Another Look At The 2023 Chevy Colorado Work Truck Prototype
45
Sponsored Links
The 2023 Chevy Colorado is set to introduce a full generational overhaul (redesign and re-engineering) for the midsize nameplate, debuting an all-new third gen vehicle. GM Authority previously took a look at the new 2023 Chevy Colorado Work Truck in prototype form back in October, and now, we’re back at it with another look at the upcoming pickup.
As before, we see this 2023 Chevy Colorado Work Truck prototype covered in heavy camouflage covers, obscuring the all-new exterior styling underneath. The prototype carries the Crew Cab / Short Box body style.
Although the front fascia is obscured by black camouflage, we do notice that the 2023 Chevy Colorado’s fascia design is flatter than that of the current model, the latter of which has more of a rake to it. On this prototype, we also see small bits of the Work Truck’s halogen headlights.
Moving around to the profile, this 2023 Chevy Colorado is riding on a set of steel wheels, which is typical of the Work Truck trim level. On the roof, we also see a fin-style antenna, which differs from the current model’s “short antenna” design. Also of note are the sideview mirrors, which are covered in black-and-white camouflage, as compared to the black finish for the mirrors on the prototype that we featured last October.
The rear end is equipped with a hard tonneau cover, while further black camouflage hides the tailgate. However, the rear view does give us an idea what the rear fender flares will look like in terms of overall shape and width. We also see what looks to be the CornerStep feature in the bumper, while a single-exit side exhaust tip is piped behind the passenger-side rear wheel.
Under the panels, the 2023 Chevy Colorado will ride on an updated version of the GMT-31XX body-on-frame architecture. The cabin will be all-new as well, while the 2023 model year will introduce the turbocharged 2.7L I4 L3B gasoline engine to the Colorado lineup. The L3B is also offered in the refreshed 2022 Chevy Silverado, where it produces 310 horsepower and was recently uprated to 430 pound-feet of torque. The 2023 Chevy Colorado will also come equipped with the GM 10-speed automatic transmission, while production will continue to take place at the GM Wentzville plant in Missouri.
Subscribe to GM Authority for more Chevy Colorado news, Chevy news, and around-the-clock GM news coverage.
- Sweepstakes Of The Month: Win a Corvette Z06 and 2024 Silverado. Details here.
Sponsored Links
Probably just the camo, but that thing looks huge. I miss the days when they had the S10 and original Ranger size. I just don’t get why they keep making these things bigger and bigger.
My impression is the size is driven by the global markets where mid-size is the common truck and full size is too big. So those markets are wanting the most size/capability they can get in a mid-size and the US gets it basically as a carryover.
I agree though, would be nice if there was a true small truck. My wife loved her old Ranger she grew up on, her next car will probably be a Maverick.
I was saying the same thing despite the fact that these new trucks will ride on the same platform as the outgoing model.
Ryan and Raymond J: The problem is that they just keep growing and growing in size. If you take the Colorado today, it’s not that much smaller than a full sized real truck from 1980 (reg cab long box). When will the madness stop? This isn’t just in the trucks. I recall when I first started at the dealership that had Honda. It was 1988. The Civic was a small car and really the base intro car for Honda. Today, that Civic is bigger than a 2000 Accord was. The Accord is slightly bigger than my 2021 Malibu.
At least Ford seems to be on the right track here. F-series is biggest. Ranger is mid-sized and Maverick is smallest (although it should be just a little smaller yet). If GM is going to continue with the oversized “mid-sized” truck, then bring out a small truck and call it S-10.
But at least their doing something!
Too many fat people.
“Old School” (Sorry, I didn’t mean “Bill”)
You’re being reported for this! This comment is ridiculous, unnecessary, hateful, rude, uncalled-for… how many more descriptors can I make about you and your horrible comment!!! I cannot wait for you to be banned from this forum, you jerk!
I can’t tell if you are serious or joking. Obesity is certainly a major issue in the United States and perhaps Old School is right, that vehicles have to become bigger to accommodate larger drivers.
Someone needs to tell the airline industry — their seats are getting smaller!
I did have one thought here, perhaps they are going to make it a bit bigger and then offer a small truck??
