2023 Chevy Colorado, GMC Canyon Production Under Way: Video

Production of the 2023 Chevy Colorado and 2023 GMC Canyon pickup trucks began on January 24th, 2023 at the GM Wentzville plant in Missouri, marking the start of regular production (SORP) for the third generation of the mid-size pickup trucks.

GM held a ceremony at the plant that was attented by a small crowd of factory workers. A 2023 Chevy Colorado in range-topping Z71 trim, wearing Glacier Blue Metallic paint, was the first unit to roll off the line. It was followed by a GMC Canyon Denali in Summit White, with the third vehicle off the line being another Colorado Z71 in Sterling Gray Metallic.

GM Authority provided exclusive intelligence in mid-July 2022 that production of the 2023 GMC Canyon would begin on January 25th, 2023.  We also predicted a January 25th date for start of 2023 Chevy Colorado production, with the exception of the ZR2 trim. In both cases, GM Authority‘s intel was within one day of the actual SORP despite being made six months before the first truck was produced.

Four trims of the 2023 Chevy Colorado are available at launch, including the base level Work Truck (WT), LT, Trail Boss, and Z71. GM Authority previously reported on the breakdown of the initial sales mix at launch as follows:

  • 20 percent will consist of the Work Truck (WT)
  • 32 percent will consist of the LT
  • 25 percent will consist of the Trail Boss
  • 23 percent will consist of the Z71

The 2023 Chevy Colorado ZR2 starts production in April of this year, several months after the start of regular production for the other trims. As a reminder, the ZR2 is the Chevy Colorado’s extreme off-road variant, first launched for the second generation of the nameplate in the 2017 model year. The 2023 Chevy Colorado ZR2 is completely redesigned and re-engineered for the third generation.

A fanfare of horns and statements by several leading personnel from the Wentzville assembly plant accompanied the rollout of the first trio of third-generation Colorado and Canyon trucks on January 24th. The plant’s executive director, Lamar Rucker, noted production started on schedule despite the pandemic, the microchip shortage, and ongoing supply chain issues.

As a refresher, the third-generation overhaul of 2023 Chevy Colorado leaves the truck with the turbocharged 2.7L I4 L3B gasoline engine as the only powertrain offered. The boosted four, which replaces three different engines offered for the 2022 model year, is offered in three distinct levels of tune. The base-level tune is the 2.7L Turbo, which gets its own unique RPO code (L2R). Output is rated at 237 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 260 pound-feet of torque at 1,200 rpm. Then there’s the mid-range 2.7L Turbo Plus, which is tagged with RPO code L3B and is rated at 310 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 391 pound-feet of torque at 2,000 rpm. Finally, the range-topping tune is the 2.7L Turbo High-Output, which is also tagged with RPO code L3B and produces 310 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 430 pound-feet of torque at 3,000 rpm.

The same is true for the GMC Canyon, but its L3B tune is rated exclusively at the higher-output level of 310 horsepower and 430 pound-feet of torque. For both models, a second-gen GM 8-speed automatic transmission is the only transmission offered. The new Colorado and Canyon both ride on the 31XX-2 platform, an upgraded version of the GM 31XX platform used by the second generation of the trucks.

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2023 Chevrolet Colorado Photos
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2023 GMC Canyon Photos
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Rhian Hunt

View Comments

    • I wonder as well, the Canyon's price is a bit higher than the Colorado and it is geared more towards that "luxury" rather than affordability. Hopefully production moves quickly and we can start to see them on the road.

      • Still no 2023's colorados on dealer lots what a joke being played by GM. Maybe in 2024 the 2023's colorado will show up. Thank you Government motors.

        • You are mistaken Rick, They have been coming in, I have seen them…all of them seem to come in sold when they hit the ground, so not spending time on dealer lots. You can notice if you track one in transit on Chevrolet web site…as soon as “in transit” is no longer by truck, one day later the truck is no longer on site. Mine is not here yet, however I have even seen some driving around. And the dealer I bought mine from has delivered some.

    • In the past GMC normally runs about 1/3 of the Colorado but they are much more profitable.

      The GMC models often are the first to get many features or are the only ones to get some features.

