Jalopnik: Suburban

1965 Chevrolet Suburban

Murilee Martin — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 09:20:00 EDT

Welcome to Down On The Street, where we admire old vehicles found parked on the streets of the Island That Rust Forgot: Alameda, California. The island has several old Suburbans still racking up the miles; we've seen this '63 GMC Carryall and today we'll be looking at an equally weathered '65 Chevy. This truck parks about a half-block from the '65 Thunderbird and just around the corner from the '87 Mercedes-Benz 560SL, with at least a dozen Alameda DOTS cars living within a couple blocks.

Sometimes you need to do a little Field Expedient Engineering to keep your doors shut, once you've turned over the odometer a few times. This truck has plenty of harmless surface rust, with every indication being that it's still about as solid as it was when LBJ was president (though the interior was a lot nicer back then).

Why did this truck's original buyer decide to go with The General's two-door rather than International Harvester's four-door, in spite of the Chevy costing nearly 20% more? Well, the Chevy could be had with the good ol' reliable 230 or 292 six, and the two-door just looks sportier. Still, with the passage of a decade or four, the IHC looks pretty good as well. Which would you have bought?

First 350 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ

This Is Our Country, This Is Our Truck...And It Will Be For Quite Some Time

Andrew Stoy — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 09:20:00 EDT

General Motors is planning to extend the current product cycle on its full-size trucks and SUVs, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. New designs had been expected to come in time for the 2012 model year. However GM spokesperson Tom Wilkinson told the Journal that GM was "looking at the whole product portfolio" in an effort to bring more fuel-efficient vehicles to the U.S. market. While the change in product planning should free up much-needed R&D funds, there's little doubt the lukewarm launch of the latest Toyota Tundra and the gas prices-induced slow-motion 2009 Dodge Ram and 2009 Ford F-150 launch train-wrecks influenced top brass at the Ren Cen.

The report also mentioned cancellation of a future Hummer product and the potential shuttering of a brand, though no concrete evidence has emerged to clarify whether the Hummer product cancellation and brand closure were one in the same (Hummer) or whether Hummer might be allowed to die on the vine while another weak brand, such as Buick, was closed outright or moved off-shore. [Automotive News (Sub. Req.)]

Do Not Drive A Suburban Near Utah's Dugway Proving Ground

Ben Wojdyla — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:20:00 EDT

Apparently a couple of GI's were out minding their own business, driving a shiny maroon Chevrolet Suburban about five klicks out from the live fire range at Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah. Unfortunately at 10,000 feet, it's a bit more difficult to discern distance-from-target, and an F-16 pilot in the area thought the Suburban sure looked like fair game, opening up with 70 20mm rounds and totally decimated the SUV all about the 'merican revolution. Fortunately, the only injuries sustained by the occupants were from the flying glass and jumping out of the truck as it was being lit up. Unknown was whether live-fire is covered under the General's new 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. [StrategyPage]

The Japanese Convert JDM Boxes Into American Iron

Mark Arnold — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Apparently, the custom van fad of the '70s never died in Japan. But what if you want all the style of a vintage American full-size, but you need the efficiency and small size of a Japanese econobox? Well, do what these guys did, and convert the front end to look just like a Dodge or Chevy Van. Auto-Otaku found these custom creations at the Japanese Mooneyes Street Car Nationals, a gathering of all kinds of American iron in the land of the rising sun. Besides the vans, there were also a couple JDM rides transformed into old Chevy Suburbans, as seen above. [via Auto-Otaku]

El Suburbamino Conquers New Jersey, World Next

Murilee Martin — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 15:45:00 EDT

You know what's wrong with the Chevy Suburban? Aside from the fact that it hasn't resembled a real Suburban for decades, that it? Yep, the lack of a pickup bed! Fortunately, someone has finally grafted a pickup bed on an '87 Suburban, dropped a Cummins diesel under the hood, and painted the whole thing in eyeball-charring purple... and you now have the opportunity to buy it! Is it just us, or does that driveshaft look awfully vulnerable? Thanks to Carless for the tip. [eBay Motors]

GMC Suburban with 49 Inch Tires Will Stop At Nothing

Ben Wojdyla — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 08:45:00 EST

Most guys into off roading will equip their rig with anything from a set of 33" tires for light duty rock crawling to 44" tires for deep mud bogging. Of course everyone has their preferences and guys usually make tire size decisions based on ego as much as utility. Kristjan Kristjansson of Iceland either has a big purpose, or an enormous ego because he's gone ahead and fitted his GMC Suburban with 49" flotation tires. They make sense for playing in Iceland's frozen wonderlands, but we have to wonder how the tire hum has affected the cabin ambiance.

Dana 60's front and rear, air lockers, hydraulic steering dampers, air suspension, and an Atlas transfer case
that goes from 2.7:1 all the way down to 20.68:1. In case you weren't counting, that's enough reduction to allow the 6.6L Duramax to drag Iceland south if he could find a good towing point. While Kristjan's dually fendered 'Burb is the baddest in the land, we're pretty interested in the T-Rex-like 6x6 Dodge Ram in one of the pics.

