 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT 4WD Crew Cab. Click image to enlarge |
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2008 Chevrolet Silverado
Ottawa, Ontario – It’s rare I get a pickup truck to test, and even more so that I get one the same week I had planned to visit the local garden centre. Then I told my dad I had a truck, and what do you know: he needed a bunch of garden stuff, too.
A few hours later, we had about 600 pounds (roughly 275 kg) of soil, mushroom compost and grass seed in the back of the Silverado.
Naturally, my neighbours know what I’m driving at any given time; one of them called me up and asked if I could help him pick up four oil drums that wouldn’t fit in his van.
  2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT 4WD Crew Cab. Click image to enlarge |
It’s not often I get excited about hauling around dirt. The last time I drove a pickup was about a year ago. Coincidentally, that one was a General Motors product too: it was a GMC Sierra Crew Cab kitted out very similarly to this year’s Silverado.
My tester this time was a Silverado 1500 4WD LT Crew Cab with a base price of $37,935. To that, GM added a $6,305 list of extras too lengthy to get into here (a full list can be found at the end of this article). The highlights: the $440 Z71 off-road package, a $1,270 safety package and for $1,335, a 5.3-litre litre V8 that is both more powerful and more efficient than the 4.8-litre V8 that is standard in Crew Cab Silverados.
The as-tested price came to $45,640, including $100 in A/C tax and $1,300 freight.
The significant updates the Silverado (and Sierra) received for 2007 carry over here, including a lovely interior for what is essentially a work vehicle. The nicely-assembled dash is functional and user-friendly, with all the controls falling easily to hand. The wide centre console houses a large storage bin and three cupholders; fold it out of the way to create a three-person front bench seat. The outboard seats are wide and comfortable, but the centre seat is clearly meant for occasional use only.
  2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT 4WD Crew Cab. Click image to enlarge |
The rear seat fits three as well, with lots of leg- and headroom. The seat cushions can be folded up and out of the way for carrying larger items in the cab and out of the weather.
My only real complaint about the Silverado’s interior is the location of the interior door release handle. Its placement isn’t intuitive, and reaching between the seat cushion and armrest to get at it is awkward.
Despite its size, the Silverado is easy to drive, so long as you avoid tight parking lots and crowded downtown streets. GM’s backup sensor is a useful tool here, allowing you to get within inches of an obstacle behind the truck. Use the three lights in the right-hand C-pillar – visible when you look over your right shoulder to back up – to get an idea of how much space you have. When the red light comes on, it’s time to stop.
Easy to drive, yes, but there’s no mistaking this for a car on the road. The ride is firm, thanks to the heavy duty suspension, but a 2,010 lb (912 kg) payload will do that. Like any truck, the Silverado actually rides better when loaded; my 600 pound load of dirt made a noticeable difference in ride comfort.
  2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT 4WD Crew Cab. Click image to enlarge |
The 5.3-litre engine’s 315 horsepower and 338 ft-lbs of torque is plenty of poke, but the Silverado Crew Cab 4×4’s 5,290 pound (2,400 kg) curb weight means acceleration is adequate rather than speedy. The GM 4L60 four-speed automatic transmission works fine, but a couple more gears would make for a better towing and hauling experience. For the Silverado Crew Cab, General Motors only lists towing capacities with the larger 6.0-litre engine; with the towing package, that truck can haul 10,500 lbs (4,763 kg), while an extended cab truck with the 5.3-litre motor can tow up to 8,300 lbs (3,765 kg).
The Crew Cab with the five-foot-eight inch box is a good configuration for a truck owner who needs more than two or three seats, but the short box has its limitations. Those four oil drums I moved fit with the tailgate closed, but with only a few inches to spare. This truck wouldn’t be much good if you wanted to help someone move the contents of their house.
I averaged 16.6 L/100 km according to the on-board computer, compared to Transport Canada’s EnerGuide number of 15.1 L/100 km (city). That doesn’t sound impressive, perhaps, but many large crossovers don’t tend to do much better; the Silverado’s performance at the pumps is respectable considering what this truck is built to do. Last year’s Sierra averaged 17.5 L/100 km, but that one was driven in colder weather, and saw more stop and go action than this Silverado did.
The Silverado isn’t the kind of vehicle you’d want to drive every day unless your work requires a truck. It does prove, however, that a capable truck like this can be comfortable and pleasant to live with when you need it for what it was built for.
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Pricing: 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT 4WD Crew Cab
Base price: $37,935
Specifications
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