The verdict: A really solid redesign makes the 2023 Chevrolet Colorado a categorically better truck than ever, with only a couple of caveats.
Versus the competition: The Colorado has become the freshest truck in the mid-size class, with better power, tech, styling, features and handling than anything else on the market — for now.
It has to be frustrating for Chevrolet to know that it makes a better mid-size pickup truck than Toyota — and has for several years — but the venerable Tacoma still reigns supreme as king of the mid-sizers when it comes to annual sales — especially in the influential California market, where Tacomas are everywhere, it’s like a cult. Well, Chevrolet has fired its latest salvo in an attempt to dethrone the Tacoma by launching the new 2023 Chevrolet Colorado mid-size pickup in the heart of San Diego. On paper, the redesigned Colorado has the numbers to blow the Tacoma away and mount a very serious challenge to the aging Ford Ranger and compromised Nissan Frontier as the top choice for the mid-size pickup category. But have the radical restyle and high-power engines delivered the necessary punch?
Related: 2023 Chevrolet Colorado Comes in 3 Off-Road Flavors
The new 2023 Colorado mixes up the trim levels a bit and is now available in five fun flavors: Work Truck (WT), LT, Z71, the new Trail Boss off-roader and the range-topping ZR2. I drove four of these trims over two days in San Diego (the ZR2 is not quite ready for its debut yet) and came away with some opinions on what Chevy hath wrought with its engineering efforts (per Cars.com’s ethics policy, we pay for travel and lodging when attending such manufacturer-sponsored events).
Basic Doesn’t Mean Primitive
The related and redesigned 2023 GMC Canyon tacks a bit upmarket, so the Colorado spans the range from workhorse to packhorse. Starting things off at the entry level is the WT, which has a $30,695 starting price (all prices include destination). The WT gets you a new turbocharged 2.7-liter four-cylinder engine making 237 horsepower and 259 pounds-feet of torque — much better numbers than the outgoing Colorado’s wheezy base 2.5-liter four-cylinder that made 200 hp and 191 pounds-feet of torque. You also get two more transmission gears to play with, as an eight-speed automatic is standard; part-time four-wheel drive is optional. Both the optional turbo-diesel four-cylinder and V-6 engines from the 2022 model year are no more.
Out on the street, the new Colorado impresses even in its most basic trim. It shows that Chevrolet truck engineers know their stuff and that the inherent goodness of the bigger Silverado 1500 isn’t a fluke — dynamically, GM makes some of the best pickups on the market. The Colorado’s steering quality is excellent, with a tight, controlled feel and excellent feedback. The brakes are strong, firm and progressive; they feel like they could easily bring the truck to a halt even if it was loaded to the maximum payload. Ride quality and body control are also good — a bit bouncy, but this is a work truck, and it’s meant to be rugged and durable. If you want something that rides like a crossover or a minivan, the Honda Ridgeline is right over there.
The Colorado’s new interior is at its least equipped in the WT trim, and it shows. Hard plastic is everywhere; soft-touch skins are nowhere to be found. Cost-cutting is also evident in only one stalk on the tilting-but-not-telescoping steering column, and it serves as turn signals, windshield wiper controls and high beams. And where the heck are the headlight switches? Yep, they’re gone; headlight controls have been moved to an icon in the multimedia system.
But in exchange for these cuts, you get some surprising content, including a standard 8-inch digital gauge cluster behind the steering wheel and, perhaps most extraordinary, a bright 11.3-inch touchscreen running Google Built-In even in the base WT. That system has navigation functionality, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the ability to run a bunch of apps. You also get things like keyless entry, remote start and a rearview camera with hitch guidance. You can specify power seats, adaptive cruise control, and a bunch of safety warning and control systems — even on the WT. It might be cheap and cheerful, but the WT is surprisingly well equipped and civilized.
The interior is also pretty comfortable, featuring far more headroom and seat adjustability than you’ll find in a Tacoma. Front-seat occupants will find plenty of room, as well, but rear-seat passengers will be surprised to find that despite a 3.1-inch increase in wheelbase for the new Colorado, their legroom has actually shrunk by an inch. Where’d all the extra length go? It certainly didn’t find its way into the cabin.
