2015 Chevrolet Colorado Review

If you look close enough, the surge of crossovers can also be blamed for the near-extinction of small pickup trucks. As gas got more expensive and crossovers became more popular, consumers realized that they could get similar utility with better fuel economy and quality… and without the pickup truck stigma.

Over the last decade, automakers have either dropped their small and mid-size trucks or just let them flail in obscurity. The problem is that as multifaceted as a crossover can be, in the right situation, there is just no replacement for a cargo bed. But on the opposite end of that coin, modern full-size trucks have grown to gargantuan dimensions (and price points) in recent years, which would make a new breed of mid-size pickups even better.

The good news for buyers is that the floodgates are about to open in the mid-size truck market and that all began late last year with the introduction of the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado and 2015 GMC Canyon. It’s commendable the work that Toyota and Nissan have done to keep their aging small trucks relevant mainly through the use of styling and off-road performance packages, but GM’s truck duo has set the tone for this market moving forward.

As fate would have it, I recently had the chance to spend time with both versions of this truck: a two-wheel-drive 2015 GMC Canyon SLT Crew Cab with a long cargo box and a four-wheel-drive 2015 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 Crew Cab with a short box.

And the new Colorado and Canyon continue this trend. Not too long ago, the vehicles shared between Chevy and GMC were only separated by minor changes such as grilles, headlights and badges, but now the differences are quite extensive.

The same goes for the global Colorado, which is almost different enough from the North American model (including the frame) to be considered completely different than its overseas relative that has been available in some markets since 2012.

Generally speaking, the Canyon is my favorite of the two trucks when it comes to design with its mini-Sierra appearance, but the Colorado really grew on me after a week especially with the Z71 package. This trim level added a darker grille, 17-inch wheels with all-terrain tires and the required “Z71” stickers and badges.

Despite their differences in appearance, the Canyon and Colorado share many of the same conveniences that make truck life easy. Carried over from the full-size trucks, all Colorados and Canyons come with the helpful CornerStep rear bumper Integrated bumper steps, and available options include the EZ Lift-and-Lower tailgate and an available factory spray-in bed liner.

Even though these trucks are smaller than a full-size, they are far from small. The Canyon I drove took a couple tries to get it in my garage thanks to its long bed configuration while the short box of the Colorado put this Crew Cab truck in my garage with no problem. If space is tight, that extra foot of bed space sure makes a big difference. While the shorter Colorado proved to be better in garages, the size of the raised-up Colorado Z71 was evident while driving around. For starters, park it next to an older S-10 or even the preceding Colorado and it will cast a shadow over it, but more telling was the fact that it stood nose to nose with a GMT900 (2000-2006) Chevy Tahoe.

The Z71 4x4 has plenty of ground clearance for off-road driving, but with that comes an extremely tall step-in height – I measured 22 inches from the ground to the outer edge of the door sill. A few passengers commented on this, but it isn’t something a set of running boards wouldn’t fix. Actually, Chevrolet offers a cool set of side steps for the Colorado in addition to a wide number of accessories that include the innovative GearOn cargo management system. This includes racks (for ladders, bikes and kayaks), cargo dividers, a bed-mounted tent and many more.

Going along with its tall ride height, the Colorado has an understandably tall seating position that gives drivers a commanding view of the road. Even compared to a Tacoma, the Colorado and Canyon feel much larger than is to be expected in this segment with an airy and spacious cabin with plenty of room for five adults.

Again, my time was spent with the Crew Cab version of both trucks. In the Colorado Z71, the interior has exclusive color and trim details, including embossed seatbacks and contrast stitching, as well as a mix of “sport cloth” and leatherette materials that offer a good balance between the money paid for this truck and the rugged capabilities it will be expected to endure.

My favorite part about the Colorado’s interior was the toggle switch controls in the center stack and the now-universal rubberized steering wheel controls. As focused as GM obviously was on adding extra utility to these trucks, the rear under seat storage area is abysmal. The seat bottom folds up exposing some, but not very much, hidden storage space, and, for some reason, the seat backs also fold down. If you really want to pack this truck with gear, it will take some effort.

These trucks, especially in higher trims, do boast plenty of technology. As tested, both the Colorado Z71 and the Canyon SLT came with the companies’ respective infotainment systems (Chevrolet MyLink and GMC IntelliLink), while the Canyon came with the optional Driver Alert Package that includes features like lane departure warning and forward collision alert.

Both the Colorado and Canyon come standard with OnStar and 4G LTE that provides a wireless hotspot, but this system proved to be very timely as my neighborhood was hit by a strong storm that knocked out power for almost 12 hours. With the truck in the garage, I was able to use the truck’s internet to on a tablet while my cell phone was charging in one of the numerous USB ports. You have to be fairly close (about 30 feet or so) to the truck in order to use its internet, but it is an extremely helpful feature. Even if it’s not during power outages.
However, the design of the interior and the materials used were a bit disappointing with a look and feel more familiar with a GM interior from the early 2000s.