Wheels Stolen From Meals-On-Wheels Suburban, You Can Help

Matt Hardigree — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 16:00:00 EST

Though most commit crime out of need, not sport, it's hard to feel anything but angry at those who stole the wheels from a Meals-On-Wheels vehicle in Clark County, Washington. Seriously. Without the wheels all they have is, you know... hot meals getting cold. The thieves weren't even kind enough to put the truck on blocks, meaning that there is possible damage to the undercarriage (there's never an alligator around when you need one). If you're in the Portland/Clark County area you can help by volunteering to deliver the food yourself. It's an excuse to take a long drive and help people. Details below the jump.

Our Weekend Program needs Meals-On-Wheels drivers! Pickup meals between 10 and 11:30 a.m. Saturday or Sunday at the Belmont Center, 4610 SE Belmont. Deliveries are made in Multnomah County only and take about 90 minutes. No need to return to the center after delivering! For more information, phone Bruce at 503.736.6325 ext. 86223 [The Columbian]

1963 GMC Suburban Carryall

Murilee Martin — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 09:00:00 EDT

I'm a little puzzled about where the "Carryall" name figured into the branding of the '63 Suburban (if this is, in fact, a '63; GMC experts, please weigh in if I'm off by a year or two), but there's no doubt in my mind that this is what an SUV should be. Yes, Detroit took a serious wrong turn when they convinced Americans that passenger vehicles built on truck chassis needed leather upholstery and TV sets, killing the appeal of both the station wagon and the plastic-rococo luxury barge in the process.

See, back in the day before Comintern agents implanted mind-control devices in the brains of Detroit execs, you got something like this thing if you wanted a truck that would haul passengers over bouncy dirt roads on the way to the ice-fishing shack. If you wanted to haul a lot of passengers in air-conditioned luxury, you got a great big station wagon with Simu-Leather™ and NearlyWood™ interior. And if you wanted to flaunt your louie, why, you bought a goddamn Cadillac!

OK, tirade over. Check out this amazingly 3-dimensional V6 emblem- it must stick out three inches! Lots of folks get the I6-versus-V6 thing a bit mixed up, so GM wanted to make sure everyone got it right with these trucks. If this one still has the stock engine, it's a 305 (members of this V6 family got as big as 478 cubes... and let's not forget the V12 version).

Now that's a shift lever! Forget about your multiple climate zones- all you need is a trucker-style fan on the dash.

And what's this business these days with giving the back-seat passengers their own doors? They can climb over the camping equipment if they want to sit in the back, like in this truck!

First 100 DOTS Cars

Gwen "Chevrolet" Stefani, We Can Totally Out-Product Place Your Skinny Ass

Ray Wert — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 11:01:00 EST

I don't know if anyone else has seen the new ~~Chevrolet commercial~~ Gwen Stefani music video for ~~the new Chevy Tahoe~~ her new song, "The Sweet Escape." Although the Chevy (and Buick!) ~~reach-around~~ paid product placement in the music video is pretty blatant, we think maybe they could have gone even further. As an example, we here at Jalopnik have put together the following video we've made highlighting what could have happened on the way to the GM Style event this past Saturday night below the jump. Let's look at it as a "how to" for celebs in how to give a real product placement handjob. And hey, we didn't even get paid for it — consider it a public service to publicity-seeking paparazzi-fodder everywhere. – Ray Wert

Gwen Stefani - The Sweet Escape ~Feat Akon~ [YouTube]

Related:
All of our 2007 Detroit Auto Show coverage [internal]

Riding the Post-Apocalypse in Style, Greenness: Ai Design's Biodiesel Chevy Suburban Show Truck

Mike Spinelli — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 09:27:16 EST

The third in a trifecta of showcase cars from NY local boys, Ai Design, is a Chevy Suburban that would be a perfect complement to the Official Jalopnik Unibomber Shack(TM). Ai Founder Matt Figliola calls it a "post-apocalyptic road rider." The tricky truck started life as a 2002 Suburban gas V8 (Chevy didn't offer Duramax diesels that year). It was fitted for oil burning by a Colorado outfit, Duramax Suburban, with the engine modified to sustain biofuel's more corrosive properties (we did not know this was a problem). Then Ai installed a mess of performance tweaks, including transmission, turbochargers, exhaust system, fuel injection, and ECU mods. Next stage, Brembo brakes and 12" lift kit, followed by an entirely custom interior with carbon-fiber trim and switches for everything from the climate control to the engine management system relocated to a hand-fabricated console. Finally, it's Alpine F-1 audio, satellite antenna and enough AV tech to keep the Jalopniks on the road, and out of the shack, permanently. Or until Lord Humungus gets all the biofuel. – Mike Spinelli

[via World Car Fans]

CNET Shows Off How To Upgrade A Prius For 100 mpg

David Thomas — Tue, 25 Apr 2006 18:19:49 EDT

Yes, the story isn't like brain science here. Add a few more lithium batteries to a Prius and the mpg rating goes up. What is interesting is this is basically now a plug in hybrid that still uses gas. The original plug-in electric cars were generally derided because of their inflexible use. The big question is whether you could still take your plug-in Prius cross country without plugging in and still get your regular mileage. Commuting daily you get a definite advantage but you'd be held hostage. Oh one company has also turned a Chevy Suburban into a plugged in hybrid. Is this the future? Going back to the 1980s and plugging the car in?

