I hope you like grey.
The 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV Work Truck is, effectively, a piece truck. Moreover the spectacular Ultima EV powertrain, there’s nothing spectacular about this truck. The seats have guide changes; the LCD management screens are small with big bezels. Every little thing is grey, from the dashboard to the seats to the wheel fenders. There aren’t any chrome accents or automated driving options. The Silverado EV WT is fundamental in each approach, however the worth and vary: $77,905 and 450 miles on a cost.
In different phrases, it’s good. Chevrolet’s Work Truck bundle is designed for patrons who imagine much less is extra — fewer frills, extra payments.
Chevy has lengthy supplied the work truck bundle as an choice to its pickups. It’s designed for individuals who wish to get the job accomplished with out shopping for further options. On this pickup, meaning consumers are telling Chevy to only give them an electrical powertrain, a number of seats and a 5-foot, 11-inch mattress. I like it.
Earlier than testing the truck, my major concern was its towing capabilities (which we’ll get to shortly). Nonetheless, I discovered all the pieces else to be greater than succesful and ample, which was reassuring. The driving expertise was nice, with ample energy and a sturdy experience. The truck’s inside is practical and easy.
The $77,905 beginning worth could also be too costly for some as a consequence of its fundamental inside options. Compared, a Chevy V8 work truck with comparable options begins at $49,000. In the meantime, Ford’s EV work truck begins at $59,000, however presents a shorter truck mattress and fewer electrical vary in comparison with the Chevy.
Nuts and bolts
I not too long ago spent the morning driving the Silverado EV WT by means of tree-lined farm roads in decrease Michigan. A couple of issues have been instantly obvious. The truck is heavy. You’ll be able to really feel it in how the physique sways and rolls round curves. The big battery pack sits underneath the passenger compartment. The battery drops the standard middle of gravity decrease than an ICE pickup. This improves the experience and dealing with over standard pickups that always jerk and skitter when not carrying a load.
I threw it into corners, and the truck remained comparatively flat. The truck stayed planted because it rounded site visitors circles and freeway on-ramps. Even when stomping on the electrical fuel, the Silverado EV remained stage as an alternative of rearing up and squatting on the rear tires. The lengthy and huge battery provides the truck an excellent weight distribution and makes it really feel extra sturdy than an ICE pickup.
It’s value noting that the Silverado EV has a coil spring suspension on the again as an alternative of leaf springs. This kind of suspension often offers higher dealing with each on and off-road, and it has been applied fantastically within the Silverado. Whereas coil spring suspensions have been present in Ram vehicles for a while and extra not too long ago, in Toyotas, GM and Ford have traditionally used leaf springs. At the least, of their gas-powered vehicles.
The Silverado EV truck is fast sufficient, however received’t beat a Lightning or the Cybertruck (which has but to enter manufacturing) in a drag race. Regardless of having 615 pound-feet of torque and 510 hp on faucet, the truck doesn’t launch off the road. The upcoming Silverado EV RST variant must be extra spectacular if velocity is your factor. Chevy beforehand claimed the RST model, with 780 lb.-ft. of torque and 665 HP will dash to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds in a so-called WOW mode (Extensive Open Watts).
Let’s discuss towing
Towing is the place this car stands other than its fuel counterparts. The 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV Work Truck is rated to tow 10,000 kilos, which is on par with different light-duty gas-powered pickups.
After spending a morning pulling a 6,000-pound trailer, I can attest the pickup presents a critical benefit over an inside combustion-powered light-duty truck. At velocity, the pickup simply tows a trailer. However at gradual speeds — say backing a trailer into a good spot — the EV work truck effortlessly maneuvers because of the electrical motor’s immediate torque. I tow numerous trailers, and that is the primary time I’ve had a light-duty pickup really feel this good at low-speed maneuvering (extra on towing later).
There’s a draw back. The electrical vary takes a major hit when towing. Chevy estimates the vary drops 50% when towing 5,000 lbs. If the motive force connects a trailer or engages tow mode, the dashboard battery stage routinely drops by 50% and adjusts on the fly to replicate the real-world situations. Are you pulling lower than 5,000 lbs? The battery stage may drain slower than anticipated, whereas towing extra may lead to a quicker discount.
Throughout my brief towing take a look at, I discovered the vary estimate correct. Chevy offered me with a two-axle trailer holding a big John Deere tractor. I jumped within the driver’s seat and hit the highway. The truck was a lot slower off the road with the burden on the again. After I put the pedal to the ground, the truck obtained to hurry promptly with out feeling prefer it was straining. My 2016 Ford F-150 3.5l EcoBoost would have been screaming underneath the identical take a look at, and it’s rated to tow greater than 12,000 lbs.
The truck simply cruised across the two-lane farm roads with the trailer related. Towing at velocity was uneventful and virtually the identical as some other light-duty pickup. The additional weight on the hitch brought on the truck to bob and sway, however much less so than if I pulled it in my gas-powered truck. Then I pulled right into a parking zone and was immediately impressed.
