2000 CHEVY SUBURBAN HITS THE ROAD WITH MORE COMFORT AND CAPABILITY

New York — Chevrolet unveiled the newest iteration of the most enduring brand in automotive history — the 2000 Suburban — at this year’s New York Auto Show.

The Suburban shown in New York was a slightly disguised version of the actual 2000 production model scheduled to begin appearing in dealerships by the end of 1999. Suburban’s design builds on the look established by Silverado the all-new full-size pickup — Chevy’s distinctive truck heritage blended with a fresh, contemporary appearance.

"Suburban is one of America’s favorite brands," said GM President Rick Wagoner. "The mere mention of Suburban conjures up many fond memories for families – including my own… and we’ve been making memories for more than six decades with this unmatched vehicle."

The New Suburban… More Comfortable

"Get the structure right, and you’ll create a more comfortable, stable, vibration-free environment, " said Chief Engineer Ken Sohocki. "For the Suburban, this was accomplished by increasing the number of welds by 25 percent, optimizing weld location and doubling the stiffness of major body sections and joints."

Suburban’s frame is fully boxed for added structural stiffness to help reduce vibration, squeaks and rattles. Hydroforming — used in strategic areas such as the front/rear rails and engine crossmember — adds strength and improves dimensional control by eliminating hundreds of inches of weld.

In addition to improved structure, the Suburban development team increased headroom and hiproom in all three rows of seating.

Ease of entry is better through a lower step-in height and wider door openings. Second row seats were moved back, adding legroom and making them easier to access. Third seat access was improved by increasing the clearance behind the sliding second-row seat.

In the rear, customers can choose between a liftgate or rear cargo doors depending on their specific needs — a GM exclusive.

Sohocki said interior room was maximized by more efficient packaging of components such as heating/air conditioning ducts, and by moving the spare tire from inside the cargo bay to underneath the vehicle. Suburban’s exterior dimensions remain roughly the same as the previous model.

Suburban offers generous cargo room without removing the rear seat through a new "fold and stow" feature. If seat removal is preferred, engineers made it easier by incorporating the safety belts into the seat assembly and providing wheels and a carrying handle.

Suburban can still carry a 4’ x 8’ sheet of plywood on the load floor between wheelhouses with the rear doors closed — a long-running Suburban trait.

In addition, Suburban has many areas for customers to store their "stuff" — including a cargo net, center console, rear seat trays and seat back storage pockets.

Seating comfort was improved through wider, redesigned seats, improved seatback angles, longer seat travel and added safety belt length to fit each customer’s specific size. The full-function up-level seat includes power adjustments, memory, power lumbar and heat.

Other interior features include:

• An air conditioning system, which provides quicker cool downs and more optimal continuous cabin temperature than competitive systems. An available electronic dual-zone climate control allows passengers to maintain two different temperature levels in the same cabin.

• A sunroof for the first time in its history.

• Up-level audio systems which will rival many home entertainment systems, offering a sealed subwoofer, a six-channel amplifier with 126 watts of power and nine speakers. "You can even opt for rear audio controls and headphones so you don’t subject your kids to your music," Sohocki said.

• A driver message center that alerts drivers to potential problems before damage occurs.

Even with its new more spacious interior, Suburban is actually more maneuverable than its predecessor due to its smaller turning diameter. Overall ride and handling have also been improved.

"Suburban has new suspension features that sound like they belong on a high-end sports sedan," said Sohocki.

Suburban has an independent front suspension on both 2- and 4-wheel-drive models. Suburban’s front torsion bar suspension provides optimum traction, even over bumpy roads. A new 5-link rear suspension uses coil springs instead of leaf springs for a smoother ride.

For enhanced vehicle control, Suburban offers an advanced systems on both 2- and 4- wheel-drive models. A traction-assist system available on two-wheel drive models reacts to low-traction conditions faster than the driver could. On 4-wheel-drive models, available Autotrac active transfer case automatically transfers torque to the front wheels when it’s needed.

Variable effort steering is standard on 4-wheel-drive models providing easier steering effort at slow speeds or during parking lot maneuvers, and a better feel of the road at highway speeds.

The New Suburban… More Capable

The 2000 Suburbans will feature Chevy’s new lineup of small-block Vortec V8 engines. These engines build on 44 years of Chevy small block popularity for their inherent durability and power.

The new Vortec V8s feature more power, an average four-percent improvement in fuel efficiency, increased durability and reduced tailpipe emissions, compared with the engines they replace. The 1500 Series Suburban will come standard with the 5300 V8.

Teamed with the new engines is a more durable and "smarter" four-speed electronically-controlled automatic transmission. New features include a larger sump, which increases the amount of fluid, reducing heat and improving durability.

Trailer towing is a way of life for many Suburban drivers. Long known for its "big truck" trailering capacity, the new Suburban features technological advances that enhance its performance, safety and durability for trailer towing applications. Significant trailer towing enhancements include:

Suburban also incorporates features recently introduced on the new Chevy Silverado full-size pickup, such as pre-wired trailer connections, pre-wired brake controller, Tow/Haul mode on automatic transmissions that eliminates shift "busy-ness" on hilly terrain, and dynamic rear proportioning that helps maximize Suburban’s rear brakes while trailering.

"For customers with boats, campers or horse trailers, Suburban keeps it simple. You just ‘plug and play,’" said Sohocki.

The New Suburban… More Safety and Security

Suburban has been quite literally designed to worldwide safety standards. As a result, it includes a comprehensive list of safety and security features such as:

Suburban has also been designed with the intent of making it safer to other vehicles on the road through shorter stopping distances (compared with its predecessor); standard automatic headlamps/daytime running lamps, which make Suburban more visible to other drivers; and an LED center high-mounted stop lamp which lights faster than conventional incandescent bulbs, alerting other drivers more quickly.

In addition, Suburban is designed so that structural components like the bumper system and frame cross members fall within the passenger car bumper zone.