SPEAKER: The ZR2, you probably remember a few years ago,
Chevrolet introduced us to the Colorado ZR2,
the off-road version of the mid-sized Colorado pickup.
But now, there's a bigger, badder Silverado ZR2.
There has never been a Silverado ZR2 before.
So you're looking at the first test of one.
Chevrolet says this is the most off-road ready Silverado ever.
And while that's probably true, I don't work for probably.com.
So we're going to get out there and test it.
But before we do that, make sure to click Like and hit
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The ZR2 is part of the new, refreshed 2022 Silverado
lineup.
That means it gets a couple of things that
now come on all Silverados.
There's a completely revised interior with a much larger
touch screen.
And that's looking real nice.
Of course, the ZR2's specialty is off-roading.
So today, we'll try out its specialized suspension.
We'll go through features, like locking
front and rear differentials and mud terrain tires,
plus one-pedal rock crawling.
What's that all about?
We are jumping right in.
We got a pretty aggressive hill here with some big, old ruts.
I've gone into four low.
I've gone into L one.
I've got the front and rear lockers.
And we are going to see how this goes.
So the main thing we're seeing here
is the articulation of the tires.
And then once one of the tires, or two of the tires,
get up into the air, how the front and rear lockers
are working together to keep the truck moving forward.
We definitely got a tire up in the air right now.
I can feel it tipping.
It feels natural though.
Steering is nice and easy.
Throttle is very gradual, consistent, no problem.
I can feel the lockers gripping the ground
and pulling me forward, even though there's not much ground
to grab.
And we're all the way up and through it.
So that was pretty uneventful.
But from the driver's seat, you just
kind of activate the lockers, point it
the way you want to go, and give the throttle
a little feathering.
Truck does the rest.
Pretty nice.
So one of the main things there is
that this ZR2 compared to another off-road Silverado,
like the Trail Boss, the ZR2 gets extra suspension travel.
And even with all that extra suspension travel,
you saw how those wheels were going way up in the air
on ruts that size.
So it's pretty impressive that the ZR2
has that much more capability than a Trail Boss.
But also, when that articulation still
isn't enough to keep the tires on the ground,
the front and rear lockers are capable enough
to keep you going in the right direction, which is uphill,
or in this case downhill.
Nice and smooth.
I am riding the brake.
But again, hitting some pretty big bumps going down.
And those multimatic DSSV dampers in the suspension
really help cushion things a lot.
And really capable tires aired down to an appropriate setting
made that very comfortable, even though it probably
looked extremely hairy from the outside.
We are part of a convoy for this test drive
and need to keep moving.
So let me recap some of what we learned on that exercise.
First, you may have noticed that going up
the hill you didn't see any exhaust tailpipes.
That's because Chevy tucked them underneath the rear bumper.
That's a pretty smart move to keep
them protected from damage.
There's another thing though that is not exactly out
of the way.
And that's the shock towers.
The shock towers on all Silverados
hang down pretty low.
And they're pretty centrally located.
They're not tucked up against the tires,
like they would be on like a Jeep Wrangler, for instance.
And the fact that they're hanging low
and they're close to the center means they're
hampering ground clearance.
And they're exposed to things like rocks.
And we've definitely come upon some big rocks
that could put them in danger.
You do not want damage to shock towers.
Standard on the ZR2 is 33 inch mud terrain tires.
A surprising thing that I learned
is that Chevy does not really recommend
putting 35 inch tires on this.
I assumed one of the first things people
will do, if in fact they're dedicated hardcore off-roaders,
is send their Silverado ZR2 to the tire shop
to get them swapped out for 35s.
Chevy says if you do that, they probably won't fit.
So that when you turn the truck, 35s
should rub up against the steel bumpers, which
is not what you want at all.
That's pretty surprising to me.
It feels like kind of a big deal.
But you guys let me know what you think.
Is that a big deal not being able to get 35s
on a Silverado ZR2, or not?