Backing up a trailer is a cautious balancing act of throttle management. An excessive amount of energy, and the trailer can shortly get astray. Too little, and the trailer doesn’t transfer in any respect. Fashionable pickups typically depend on turbos to help the engine. With a turbo, many of the energy is just accessible at increased engine speeds, which suggests it presents little help when maneuvering a trailer at low speeds. However not in an EV. The electrical motors present immediate entry to a substantial quantity of torque.
I’ve by no means felt a light-duty pickup transfer a trailer just like the Silverado EV WT. Backing up the loaded trailer was easy. The truck moved the heavy trailer as easily at 5 mph because it did at 50 mph, similar to a high-power, heavy-duty pickup.
I whipped the trailer by means of a brief sequence of maneuvers, which might usually lead to a chilly sweat and cussing. Not on this truck. The EV powertrain made backing up the trailer straightforward and painless. I pulled out of the parking zone wide-eyed and impressed.
Towing might be the characteristic that convinces some ICE truck homeowners to change to EVs. Some homeowners, like these pulling campers to faraway places, would possibly scoff on the EV vary. The efficient vary with a camper drops from 450 miles to round 225 miles. However for these truck homeowners who keep native, like landscapers or municipal staff, the 225-mile vary with a trailer might be greater than sufficient.
Within the truck
The inside is uninteresting and drab. The sprint is grey. The seats are grey. The carpet is grey. Every little thing is constructed from plasticky materials. Chevy engineers put it this manner: Designers picked supplies that replicate how the truck shall be used. Which means they used low cost and sturdy materials, and that’s okay. It will get the job accomplished and appears straightforward to wash.
The truck has two screens, similar to the costlier Silverado EV fashions. The screens within the work truck trim are smaller, although they nonetheless include the identical content material. The motive force’s display screen is customizable and options a number of totally different modes relying on how a lot data the motive force desires. The middle display screen contains media and navigation controls; local weather controls are fortunately bodily buttons underneath the display screen.
Clients who need heated seats, a sunroof, or superior driver help options will wish to skip this work truck trim and as an alternative anticipate the Silverado EV.
And not using a fuel engine within the entrance, Chevy engineers prolonged the passenger compartment and pushed the sprint and entrance seat ahead. I couldn’t inform as the motive force, however once I tried the backseat, the additional room was evident and appreciated. Crew cab pickups at all times supply ample backseat legroom, however the legroom on the Silverado EV is excessive. I’m 5’10” and will practically stretch my legs out.
The seats on the work truck trim are guide and have restricted changes. Occupants can solely slide the seat and tilt the again; there’s no method to modify the peak or lumbar assist. Even nonetheless, I discovered the motive force’s place to supply a commanding seating place with loads of visibility and headroom.
The truck presents numerous cupboard space. The entrance offers a lockable, watertight compartment, and the rear seat folds up, increasing the inside cupboard space. The mattress is 5 ft, 11 inches. That’s 11 inches longer than the Ford Lightning and 17 inches longer than the Rivian R1T. On the higher-level Silverado trims, homeowners can take away the panel between the mattress and inside cabin for much more room (assume the previous Chevy Avalanche truck).
Energy shops are positioned within the truck mattress: 4 120 V shops and one 240 V outlet. Chevy has but to announce the dimensions of the battery. Estimates put it round 200 kWh, and Chevy engineers inform me the shops assist excessive amperage necessities typically discovered on giant saws, kettles, and area heaters. They are saying the battery can energy a house for as much as 21 days.
Closing Ideas
The Silverado EV Work Truck is spectacular. This truck is nearly as good as its fuel counterparts in most respects, however in some methods, it’s considerably higher. When you tow with an EV, a gas-powered truck feels inferior.
The value is hard. With a $77,950 beginning worth, it’s an costly car and pushes the definition of the time period “work truck.” To me, a piece truck is an affordable and succesful truck. The 100,000 reservations which can be being transformed into buy orders for the truck means that lots of people are snug with the worth.
After driving the WT variant, I’m excited to attempt the remainder of the Silverado choices. Later this yr, the $105,000 RST First Version launches. That model sports activities bigger tires, extra energy and quite a few creature comforts. The off-roading Path Boss mannequin will come out in late 2024 and may supply critical off-roading capabilities on the electrical platform.
I’m a truck man and might’t see myself driving something however a pickup. The Rivian R1T is a unbelievable truck however too small for my wants. The Ford Lightning intently matches my pickup, but it surely wants extra electrical vary and an extended truck mattress.
This truck has considerably extra vary and utility than its opponents, although it’s seemingly priced increased than many customers can afford, even within the Work Truck trim. The one factor giving me pause is the worth. The Silverado EV is the one pickup I’d commerce for my gas-powered truck.
