- It must be pretty frustrating to be General Motors
knowing that you build a better
mid-size pickup truck than the Toyota Tacoma
and actually have for quite some time.
But still people are just set on buying a Tacoma.
It's been the sales leader for years now.
Well, Chevrolet has decided to have another go
at trying to get people out of those Toyotas
with this, the new 2023 Chevrolet Colorado.
It's got new trim levels, it's got new equipment,
it's got new technology, new styling.
There's a whole lot new to it
and on paper, it looks fantastic.
So we've come here to sunny Southern California
to drive the new '23 Colorado
and to see if Chevrolet can finally
shake a few nuts off that Tacoma tree.
It's obvious that they've changed quite a lot
about the Colorado simply by looking at it.
It's got all new styling.
And really the biggest change is down this body side.
It's much more chiseled,
it's much more angular than it was before.
You've got five different trim levels
to play with on the new Colorado.
This one is the range topping Z71 trim level.
Now there is one above that called the ZR2,
which is the super off-road version
but we haven't driven that one yet.
We have driven the others, the Work Truck,
the LT, the Z71 and the Trail Boss.
The biggest changes really come up front
in terms of the styling, where you've got a different look
to every one of those trim levels.
Every one of them has a different colored grill,
has a different look to the styling,
different bumpers, different capabilities.
The off-road ones have a higher front end
so that you can have a better approach angle.
But the differentiation between the trim levels
is really pretty obvious and the whole thing
really looks a lot more like the Chevrolet Silverado 1500,
it's bigger brother.
And quite frankly, that's not a bad thing.
Well, we can't talk about a new pickup truck
without talking about probably
the biggest reason you buy one,
and that is the cargo bed.
And the Colorado has a couple
of interesting features for 2023.
First is this softly descending tailgate,
which is optional on certain trim levels.
And that's nice, it doesn't just fall open
and clang to the open position.
There are a number of tie down points now in the bed
and you've also got an optional 120 volt power socket
in the right side for accessories.
But perhaps the most interesting new feature is this.
There's a new storage pocket built into the tailgate itself.
Now it's even got a drain plug in there as well.
So what are you gonna put in here?
Well, looks like there's room enough
for a couple of six packs of tasty beverages and some ice
or maybe the catch that you just pulled out of the river.
I'm sure you wouldn't wanna put any contraband in there
and drive across state lines, that would be a very bad idea.
So the new Colorado has new power trains,
it has new styling, it has new technology inside.
We came here to actually drive the thing,
to see if this thing really can de-throne the Tacoma.
And over the last two days, we've driven four
of the five possible trim levels.
So what's it like out there on the road?
This is the Work Truck model, the WT.
It is the bargain basement, bare bones model,
but it's still really pretty well equipped.
You still have digital screens for both
the touchscreen controller and a digital gauge cluster,
which is kind of remarkable in an entry level work truck.
You do see where they have taken some cost out however.
Everything in here, everything in here is hard plastic.
And really kind of interesting, there's no light switch.
No, none, there's nothing there.
This is the first vehicle I've ever driven
that doesn't have an actual honest to God light switch.
It's all done through the touchscreen controls,
which I find kind of interesting.
The Work Truck also does not have telescoping steering.
It has tilting, but it doesn't come in and out.
So you have to adjust your seat forward enough
in order to reach the pedals
and the steering wheel as needed.
The standard engine that comes in the Work Truck
and the model above that, the LT,
is a turbocharge 2.7 liter 4-cylinder engine
making 237 horsepower and 259 pounds feet of torque.
And that's actually a decent amount
for an entry level engine.
It certainly is better than the 4-cylinder
that used to be in the Colorado.
And what it results in is a base truck
that is really pretty peppy.
It's quick, it accelerates really well
getting onto a highway or even just around town.
You do hear some unusual noises from under the hood.
The turbocharger itself has a a whir that almost sounds
(engine whirring)
like a dirt devil, but it gets you moving really quite well.
I'm impressed with it.
And really what also this truck showcases
is GM's ability to engineer a dynamically excellent truck.
Yeah, the ride in this one is a little bit bouncy,
but again it's a work truck.
It's got big balloony tires on steel wheels,
so it's not going to ride like a luxury vehicle.
It's meant for you to have a lot of payload capacity
and to, you know, survive things like a work site
or the cratered potholes of Detroit.
But the steering is incredibly tight and responsive
and it doesn't feel sloppy or loose at all.
The brakes are extremely firm.
The dynamics of this truck are really quite good,
even in the base model, which quite frankly
I find to be indicative of them really paying attention
to a lot of the details in how they make trucks.
We've seen this in the larger Silverado 1500
and that has trickled down now into the mid-size Colorado.
Even out on the highway,
you're really not greeted with a whole lot of noise.
You've got a little bit of road noise,
a little bit of tire noise,
but you don't really have a lot of wind noise.
