Chevrolet Silverado 1500 SS Review

After Ford and Dodge decided to go mental and throw insanely powerful engines into their half-ton trucks, GM felt compelled to follow suit with the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 SS. While certainly more powerful than the regular Silverado 1500, the SS was a prime example of the phrase "all show and no go." Well, there was a little go. Under the hood was the Silverado's most powerful engine at the time, a 6.0-liter V8 producing 345 horsepower and 380 pound-feet of torque.

This was enough to give the pickup truck a 0-60-mph time of 6.3 seconds. Though respectable, it was well off the pace set by the Lightning and Ram SRT-10. Needless to say, we weren't terribly impressed with the Chevrolet Silverado SS. It was too expensive, fell short of its performance truck competition and wasn't that much of an upgrade over regular Silverados.

The extended-cab Chevrolet Silverado 1500 SS was produced from 2004-'06. (For 2007, it was sold as the "Silverado 1500 SS Classic.") The only major changes in its lifetime included a switch to rear-wheel drive and rear drum brakes for 2006, as well as previously standard equipment being switched to options. Aside from the engine, the Silverado SS differentiated itself from the regular with 20-inch wheels, standard all-wheel drive (for 2004 and '05), a stiffened suspension, a limited-slip differential and SS-specific front and rear bumpers. The interior, besides SS badges, was little different from that of the Silverado LS trim.