Embargo this! First Silverado test drive
As we're sure you're well aware, automakers put press embargos on their latest and greatest, and if certain automotive news outlets break the street date, the fiery hand of Zeus bolts through the heavens and strikes the offending journalist dead.
But what if the vehicle in question is simultaneously on dealer lots and the date the embargo will be lifted is still a month away? If you're Autoweek's Bob Gritzinger, you mosey on down to your local GM dealer and take their newest truck offering for a spin. There's nothing wrong with that, right?
Hell no! But the article itself, humbly entitled, 'World Exclusive First Drive' (except for the guy that just bought one down the street) is much of the same information we've all read since the new Silverado and Sierra made their debut. Until a journo has a few good days with any vehicle, they aren't very well equipped to give it a thorough review and a quickie from a dealer just isn't gonna cut it.
Still, we salute Mr. Gritzinger's fortitude and wish him the best of luck when dealing with GM's PR team in the future.
[Source: Autoweek]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
DJ 10:50AM (11/04/2006)
The frontend reminds me of the previous generation Range Rover, only heavier.
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mr 11:07AM (11/04/2006)
Why would GM continue to enforce a press embargo on a product that's already been released? It makes one wonder about their faith in the product if they're declining the cheap publicity.
http://ecofootprint.blogspot.com/
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Y ki ki 11:22AM (11/04/2006)
WOW 20,000 Lbs of towing capacity, 10,000 tourc, 500 HP. Wow now I can do everything I ever wanted. I can go shopping to a supermarket, I never could have done that in a small sedan. I can go to IKEA all the time now and buy as much furniture as I want and bring it all home all at once. Yeahhhhh STEPHAN chair and IVAR chair here I come, yeahhh.
Please fools, who are you kidding. These days pickups trucks are like toys for grown men, they are sort of poor man's Ferrari, nothing but a show. Most just want to show off. Sure I have seen plenty who have large tool boxes in the back, who are obviously in construction or plumbing or electric, but most are not. And it seems the bigger the truck the less and less the driver looks like a construction guy and more and more like a corporate Joe. But why stop here, why not go bigger, http://www.internationaldelivers.com/site_layout/vehiclecenters/detail.asp?model=4200
“My trucks come from international truck and engine corp., yeahhhhh my balls are bigger, my balls are bigger. Nanu nanu nah nah, I like to watch THIS OLD HOUSE ON PBS, nana, haaaa I love DIY. Hahaha Prius owners are sissies.”
Most people do not buy trucks for USE, actual use, but most people in here brag in here, "Ohhh, I can haul an elephant", " Ohh my F-150 can haul a giraffe", "Ohhh my pick up diesel gets better MPG than Camry", "Ohhh I have bigger balls than any family sedan driver".
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Brian Richardson 11:41AM (11/04/2006)
Autoweek usually doesn't break embargoes, but has publicly announced that they will not be late to the party, ever!
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Ty 11:56AM (11/04/2006)
#3 As right as you may be, you cannot deny the fact that there is still a NEED for such vehicles that can tow "20,000" lbs and "10,000 tourc"? Though I still don't know what the latter is. So is a company that caters to the NEEDs of such individuals wrong for also selling these vehicles to consumers who just WANT one for bragging rights? Auto companies are in the business of making vehicles and making money off of those vehicles. Plain and simple. Selling vehicles = profit. Well, for most car companies anyway...
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Andy 1:52PM (11/04/2006)
I was watching Nightline and there was a segment on the show criticizing GM's patriotic ad campaign for the Silverado. I didn't like the ad and I thought it was a cheap "drape me in the flag" effort, but Nightline's piece on it was biased against it and the show's only voice was a passionate opponent of the commercials. Nothing "fair & balanced" there.
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Whydrive 1:41PM (11/04/2006)
People don't need to spend $100 on a pair of levis but they still do.
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far jr 2:51PM (11/04/2006)
Y ki ki, why do you concern yourself with what others choose to drive? Perhaps you have your own inferiority complex, or do not have the financial means to buy a Bugatti?
Many people do not NEED a car capable of over 100 mph but people buy them every day. People do not NEED cars capable of near G cornering but they are bought everyday. Many people do not NEED a minivan that can haul 8 when they have a family of four.
My question to you is do you gripe as much about the above "environmental waste" or do you strictly focus your hatred only on truck and SUV owners (particularly the domestic brands of course)?
By your analysis I assume you drive a moped because it is very environmentally concious and you don't have any NEED for a car with capabilities you would never use. Maybe you live in NYC where public transit is an option. Good for you!
Now put down that Tofu burger and grab a fish sandwich instead. Someone wants the soybeans for ethanol to run that new truck down to Ikea.
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Y kiki 3:32PM (11/04/2006)
8 what is next, you will accuse me of voting for howard dean and supporting gay marriage?
Dude these cars are huge, and keep USA dependant on oil, I drive a small sedan, yeah i polute, yeah i keep USA dependant on saudi oil. But one F-150 does what 3 of my cars would do.
