LIGHT-DUTY TRUCK IS REDESIGNED FROM GROUND UP
Latest pickup revamp is lighter, stronger with a variety of engine options available
JACKSON HOLE, WYO. Chevrolet will hit the full-size pickup market running in 2019 with the all-new Silverado. Not only has the lightduty truck been redesigned from the ground up, the automaker has shuffled around the trim levels for 2019, dropping the LS model and introducing three new variations to bring the total to eight. You’ll also have a choice of six engines and three transmissions.
To make the buyer’s selection process a bit easier, the trucks are broken down into three main categories: high value, high volume, and high features. The highvalue trucks include the Work Truck, Custom and Custom Trail Boss; the high-volume models include the LT, LT Trail Boss and RST, and the high-feature models are the LTZ and High Country. The new-for-2019 trims are the RST, which is a variation of the LT but with full LED lighting and body-colour trim instead of chrome, and the two Trail
Boss models, which include a two-inch suspension lift, and the Z71 off-road package that adds Rancho off-road shocks, a locking rear differential, skid plates and 18-inch Goodyear Duratrac tires.
The front end looks taller and more muscular; muscle-car enthusiasts might recognize the Camaro-like air curtains at the sides of the grille, which reduce aerodynamic drag. The fender bulges are integrated more smoothly into the body for a less boxy appearance.
Chevy claims Silverados now have the biggest pickup beds on the market. The inside of the bed has been widened by 178 millimetres, which has added between 283 and 396 litres of cargo space, depending on the bed length.
To reduce weight, the doors, hood and tailgate are made of aluminum, so the Silverado has lost up to 204 kilograms.
Base engines will vary, depending on the model. Returning in high-value models are the 4.3-L V6 and optional 5.3-L V8 engines, both mated to six-speed automatic transmissions. These engines use active fuel management (AFM) for cylinder deactivation, which always shuts down the same cylinders during light-load conditions. However, there’s a new version of the 5.3-L V8 that’s available in the mid- to high-trim levels, that incorporates what Chevy calls dynamic fuel management (DFM). DFM is an industry first, and it can turn off any number of cylinders in a variety of combinations, allowing the V8 to run on as few as two cylinders.
The 5.3-L DFM V8 delivers power through an eight-speed automatic. Although it claims the same output as the AFM V8, at 355 horsepower and 383 poundfeet of torque, it’s said to have five per cent better fuel economy in the city.
DFM technology is also available in the 6.2-L V8, which produces 420 hp and 460 lb-ft of torque and is available only as an option on the top two trims. It mates to a 10-speed automatic.
A 2.7-L turbocharged four with DFM and an eight-speed auto should be the fuel-mileage leader among the gasoline engines, though fuel numbers have not yet been released. It’s standard on the LT and RST, and produces 310 hp and 348 lb-ft of torque. The final engine option is a 3.0-L in-line six turbodiesel, matched up to a 10-speed transmission.
Only the 5.3-L and 6.2-L DFM engines are available for the test drive, and the first to get scrutinized is the 5.3-L in a loaded LTZ model. Most notable is the new Silverado’s supremely quiet and smooth ride. The eight-speed shifts almost seamlessly. There’s no telltale vibration to let you know if it is operating on fewer than eight cylinders, and when you push the pedal down for a pass there’s no delay in power delivery.
A very brief stint on an off-road course in a Trail Boss emphasized the new chassis’s improved rigidity, as the truck rolled over logs and large, skid-plate-bashing rocks easily with no discernible chassis flex.
The 5.3-L engine hauls a 10,000-lb. trailer up hills with no fuss, and it accelerates to highway speed from a stop confidently and quickly. Unfortunately, there was no opportunity to pull a trailer with the 6.2-L engine, but the smaller V8 handles the load well enough that it’s unlikely someone would need the larger engine unless hauling really big loads. A trailering app has been added to the screen menus, which provides a pre-drive checklist, lighting and electrical system tests, while the advanced trailering system, available at the LT level and higher, adds a trailer-tire pressure monitor, a parking-brake assist, a hitchguidance camera, transmission temperature display, brake-gain memory, and a multitude of other trailer-hauling assists.
The 2019 Chevrolet Silverado will arrive at dealers this fall, with prices to be released at that time.