Off-roading in a Silverado
It’s always fun to drive new trucks. I live in the Sierra Nevada Foothills in Northern California, home of the Tevis Cup, and the Western States Endurance Run. It’s natural to see a truck towing a horse trailer in Auburn, CA. I’m always amazed at how easy they make it look to backup, tow, and park with a 2-4 horse trailer behind the pickup.
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My neighbor tows a couple of horses to the Tahoe area as part of the search and rescue team. They are called the sweep riders, following behind the last runner or horseback rider to make sure everyone gets out of the canyon with no harm. It’s like a dance moving the trucks from one place to another, parking them in tight spaces. With the old trucks, you had to be really good at maneuvering to back up a vehicle of that length, girth, and weight.
The 2019 Chevrolet Silverado makes it a lot easier with the new smartphone app called myChevrolet. The app on your phone allows you to conduct a trailer light test that uses an automatic exterior light sequence to help confirm that the trailer is properly connected. Previously, I would have been the one getting out of the truck to make sure everything was correctly connected; now my neighbor can attach the trailer and check the lights on her app.
If she owns an LTZ or High Country trim level or an LT, RST and Trail Boss trim level she can activate the Advanced Trailering System that automatically sets when the vehicle is put into Hitch View to help avoid vehicle movement after the truck is connected with the trailer and then shifts to park. Of course, the Rear Vision Camera system is invaluable.
The drive
Wyoming is the perfect place to drive a big ole truck, in Wyoming pickup trucks account for 36 percent of overall vehicle sales. One in every six automobiles in the State is a truck, trying to rival Texas and California. The new generation of the Silverado is quicker, lighter and better looking.
We started the journey from Spring Creek Ranch in Jackson, WY in a 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 4WD LT crew cab 5.3-liter ecotec3 V8 with 8-speed automatic transmission. You can tell it’s an LT by the chrome accents on the bumper, front grille, and mirror caps. Inside, is an 8-inch touchscreen. My driving companion noted that it was not the top of the line since the bucket seats were cloth, not leather.
The drive took us twenty-five miles west from Jackson, WY, elevation 6,237 feet to Victor, Idaho, elevation 6,214. I took the driver’s seat from Victor, Id to Alpine, WY, a forty-eight-mile track ending winding around Snake River to The Refuge Air Ranch. I am going through this much detail about the drive because, amazingly, I got 25.1 mpg in a truck that the EPA fuel economy estimate is 15 city/20 highway/ 17 combined.
On our ride back to Spring Creek Ranch we took highway 89 East to 191 North for forty miles. We also switched vehicles, this time we drove the mostly highway in a 2019 Chevy Silverado 4WD High Country Crew Cab 6.2-liter V8 ecotec3 with a 10-speed transmission. Both engines come with what Chevy is calling Dynamic Fuel Management (DFM) that allows for seventeen different modes of cylinder deactivation. The mpg was spot-on with what the EPA estimated fuel economy said; 16 city/20 highway/17 combined. We got 17 and change. Here is the difference; we started in Alpine, Wyoming, elevation: 5,633 and journeyed back up 600 feet to Jackson, WY. The difference in altitude and going downhill made all the difference in miles per gallon.
Listen as Dave Stall and Michele from You Auto Know radio show talk about the 2019 Chevy Silverado drive
How Good Is The New 2019 Chevy Silverado Z71 Trail Boss OffRoad? mud, ruts, and guts in Alpine, Idaho
We took the Silverado Z71 on a simulated off-road through the timber lodge, hill descent and ascent, boulder crawl, and mud pit. What was once a beautiful truck was mud-red by the time we got through the field. Some of the new off-road options include; electronic hill-descent control, skid plates for the engine oil pan and transfer case protection, and 18-inch wheels with all-terrain tires. The Z71 package is standard on the trail boss models, which feature factory-installed 2-inch lifted the suspension.
The Legends
Chevy brought in some of their more avid customers, people they call the legends. Each of these couples has owned Chevys for generations, some own 2-3 Chevys from trucks to cars. Gail and Stephen have owned Chevys since the sixties. They’ve owned three Silverados, and according to Stephen aren’t considering trading it in for the new version, “we need at least 240,000 miles on it before we’ll trade it in.” They get 16-17 mpg on the previous generation, fourteen if they are towing.
