2000 Chevrolet Silverado half-ton pickup
Skip the (boring) story and go right to the pictures:
While Diane and I were visiting in Salt Lake City, Diane let me know that it was time for the old Dodge to hit the trail, and that I should avail myself of the opportunity to stop by a few dealerships. Now, don't get me wrong, I really enjoy the my 1994 Red Dodge pick-em-up truck. It's a 3/4 ton, and gets decent mileage - between fifteen and seventeen miles per gallon. Since we drive it to Michigan to visit family and frequently in the cold of winter, Diane's opinion is that it may strand us as it ages. The Dodge had about 95,000 miles at the time we gave 'er up.
It's not very often that the wife recommends you go looking for a new vehicle, so off I went, and quickly. Diane and I discussed what we wanted in a new pick up, and decided that our must haves were simple: About the same as the Dodge, but with space inside the cab for coats, ice cooler, and miscellaneous. Ride quality in a our Dodge leaves a bit to be desired, especially once we hit the Michigan freeway system. We aren't pulling our travel trailer anymore, so large engine size and major tow muscle are no longer needed. The Dodge is a long-bed pickup, and even though we move plywood sheets on occasion, a short bed with the tailgate open is up to the challenge.
Since I bought the Dodge, I have been enamored with the full size four door pickups by Ford, and to a far lesser extent, Chevy. Wow, a truck that can seat four comfortably, and still haul a load. I figured that the minute Dodge came out with a 'real' four door truck, I would trade up ASAP. Since Dodge has not (as of July, 2000) made a full size four door, I figured I would first look at the 2000 Dodge extended cabs, and then go to what I thought I would really end up buying - the new Ford F-150 four door.
I spent at least a couple hours at the Dodge dealership, and even drove one, but I was unimpressed. In my opinion, the interior and control mechanisms haven't really been upgraded much since I bought my truck in 1994. And the ride is essentially the same on the new as compared to the old. Not to put the dig to Dodge, it's a nice truck, but it's the same as the one I bought in 1994.
So, off to the Ford dealership! Except that we happened to pass a chevy dealer on the way. I didn't think much of it, but I mentioned to Ken (who really is a car shopping expert) that we ought to take a peek at them. He swung into the lot, and we started looking. They had five white chevy extended cabs on one edge of the lot, with a big 'discount' stickers in the window. I didn't know it at the time, but they were the last of the three door models. Apparently, some early production 2000 trucks were made with three doors where the third door is an access to the back seat, and is on the passenger side. Later production models have a fourth door, behind the drivers door.
A nice young gentleman walked us through the features on the truck, and I must say I was very impressed with the 'LT' model. The interior is very car-like and luxurious, with all sorts of amenities, including heated leather power seats for both front seat occupants. Pushbutton, automatic four wheel drive. Four wheel ABS. Stainless steel exhaust. 100,000 miles to first tune-up, etc.
The test drive is what did it though. It rides just about as nice as my Chrysler LHS! I could not believe it. The kicker is that the salesman indicated that the price was close to sticker minus $5000.
I thanked the salesman, and told him I might come back to buy it. In my heart, though, I was expecting to find what I wanted at the Ford dealership. Ken and I got on the road and stopped up to the Ford dealership. Two shiny F-150 real four door trucks, one white and one black were on the lot. So, I started checking it out, and I was truthfully disappointed. I spoke with another nice gentleman, and he walked us through the details on the Ford, but it just didn't seem to match up. I didn't even go to the trouble of test driving it.
I called Diane and we set up a time to meet at the Chevrolet dealership, so she could drive and also to get her approval. There were a couple of reasons against buying the truck in Salt Lake City. First, it's a sixteen hour drive home, and second, I would have to sell my truck outright. I haven't had a ton of luck selling anything around our small town yet, so that might be problematic. But, I figured that the $5000 would be worth it.
Diane and I met at the dealership in the evening, and she drove the truck, and also was impressed with it as I was. We went into the dealership to make the deal, and things did not go right for them. We worked around the numbers for awhile, and after a phone call to Diane's brother Greg (a car salesman) it became clear that it would be better for us to purchase closer to home. So, with sincere apologies to the salesman who had really been a nice help, we left without it.
Upon our return to Iowa, I started getting more familiar with the Silverado line. I didn't know what exact features the trucks might have, but I happened to find the GM BuyPower, web site where you can download a brochure, and do a 'virtual build' of any GM auto. Follow the 'Build your own' link at the bottom of their page. That was a fun time, but it took about two hours to print the brochure, decide on colors and options and run through the build process.
We settled on the Sunset Gold color, with medium oak leather, and boy is it beautiful. We racked up a thousand miles right away, but now it's mostly just sitting in the garage. Since Diane isn't driving to the big city for work, we should be able to keep some of the miles off.
We've also added a few improvements: A Leer model 100XL shell, chevy mud flaps, and a bug shield for the hood.
Side Note: The fourth door is really an expensive option. If you can still manage to find a three door, Chevrolet is offering a $1500 rebate, along with 3.9% financing. Wow. That fourth door may cost a total of around $3000 bucks. Unfortunately, we couldn't find a three door with our option choices, or I think I would have bought it.