The Silverado Classic is available in three different cab styles (regular, extended, and crew cab), and three different bed lengths (5'8", 6'6", and 8'). The regular cab is only available with standard and long boxes and the crew cab is only available in short and standard boxes, while the extended cab is available with all three beds.

Engines available on the Classic range include a 195-hp, 4.3-liter V6; a 285-hp 4.8-liter V8; and a 295-hp, 5.3-liter V8; along with a high-output 6.0-liter V8 on the SS model.

Silverado Classic models with the 5.3-liter V8 have FlexFuel capability and can accept either gasoline or any combination of ethanol up to 85 percent.

The performance-oriented Silverado SS Classic is offered only as a 2WD extended cab with short bed, and packs a 6.0-liter V8 making 345 hp and 380 lb-ft. That same engine is also available as part of the towing-oriented Vortec Max package, which includes a heavy-duty axle, automatic locking differential, and other heavy-duty towing accessories.

Payloads rate up to 2,052 pounds, for the regular cab and long box combination, while towing capacity is rated as high as 10,400 pounds with the extended cab, standard box, and the Vortec Max package.

There's also a version that comes specially equipped for off-roading. The Z71 Off-Road package, which is available on half-ton 4WD models in LT trim, brings high-capacity gas-charged shocks, jounce bumpers, stabilizer bars, skid plates, and wheel flares.

The Hybrid Classic uses the 295-hp, 5.3-liter V8, hooked up to a system that automatically stops and restarts the engine at stoplights, and uses an integrated starter/generator that starts the engine quickly and provides power to charge increased battery capacity. The Hybrid posts a city fuel economy improvement of about ten percent and serves the added function of being a mobile power source. Four 120-volt AC outlets are located under the back seat of the cab and in the pickup bed, and at 20 amps are robust enough for most power accessories, eliminating the need in some cases for a portable worksite generator.

The Classic is available in many different trims, from the stark, basic work truck to the mid-range LS and the high-end LT, which can range from well equipped to downright luxurious. The LS adds popular equipment like air conditioning, a CD sound system, and upgraded appearance details inside and out, while the top-range LT3 adds heated power leather seats with memory setting, dual-zone climate control with rear vents, steering-wheel-mounted controls, and a six-disc in-dash CD changer among the many extras. Anti-lock brakes are standard on all models.

Value

Quality Reputation

Towing And Hauling Ability

Fuel-saving Hybrid Model

Even after an all-new Chevrolet Silverado has been introduced for 2007, the former Silverado continues to be sold as the Silverado Classic. This older, respected design, like the new Silverado, comes in several different combinations of cab styles, bed lengths, and V6 and V8 engines, and also comes in two specialized variants that the new Silverado doesn't yet offer--a Hybrid and a high-performance SS.

Silverado Classic models differ very little from equivalent 2006 Silverado models, with the exception of a few minor feature changes, and the five-speed manual transmission is now only offered with the V6.

The Chevy Silverado Classic is now upstaged by its replacement, the new 2007 Silverado, but this line of pickups has done well in its market segment since its 1999 introduction. The Classic models are priced considerably lower than equivalent new Silverado models, with the base Work Truck starting as low as $15,840.

Chevrolet claims that the Silverado is the most dependable and longest lasting pickup truck model, and points to J.D. Power's Initial Quality Survey (IQS) as evidence. For 2006, the model topped the IQS's Large Pickup category.