Chevrolet Colorado

Chevrolet redesigned the midsized Colorado pickup truck and its twin, the GMC Canyon, for the 2023 model year, focusing on adding modern conveniences, expanding off-road trim levels and capability, and reducing powertrain variations.

While we’re pleased to see more midsized pickup trucks on the market—not everyone needs a gargantuan Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Ford F-150, or Ram 1500—we’re a touch surprised that Chevrolet reduced the number of variations for the Colorado. For example, there’s just a single body style—a four-door crew cab with a short bed (no more single cab or long-bed models). Also cast aside are V6 and diesel engines. In their place is a turbocharged four-cylinder.

Overall, the new Colorado brings a number of welcome improvements compared with its predecessor. It’s quicker, handles better, and is more comfortable and fuel-efficient. The front seat and driving position are significantly improved with better posture and more range of adjustability than in the previous generation.

But Chevrolet still missed a few details. For example, the four-cylinder engine suffers from unrefined vibrations at lower revs and sounds uncultured. And rear seat space is very limited, especially for adult-sized bodies.

We bought a Chevrolet Colorado LT 4WD—anonymously from an area dealer, as we do with every vehicle we test—for the purpose of this road test review.

For 2025, the “TurboMax” engine is standard with 310 hp. It packs a healthy midrange punch, but we found that you have to press the gas pedal farther than normal to access that power. When you do, it can gallop from 0 to 60 mph in 6.9 seconds, which is quick for a midsized pickup, though the engine sounds rather raspy when it’s pushed hard. The Colorado’s 19 mpg overall is better than some competitors, however when you consider that the full-sized Ford F-150—equipped with a 2.7-liter turbocharged V6—gets the same fuel economy, the smaller truck’s feat isn’t so mighty.

Handling is competent for a truck, aided by prompt steering response and low body roll. The suspension keeps the Colorado tracking predictably through turns even on rough surfaces. We were also pleasantly surprised at how well the Colorado acquitted itself in our avoidance maneuver and track handling evaluations. We like that four-wheel-drive versions have an Auto setting that allows 4WD to be on standby mode without any other action from the driver, a major advantage on slippery roads. Unlike most competitors, the Colorado absorbs bumps in a palatable way, rather than being overly stiff and choppy.

As far as truck duties go, maximum towing is a generous 7,700 pounds and payload capacity is 1,620 pounds. A built-in step in the rear bumper eases access to the bed. If you’re thinking about venturing off road, the tough looking Trail Boss model features a two-inch factory-installed lift kit, low-range gearing, and beefy all-terrain tires.

The front seat and driving position have been improved, with more adjustability than in the previous generation, although overall comfort is merely average. As is the case with many smaller trucks, the rear seat is quite cramped, with limited headroom and knee room and a very upright seatback. But we gave the noise levels—especially coming from the unrefined turbo four-cylinder —a resounding thumbs-down; the engine’s raspy character makes riding in the truck more tedious. The cabin of our tested second-tier (out of five trims) LT model isn’t luxurious, and comes across more like a working appliance than luxurious. Overall, it’s functional over fancy.

Most of the controls are easy to use, but there are a few quirks, such as having to interact with the center infotainment screen just to reset the trip computer. We also found it puzzling that the Colorado places the wiper controls on a stalk on the left of the steering column, rather than the right, as is common. Because of this setup, it's too easy to mistakenly activate the windshield-wiper mist-clearing or spray functions when using the turn signal. And Chevrolet’s decision to make users access the center infotainment screen to adjust the automatic high beams or turn on the fog lamps baffles us.

All Colorados are equipped with Chevy Safety Assist, which includes forward collision warning, city and highway speed automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane keeping assistance, lane departure warning, and automatic high beams. For 2025, blind spot warning and rear cross traffic warning became standard.  Reverse automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection and adaptive cruise control can also be added. Unfortunately, General Motors’ excellent Super Cruise hands-free active driving assistance feature isn’t offered on the Colorado.