Like the Ford Maverick , Ranger, F-150 line up Ford has in the light duty pick up line up
It would not surprise me if we see a smaller truck like the Chevy Luv or something like that soon??
Cafe standards change in 2025 so light duty trucks will have to be more efficient across the group, so offering a smaller more fuel efficient truck would make the average MPG for their light duty trucks go up, more likely meeting the new CAFE standards
The new windshield sweep if definitely for fuel efficiency so my guess it will be better on fuel and help meet those new average fuel efficiency numbers.
I think the truck is the same size as the current Colorado as it is using basically the same frame with maybe a few improvements.
I too had several of the original S-10s , an 82, an 84 and and 86.
The last 2 were 4WD and manual floor shift. These were great little trucks , body on frame and the2.8V6 was very good on gas even with 4WD. They offered plenty of head / shoulder/ leg room for 2 adults and a quiet cabin.
I have a current generation Colarado Crew Z71 4WD.
While i love the truck , it is closer to a FS pickup then i want.
GM would do well to bring back the S-10 BOF, and have a blazer option.
heck they could even use the 2.7 4 cylinder turbo . Now wouldn’t that be a hoot with 400plus lbs of torque in a vehicle the size of the old S10 !!
Come on GM give us some fun vehicles capable of mild off road in a smaller size!!!
I agree with Kirk. GM needs to bring the S10 max to the U.S. and put the 2.7 liter in the engine bay
Any S10 successor has to have a smallblock-6. It was never an mpg vehicle for myself, still isn’t. It should’ve been an easily modified off-roader back then, instead of the sport truck thing. Sorry ZQ8 people, those would’ve been better off as rwd based unibodies on a separate model.
This might be the size of the New body stile GMT400. It’s probably getting an inch or two wider, just like the K2XX shard similar frame size and dimensions, but moderate reincforments and that similar frame and greater width required the steering wheel to be off center. It might actually make this a better truck. Right now I wouldn’t go down to a 1/4 ton as for the same price or a little more I get a much more roomy and capable vehicle. I’d like a reason to be drawn to the 1/4 trucks.
It is nearly the same size as what we have. It will be more a evolution vs revolution over the present truck.
I had both gens of the S10 and Sonoma and now a Canyon. I loved my old trucks but would never go back. The extra size is much better to use and the MPG over my 4.3 2WD vs my present crew 4×4 is 2 MPG better now and 1/3 more power than the 4.3 ever thought of.
My Sonoma was really just a two seat truck as the one Jump seat was useless. I do miss my ZQ8.
I still have a ZQ8. Had 6 new one’s.
I had a regular cab ZQ8 but I also would not go back. My current 2018 Colorado is much more capable and powerful, although I do miss the manual transmission.
I hauled 40 bags of mulch last weekend and my Canyon did not sag or have any issues. My smaller trucks would have taken two trips.
That’s where the maverick comes in. I’d like to see GM build a unibody truck off the GMC Acadia or terrain. I’ve test drove a maverick, and it’s a bit too much like a Ford Focus. I understand the class size, but I’d prefer if GM was going to make a new pickup for it to be off the Acadia and not the terrain. At least unibody trucks are easy to lift. Coil spacers are really cheap.
It is not just size but price. The Acadia while a good size would be as much or more than the present Canyon.
The Ford is built on a cheap platform to keep the cost down.
I would ditch the extended cab and offer a regular cab long bed and a crew cab short bed in the WT trim. Regualr cab long bed mid-sized pickups are not offered by any manufacturer at present, and a lot of fleets and small businesses would buy them.
No more V6 offerings?
Thank you for another look at the 23 Colorado J Lo, can’t even get a 22, but hey I’m excited!
Does anyone know if this new Colorado will only be made in a crew cab with a short bed ?
Does anyone know if the new Colorado will even get off the assembly line?
That’s what my GM rep told me.
To this point that is all that has been seen testing.
Still don’t know why they aren’t going to build a lower h.p. version for those that don’t need to pull around 18 foot bass boats…with gas prices and all.
Much of it is due to economics anymore. To get engines to pass all the regulation test for emissions and fuel mileage it is a very high cost deal. Most companies are going to a 1-2 engine option on most models anymore.
