Latest Silverado package should at least placate buyers looking for a replacement for their Avalanche.
2017 Chevrolet Silverado High Desert
Yesterday, GM's Bowtie division revealed an option package that will be available when the 2017 Silverado goes on sale this fall. Based on a concept vehicle that was revealed at the 2014 SEMA show, the High Desert package, according to Chevrolet, will bring "unique content and capability to Silverado's lineup of special edition."
Taking a closer look, the High Desert should also appeal to pickup buyers who currently own (or are looking for a vehicle like) an Avalanche and are hoping for a truck that has a similar appearance – replete with sail panel windows - to the one GM stopped making following the 2013 model year.
"The High Desert package blends the capability and utility of Silverado with the refinement and luxury of Suburban," said Sandor Piszar, director of Chevrolet truck marketing. "It's ideal for those customers who want both the security of a lockable cargo area, as well as the flexibility of a pickup truck bed."
2017 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 High Desert package
Unlike the Avalanche, the High Desert will be marketed as a package and will be available for order on LT, LTZ, and High Country trim levels.
The "security" Piszar is talking about is an all-new flexible, lockable storage system in the cargo bed that can lock cargo away safely as well as protect it from the elements. The system is installed in the bed and includes a pair of side storage bins and a three-piece hard tonneau cover.
Inside the bed, a cargo divider can be raised, if needed, to secure smaller items. When lowered, it allows access to the full length of the bed floor. Since all LT, LTZ, and High Country models come with a tailgate that locks with the key fob, owners will be able to secure, with the push of a button on the fob, whatever is in the bed.
In addition to its security features and, of course, those requisite sail panel windows, the High Desert package on the LT trim level will feature 20-inch wheels shod with all-season tires, while 22-inch wheels wrapped in all-terrain tires are available on both LTZ and High Country trim levels.
Available only in a Crew Cab/Short Box configuration, the base engine for LT models will be a 4.3-liter V6, while the optional engine will be a 5.3-liter V8. LTZ and High Country trims will feature the 5.3-liter V8 as the base engine, while the optional engine will be an EcoTec3 6.2L V-8 (SAE-certified at 420 horsepower and 460 lb.-ft. of torque) mated to an all-new Hydra-Matic 8L90 eight-speed automatic.
The High Desert will also be the first Silverado offered with GM's Magnetic Ride Control suspension. Chevy describes the system thusly:
"Its sensors "read" the road every millisecond, triggering damping changes in as little as five milliseconds in electronically controlled shock absorbers that replace conventional mechanical-valve shocks. They're filled with a magneto-rheological fluid containing minute iron particles and under the presence of a magnetic charge, the iron particles align to provide damping resistance. Changes in the magnetic charge alter the damping rate of the shocks, with changes occurring almost instantly."
