The Colorado is Chevrolet’s midsize truck, a friendly foe for longtime rivals like the Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma. Chevy definitely knows what it’s doing when it comes to pickups – just look at the larger Silverado – and distills that engineering know-how into a smaller, easier-to-drive package. From the stripped-down Work Truck to the mid-level LT to the dune-running ZR2, there’s a wide range of Colorados to satiate your pickup desires.
Why does it look so… old?
Yeah, styling isn’t really Chevy’s strong suit (again, have you seen a Silverado?). Especially in lower trims, where the Colorado has an unpainted front fascia, this thing looks older than it is. Combine that with uninspired wheel designs and the fact that a number of Colorado models still use dull-as-dishwater halogen headlights, and this isn’t exactly a truck that’ll turn heads – even in yellow.
But it’s what’s inside that counts, right?
Exactly. Well, sort of. Higher-level LT, Z71, and ZR2 trim levels have nice interiors with good materials and lots of creature comforts. But if you spec the Work Truck or Trail Boss, yikes, it’s pretty awful. Just about every panel inside these lower-level trucks looks and feels cheap, right down to the plasticky steering wheel (that doesn’t even have a telescope function).
What about the powertrain?
Oh, that part’s great. For simplicity’s sake, every single Colorado is powered by a 2.7-liter, turbocharged inline-4 engine, but there are three different output levels depending on the trim level. The base tune offers 237hp and 259lb ft, the midrange level has 310hp and 390lb ft, and the high-grade engine comes with 310hp and 430lb ft. No matter the output, every Colorado has an eight-speed automatic transmission, and you can choose between two- and four-wheel drive.
Are there off-road options?
Plenty. The Colorado Trail Boss builds on the base Work Truck spec and has a two-inch lift, 18-inch wheels with 265/65 all-terrain tires, a low-range four-wheel-drive system, recovery hooks, an automatic locking rear differential, skid plates, and more. This one practically begs to be muddied up. And since it’s got the cheap-o base interior, who cares if you beat it to hell?
Serious off-roaders will want to snag a Colorado ZR2, though. This one comes with a three-inch lift, absolutely fantastic DSSV Multimatic dampers, a cooler front fascia, 17-inch wheels with 285/70 all-terrain tires – lots of go-fast-get-dirty goodies.
How’s it handle purposeful truck stuff?
For payload, the ZR2 is the worst Colorado, but it can still carry a respectable 1,151 pounds in its bed. The Trail Boss and Z71 up the capacity to 1,587 pounds, while the Work Truck and LT max out at 1,684. “Work Truck” isn’t just a name, friends.
Need to tow? Cool. The ZR2 is once again the least-capable of the bunch, but is still rated to pull an impressive 6,000 pounds. Trail Boss, Z71, Work Truck, and LT trims can all do 7,700.
Is the Colorado expensive?
Pricing for this mid-size truck stretches from about $32,000 on the base end to just under $50,000 all loaded up. Some trim levels make more financial sense than others because of how features are packaged; the Work Truck and Trail Boss are kind of hard sells, but the LT and Z71 are much better buys. At the tippy top, that baja-blasting ZR2 is a pretty solid bargain considering it’ll outrun trucks and SUVs twice its price on dirt and sand.
What are the Colorado’s rivals?
Well, there’s the Colorado’s corporate twin, the GMC Canyon, which looks a little better and comes in a luxurious Denali trim if you feel like getting fancy. From other automakers, the Ford Ranger, Jeep Gladiator, Nissan Frontier, and Toyota Tacoma are other trucky options, and the Honda Ridgeline is a less-capable but more comfortable competitor for buyers who don’t need to have the best towing or off-road prowess.
What's the verdict?
“What the Colorado lacks in fancy features and optional powertrains it makes up for with excellent road manners”
The Chevy Colorado is an honest, straightforward, hard-working mid-size pickup truck. What it lacks in fancy features and optional powertrains it makes up for with excellent road manners, an interior you can use and abuse, and more towing and payload capacities than most folks will ever use.
The Colorado is also a formidable off-roader, and Chevy offers go-anywhere capabilities at different price points. The less-expensive Trail Boss is the sort of truck you can drive hard and put away wet, while the ZR2 is a sophisticated and technically advanced off-roader that absolutely begs to get dirty.
Ford Ranger
Jeep Gladiator
Continue reading: Driving
Driving
What is it like to drive?
The 2.7-liter turbo engine is the best thing about the Colorado. It’s quiet, smooth, powerful, and nicely matched with the eight-speed automatic transmission. Our Trail Boss test truck has the middle engine tune, with 310hp and 390lb ft of torque, and that’s plenty. In the city and on the highway, this truck accelerates with authority and has no shortage of mid-range passing power. You might scoff at the fact that the Colorado no longer comes with a V6, but don’t – this 2.7T engine is a star.
Overall, driving the Colorado is a nice experience. The steering is better than you’d expect for a pickup truck, with decent weight to its action, and the brakes are strong and keep the pickup surefooted – even when you need to come to a halt quickly. Does the Colorado waft about in corners? Of course, it’s a body-on-frame pickup. But at the same time, the Colorado doesn’t have the choppy on-road ride that’s common for trucks of this type. It’s much better sorted than a Ford Ranger, Jeep Gladiator, or Nissan Frontier.