Finally, the engine.
Standard on the ZR2 is the Big Boy, a 6.2 liter V8.
Now, it's not a roaring high speed desert runner.
Instead, it provides loads of gradual power
to slowly work your way up steep inclines,
like the one we just did.
That worked great.
But it's an off the shelf engine that Chevy already
uses in other trucks and SUVs, not a specialized version
for the ZR2.
All that power does allow for one-pedal off-roading.
That means on inclines you don't need to ride the brake pedal.
Keep your foot on the throttle.
And if you come off, the truck will hold itself and prevent
you from sliding backwards.
Pretty neat feature.
And when you're ready to go, just give it some more gas
and let all that power do its work.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Let's talk about some exterior features of the ZR2.
This isn't the truck I'm driving.
But they won't mind if I borrow it for a second.
First thing is this big, bulging hood design,
which is unique to the ZR2.
It definitely looks aggressive, which is very cool.
But from the driver's seat, it makes it pretty hard
to get good visibility out and over the hood,
pretty tough to see where the front of your truck is.
But it definitely serves its purpose as far as looking cool.
In the grill, you get larger openings
than standard Silverados.
You get the cool pass-through bowtie
to send extra air to the engine.
Steel front bumper, nice touch.
Obviously, big, red tow hooks.
And then skid plate.
So this part right here is actually
the same as the bumper.
It's all the same part.
The skid plate actually starts under here.
And it's high grade aluminum.
They make it look like one piece.
But it's not really.
Now let's talk about this piece right here.
It's a cool design, definitely different
from standard Silverados, and gives you
a little bit of extra clearance, nice angles if you're
in a really rocky area.
Chevy is calling them removable end caps.
It's actually not that easy.
It's more of a term for like if they get damaged and dinged up,
they can be removed to be fixed or replaced.
But you'll probably have to take off the whole front bumper
assembly, Chevrolet says.
So just a fair bit of warning.
If you hear people calling this removable end
caps, kind of, sort of, not really.
Let's go around to the side.
So here's a good look at the mud terrain
tires that I was talking about earlier.
As you can see, one of the differentiators
between all-terrains and mud-terrains
is this really aggressive tread along the sidewall to really
dig in and get extra grip, especially in mud
or really deep sand, that kind of stuff.
Also I want to show you these rock sliders.
Now, these are not standard on the ZR2.
They're available as an option.
And tucked up against the body here,
they do provide a good bit of protection
against rocks and things.
But they're not a very good step.
So you have to hoist yourself over them.
And given the ZR2's extra ride height,
it really is quite of a leap to get inside.
Let's go to the back.
First thing is obviously, you get the big corner steps, just
like all Silverados.
And then just like the front, rear steel bumper,
which is very nice for extra protection.
So under here, I'm not sure if you can see it.
But we'll show you here are the exhaust tips pointing down,
which are tucked up there really nicely and out of the way.
So you have a good departure angle.
You're not hitting rocks.
And then way under there, is where
you can see those shock towers that
are hanging down, a little bit too exposed for my taste.
Otherwise, on the tailgate, with the ZR2
you can get the multi-flex tailgate,
which can open a number of different ways
and be configurable.
This one doesn't have it.
We'll slice in some footage of trucks that do have it.
And that is the rear of the Silverado ZR2.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Let's talk interior of the Silverado ZR2.
Now, this is important stuff here.
Because it's not just the interior for the ZR2.
It's the same interior for all 2022 Silverados, which
were redesigned for this year.
There's a lot of cool stuff here.
First and foremost, up front and center,
there's a 13.4 inch touch screen.
Very nicely presented.
Nice and responsive.
Really good picture.
It's powered by Android.
So all your maps run through the Google Android system.
And it's been great.
Really easy to use, very responsive.
And the menus are easy to find.
So that's a big plus on the new Silverado screen.
