Thoughts on the Chevy Avalanche

[mountainsports2002]

I am curious about thoughts on the Avalanche. I currently drive a bone stock GMC Sierra 1500 single cab with a 6.5 foot bed. It has been dead reliable and I love the small turning radius. The single cab can be difficult at times due to space restrictions and would like a better way to secure gear when in the woods. I have found a couple of low mileage avalanches one with a 5.3 and one with a 8.1. My intended uses are forest roads and some light off road to get to camping spots. Can you sleep in the avalanche?I have also considered suburbans, and like the sequoia and tundra first generations but have great trepidation about frame rust. I intend to keep my current truck. Any thoughts or opinions would be appreciated.

 

[pigsammy]

My wife and i really enjoy my Yukons. One is the short body and the other is an XL. I removed the rear sets in the shorter one and made a 6" high platform with storage under it and a bed on top. We have spent up to two weeks in it at the time. Its great to keep gear accessible but protected. The short wheelbase, stock, with 285/75/16 tires is surprisingly capable and comfortable.

 

[mountainsports2002]

Thanks for the input, have been looking at suburbans and Tahoe’s also.

 

[rayra]

1st page of the 'vortec' link in my sig has a roster of a lot of the Sub / Tahoe / Avalanche owners here, links to their build topic. one member in particular built a monster of an off road vehicle out of his Avalanche and has done a lot of interesting 'overlanding' with it. @Stryder106

eta here's the link to the roster, hasn't been updated in a while, lot of new folks since.

Expedition Portal

Largest and Oldest Overland Forum

www.expeditionportal.com

 

[XJLI]

If you want to sleep in it, and you're keeping your pickup go with a SUV. You can sleep in a Tahoe no problem. Burb might feel a bit big for just one or two people.

 

[mountainsports2002]

1st page of the 'vortec' link in my sig has a roster of a lot of the Sub / Tahoe / Avalanche owners here, links to their build topic. one member in particular built a monster of an off road vehicle out of his Avalanche and has done a lot of interesting 'overlanding' with it. @Stryder106

eta here's the link to the roster, hasn't been updated in a while, lot of new folks since.

Expedition Portal

Largest and Oldest Overland Forum

www.expeditionportal.com

Thanks for the input

 

[Martinjmpr]

You can sleep in an Avalanche if you drop the mid gate. Presumably you would be sleeping with your head in the cab area and your feet in the cargo area but I don't see why it wouldn't work. I don't know if the mid-gate or bed-cover panels are prone to leaking or not, but there are a few Avalanche owners here who could likely chime in.

Suburban and Avalanche are on the same frame so they share all the same mechanical parts. Suspension on the Avalanche is the same as the Suburban of the same vintage.

The 8.1 will be a 2500 Avalanche which was only made through 2006. As with the 1500 model it shares its chassis with the equivalent Suburban.

IMO the biggest issues you are going to have is the fact that there are probably a dozen Suburbans for every Avalanche still out there. Given that they are mechanically identical, do you NEED the open bed of the Avalanche? Because a Suburban of the same vintage is likely to be less expensive and easier to find.

I love the Avalanche design and think its an ingenious solution to the problem of hauling cargo and hauling people and having a vehicle that is still reasonably sized.

Unfortunately, GM in their wisdom concluded that most Avalanche users never took advantage of the "disappearing midgate" feature and determined that most Avalanche users were simply using them the way you would a crew cab pickup. Given that pickups are much cheaper to make, they dropped the Avalanche after 2013 because they figured that Avalanche buyers would buy a cheaper Silverado crew cab instead.

 

[Todd n Natalie]

From what I recall when the Midgate is opened, the back seats don’t fold flat. But, it’s been 10 years since I’ve been in one.

 

[Martinjmpr]

They do fold flat, just like the Suburban. 8' long and 4' wide.

 

[mountainsports2002]

Thanks for the information, still researching, and looking at my options. My truck is in good shape and I am fortunate not to be in a hurry.

 

[Kaisen]

I own both a Suburban 2500 and an Avalanche 2500. Both are 8.1L/4L85e. Unless you have a specific need for the Avalanche configuration, I'm not sure how it would be "better" than the Suburban.... they're simply a different body behind the rear doors, and that's it. Same exact everything otherwise.

The Avy has the ability to keep dirty smelly cargo physically separated from the passengers. They stay dry and tight.

 

[dur66@msn.com]

I have a 2002 Avalanche 2500 that I want to use for overlanding. I've read Chris Cordes article. Has anyone else out there done this? I think the only disadvantage would be fuel mileage. The parts on the 2500 are heavy duty, plenty of room for sleeping and carrying equipment.

Anyone?

 

[vintageracer]

Avoid any Avalanche or Suburban with the cylinder deactivation FI/Software package particularly in the 5.3 engine.

LOT'S of problems!

 

[Martinjmpr]

Avoid any Avalanche or Suburban with the cylinder deactivation FI/Software package particularly in the 5.3 engine.

LOT'S of problems!

AFM (Active Fuel Management) was introduced with the GMT-900 models in 2007. The first couple of years were the worst ones, I think by about 2009 they had most of the bugs worked out. 2009 would also have been the year that the Avalanche got the 6 speed transmission. GMT-900 Avalanches were all 1500 models, the 2500 was dropped with the end of the older GMT-800 platform vehicles.

If you're considering an Avy don't overlook that Cadillac Escalade EXT, which is a Caddy badged Avalanche with a Yukon Denali drivetrain. That means instead of the 5.3/4L60 and 2 speed transfer case, you'd get a 6.0 or 6.2 (on the later models), a beefier transmission and a single-speed full time 4wd transfer case. No low range but a noticeable power boost. Also I believe the 6.0/6.2 did not have the AFM that the 5.3 did on the GMT-900 trucks.

 

[Todd n Natalie]

I own both a Suburban 2500 and an Avalanche 2500. Both are 8.1L/4L85e. Unless you have a specific need for the Avalanche configuration, I'm not sure how it would be "better" than the Suburban.... they're simply a different body behind the rear doors, and that's it. Same exact everything otherwise.

The Avy has the ability to keep dirty smelly cargo physically separated from the passengers. They stay dry and tight.

Avoid any Avalanche or Suburban with the cylinder deactivation FI/Software package particularly in the 5.3 engine.

LOT'S of problems!

AFM (Active Fuel Management) was introduced with the GMT-900 models in 2007. The first couple of years were the worst ones, I think by about 2009 they had most of the bugs worked out. 2009 would also have been the year that the Avalanche got the 6 speed transmission. GMT-900 Avalanches were all 1500 models, the 2500 was dropped with the end of the older GMT-800 platform vehicles.

If you're considering an Avy don't overlook that Cadillac Escalade EXT, which is a Caddy badged Avalanche with a Yukon Denali drivetrain. That means instead of the 5.3/4L60 and 2 speed transfer case, you'd get a 6.0 or 6.2 (on the later models), a beefier transmission and a single-speed full time 4wd transfer case. No low range but a noticeable power boost. Also I believe the 6.0/6.2 did not have the AFM that the 5.3 did on the GMT-900 trucks.

Sounds like they alrady have a 2500 Avy with the 8.1L. So, I don't believe they came with AFM. I had a 2009 Suburban 5.3L with AFM. Never had an issue in 100,000 miles? ?‍♂️