It's been pretty well impressively insulated
even in this base model work truck.
You get a little bit more of the bounciness here, too.
But I bet you if you put a load in the bed
or you actually towed something with this thing,
that would probably smooth out really quite well.
More importantly is the comfort of the cabin.
When you compare this thing to a current Toyota Tacoma,
which is the sales leader in this category,
there's really no contest.
Even in the low end of the trim levels,
there's more room in here, there's better visibility.
It's a heck of a lot more comfortable.
You've got tons of head room up ahead,
you've got a lot more vertical reach
for the actual seat adjustments.
All in all, it's just a better truck than the Tacoma,
even at this lower trim level.
And I have to say the turbocharged 4-cylinder,
you are not gonna miss the old 4-cylinder at all.
Yeah, it's not gonna really flatten your eyeballs
or anything like that when you put your foot in it,
but it still moves decently well
especially for a work truck.
The only thing that has me scratching my head
in here a little bit is the price.
This one costs about 36, $37,000,
but it has a couple of options.
Things like collision alert systems,
automatic cruise control, powered accessories
like seats and mirrors, things like that.
But these are basic things
that you're gonna want to have in any vehicle.
So even for a work truck,
you're still gonna be spending mid $30,000 for a new one.
And the other interesting thing about this
is that you can only get it in one configuration,
which is a crew cab short bed.
There is no more different kind of cab configurations.
There's no single cab or double cab
like you can get on some competitor vehicles.
So pretty much what you get is the larger four door,
which tends to be the one that sells
in the most volume anyway,
so probably not a big deal in the long run.
One step up from the Work Truck trim level
is this one, this is the LT.
This is going to be the volume model for the Colorado,
the one that most people buy,
and it has a pretty wide range of features and pricing.
This one that we're driving right now
is a little over $46,000,
but it is pretty well loaded with just about everything.
Most interesting is what's under the hood.
It comes with the same 2.7 liter 4-cylinder
that you get in the Work Truck model,
but in both the Work Truck and in the LT like this one,
you actually can upgrade
to what they call the Turbo Plus engine.
Now it's still the same 2.7 liter 4-cylinder,
but now it makes 310 horsepower
and 390 pounds feet of torque.
Those are V8 horsepower and torque numbers.
That's really impressive
and it really does a number on the Colorado as well
really improving its acceleration
beyond what you'd normally get from the base model.
Now the top engine in the Colorado only comes in the ZR2
and that makes 310 horsepower and 430 pounds feet of torque.
That is the same 2.7 liter turbocharge 4-cylinder
that is the base model in the Chevrolet Silverado 1500.
Again, V8 levels of power and torque,
especially in a mid-size truck,
really does make for some snappy performance.
Just like the Work Truck model, this one drives really well.
You've got really crisp, firm steering,
you've got excellent brakes.
The ride quality, again, is a little bit bouncy,
but this is a pickup truck.
We're not expecting it to ride
and drive like your average Lexus.
One thing we have noticed about the interior,
in the Work Truck model, everything was hard plastic
and felt like a work truck.
In this one, being the LT one step up,
everything is still hard plastic,
but it's covered in some faux vinyl leather materials,
which does improve the way it looks.
You've also got some bright work trim.
You've got the same size display screens
in front of you though, so that's really quite nice.
You've still got great big displays
so you've got all the technology you want.
You've also got automatic climate control in here.
It's definitely a step up from the Work Truck model,
but there are still three trim levels above this one.
This trim level is the Trail Boss trim level,
which is the entry level off-road model
in the Colorado lineup.
New to the Colorado, we've only ever seen a Trail Boss
in the Silverado, the full sized pickup trucks,
but this is the first time it's appearing
in the mid-sized Colorado.
Now it builds off the Work Truck trim,
which means the interior is,
well we'll call it cheap and cheerful.
What it really is is all hard plastic.
There is no soft touch plastic anywhere in here,
which is kind of extraordinary.
And it also means you don't get a telescoping
steering wheel either, which is really kind of annoying.
However, what you do get is a two inch lift kit.
You get some all-terrain tires
and you get the standard 2.7 liter Turbo Plus engine.
So it comes standard with 310 horsepower
and 390 pounds feet of torque.
Now this is meant to be the off-road entry level.
The one above that is the ZR2,
which is the super expensive, super capable
off-road version that can pretty much climb over everything.
This one is a little bit lesser on that scale of abilities.
But on-road, it actually drives really quite nicely
despite the all-terrain tires.
What the combination of more powerful engine
and larger wheels and tires means
is that it actually is one of the better-driving
trim levels for the Colorado.
It's really not that bouncy.
You still got some bounce in here
given that you have an off-road suspension
and it is a pickup truck,
but it feels a little bit more composed than the Work Truck.