It comes in this big piano black plastic housing
that extends all the way over here to this side.
So it's a big, big unit.
It also houses the 12 inch driver digital display
up front, as well.
That part, the piano glossy black part,
and this part right here, just doesn't come off
as like the best materials for a truck at this price.
But what I like is that the interior in general
has a really nice layout and design.
So that you don't notice the things
that are necessarily a little bit cheap.
Because it's hidden in a really pleasant, handsome design.
Down here, you've got comfort controls
with buttons, which is always nice.
They didn't hide it up in the touchscreen, dials
to select your temperature, and an easy volume knob right here.
I hate to be the guy who complains
about not having a tune knob.
But I would really like to have a tune knob.
Elsewhere, let's talk about the seats.
Chevrolet was telling us these are our new sporty seats
with big side bolsters that are going to hold you in place.
That's not really what I felt their biggest strength was.
I think they're really wide and cushy, comfortable leather
seats.
They do have side bolstering.
But it's not very aggressive.
Although, when we were driving sideways down dirt roads,
they do hold me in place pretty well.
But I wouldn't call them aggressive.
Finally, the transmission selector.
That has moved from the collar-mounted shifter that
was up here on previous models down here
to a more car-like gear selector.
Sometimes that can take away from the space
that you have to put things.
But the '22 Silverado does a nice job
of still leaving you space up here, and up here.
And the center console area is a really deep storage space
as well.
Finally, one thing I like is a little smartphone
charging pad right there for your phone.
So all in all, I'm pretty impressed with the refresh
that Chevy did on the Silverado interior.
And it feels right at home in the ZR2.
But later, as we continued piling on the miles,
unfortunately, the ZR2 tripped up.
Driving fast on trails is not exactly fun.
The engine is not responsive or exciting.
And the steering is too light and loose.
And again, it all comes back to the tires.
Its 33 inch tires feel too skinny.
There's not enough traction for quick turns or fast braking.
The tires make the ZR2 feel sloppy at speed.
And sloppy is not good for a nearly three ton truck.
On the road, the mud-terrain tires
are loud and difficult to handle in curves.
They're also bumpy.
You'll feel road imperfections through your seat.
And the multimatic dampers are good.
But they're not magic.
They can't cover up all the ZR2's faults
and deliver a comfortable ride at speed, on-road or off.
So that is the Silverado ZR2.
Did it make a good impression on you?
Let us know in the comments below
if you think this compares favorably against the F-150
Raptor and Ram TRX.
Let's go over some of the important things
that we learned today.
Some of the things that I liked especially
include the power from the V8 engine,
all of those off-road features, especially
one-pedal off-roading, which is pretty cool,
and of course, the multimatic shocks, which are really
doing a lot of work to keep a big, heavy vehicle in check.
However, there are a few cons we need to address.
If you ask me, Chevrolet compromised quite a bit
when they built the Silverado ZR2.
After all, the steering is really loose and light,
which does not come off as very responsive or engaging
when you're driving off-road at a high speed.
Also, they didn't move the shock towers out of the way.
They're in the same place as all the other Silverados.
Only now, those shocks are much more expensive to replace.
And finally, those mud-terrain tires.
I'm just not convinced that they needed to be standard.
Why not use all-terrains, which would
appeal to a broader audience?
And then if people want to put mud-terrains on,
they can do that.
At the end of the day, the Silverado ZR2
is very good at one particular type of off-roading.
But it can't do the high performance stuff
that the F-150 Raptor and Ram TRX can do.
And that's OK.
Not everything needs to be a Raptor.
Problem is Silverado ZR2 is priced
right up against those trucks.
It is a step in a new direction for the Silverado.
But it's not claiming any new ground.
It seems Chevrolet is content to play catch up.
Am I wrong?
Let me know why in the comments below.
And don't forget to hit Like and Subscribe to see more Edmunds
videos, including off road adventures.
Thanks for watching.
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