I can find a truck pretty much like I want right now sitting on a lot minus the sunroof and the newer style camper mirros. But my question is how much better is the MPG going to be on the 06? Is it worth waiting for over an 05 and employee pricing? I heard they are droping the prices on 06s to down around the same price as employee pricing.. Anyone know?

They might drop the 06 price a little being the 07 will be a completly restyled truck but unless union goes away you won't see any big price changes. Thats my opinion.

Anyone else?

I can't imagine GM dropping the prices, its an average of a 3 percent increase in price each year. I have not heard of anything they are doing to the 06's for better mpg. I had the chance to buy an 04 last july and save money over waiting and buying an 05 and I did it, I dont regret it since nothing changed. 07 is when the changes happen

I'm waiting til 06 for a couple of reasons.

- Six speed Allison (should get better unloaded higway mileage)
- New color Greystone Metallic (looks better than anthing currently offered)
- By Jan we should have our first look at what the re-designed 07 will look like. I can decide at that time to pull the trigger on an 06 or wait it out til 07.

-The only downside to waiting is the uncertainty of pricing compared to the current GMS pricing.

I work for Bosch braking, and I can tell you that 1500 trucks are changing in 07, but this time they change the suv in 07 and the pickups don't get changed untill 08. That is what GM is telling us. As far a I can tell the 2500 and 3500 will probably change too, but usually GM waits a year or 2 before the HD's get the changed body style.

Pass on the sunroof, I have one and I am not impressed in light I had to order my turck and wait 6 weeks. The sunroof does not have a solid shade it only has a "sun shade" like the type of stuff you can see in home and garden shops. So when the sun is beating down you can't block it. With the sun roof open there is way too much wind noise at freeway speeds. And the sun roof opens out to the top of the cab looks like a cheap add on. I am not impressed with it at all. I saw picts here of an aftermarket roof that was very sweat. Just my 1/2 censts worth

Probably you will get a little price advantage buying a 05 since dealers are trying to clear the lots before 06's start rolling in. Deep discounting on 06's will happen sometime after initial new model year surge ends, the timing is questionable and will depend on how well the new ones are accepted.. Six speed tranny will be new item and untested by the general public. Might go for the 05 and then target 08 or 09 for trade time.

Pass on the sunroof, I have one and I am not impressed in light I had to order my turck and wait 6 weeks. The sunroof does not have a solid shade it only has a "sun shade" like the type of stuff you can see in home and garden shops. So when the sun is beating down you can't block it. With the sun roof open there is way too much wind noise at freeway speeds. And the sun roof opens out to the top of the cab looks like a cheap add on. I am not impressed with it at all. I saw picts here of an aftermarket roof that was very sweat. Just my 1/2 censts worth

i hate mine, was a total waste. Had to get DEEP LIMO tint on it twice to shade myself from the baking sun....................

One other reason I am waiting on the 06 is that you can't find any 05 GMC's in NorCal unless you want white. Almost every GMC dealer is out of Dmax's around here. Once the GMS pricing hit they were gone within a few weeks.

If you find an 05 that you like I would say buy it at the current prices being offered.

Re sunroofs--We own two vehicles with these holes in the roof and they stay shut 100 percent of the time. Agree with Runninghorn. Nothing worse than the sun cooking thru and the constant changing of light levels. Fortunately each vehicle has a solid shield in addition to the glass.

I work for Bosch braking, and I can tell you that 1500 trucks are changing in 07, but this time they change the suv in 07 and the pickups don't get changed untill 08. That is what GM is telling us. As far a I can tell the 2500 and 3500 will probably change too, but usually GM waits a year or 2 before the HD's get the changed body style.
This is what I had heard. We will not see th HD's with the new bodies until the 08 model year

Thanks for the info... I am going to hold out for the 06 for the 6 speed I think.. Its hard to make up my mind.. Dealer kinda told me that GM is lowering the prices and it will be close to the Employee pricing we are seeing now.. Hinted that was why they were doing the Employee deal now to move the 05s before they drop the price and stop having to run huge rebates on them all the time.

Pass on the sunroof, I have one and I am not impressed in light I had to order my turck and wait 6 weeks. The sunroof does not have a solid shade it only has a "sun shade" like the type of stuff you can see in home and garden shops. So when the sun is beating down you can't block it. With the sun roof open there is way too much wind noise at freeway speeds. And the sun roof opens out to the top of the cab looks like a cheap add on. I am not impressed with it at all. I saw picts here of an aftermarket roof that was very sweat. Just my 1/2 censts worth

I have an aftermarket and I'm quite happy. It has the sunshade. It also has 2 preset memory positions and the best feature, auto close when I turn off the ignition. And the cost was about $100 less than factory, installed.

Here is some info that I have found on new styling and "proposed" release dates

2007 Chevy Trucks To Have 15 Month Roll Out

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Link: http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=53053
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By Rick Kranz / Automotive News / May 16, 2005

DETROIT -- General Motors will launch its next generation of full-sized Chevrolet trucks over about 15 months beginning early next year, dealer sources say.

A successful launch is critical to GM's turnaround. GM's full-sized trucks will be re-engineered and restyled for the 2007 model year. GM pushed the launch forward to get fresh versions of its most-profitable vehicles to market quickly.

Sales of the 2007 Tahoe SUV will begin in the first quarter of 2006. GM will follow with the Suburban and Avalanche SUVs and the Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500 pickups.

Cadillac and GMC truck models that share components and chassis with the Chevrolet vehicles are expected to follow a similar schedule. The 2007 GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade SUVs are expected to debut about the same time as the Tahoe, for example.

Chevrolet's top dealers viewed the 2007 full-sized truck lines at a meeting late last month in Palm Springs, Calif. One dealer who attended said dealers saw the 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban and Avalanche, "and pictures of the Silverado."

The Tahoe's styling is softer and is evolutionary rather than radically different, an industry source says. All sheet metal is new.

Dealers were told that the Chevrolet trucks would debut on the following timetable:

# Tahoe, first quarter 2006

# Suburban, second quarter 2006

# Avalanche, third quarter 2006

# Silverado 1500, fourth quarter 2006

# Silverado 2500, 3500, first quarter 2007

A dealer who asked not to be identified said the Tahoe is expected to arrive in February or March.

They cant hold the power in 5th gear on there allison now, by adding a sixth gear that will mean that much more trouble!

From what I have heard and read 6th gear is a non-towing only gear for unloaded highway cruising.

The Duramax displacement also changes. The HD pickups will be getting the 6.9L with 350hp and 675-700tq. Impressive. But all I have to do is twist the knob to level 3 and I've got 389hp and 724tq proven gains at the flywheel. The holding capacity of the transmission on the new models is the information I'm looking for.

Drivawedge: Who is the manufacturer of your aftermarket sunroof?

Drivawedge: Who is the manufacturer of your aftermarket sunroof?

Look for a Webasto Model is a Hollandia 700. SWEET. Looks like a factory install, retracts into the headliner rather than popping up over the roof, has a REAL sliding sunshade, 2 user setable memory positions along with a "vent" position that pops the rear up. Automatically closes when the key is turned off. (can overide to vent if needed)


I paid $850 installed, which IIRC is LESS than the factory install.

IIRC Webasto supplies many of the sunroofs to OEM's.