I drove a $43,500 Chevy Colorado ZR2 — and it was one of the best pickup trucks I've ever tested (GM)

Chevy Colorado ZR2

The 2018 Chevy Colorado ZR2 is a highly capable off-roader, with a robust 4WD system.
But the Chevy Colorado pickup can still do everyday duty.
For the price, you're getting a lot of truck for the money.

I've always been a big fan of the Chevy Colorado, the compact (really, mid-sized) pickup truck that Chevy rolled out a few years ago to invigorate the small-pickup segment.

The Chevy Colorado has been a big hit, compelling Ford to revive its own Ranger pickup in the US. So in addition to a pickup-truck war among the big guys — the Ford F-150 full-size, along with the forthcoming all-new Chevy Silverado and the Ram 1500 — we have a skirmish shaping up in the smaller-pickup segment, between Chevy and Ford.

Adding to the fun is the bevy of high-performance variants we now have in the market. We just put the Chevy Silverado Z71 up against the might Ford Raptor, and recently I got to check out the 2018 Chevy Colorado ZR2, the oomphier sibling of the regular truck.

Our $43,475 tester was well-equipped and ready for off-road action, but sadly I spent most of my time driving around suburban New Jersey. That's a shame, as fans of the ZR2 know that it's a capable rock-buster and really made to haul dirt bikes out the desert for dusty thrills.

Anyway, here's what I thought:

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"Cajun Red Tintcoat!" What a great color! I want all my cars to look like this in the future.

Our test truck was $43,475 — the Colorado ZR2 is already a lot pricier then the $20,000 basic Colorado, but out tester came well-optioned out of the box before a few extras added about $700

Our ZR2 came with a crew cab and a "short box" bed. Some folks don't much like short boxes, but I think for the uses that most owners would put the Colorado to, the short box is ideal.

Home Depot runs, gardening, maybe some light brush-clearing and log-hauling duty — none would over stress the short box. I figure you could get two mountain bikes in there. Our tester also came with an installed roof rack for skis.