And you still have the super tight steering,
the excellent brakes and the pretty extraordinary
acceleration given that this thing is putting out
the kind of power that you get typically
in a naturally aspirated V8.
And last but not least on our trim walk is this one.
This is the Z71 trim.
This is kind of the more luxurious model, so to speak.
It has the nicest interior, that's for sure.
But it's still just some lovely coverings
over hard plastic, at least it really does look good.
The styling in here, I do like.
I am a fan of it and I'm still a big fan
of the fact that there's actual buttons here
and not everything being touch sensitive screens
like we've seen in so many vehicles these days.
You've also got some like seats
with some contrast stitching trim as well.
Overall it looks really good.
This is one of the off-road capable trims as they call it.
It has some front and rear styling
that makes it a little bit more off-road capable
and it does come with standard 18 inch
all-terrain tires, 20's are optional
just like on the Trail Boss.
It is nicer than the Trail Boss.
So if you're looking to go off-road,
but you still want a little bit more glitz,
this really might be the trim that you want to consider,
at least until the really capable,
really extraordinary ZR2 drops in a couple of months.
When you get off-road in your Trail Boss
and going uphill as we are right now,
just keeping it in four high is fine.
But you also have a number of different
drive modes to play with.
We currently have it in off-road mode,
which does change the throttle position,
changes your traction control a little bit as well,
but it's still good for soaking up
Oof, ugh.
some of these bumps now.
It's not soaking them up like it would
in the ultimate ZR2, which has the very special
DSSV suspension that allows you to climb over everything
and pretty much not feel very much of it at all.
This one, yeah, you're gonna feel it,
especially since this model has the optional 20 inch wheels
with the Bridgestone Dueler All Terrain tires.
Standard are 18 inch wheels
with Goodyear Wrangler Territory All Terrain tires.
Really would've rather had those wheels on this truck
for this kind of activity, because taller sidewalls
will soak up the bumps a little bit better
than the shorter sidewall on these 20s.
But hey, it still does it, goes uphill just fine.
The extra two inches of ground clearance,
haven't had to use that yet, but it's there if you need it.
It's also when driving off road
that you really start to feel
all the hard plastic in this interior.
There isn't even any soft touch around your knees.
So as you're bumping along
and you're banging into various pieces and parts
on the door and the knee in the center console,
it's hard plastic, not soft touch.
And well, it could be more comfortable.
The new Colorado also has up to 10 different camera views,
including some underbody cameras as well.
All of it is controlled through the 11.3 inch touchscreen.
It really depends on your trim level
in terms of whether or not your vehicle has these
but they can be very useful on the trail,
especially since this one also has some predictive lines
to determine where exactly you're pointing your tires.
That's very helpful when you're determining
a line to go off road as well.
Going up the hill, we were in the Trail Boss,
coming back down this hill, we are in the Z71.
And the big difference between the Trail Boss
and this Z71 in terms of off-road performance and equipment
is that this one is equipped with 18 inch wheels
running Goodyear Wrangler Territory tires.
And let me tell you, the difference
in just how it handles the bumps
and how much it beats you up in the cabin,
it makes it very obvious that if you plan on going off-road
in your Chevy Colorado, stick with the 18s,
don't go with the 20s,
because you probably already know it
if you're any kind of off-roader,
you don't want the large wheels off-road,
you want more cushion.
And that's what you get with taller side walls
and smaller wheels.
As with the Trail Boss,
you've still got the four-wheel drive system
which does have an automatic mode.
You've also got various drive modes.
We've got underbody cameras in this one as well,
that has even a little washer feature
that'll clean the underbody camera
in case it gets muddy like we've gotten this one.
But for any kind of light off-roading like this,
because this is what I call a light to intermediate
fire road trail, nothing terribly complicated,
it'll do it just fine.
And perhaps what's more impressive about this
is that even though these are early production
is that they are completely rattle free.
Nothing is squeaking, nothing is rattling,
nothing is shaking, nothing feels loose,
you're not hearing weird body clunks,
you're not hearing unusual bed noises.
It's really solid.
The entire truck really does feel solid.
It's very well screwed together
and really does provide for a nice driving experience.
After driving the new Chevrolet Colorado
for the last two days, I have to say
I've come away pretty impressed
with what Chevrolet has created.
Now, that's not necessarily surprising.
Chevrolet does excellent pickup trucks
in terms of dynamics and the Colorado is no different.
It's got great engine power, it's got great ride quality.
It handles really well.
It's comfortable up front, maybe not on the back.
And overall it really represents even a great value as well.
Starts at about $30,000,
goes up to the high $40,000 for a fully loaded Z71.
The upcoming ZR2 is gonna be more than that.
You could be pretty well assured.
However, overall, this thing really is
an excellent pickup truck and it should,
should pull some people out of Tacomas, finally.
Now if you'd like to learn more
about the new 2023 Chevrolet Colorado,
you can learn everything at cars.com.