mind I am not dogging any vehicle here, just expressing my opion on how I felt after a SIMPLE test drive. So plaese remember it is Your opinion here and no one will bash you!!!!!!

HawkeyeOC · June 9, 2007

I have not driven the Av, but the reason why you are probably getting a smoother ride out of it is the Sierra's have leafs in the rear and the Av's have a multi link coil suspension. Av's are based off of the suburban.

Few problems seem to be coming out of the NBS trucks which in my opinion is amazing for a first year truck.

My '07 NBS Sierra has been in for A-pillar wind noise problems (looks like mine is now corrected), an innacurate gas gauge, front coil spring squeek and a tailgate latch adjustment. All minor issues to me. I expected more issues honestly from a truck that was only 1103 off the line!

Wingnut · June 9, 2007

If I were to buy a new truck today, it would be difficult to keep me out of an Avalanche.

And I'm REALLY liking the GMT-900's too. The Avalanche (like you said) is just done perfect for Joe Homeowner. I think the engineers at GM knocked that design out of the park when those came out. The NBS ones are even nicer.

Oh...And from what I recall, the Avy's wheelbase is quite a bit shorter than the CC, so the turning radius is a LOT smaller.

Dana_15 · June 9, 2007

Go with the Avalanche, those trucks look great! Tundra's are overpriced, but still a d**n good truck, but 8k is alot of money....if you like the Avalanche go for it.

wvurhino · June 9, 2007

My dad had an Av. The first year they were out, I think they called it a 2002 model. We both loved it. He tried convincing me to get one instead of my Silverado. I still haven't learned to listen to my dad. His Av was GREAT and it was built right before the strike in the summer of '01. No big problems at all and that was the first model year.

The only time I did something in my Silverado that I wouldn't want to do in an Avalanche is picking up a few loads of gravel, sand and topsoil. They used a front end loader to dump it in. The Avalanche, to me, seems a little to SUV like to dump a ton of dirt in it. I'm sure it would handle it, but if I had an Av, I would have wanted to pickup a ton of dirt neatly packed in bags from Home Depot.

If I could, I would buy an Avalanche today. Makes a lot of sense, the old ones drove wonderfully, look nice, and its the best of a pickup and an SUV.

Sierra 05 · June 9, 2007

My dad had an Av. The first year they were out, I think they called it a 2002 model. We both loved it. He tried convincing me to get one instead of my Silverado. I still haven't learned to listen to my dad. His Av was GREAT and it was built right before the strike in the summer of '01. No big problems at all and that was the first model year.

The only time I did something in my Silverado that I wouldn't want to do in an Avalanche is picking up a few loads of gravel, sand and topsoil. They used a front end loader to dump it in. The Avalanche, to me, seems a little to SUV like to dump a ton of dirt in it. I'm sure it would handle it, but if I had an Av, I would have wanted to pickup a ton of dirt neatly packed in bags from Home Depot.

If I could, I would buy an Avalanche today. Makes a lot of sense, the old ones drove wonderfully, look nice, and its the best of a pickup and an SUV.

I think payload capacity is near 2000 lbs, so I could haul dirt, which I have done before in ither trucks. It is cheaper to go get it from a quarry or landscpe supplier than old HD or lowes. Well, I also read on the Avalancheclub.com website about mpg and some get 20 mpg mixed and most get 17-19 mixed driving. I woonder if an engine tune could help?

mini1 · June 9, 2007

Either truck is a great choice in the NBS. They both look modern and have all the features you seem to need. I would go for the crew cab over the Avalanche, because you can't see a darn thing when you try to back up in the Avalanche and the bed cover still tends to leak (major problem on GMT-800).

The ride of the Sierra will get better and softer with time. I have LT rated tires on mine and it was quite stiff when it was new! After about 1500 miles, it has gotten alot better. There are just about no major problems to report with the truck. The gas gauge problem was fixed by a recall/TSB. It was a 5 minute dealer computer software upgrade job.

SweatyAppleSauce · June 10, 2007

my next truck will probably be an avalanche. perfect blend of truck and suv

VMax2007 · June 10, 2007

Nothing wrong with the Avs. I shopped them last year and ultimately decided to wait for the NBS trucks to arrive as a truck is a better fit, for me. I decided I probably would not take advantage of the whole transformation capabilities of the mid-gate stuff on the Av, plus, I could NOT get one with a 6.0 with 3.73s, on;y 4.10's and the MPG est were 11/17 vs 15/19.

What suspension did the GMC CC you drove have? If you drove one with the 20" wheels and Z60 suspension, that would explain the harsher ride, but keep in mind, the handling of the Z60 is awesome (for a truck).

Sierra 05 · June 10, 2007

Nothing wrong with the Avs. I shopped them last year and ultimately decided to wait for the NBS trucks to arrive as a truck is a better fit, for me. I decided I probably would not take advantage of the whole transformation capabilities of the mid-gate stuff on the Av, plus, I could NOT get one with a 6.0 with 3.73s, on;y 4.10's and the MPG est were 11/17 vs 15/19.

What suspension did the GMC CC you drove have? If you drove one with the 20" wheels and Z60 suspension, that would explain the harsher ride, but keep in mind, the handling of the Z60 is awesome (for a truck).

The Sierra i drove was sn SLT. Idunno what suspension it had though. I really believe it was the tires out of balance. I read on an Avalanche club website, that most of them get it to stay in 4 cylinder mode with the AFM with the 4:10 gears and are getting 20 mpg mostly mixed driving. As you posted earlier, your coming to the same conclusion about the most time in the 4 cylinder mode. The sticker on the 2wd showed 16/20. My current Sierra showed 16/20 also and I did get 18-20 mostly til winter and then it dropped to 16. Even with the Jesse tune, a tonneau, and a real CAI, all I get now is 18.5 not too shabby I must say with full time V8.

So if the AFM gets more mpg with 4:10 gears for hgwy, then what do you get in the city? I do mixed driving, 18 miles to work and 13 of it is hgwy.

With a new truck, I would want better fuel mileage and the E-85 is not were that should be, but the cost per gallon could offset that. What is the cost of a gallon of E-85?