Big, Brawny and Off-road Ready

Minivans are the jacks of all trades of the automotive industry, transforming from people hauler to cargo transport with the sliding, folding or removing of second- and third-row seats. But today’s pickup trucks, with their luxury-style cabins and adaptive suspensions, along with their cargo beds are almost more useful when the payload goes from mulch bags to two by fours.

The 2024 Chevrolet Silverado carries the second place crown in sales to the Ford F-150, but has just as impressive selection of engines, transmissions and features. Like the rest of the segment, the Silverado 1500 had become bulkier and brawnier as the years went on, with the hood now sitting at shoulder height to an average American citizen.

And that puts the driver even higher, giving them a commanding view of the road, except for the 10 feet in front of the wheels, along with the power and capability to roll over all of it.

As tested, the off-road focused ZR2 model adds a 2-inch lifted suspension, and the steel front bumper is redesigned to allow the 31.8-degree approach angle. Red recovery hooks, unique skid plates, 33-inch mud-terrain tires, a steel rear bumper, and hidden exhaust outlets are also standard. This one had no running boards to step on, so it was hard to get into, specifically for kids in the backseat.

For 2024, the Silverado offers a 310-horsepower (hp) four-cylinder, two V8s making 355 hp and 420 hp, and the one tested here, a 3.0-liter turbocharged diesel six-cylinder making 305 hp but 495 pound-feet (lb-ft) of torque. The 5.3-liter V8 has the biggest payload of 2,180 pounds but the diesel can tow 13,300 pounds, 2,000 more than the V8 gasoline engine.

The diesel is quiet on idle, but there’s still no way to get rid of the smoky smell. It also takes a few seconds to start in frozen temperatures as the plugs need to heat up on diesel engine. Power is expectedly prodigious but like the last Silverado with the ten-speed automatic transmission, when the pedal is pushed three-quarters of the way it just speeds through gears with the tachometer bouncing between 2,500 and 3,000 rpms.

The suspension is bouncy, but again, that’s expected for a truck. It’s impervious to most weather and road surfaces, easily soaking up muddy dirt roads and slippery wet grass in Michigan. The crew cab with the smaller bed was fine for transporting pallets, of which a dozen fit without issue. There are also multiple hooks in the bed to tie down the load.

A 7-inch infotainment system is standard on the less expensive models like the Silverado 1500 WT, Custom, and Custom Trail Boss models, while an eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system is standard on the rest. Satellite radio, OnStar with 4G LTE Wi-Fi, a seven-speaker Bose premium audio system and navigation are available, standard on the ZR2.

Wireless charging Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard and the control screen sit within the infotainment screen to allow for the native Chevy function. It has physical knobs for climate and volume.

The rear seat area is huge and flat, which leaves a lot of space for three adults, however, the seatbelts are still hard to get to with one hand, and my kids had trouble making it work.

Chevy Safety Assist is standard with automatic emergency braking, front pedestrian braking, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, following distance indicator, forward collision alert and automatic high beams. Upper level trims of the Silverado now offers GM’s Super Cruise hands-free driving system for $2,200 and it is available on the ZR2.

The 2024 Chevy Silverado ZR2, starting at $69,900, isn’t a direct competitor to the desert-stomping, mound jumping Ford F-150 Raptor and Ram TRX. It’s more a competitor to Ford’s F-150 Tremor trim, which comes with the same sorts of heavy-duty off-road equipment. That has a base price of $61,330. Ram’s closest competitor besides the $90,000-plus TRX is the Rebel, which comes in at $59,595.

Truck buyers are a loyal bunch, especially those that shop with the Detroit Three automakers. The ZR2 and Tremor are tailormade for off-road shenanigans, but the Ram is nearly is good in those situations, and has a better ride and cabin to boot. All offer diesel options, if massive towing is required, but even without stinky engine, any of the three provide more capability than 95 percent of average customers need. Only time will tell if this will be the Chevy to get conquest sales from Ford and Ram.