      The Colorado that is the highest volume is the LT by a wide margin then the Z71.

      Crew cabs were about 85% plus of those sold most years if I read it correctly.

      GM is tight on the saturation numbers so it is hard to get break downs on all details.

      • The Build it Configurator finally went live in Canada for Chevrolet and GMC. Anyone got any ideas why the ZR2(Non Desert Boss) loaded is $5000 Can cheaper than an AT4X(No Edition 1 or Sports Bar Package)?

        All I can see that is different is a powered passenger seat on the AT4X.

    • Now it looks like the four-wheel-drive restraint is in effect, so it looks like that won’t be lifted until the beginning of March. Yikes. One thing I’m truly sad about is the rear slider window is not even power I mean how the heck do you open the damn thing you have to open up the back door my goodness that kind of money seems crazy. I’ve got an allocation. I’m just waiting for GM to accept it. I’ll keep you posted. I currently on a 2010 GMC canyon extended cab I sure hope it is reliable. I’ve had it from day one and it’s got 150,000 miles never had an issue it’s been a great vehicle it’s been a great vehicle.

  • Awesome! Love the new refreshed design! I just ordered a new Colorado Trail Boss in Glacier Blue Metallic. Hoping to receive it in about 2 months.

  • I just ordered the Canyon Denali a week ago. It took me 8 months to get a 2023 Camaro due to constraints and limited allocations. I would think that the new trucks would be a bit higher on GM's priority list since they should be a money maker compared to the Camaro, and the 6th gen reaching it's end-of-life.

    Bill

    • I ordered a 2wd Elevation with the convenience pkg, preferred pkg, trailering pkg, assist step. sprayed bed liner at an out the door price of 39.4K, that’s with GMS pricing. It was ordered on 3/18/2023. I hope it gets to Texas in under 2 months because I already sold my 2019 GMC, Sierra Elevation to Car Max for 35k and after paying off GMAC loan I have 13k to put down on the new truck.

  • I have a Z71 Colorado on order with at TPW (Target production week) of 03/06/23. I expect to get it 2-3 weeks after that.

    • Congratulations! That is awesome, when did you order it? I just ordered mine yesterday, how did you find out your TPW?

      • I had already secured my spot with my dealership via deposit. I have a decent working relationship with them. So my order went in the day the configurator went live on December 15th I believe. My sales guy updates me every friday on the status number. So that's how to figure it out! It's moving much faster than my 22' Camaro 2SS 1LE did....

  • I got an allocation a couple of months back. A Canyon Denali. I hope its making is in the mix here. I wonder how long it takes to produce one start to finish and how many they have ordered vs how many they can make in a month.

  • I’m going to pass on having to carry an extra set of useless doors, leather interior and sunroof to option a ZR2 package. It’s a shame all modem pick ups are being turned into 4 door barges that are damn near useless to take off roading. Such a joke! I’m happy with my $38K 2020 ZR2 and looks like it’s the last new Chevy for me when talking trucks.

    • Dude just go with the trail boss then. That thing is bare bones. Even comes with a crappy urethane steering wheel for crying out loud! You won’t get heated seats or a Bose stereo either. You get your bare bones work truck/base model interior with your off road exterior.

    • Sounds like you're not the target market. As a GMC dealer I can tell you that anything other than crew cab is HARD to sell. If you feel your only option is to be mad then be mad at consumer demand, not GM's good sense to respond to it by providing what the vast majority of customers demand.

  • When will the 2023 Colorado’s be on dealer lots in Michigan? A lady ran a light and totaled my car. I would like to lease or purchase a 2023 Colorado but have 1week to find a vehicle. 😕

    • I expect most or all dealers will be like us, with waiting custom orders consuming all allocation for a while. I'll be surprised if you see any inventory orders within a month or three. As of this moment I can't do a search on these yet as it hasn't been added to the list of vehicles in GM's inventory search tool yet. Otherwise I would be able to actually see if there are any TRE (inventory orders) among the many SRE (sold custom orders) on the list, at least in my intermountain west area to have a better idea if my assumption is correct.

      • Still no 2023's colorados on dealer lots what a joke being played by GM. Maybe in 2024 the 2023's colorado will show up. Thank you Government motors.

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