The All-new Chevrolet Colorado Pick-up 2012 Cars Philippines

Words by Christopher Kho | Photos courtesy of General Motors

 

After spending five years and over US$ 2 billion in development, Chevrolet rolls out its “toughest, highest-performing, and most-refined midsize pickup truck EVER.” The all-new Colorado made its recent debut in Thailand and is set to break new ground in Chevrolet's 100-year history. Jam-packed with even more technology and features you could ever want, it’s built to conquer over 60 countries in five continents. 

 

The Colorado certainly looks like a real big American brute, especially with the bow-tie brand's dual-port grill. It's adorned all over with chrome accents and fitted with dual projector headlamps and LED tail lamps. Inside, the amenities reflect the creature comforts of a sedan, yet it maintains the versatility expected of a pickup truck. It boasts up to 30 storage locations for the crew cab version and claims to have the segment's best front and rear shoulder room, headroom, and seat height.

 

Built on GM's global rear-drive midsize truck architecture, the new Colorado benefits from two levels of chassis and suspension tuning which should find a good compromise between ride and handling characteristics. It, too, is equally adept in both hauling and towing capabilities with the aid of the new two-speed four-wheel-drive system.

 

A new family of four-cylinder turbo-diesel Duramax engines resides under its hood. Leading the pack is a 2.8Lversion with a variable-geometry turbo with 180 horsepower and 470 Nm of torque and is available with a Hydra-Matic six-speed automatic transmission. There's also a smaller, but just as versatile, 2.5L unit that's rated at 150 horsepower and 350 Nm of torque. 

 

No official release dates have been announced yet for the Colorado's arrival in the Philippines, but we reckon that the crew-cab version should come in first before the single and extended cab does. And whether Chevy's best bet at the pick up showdown can beat the Ford Ranger and the upcoming Isuzu D-Max is still as good as anyone's guess.

 

Anyone hoping for a return to a truly compact pickup will be disappointed. The 2013 Chevrolet Colorado is still very much a midsizer, as many of its dimensions are marginally bigger than the previous model. The overall length of our extended-cab tester measures 210.5 inches, or about 3 inches longer than a current extended cab. It's also significantly wider at 74.1 inches, although some of that is owed to the flares that come on the Z71 model. The only noticeably smaller measurement is the wheelbase, which measures just 121.9 inches versus the current truck's 126-inch wheelbase.

Interior room doesn't feel all that compromised even though front legroom is down by 2 inches. There are no official figures on the rear-seat space, as there aren't any real seats. Expect to see a slightly different setup in the U. S. version that features at least some kind of jump seat.

In terms of perceived quality, the 2013 Chevrolet Colorado doesn't genuinely represent a huge step forward. Although the interior feels well bolted together, it's still filled with hard and tacky plastics. Fine for a base truck maybe, but we expected a little more from a loaded LTZ.

Diesel Only for This Market
In terms of engines, the Asian-market Colorado isn't likely to share much with the U.S.-bound version. There are only two options available outside the U.S., both of them four-cylinder Duramax diesels.

The base engine displaces 2.5 liters and generates 150 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. Then there's an optional 2.8-liter version of the same engine rated at 180 hp and 346 lb-ft of torque. In addition to the extra power, the 2.8-liter engine also gets a new six-speed automatic transmission. A five-speed manual is the only other transmission offered, in this market at least.

Compared with the first-gen Colorado, the new truck's power is impressive. There's more than enough punch in real-world driving, be it under acceleration from a standstill or when overtaking others on the highway. It's not overwhelming power, though, certainly not the kind of kick you might expect from a midsize truck with 346 lb-ft of torque on tap. According to Chevrolet engineers, the final-drive ratio could have been geared more toward performance, but they feared it would have backfired when it came to fuel economy.

Regulations in Thailand don't require fuel economy numbers, so there's no word yet on how efficient the new engines are on the road. There's no talk of using them in the U.S. trucks yet, so don't get your hopes up.

A More Refined Colorado
Not surprisingly, the 2013 Chevrolet Colorado shows a noticeable improvement in driving dynamics. GM spent roughly $2B on the development of the Colorado's new body-on-frame platform, so considerable research and development time went into getting it just right.

Handling is much better than before, thanks to a stiffer body, more direct steering and wider tracks front and rear. There's less bounce, too, even though it still uses a traditional leaf spring setup in back. As refined as it has become, the majority of users in this market still expect it to function as a proper work truck, so Chevrolet could only go so far when it came to balancing ride quality and capability.

Like any truck with a stiff rear end, grip can be lacking on less tractable roads or when you get aggressive with the gas pedal. Electronic traction and stability control rein it in for the most part, though, so it's not much of an issue.

FOR MORE INQUIRY PLEASE CONTACT:

ANGEL CUNDANGAN

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EMAIL: angel.cundangan@yahoo.com

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