The High-Volume LT and Fancy Z71
The next trim up the rung is the one most people will buy, according to Chevy: the volume-leading LT. And that’s because it offers the greatest range of options, packages and specifications to tailor a truck to be either just slightly nicer than a WT or nearly as nice as the luxe Z71. The base engine is still the turbo 2.7-liter, but the truck I drove had the optional Turbo Plus engine, making a very healthy 310 hp and 390 pounds-feet of torque; this engine can also be specced in the WT, and it’s standard in the Z71 and Trail Boss trims. It’s mated to an eight-speed automatic, but a beefier one than the base engine’s to handle the increased power and torque.
There’s a big price range for the LT, which starts at around $33,000 and ranges up to more than $46,000, but it does come with a slightly nicer interior. The hard plastic has been covered by faux leather vinyl with artificial stitching and some color to the trim panels. You can get faux leather seats, too, and the telescoping steering column has returned.
But the most obvious difference is performance-related: The much more powerful Turbo Plus engine makes for noticeably quicker acceleration, accompanied by more growl and slightly less Dustbuster noise thanks to several under-hood components that feature noise-insulating wrappers. Plant your foot, and you can scoot past a lot of traffic with ease. Chevy told us that the trucks can hit 60 mph in the seven-second range, which is damned quick for any pickup truck and handily spanks the Tacoma. The downside of this higher-output engine seems to be a rougher idle; we noticed considerable vibration when sitting at traffic lights and even some slight surging in the digital tachometer.
But if you want the nicest Colorado you can buy, that’s going to be the Z71 (for now). Even more wrapped interior components with contrast stitching, some nice faux-leather-and-cloth upholstery, and nicer dash and door trim make it a more welcoming place. As with the Trail Boss, the mid-level 2.7-liter Turbo Plus engine is standard, as is 4WD. Also like the Trail Boss, 18-inch wheels with all-terrain tires are standard; 20-inchers are optional.
Getting Dirty in the Trail Boss
While the on-road trims encompass the WT and LT, you start getting into purposeful off-road abilities with the three remaining trims: the entry-level Trail Boss, the nicer Z71 and the super-capable ZR2, which we didn’t drive at this event but will be coming in a few months. The Trail Boss appears for the first time in the Colorado lineup, having previously been only in the larger Silverado lineup. Here, it’s based on the WT trim, featuring the same hard-plastic interior and no-telescoping steering wheel. But you do get standard 4WD, a 2-inch suspension lift and the Turbo Plus engine with its standard V-8 power. You also get 18-inch wheels shod in Goodyear Wrangler Territory all-terrain tires; 20-inch wheels wearing Bridgestone Dueler all-terrain tires are optional.
You’ll want to stick with the 18-inch tires if you plan on doing any off-roading. The 20-inchers are bouncy, stiff and make off-roading unpleasant; they’re really just for looks. The 18-inch wheels smooth things out considerably both off- and on-road. A host of off-road software comes with the trim, as do several drive modes including Off-Road and Terrain, the latter of which also engages hill descent control. Up to 10 camera views are also available with an options package, including an underbody camera with a washer nozzle for when you get muddy.
An Impressive Update
Overall, I’ve come away very impressed with the new Colorado. The last model was a better truck than the ubiquitous (and painfully aged) Toyota Tacoma; the new one is vastly better, from its powertrain performance to its interior comfort and technology to its ride, handling, braking — all of it. The early production test trucks we drove were even completely squeak- and rattle-free; here’s hoping that all production versions of the trucks are the same. They even represent a decent value, too, with starting prices right around $30,000, with well-equipped examples going for less than $40,000.
Chevy offers a variety of trim levels to best suit your application, from on-road workhorse to off-road packhorse. Any mid-size truck intender owes themselves a test drive of Chevy’s new Colorado before returning to the Toyota dealer to look at the largely unchanged Tacoma. Give yourself a chance at a better truck.
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