The Chevrolet division of General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) offers one of the top three selling pickups in America. However, sales growth of its Silverado has trailed that of its only two real rivals — Ford Motor Co.’s (NYSE: F) F-150, which has the largest sales volume, and the Dodge Ram, which boosts the most rapid sales growth so far this year. To help improve Silverado sales, Chevy has offered big discounts. The Labor Day period is no exception.

The nationwide incentive for the Silverado includes 0% financing for 72 months, a $3,250 discount on the manufacturer’s retail price and a $750 option package value discount. Some buyers do not have to make their first payment for 90 days. These discounts are available on the Silverado 1500 Crew Cab All-Star Edition.

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Four of the three top-selling vehicles in the United States, through the first seven months of this year, are pickups. The only exception is the Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) Camry sedan. The F-150 is by far the largest selling vehicle in America. Through July, Ford sold 429,065, up 0.3%. The Silverado was in second place for the period at 282,776. Its sales fell 0.7%. Sales of the third place Dodge Ram are soaring — up 18.8% for the period to 239,481. At the current rate, there is some chance the Ram will outsell the Silverado this year.

To show how important the Silverado is to GM, the nation’s largest car company sold 1,048,114 cars and light trucks, up 3.5%, in the first seven months. So, the Silverado is nearly 30% of all GM sales.

It is hard to pin down why Silverado sales have been poor, because reviews of its latest version have been strong. For example, according to Kelley Blue Book:

Though its familiar sheet metal does very little to suggest otherwise, the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado is all-new from head to toe. It’s what lies beneath the bodywork that counts, as the Silverado’s improvements become immediately evident once you step inside. The revamped cabin is perhaps the quietest in the segment, and the use of higher-quality materials helps to spice things up considerably. A trio of new engines combined with significant chassis and suspension upgrades put the new Silverado on competitive footing with the recently redesigned Ram 1500, the forthcoming 2014 Toyota Tundra, and Ford’s top-selling F-150. Fuel economy numbers are nothing to get excited about, but the 2014 Chevy Silverado delivers big on its promise of blending work-truck capability with everyday civility.

But those improvements have not caught on with consumers, and Chevy has been forced to offer particularly large discounts.

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