Also they are a HUGE hazard to the public. Dude you ever been to a mall? When an SUV or a pickup is parked face front and needs to back out, and if from two sides are two other SUVs, the driver has zero visibility as to what is happening just to the left or right of him.
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chewy 3:24AM (11/05/2006)
Y kiki
I agree. There needs to be a gas guzzler tax on pickups and SUVs for that reason. Cars with the same bad fuel economy get hit with big gag guzzler taxes.
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fordman 6:36PM (11/04/2006)
Its 2007. Why are we still getting the 195hp 4.3 V6?
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Cyprien 7:02PM (11/04/2006)
y ki ki - shut off the tear spigot, dude. "They are a huge hazard to the public! They waste gas! The sky is falling, the sky is falling!"
'Most people do not buy trucks for USE, actual use, but most people in here brag in here, "Ohhh, I can haul an elephant"', - just wondering, who decides what ACTUAL USE for a pickup truck, anyway? You?
"Ohhh my pick up diesel gets better MPG than Camry", - Hence, they are less dependent on Saudi oil. Isn't that what passes for a point in your inarticulate, disjointed, time-wasting post?
"Ohhh I have bigger balls than any family sedan driver". - insert your own joke there. I guess someone who drove an F-150 kicked sand in your face at the beach one day.
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hmmm 7:50PM (11/04/2006)
ok what in autoweeks report has not been reported on already ??? the whole article read like a brochure or press kit about its stats, the only thing written about the truck drive itself was when it drove over some wet leafs, big fuc*ing deal.... ohh u so brave autoweek !
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laserwizard 10:01PM (11/04/2006)
The world's most chickenshit automaker, GM, introduces the blandest, dullest, least impressive pickup truck ever introduced.
And this wasn't even a test drive!
False advertising!
GM has a history of offering also ran pickup trucks and never risks anything when bringing them out. GM is perfectly content on pandering to its shrinking truck customer base and will offer another fraudulent hybrid version for marketing sake even though it isn't a hybrid.
The styling is as stale as the outgoing version and the GM version is even worse. GM spent billions to make their new one as unimpressive as the old version and in a year, Ford will have a brand new from the ground up F-150 to kick Chevrolet in what nuts they have left. GM has been playing this new truck two step game for decades and hasn't beaten Ford in decades in truck sales. 2007 will be no different and 2008 will be even worse for GM. Ford knows its customers and manages to increase its sales while GM delivers dull and duller to its dumb and dumbest customer.
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MikeW 1:52PM (11/05/2006)
Like GM could not make a 300 hp 4.5 liter V6 derived from the LS2
or use the larger bore in the 4.2 I6 for a 300+hp 4.4 I6
or a 400hp 5.3 V6 derived from the LS7
They have sold everyone on the fact you 'need' eight cylinders, and they would not do anything to break that myth.
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Andrew 4:26PM (11/05/2006)
chewy
I agree that having gas guzzler tax on low-mpg cars but not Pick-ups and SUV's is dumb.
But I disagree on what to do. My solution: drop the gas guzzler tax altogether - it collects very little revenue and is just about useless.
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Phydeaux 5:25PM (1/11/2007)
What a bunch of haters! Wow, I want my time back that I used to read this article plus comments.
If you care about importing foreign oil... push for the E85 which this truck runs on... about ~25% of our oil comes from the middle east... the gasoline content running E85 means the Silverado uses less GASOLINE when using E85 then your sedan.
Ford tops Chevy in trucks sells but not GM...since GM splits sales between GMC and Chevy.
Gas guzzler tax is a waste ... the simple cost of gas will affect changes in our automotive taste... not an artificial tax.
I have not idea what MikeW is trying to get across... but the 5.3 has cylinder deactivation to take it from 8 to 4... so it's already been done. A high HP V6 still sucks gas like a V8... so why strain using 6 cylinder?
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MikeW 12:21AM (11/06/2006)
No, the BSFC would be less. The crossplane crank V8 is the least efficient engine configuration.
'strain' wtf
What is the difference between 20 milliseconds and 13milliseconds to you?
Nothing, so why should it matter to you engine? You have oil, a pump, and bearings. That is the difference between 4500rpm and 3000 rpm.
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Jeff R. 1:39AM (11/07/2006)
laserwizard,
Yes, Ford's sales really are going up to the tune of the recent $5.8 billion loss, aren't they? You work for Ford, right?
Yes, Ford does listen to their customers. They count on people like you to buy an accept their crap they pass off as vehicles. In fact, possible and/or actual Ford customers like you have been in a step in the downfall of Ford.
By the way, GM's financial situation is improving, but you're in denial so you didn't know it.
Stop trying to sound smart, we all know you're dumber than s**t.
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MikeW 8:56PM (11/07/2006)
How about a 350hp turbo 3.5 Inline5. Perfect for altitude.
or a 250hp 2.8turbo I4 for the Colorado
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