Chevrolet Colorado ZR2, The Little Truck With Big Off-Road Capabilites

An Off-Road Beast

Colorado ZR2

The Chevrolet Colorado is one of only two home-grown mid-size pickup trucks. The other one is also a GM and on the same platform.
Winning “Best Compact Truck for the Money” in the 2016 U.S. News Best Cars Awards. It also won the 10 best resale value in the 2015, it already has a few achievements.
Kelley Blue Book Awards. Chevy has now decided to beef up the truck and make it a worthy off-roader. This version is called the Colorado ZR2.

Th ZR2 will have a wider track and lifted suspension. “Functional rockers have been added for better performance over rocks and obstacles, and the front and rear bumpers have been modified for better off-road clearance.”

The wider stance makes this little truck appear mean and aggressive. You can just hear it saying, “I may be little, but don’t mess with me”.

Not only does it look like the part, the parts are a steep upgrade to help those steep rock climbs. It wouldn’t take much to be class-exclusive in this segment
but Chevy have turned up the off-road game with Multimatic Dynamic Suspensions Spool Valve (DSSVTM) damper technology.

Multimatic Dynamic Suspension Spool Valve Damper

This setup has previously been used in Formula 1 racing and the 2014 Camaro Z/28.
“A traditional, deflected-disc damper only offers two force-velocity curves for tuning,” Dickens said. “The ZR2 dampers offer six tuning curves for the front, four at the rear. For the driver, this translates to greater confidence and control in a wider range of driving experiences.”
For more information on how this system works check here.

Colorado ZR2Features

What other features help the Chevy Colorado ZR2 make it a rock crawling, sand dune blasting, highway commuting pick up?

-Steel tube functional rocker protectors, ” strong enough to protect the body side while dragging the truck against a rock face” say Chevrolet.
-17×8 Aluminum wheel with Goodyear Duratrac off-road tires
-cast iron control arms for durability
-bed mounted spare tire carrier
-electronic front and rear locking differentials makes for 9 different configurations
2WD
2WD, locked rear differential
Auto 4WD
Auto 4WD, locked rear differential
4WD Hi, locked transfer case
4WD Hi, locked transfer case and locked rear differential
4WD Lo, locked transfer case
4WD Lo, locked transfer case and locked rear differential
4WD Lo, locked transfer case, locked front and rear differentials
-traction control
-stability control
-hill-descent control
-Off-road mode
–available in 3.6 V6 gas engine or Duramax 2.8 turbo diesel engine

It’s worth mentioning the diesel engine puts out 369lb-ft of torque, which is over 100lbs more than Tacoma TRD Pro v6.

The Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 will be available Spring 2017 and prices start at $40,995 MSRP.