Even if you are not towing the extra power should create no issues. If you don’t need the power don’t step on the gas as much.
I think you will find this engine and transmission will show an improvement over the two present gas engines.
The new 2.7 will be more efficient than the outdoing 2.5. A mild dive into the 2.7, it shares the 2.5 bore…. But features a stroker crankshaft. It also features GM’s vvl. vvl wasn’t featured on the 2.5 on the Colorado, but was in other vehicles. Vehicles with the vvl tech saw a 15% increase in efficiency over the 2.5 non vvl. That said, the new Colorado, should move from 26 mpg with the 2.5 to approx 29-30mpg with the 2.7. Now thats assuming you stay at 70mpg. You break out in the high valve lift and turbo boost, that will tank quickly. The 2.7 also has less parts and is lighter than the 3.6v6
Hence the disscontion of the 2.8 diesel as well.
Jake , where did you get your information about the 2.7 and 2.5 comparison ? The information I read , said the 2.7 was a complete new truck engine !
“Completely new” is often too cliché. It has almost now interchangeable parts with its GM I4 family members as everything is forged or thicker, kinda like the 5.3 and 6.2 have no interchangeable parts yet are the same engine family and generation. The 2.5 first introduced its VVL tech in 2014. The 2.7 is the first to also have VVL and cylinder deactivation.
From what I can tell, the L3B has a 92.25mm bore, while the LCV has an 88mm bore. If the L3B has anything in common with a previous GM engine, its the LK5 Atlas engine.
In the current volume, GM probably decided that a single engine saves more money than offering a cheaper engine.
I seriously doubt it. This engine in a current 2022 Silverado regardless if it’s a fully loaded LT 4 door 4X4 or a regular cab work truck 4X4 which is considerably lighter is only rated for a terrible 17/20. How is this engine and the 10 speed going to jump 9 to 10 MPG on the highway in the new Colorado? I’m going to place my bets on 23 to 24 if we are lucky to try and at least compete with the Ranger.
Colorado look it’s a damn Plane ✈️ nice choice for a plane company Chevy/ Colorado- Skyline 🙃.. gorgeous idea 💡!! Fun ya 👌.. Beginning First .. is Better Than Last!!.. prop .. and wings.. driverless..😛..Winning..
When are they finally gonna take the wraps off this thing and really unveil it? They’ve already shown the Silverado EV. What’s taking so long for this?
Looking forward to this new Colorado. My 18 has been great so far. Hopefully they offer it in a crew cab long bed configuration.
I got a feeling the MPG is going to be approx 23 hyway.
That’s not counting the hyper miler’s.
Driving it normally.
Check out the Ranger. It Doesn’t get great mpg
A friend of mine has a new Ranger. Driving normally he gets very low 20s
If he babies it he can get 24
I don’t think the 2.7 will be much better.
Maybe it’s the covers but the proportions look off and the windshield to hood angle looks weird too, like some of the current foreign models. I hope it’s not a miss.
I agree on the size as I had a 84 GMC S15 4×4 with the 2.6 and put 310 thousand on it .. Farm and off the farm unless o needed my 2500 for hauling heavy loads or towing. I had the extended cab long box. I have been putting off buying until I see the new models. Ford has the right idea in their F line up.
Those old Tech IV 2.5 Iron Dukes were a long lasting but crude workhorse. I knew a bunch of guys with them with as many as 400K miles with nothing but the timing gears and valve cover gaskets being replaced. And with stick shift they would easily pull over 30 on the open road. Can’t do either of those things in today’s Colorado’s or Rangers.
I might be in the minority but I think the n/a 2.5 needs to continue for base/fleet buyers.
What kind of work is this truck going to do with a vestigial bed?
Honestly with all the Camo, all We know is it has WT (Work Truck) rims so it must be a “new” work truck model perhaps?
The real story here is how well these camo bits work, Are these repurposed jeep wrangler soft tops and doors??
IMO until we see the real thing all I see is vinyl floppy black bits covering what appears to be a truck
It does have four tires and a trailer hitch so We do know that………..
Just please give us a comfortable seat