The Trail Boss package is a boon for both on- and off-road driving. Those meatier tires with higher sidewalls and the one-inch suspension lift all make this truck cushy-comfy on the highway, and the benefits for off-roading are obvious – you don’t want street tires on the dirt, after all.
How’s the fuel economy?
Ehh, it’s alright. Nothing to write home about, really. According to the EPA, the best this truck’ll do is 20mpg city, 25mpg highway, and 22mpg combined. No, that’s not horrible as far as mid-size trucks go, but it’s also likely a range of specs you won’t see most of the time. With all-terrain tires and four-wheel drive, the Colorado’s fuel economy lowers to 17mpg city, 19mpg highway, and 18mpg combined. The ZR2? 16mpg across the board. Yeesh.
Unfortunately, there aren’t any electrified options on the horizon for Chevy’s Colorado, and the old Duramax diesel engine option was killed off. Still, it’s cool that Chevy manages to get three different outputs of the same engine, which makes it easy for the company to offer different power levels across multiple trim levels.
Are there driver-assistance features?
A few – but if that’s a priority, the Chevy Colorado isn’t the best buy. The only standard safety technologies are forward-collision warning, lane-keep assist, and lane-departure warning. A surround-view camera, rear pedestrian alert, rear parking assist, rear cross-traffic braking, and blind-spot monitoring are all optional – yes, even on the most expensive Z71 and ZR2 trims. Want adaptive cruise control? That isn’t offered on any Colorado. Come on.
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Continue reading: Interior
Interior
What is it like on the inside?
Honestly, that depends on the model. The Trail Boss we drove is… well, not great. Based on the Work Truck spec, this Colorado is awash in cheap plastics and drab design, and the whole thing has a ‘don’t be gentle, it’s a rental’ vibe. No telescoping steering wheel, power seats cost extra, yet this is still a $41,000 truck. No way.
On the other hand, more expensive Colorado trims aren’t bad. The material quality gets better the more money you shell out, and you can add niceties like leather upholstery, heated seats, a full-width digital gauge cluster – the lot.
The Colorado Crew Cab has seating for five passengers, and while the rear bench isn’t super spacious, it’s not bad. Adults won’t have trouble fitting back here, and there’s enough space on the seats or floor to carry things you don’t want to risk getting dirty in the bed.
How’s the tech?
Honestly, this kind of saves the interior. Every Colorado comes with the same high-res infotainment system, and Chevy’s multimedia suite is super simple to use. You can connect Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but even if you choose to run the native infotainment system, the menu structure is easy to learn, the system responds quickly to inputs, and the graphics are colorful and bright. Our one nitpick: the headlight controls are in the touchscreen. Why would anyone do this?
How much stuff can I haul?
That depends on the model, pal. In terms of sheer payload, the Work Truck and LT specs are the most capable, rated to haul 1,684 pounds. The Trail Boss and Z71 lower that number to 1,587 and the ZR2 takes things another step down, to 1,151.
Happily, there are several tie-down hooks to help you secure objects in the bed, and a spray-in bedliner will keep you from damaging your sheetmetal. That said, the Colorado doesn’t have any fancy tailgate tricks like the larger Silverado, so you’ll have to do things the old fashioned way here.
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Continue reading: Buying
Buying
What should I be paying?
The Chevy Colorado starts at $32,190, including a $1,495 destination charge, and goes as high as $49,790. The base number gets you the Work Truck, which as discussed, is kind of a stripper model, but shelling out close to $50,000 lands you the mega-off-road-capable ZR2.
In the grand scope of mid-size pickup trucks, the Colorado is competitively priced, but the fact that you have to step up to higher trim levels to get basic features like HID headlights and a steering wheel that doesn’t feel like it’s wrapped in lousy-ass urethane is kind of annoying. Even a smaller Ford Maverick comes with many of these convenience features standard.
So which Colorado should I get?
If you aren’t going to off-road this thing, we’ve got to recommend the Z71, which starts at $42,890 including destination. This one has the best loadout of features but is still relatively affordable – as in, the super-sparse Trail Boss we tested costs about the same price, but isn’t half as nice inside. Sure, the Trail Boss gets you some nice off-road upgrades, but the Z71 will be just about all most people need, and you can get it with good engine, towing, and payload combinations.
Want to have a good time off road? Shell out for the ZR2. The Multimatic shocks alone make this trim level worth the nearly $50,000 starting price, since the ZR2 will embarrass just about anything else shy of a Ford F-150 Raptor out on dusty trails. Chevy really did a heck of a job with this one. Here’s hoping the company zhuzhes up the less-expensive Colorado trims.
Originally applied to two-door hardtop coupe and convertible versions of Chevrolet’s Bel Air in 1958, the Impala name was subsequently used in its own right to signify a top-of-the-range luxury trim level rather than a separate and distinct body style. Marketed as ‘All New, All Over Again,’ Chevrolets exhibited a ...
