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One of the most-versatile vehicles on the market just got a bit more affordable. During a media preview of the recent Dallas Auto Show, General Motors Corp. said the starting price of the completely redesigned 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche sport utility truck would be $32,490, including freight.

That price is $2,000 less than the base price for the 2006 model.

“This is the third full-size SUV product from General Motors to have its price reduced more than $2,000 from 2006 within the past three months,” Avalanche marketing manager Carl HillenbrandÖ said during the Dallas introduction and pricing announcement for the redesigned truck.

The lower price is part of GM’s new value-pricing strategy, which aims to position vehicle list prices closer to the expected final transaction prices so consumers won’t expect large rebates during the sales process.

In the past, GM has actually inflated the list prices of its vehicles to allow for the rebates consumers have gotten used to at their dealerships.

While the new Avalanche’s list prices are lower – by the same $2,000 or more across the entire model lineup – transaction prices are expected to be higher than for the previous year’s model.

That’s because the vehicle is all-new and vastly improved, and rebates and discounts will be limited, GM said.

The strategy, which included a round of significant price cuts in January on most 2006 models, has yet to prove itself. But it is designed to help wean consumers from rebates.

But the bigger news here is that the new Avalanche is on its way to market. Built on GM’s new full-size truck chassis that already has spawned the redesigned 2007 Chevy Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade, the Avalanche enters its second generation with the same unique midgate arrangement as the original.

The midgate allows the vehicle to be converted from part-SUV/part-pickup to almost all-pickup by removing the gate between the back of the rear seat and the five-foot, three-inch cargo bed.

This allows cargo to be loaded into the truck all the way to the back of the front seat, creating a full eight-foot cargo bed.

With the redesign for 2007, the Avalanche gets lots of upgrades and new features. “The 2007 model offers more refinement and versatility than before,” Hillenbrand said. “It’s a more-agile design, and there is no body cladding like there was on the 2006 model. This makes the vehicle look more like a traditional pickup.”

The Avalanche’s new styling includes a “bulging power-dome hood, optional 20-inch wheels, and a widened track,” he said.

Inside, GM has upgraded the Avalanche with premium materials, Hillenbrand said, including brushed aluminum and wood-grain trim.

A new satellite navigation systems offered, and with it, for $198 extra, comes a backup camera system that allows the driver to view the scene to the rear of the truck as he is backing up. The image shows up on the navigation system’s seven-inch LCD screen in the middle of the dash. It allows the driver not only to see objects or people behind the vehicle while it is backing up, but also to back up and couple the hitch to a trailer without having someone outside to guide the driver.

“You can actually see the trailer hitch ball to hook up your own trailer,” Hillenbrand said.

The new Avalanche comes with a larger center console and glove box, and increased head, hip, and leg room, front and rear.

As before, the cargo box has a lockable top, allowing for secure hauling of cargo that can fit within the height of the bed. And with the midgate opened and stowed, the lockable cargo area expands to a length of eight feet, two inches.

The new Avalanche offers optional head-curtain side air bags and standard StabiliTrak stability control with GM’s new rollover-protection technology.

“Avalanche is a vehicle without peers, selling more than 379,500 units from its spring 2001 launch through December 2005,” Chevrolet General Manager Ed Peper said during the unveiling of the new truck at the Chicago auto show in February.

“The Avalanche’s flexibility, from its SUV comfort and ingenious Midgate to its new family of flex-fuel-capable engines, delivers a truly unique combination of cargo and passenger options.”

GM said that as with the new Tahoe and Yukon, the Avalanche will be offered with several engines that can operate on gasoline or a mixture of up to 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. Ethanol is made from corn, and is being touted as a way to help reduce the United States’ dependence on foreign oil.

Four trim levels will be available — LS, LT, LTZ and, later in the model year, the Z71 off-road version. Rear- and four-wheel drive will be available at all trim levels.

Initially, the Avalanche will be sold with the 5.3-liter V-8 engine with GM’s Active Fuel Management, which automatically switches from eight cylinders to four during level highway cruising, a feature designed to help improve fuel economy.

Later in the year, a new, all-aluminum 6.0-liter V-8 with Active Fuel Management will become available, GM said.

The new Avalanche comes with a tailgate that can be locked or unlocked along with the doors using the remote control. The previous model had to be locked and unlocked with a key.

Remote vehicle starting will be standard on uplevel models and optional on others, the automaker said. In warm climates such as Texas’, this allows the driver to start the vehicle from up to about 50 feet away to allow it to cool inside before passengers get in. In cold climates, this allows for heating the interior before entering the vehicle.

The Avalanche also has a new tailgate, which GM says is spring-loaded to “reduce the effort needed to open or close it.”

The base engine is a new small-block V-8 that has more power than comparable engines in previous models, GM said.. It comes with the cylinder-deactivation system. Standard on two-wheel-drive models, it has 320 horsepower and 340 foot-pounds of torque.

A 5.3-liter aluminum-block V-8, standard on the four-wheel-drive Avalanche, is rated at 310 horsepower and 335 foot-pounds of torque. Later, a new all-aluminum 6.0-liter V-8 will be offered, and it will have both variable valve timing and Active Fuel Management. It’s rated at 355 horsepower.

Along with the new Tahoe and Suburban, the interior of the ’07 Avalanche shows “significant new levels of refinement, comfort, quality and convenience,” Hillenbrand said.

“It is roomy and airy, thanks to a lower instrument panel and deeper windshield that improve outward visibility.”

The front seats have been redesigned to make them more comfortable, he said. . The rear seat is unique to the Avalanche and enables easy access to the Midgate system, Hillenbrand said.

Also improved for 2007 was the heating and air conditioning system.

New options include ultrasonic rear-parking assist and a rear-seat DVD entertainment system.

Two-wheel drive LT models begin at the $32,490 price, while the LT starts at $33,170 and the LTZ at $39,905, including $875 freight.

The four-wheel-drive LS begins at $35,490, the LT at $36,170, and the LTZ at $42,905.

No prices have been announced for the Z71 off-road models yet.

EPA fuel-economy estimates have not been released yet, but average fuel economy for combined city/highway driving is in excess of 20 mpg with the 5.3-liter engine and two-wheel drive in the Tahoe and Yukon short-wheelbase models.

G. Chambers Williams III is staff automotive columnist for the San Antonio Express-News and former transportation writer for the Star-Telegram. His automotive columns have appeared regularly in the Star-Telegram since 1995. Contact him at (210) 250-3236; chambers@star-telegram.com.