Chevrolet Express 1500 Van

Is that an Astro? Nope, this Ain't Baseball

You might not think much of it, when looking at the bland Chevy Express, but it's one of the more popular cargo vans offered in the full-size van market. Many find the Express useful for its storage, and you've probably seen a few driving around town with a local plumbing, roofing, or electrical business logo on its side. The Express is technically considered its own line, but much of its transformation and history derives from the Chevrolet Van (also known as the ChevyVan, Sportvan, and GMC G-Series). When the Van underwent a complete redesign in 1996, the name changed with it. And though the Express and its twin GMC Savana have rivaled the Ford Econoline / E-Series and now-defunct Dodge Ram Van for years (and generally lost to Ford for many of them), the Express did fairly well for itself.

It only received one face lift (not counting the Sportvan redesign) in its lifetime, but it's not that outlandish when you look at the Express's history, considering the Sportvan was built on the same platform since 1971. Chevy's new Van, released in 1996, featured an all-new platform that improved stability and handling. Standard, it could seat between 8 or 12, but buyers could opt for an "Extended" version that pushed the seating up to 15. A Motor Trend reviewer labeled it as an "Astro [Van] on steroids" for its similar aerodynamic style and beefed up truck chassis and running gear. Along with the van itself, GM redesigned its Vortec engine that would also be featured in the base model as a 4.3L V6 engine with 250 foot-pounds of torque. Other engine options included the 5.0L V8 with 285 ft·lb of torque, the 5.7L V8 with 233 ft·lb of torque, the 7.4L V8 with 410 ft·lb of torque, and the 6.5L V8 turbodiesel with 385 ft·lb of torque.

Is Your Refrigerator Running?  

The Express did see a small addition in 2001 with a luxurious "LT" version that relived the Sportvan's glory days. Buyers could opt for upscale leather seating and upholstery, a Bose sound system, OnStar safety, and a VCR with two flip-down monitors in the rear. The exterior styling was a bit harder to differentiate from the other models, but it did include fog lights, aluminum wheels, and the choice of red, green, blue, or gray paint. The 3500 series also saw an all-iron 8.1L V8 with 690 ft·lb of torque added to the group of engines.

Lest the light duty models get jealous, Chevy dropped a whole new line of engines in 2003 to go with a brand new facelift. The fascia was reshaped into a more modern, rounded style with horizontal turn signal lights and a bulkier bumper cover. Unsatisfied with the style, a Motor Trend reviewer described its look as a "refrigerator on wheels," but these kinds of vans aren't purchased for their aesthetic qualities, they're purchased for their versatility. Still able to offer a few variants like a cargo and passenger version, the Express looked like it was here to stay until GM announced in 2014 that all ½ ton production would be discontinued in favor of the City Express compact cargo van. The 2500 and 3500 models are still in production.  It seems as though the Express will always look like a refrigerator on wheels, albeit a useful one.

Need Replacement Parts for Your Chevy Express 1500 Van?  

1A Auto Parts leads the industry in customer service. Our customer service representatives have over 150 combined years of automobile expertise, making the most qualified to answer your Chevy Express questions. Our representatives respond to calls quickly, 99.9% are answered within one minute. Since the advent of the internet, 1A Auto Parts was the first of our competitors to sell auto parts online. We have shipped over 1,000,000 new aftermarket parts since offering our services online and we ship thousands more packages every week. Our Chevrolet Express parts ship fast. 98% of in stock Chevy parts ship within one business day. 1A Auto Parts offers the industry's only 'No Hassle' return policy for all in stock new aftermarket Chevrolet Express parts. Check out the unique 1A Advantage for more reasons why 1A Auto Parts continually surpasses the competition.

The Chevrolet Express van is great for heavy duty cargo transporting, but moving all that weight means parts will experience wear and tear more rapidly than other vehicles. Luckily, 1A Auto Parts supplies new aftermarket Chevrolet Express headlights, weather stripping, radiators, exhaust manifolds, and more. 1A Auto parts 95% BizRate customer satisfaction score for Chevrolet Express parts tops all our competitors for Availability, On-time Delivery, Tracking, Product Quality & Customer Support. Buy your new Chevrolet Express parts from the comfort of your own home from 1A Auto Parts today.