Anyone know what year they stopped making those?

2005 was the last year I think.
Very easy to spot.
They all have cladding.
They have 8 lug wheels.
They have little fender flares on the FRONT fenders as the front axle is wider than the rear.

I took delivery of my 6500-lb boat/trailer two months ago and towed with my 2003 Avalanche 1500 (5.3L, 4:10 rear). We didn't care for the way the truck strained up the hills around here but we LOVE the Avalanche (as do most folks who own one) so I started looking for a Avalanche 2500. As stated, they stopped making them in 2005, but we found a low-mileage one and traded for it.

The difference in towing is night and day. The 2500 has an 8.1-liter engine, 4L80E transmission, 14-bolt rearend with 8-lug axles, leaf rear springs, extendable towing mirrors and transmission temp guage. Also has hydroboost brakes which are way better than the vacuum boost brakes on the 1500. Truck is rated to tow 12,000 pounds and tows my 6500-lb rig with ease.

The previous owner installed Firestone Air Ride helper bags on the rear leafs with onboard compressor/guage. I love being able to level the truck when we hook up the boat, and it tows just that much better.

As stated, fuel mileage is atrocious but we'd rather have an Avalanche with poor fuel mileage than a full-size pickup with a diesel. Prices are good on these rigs right now due to the economy and fuel prices; we found ours on autotrader.

Mine is a 2005 completely stock with a 4.10 rear end. I took it on a long highway run (mostly flat) unloaded and got a 17.5mpg according to the OBC.

But real life is a consistent 12-13 mpg non-towing. Big tank on it so it has about a 400 mile range which keeps you out of the gas stations for a bit. But plan on staying there awhile to fill up!

Got mine on cars.com.

The Avalanche is pretty comfortable as a daily driver. Unless you plan to go much heavier, I'd stick with a 6.0 with 3.73 gearing. The 4.10 gets uncomfortable in more ways than one, mileage being just one downside. The new six speed trans seems to make up for a lot compared to the older versions.

It's a truck that has many benefits of an SUV. Just feels more civilized than the standard pickups.

I think I understand what you guys are saying when you say the truck kind of dogs. It's a really comfortable, versatile, good looking truck though. After about 50mph it does lose its acceleration greatly. I think $1000 or $1500 in mods would solve that midrange problem. Otherwise, does anybody know what it costs to change the plastic hatchback with new ones or the escalde fiberglass? version.

RE-read the entire sentence: the 6.0 driving the 4L80E transmission will feel like a dog. That's the combo that was put in the 2500 series trucks. I don't know if they've started putting in the heavy-duty 6 speed in the 2500 yet?

If you get the 6.0 in a half-ton chassis, it will either have the 4L65E or another 6-speed variant. The 4L80E has a very tall 1st gear ratio making it feel sluggish off the line, plus takes more power to turn. The 4L65E and the six-speeds have shorter 1st gears helping with off-the-line feel.

The 4L80E has a 2.xx 1st gear and .75 final - slow off line and lower highway mpg.

The 4L65E has a 3.xx 1st and .70 final - better off line and better highway (plus smaller parasitic loss).

The new 6 speeds I think I read may have a 4.xx 1st gear - that's u-joint and diff breaking ratio if you're not careful.

Oh yeah, I would not hesitate to tow up to 6k lbs with the 5.3L w/3.73 or 4.10s. I had a '99 Silverado 5.3L/3.73; this early '99 was a weaker 5.3L also. But it towed my race car fine (6k lbs), right up to the fuel cutoff. It also never complained about my full throttle starts from the toll booths (with the race car). These motors love to run in 3rd gear (1.00:1) with Tow/Haul on so the torque converter locks up.

the escalde has the same hatch just painted why do you want to change it if it's discolored all you have to do is armor all the plastic it should come back I do all the plastic whenever I wax mine

This is true. I do this for the back footstep on my envoy. Its usually very temporary though. I heard Canola Oil brings it back like new though.