This seems to be the one area where GM may have cut corners to keep costs down as there is a lot of hard plastic just about everywhere, and that shift lever looks like it was carried over from the old Chevy Trailblazer. Such trim is to be expected on value-minded base model trucks, but the Colorado and Canyon models I drove were about as loaded up as each respective truck could get.

Unless you’re looking for said cheapo version of the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado as possible (which many fleet companies will do), just skip right past the standard four-cylinder engine. To be fair, I have not had the opportunity to drive a Canyon or Colorado with this engine, but the fuel economy and price advantage for the base engine are minimal and the power and towing penalties are quite large. Rated at 305 hp and 269 lb-ft (365 Nm) of torque, the optional 3.6-liter direct-injected V-6 is the way to go.

The big downside of the powertrain is that the only way to get a manual gearbox is to opt for a two-wheel-drive, extended-cab model, which is too bad because, like the interior, the six-speed automatic that comes standard on most models feels outdated. Shifts were a bit sluggish, and once in a gear, it felt like a short-shift. This was no doubt an attempt at improving fuel economy, which paid off.

In V-6 4x4 form, the Colorado is rated at 17 mpg (13.84 l/100km) city and 24 mpg (9.8 l/100km) highway – just a 2 mpg city and 1 mpg highway penalty from the best 4x4 four-banger. During my week with the Colorado Z71, I managed to get 18.1 mpg (13 l/100km), which included combined driving in city, highway and a couple off-road excursions. Equally impressive is that the V-6 has an output that beats the base 2.5-liter inline-four by 105 hp and 78 lb-ft of torque. Of course, if you want even more torque and better fuel economy, a diesel engine is coming for the 2016 model year.

For truck buyers really looking to put their Colorado to work, the V6 can deliver a towing capacity of up to 7,000 pounds (3,175 kg), when properly equipped. Now, you’re not going to be able to haul a race team, but it will get the job done for just about anything for a small business or weekend thrill seeker from utility trailers and car haulers to boats and pop-up campers. And that’s not to mention the 1,590-pound (721 kg) payload that is more than enough for a couple dirt bikes and lots of gear.

Being a Z71 trim, my first priority was seeing how this 2015 Chevrolet Colorado did in its natural environment. This package comes standard with a locking rear differential, hill descent control and all-terrain tires, and there’s a rotary knob to the left of the steering column that easily controls the transfer case modes.

In action, the Colorado’s suspension has decent flex, the brakes work excellently when caked with mud and water and the abundant ground clearance means that you don’t hear many scrapes or thuds when going over challenging terrain. The electric power steering worked great, too, although it results in a rather disappointing turning radius.

My biggest issue with the off-road capabilities on this truck was the front air dam that scrapes on just about everything. Fortunately, even an afternoon of rugged off-road driving didn’t cause any major damage to the large piece of plastic, but it still seems like something that should have been left off of an off-road-ready trim level.

Still, after a week of driving the Colorado Z71 including a good amount of time off-road, it’s clear that this is a highly capable truck and that you’ll have to look at more expensive options like the Tacoma TRD Pro, Ram Power Wagon or Ford Raptor to find a one that is better in off-road driving.

That being said, judging by the abundance of clean, scratch-free Raptors and Wranglers riding on 22-inch wheels running around these days, there’s a pretty good chance that most buyers looking at the Colorado Z71 probably won’t even take the truck off-road. And that’s where the ride quality of the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado really shines. Showing that GM has learned a lot from its latest generation of full-size trucks and SUVs, the Colorado’s cabin is whisper quiet at highway speeds with an amazing smooth ride over rough pavement and expansion joints.

The wide, flat hood fluttered excessively on the interstate, and it did so to the point that I had to pull over to make sure that the hood was securely latched (it was). Oddly enough, I did not have the same problem with the Canyon.

The 2015 Chevrolet Colorado has a starting price of $20,120, and the GMC is about $800 more. Both of the test units I had were well-equipped and the as-tested price came within just $300 of each other with the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 shown here carrying an as-tested price of $36,710. That might seem like a lot of money for a “small” truck until you see that it doesn’t take much option checking to get a full-size truck – or even a mid-size crossover, for that matter – to quickly top the $40,000 mark.

As a whole, the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado is far from perfect, but being the first new offering in this segment in almost a decade, it didn’t have to be. Of course, the true test will be when the next generation of mid-size truck competitors starts hitting the market including the 2016 Toyota Tacoma, a redesigned and more truck-like Honda Ridgeline and a Ram-badged successor to the Dodge Dakota.

Minivans are still clinging to life and station wagons had a short-lived mini-renaissance here in the U.S., so it will be interesting to see how well the new breed of mid-size trucks does against the ever-increasing popularity of the crossover. The good news is that the Colorado’s size offers a good balance of the spacious interior and capable towing abilities of a larger full-size pickup with decent fuel economy and the easy maneuverability of a smaller truck.