They looked at the new generation Silverado and love it, especially the power tailgate and the seven-inch wider bed with 21 tie-downs and lockable cargo boxes on some trims. Chevrolet got feedback from over 7,000 customers before building the current generation truck.
The takeaway is a plusher interior that rivals your living room, drivability that is solid yet quiet. It is a big truck that drives small. You can option upon many of the safety technology such as forward collision alert, lane-keeping assist, digital rearview mirror, adaptive cruise control, and surround-view camera system.
Chevrolet has a diesel coming out soon that will bump up the average fuel efficiency of their trucks, but they still lag a bit behind the newest truck from Ford. That won’t sway the tried and true legends of Chevrolet owners, especially with all the new features, including eight models and six engines/transmission choices.
2019 Chevrolet engine/transmission combinations:
4.3-liter V-6 with Active Fuel Management and a six-speed automatic:
Horsepower (hp / kW @ rpm): 285 / 212 @ 5300 (SAE certified)
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm @ rpm): 305 / 413 @ 3900 (SAE certified)
5.3-liter V-8 with Active Fuel Management and a six-speed automatic:
Horsepower (hp / kW @ rpm): 355 / 265 @ 5600 (SAE certified)
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm @ rpm): 383 / 519 @ 4100 (SAE certified)
2.7-liter turbo I-4 with Active Fuel Management and an eight-speed automatic:
Horsepower (hp / kW @ rpm): 310 / 231 @ 5600 (SAE certified)
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm @ rpm): 348 / 473 @ 1500-4000 (SAE certified)
5.3-liter V-8 with new Dynamic Fuel Management and an eight-speed automatic:
Horsepower (hp / kW @ rpm): 355 / 265 @ 5600 (SAE certified)
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm @ rpm): 383 / 519 @ 4100 (SAE certified)
6.2-liter V-8 with new Dynamic Fuel Management and a 10-speed automatic:
Horsepower (hp / kW @ rpm): 420 / 313 @ 5600 (SAE certified)
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm @ rpm): 460 / 623 @ 4100 (SAE certified)
New 3.0L I-6 turbo-diesel and a 10-speed automatic (late availability)
2019 Chevrolet Silverado models, pricing, and trim levels include:
The lowest base price for any 2019 Chevrolet Silverado MSRP is $29,795
Work Truck: features “CHEVROLET” graphic across the grille and tailgate, blacked-out trim, and 17-inch steel wheels. The interior features durable vinyl or cloth seats and a Chevrolet Infotainment system with a 7-inch diagonal color touchscreen
Custom: features a body-color styling theme, 20-inch painted aluminum wheels, LED signature taillamps and available integrated dual exhaust
Custom Trail Boss: adds off-road equipment to the Custom, including a 2-inch suspension lift installed at the factory and the Z71 Off-Road Package, with a locking rear differential, skid plates, Rancho shocks, 18-inch wheels, and Goodyear Duratrac off-road tires
LT: features chrome accents on the bumpers, front grille and mirror caps, Chevrolet bowtie in the grille, LED reflector headlamps and signature daytime running lights. The interior features an 8-inch diagonal color touchscreen and available leather-appointed seating surfaces
RST: offers a street-performance appearance for the LT, with body-color trim, full LED lighting (foglamps, headlamps, and taillamps) and up to 22-inch wheels
LT Trail Boss: adds off-road equipment to the LT, including a 2-inch suspension lift from the factory and the Z71 Off-Road Package, including locking rear differential, skid plates, Rancho shocks, 18-inch wheels, and Goodyear Duratrac off-road tires
2019 Chevy Silverado 4WD LT TB Crew Cab 5.3-liter MSRP is $48,300
LTZ: features chrome accents on the bumpers, front grille, mirror caps, door handles, and hockey-stick beltline as well as power-folding and heated outside rearview mirrors. Leather-appointed interior trim is standard
High Country: features an exclusive front grille design with two-tone chrome and bronze finish, body-color accents plus chrome assist steps from wheel to wheel. It also includes the new power tailgate as standard equipment.
High Country: features an exclusive front grille design with two-tone chrome and bronze finish, body-color accents plus chrome assist steps from wheel to wheel. It also includes the new power tailgate as standard equipment.
2019 Chevy Silverado 4WD High Country Crew 6.2-liter MSRP is $56,300
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