Coming soon: Cars that get 100 miles per gallon [CNET]

Related:
New Lexus Flagship Hybrid Unveiled [internal]

Jay Leno Goin' For Sweaty Mansex In a Suburban

Davey G. Johnson — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 23:50:51 EST

The trek up from Pedro to the Convention Center took a tad longer than we expected this morning, and missed arriving in time to catch Jay Leno's arrival onstage in a Z06 Daytona pace car, which he'll pilot during the next running of the 500. The paint job was stupid. Mark LaNeve played straight man to Leno's goofball, and after saying that he thought bi-fuel vehicles would go over well in California because he has a lot of friends that're bi, he went for the biggie in the run-up to the launch of the new-and-ugly Suburban and Yukon XL.

"So, what do you have if I want to take seven or eight guys up to Brokeback Mountain? They're big guys." We personally thought this was totally, completely rad. It obviously took LaNeve by surprise, which we liked. Jay Leno! Onstage in front of the auto industry, insinuating episodes of flannel-ripping man-on-man-on-man-on-man-on-man action would occur if LaNeve hooked him up with a Suburban! LaNeve looked like the heel he seems to be to us. If only we'd had the presence of mind to walk up to him and said, "Hey Marky. Dave from Jalopnik here. Wanna go try out the back of that Hummer over there?" Then again, even if we were gay, we wouldn't touch LaNeve with a forty-foot driveshaft.

Carlist's got a summary of the whole presentation if you're so inclined.

Jay Leno Makes Mark LaNeve Squirm [Carlist]

GM Debuts Largest GMC, Chevrolet SUVs in Los Angeles

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 11:07:42 EST

GM picked the Los Angeles show today to launch its redesigned GMC Yukon XL and Chevrolet Suburban SUVs — the latest of its GMT-900 full-sized trucks for 2007 to break cover. If the press releases give any indication, the Yukon is the slick, powerful one and the Suburban is its safer than milk counterpart, with a "360-degree perimeter safety system" that includes roof-mounted head curtain side air bags with rollover protection, front-seat safety belt pretensioners and traction control. We love marketing. Click through for more pics.

Press release excerpts:

Yukon XL
Yukon XL and Yukon XL Denali become available in the second quarter of 2006. The XL models have exterior dimensions similar to the regular models, but are about 14 inches (355.6 mm) longer in wheelbase and 20 inches (508 mm) longer in overall length. Yukon XL is available in SLE (cloth trim) and SLT trim (leather appointments), as well as 2WD and 4WD configurations and a heavy-duty model. A third-row seat is standard. A 5.3L V-8 with Active Fuel Management displacement on demand fuel-saving technology is standard. Later in the model year, a new 6.0L all-aluminum V-8 with Active Fuel Management and variable valve timing (VVT) becomes available; a 6.0L V-8 with VVT is offered in heavy-duty models.

Suburban
The 2007 Suburban is available in the second quarter of 2006. It is offered in LS, LT and LTZ models, with 2WD and 4WD (a Z71 off-road package will be offered later in the model year), as well as 1500 and heavy-duty 2500 series. At the start of production, Suburban 1500 models will come with an efficient 5.3L V-8 with Active Fuel Management displacement on demand fuel-saving technology. Later, a new, all-aluminum 6.0L V-8 with Active Fuel Management displacement on demand and variable valve timing (VVT) will be available. A 6.0L engine with VVT and an iron cylinder block is offered on 2500 models.

More at American Car Fans

Related:
Spy Photos: 2007 Chevrolet Suburban [internal]

Spy Photos: 2007 Chevrolet Suburban

Mike Spinelli — Mon, 14 Nov 2005 08:15:35 EST

To awkwardly paraphrase the retail pizza industry, you've seen all the rest, now see the biggest. The Car Connection has a bunch of shots featuring the newest release among GM's GMT-900 full-sized trucks for 2007, the Chevrolet Suburban, clad in a typical leather bustier and chaps. It pretty much looks like you'd expect it to, having already seen its Tahoe sibling, so we won't mind if you don't even bother to click through. But go ahead, we know you can't resist.

Spy Shots: 07 Chevrolet Suburban [The Car Connection]

Related:
GM Reveals New Chevrolet Tahoe [internal]