Chevrolet Silverado

For the Chevrolet C/K series Silverado, see Chevrolet C/K.

The Chevrolet Silverado (along with its GMC counterpart, the GMC Sierra), is the latest line of full-size pickup trucks from General Motors.

As of 2006, the Silverado pickup is the 2nd largest volume vehicle in the United States, behind the Ford F-Series pickup truck. Combined with platform-mate GMC Sierra, the platform usually outsells the Ford F-Series, which is actually made of two different platforms for standard and heavy duty models, not counting SUV derivatives such as Suburban, Tahoe, Escalade, or Yukon. For the first half of 2007, 310,896 Silverados were sold in the U.S., compared with 355,438 Ford F-Series. With 99,293 GMC Sierras also sold in the same period.

History

Although General Motors introduced its first pickup truck in 1930, the term "Silverado" was a designation only used to detail the higher-level trim for the Chevrolet C/K pickup trucks from 1975 through 1999. GMC used a few variations of the "Sierra" name (Sierra, High Sierra, Sierra Grande, Sierra Classic) to distinguish the different trim levels through 1987, though the "C/K" nomenclature was continued through 1999. "C" (or "R" for 1987) trucks had rear-wheel drive while "K" (or "V" in 1987) models had four-wheel drive. Both Chevrolet and GMC dropped the "C" and "K" designations in 1999.

The Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks have been essentially the same for their entire history. The Silverado today is generally advertised as the "lower" version, while the Sierra has more luxury options. There are some trim and option variations as well. Early models included variations in the engine and equipment, but the present differences are slight. The 1999 redesign included different grilles and interior trim, and certain features (e.g. Quadrasteer) were included at different times on the two trucks.

GMT800

The GMT800 Silverado/Sierra 1500 (light pickup trucks) were released in 1998 as 1999 models. The "classic" light-duty GMT400 C/K trucks were continued in production for that first year alongside the new models, and the Heavy-Duty GMT400 pickups (alongside the GMT400 SUVs) were continued through 2000, with the new GMT800 Silverado/Sierra HD (Heavy Duty) introduced in 2001.