Chevy Colorado 2.8l diesel

[MacIntosh]

Well, did a bunch of research, drove a pile of trucks, and I ended up buying a colorado with the diesel engine. Looking around, no matter what vehicle I looked at I found online horror stories about reliability and it seems everyone knows someone who had his truck go south and willnever buy a xxx brand again...for all brands and models. It seems theres something to hate-on for everyone if you look for it, so we'll see what happens. So far have only abot 1000 miles on it and I like it. I drove several tundras, several silverados and f150's, and they all just seem cumbersome and klunky to me and I dont need that much truck to tow my 19' basscat. Drove all the tacos, they are nice and I could easily have gone that way, but it seemed like I was paying more for a lot of fancy 4x4 bling that I just wont ever use and the interior aesthetics just left me cold. I thought the colorado z71 had the best handling and ride of the bunch. Tows my boat very nicely, stopping is a dream, and I'm getting far better fuel economy than I got even in my 4-banger toyota. A few thgs that make me wonder--like the airdam that youre supposed to take off for off-road use which isnt easily removable, location of the 4wd knob, etc--but no show-stoppers. Fingers crossed for the long-term.
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[buster502]

Had this dilemma last fall. '11 Ford F-150 3.5 EB Crewcab was chewing on its 3rd rear end, 4 brake jobs, 2 tranny fixes/re-flashes, replaced the intercooler for the turbos, switches for HVAC replacing and the list went on. After 108K miles and 5 years I had enough. This was the 6th Ford truck I have owned. While on the way to the Ford dealer to get a new one.......................I could not do it again and wound up at the GMC/Chevy dealer. The new smaller trucks with the diesel really appealed to me until I sat in on and looked at the sticker. I ended up with a double cab 1/2 ton with the venerable 5.3 liter motor and could not be happier. So far 12K miles and over 19 mpg all around. Pulls the Z119C and full size pontoon boat just fine!

i was going to buy a 2011 f150 with 3.5 ,great looking truck but it sure has a ton of problems

[billnorman1]

Well, did a bunch of research, drove a pile of trucks, and I ended up buying a colorado................ to tow my 19' basscat...............

Nice looking duo. I really like Bass Cats and some day I'll get back in one.

[TroyBoy30]

i looked at them pretty hard but by the time I got done building one it was in that $40,000 range even with the gas engine. I ended up going for full size instead for close to the same price and more toys

[Legend LE-195]

Rumor is their the next to get popped by the EPA.

[hatcreek]

Congrats on the new rig... Sounds like it's well-suited to your needs and I like the looks of them as well.

Hope the new models prove to be a much better truck than the first-gen Canyon/Colorado was.

[Wall-I]

Love my wife's new Colorado Z71. Well, almost new. 2,700 miles now. Gas and stickered at around 37,500 but paid thousands less on some red tag sale offer. The Z71 came with a long list of standard options. Spent months test driving everything out there in our price range, car or truck, and it was between the Ridgeline and Colorado in the end. Drives like a sports car compared to my Silverado and if we go out together, we always take it. She drives but I told her once she puts the first scratch in it, I'll start using it and see how it tows the boat.

[98skeeter202]

My thought is why pay as much and get smaller.

[MacIntosh]

My thought is why pay as much and get smaller.

As I said above--maybe it's different where you are but I paid several thousand dollars less than any comparable half-ton I could find. I bought this off the lot and was able to negotiate well below sticker price, but even including all the incentives and a similar discount frm sticker the bigger trucks were more for a comparably rigged one. This is also my daily driver and I prefer the ride, handling, maneuverability in town and the feul economy of the smaller truck and it's way more than adequate for my towing needs--so from my perspective, why should I pay more for a lesser truck just because it's bigger?

[enforcer410]

junk

[Bassin Bob71]

Congrats....they look to be a great truck

[MacIntosh]

junk

Classy

[95202DCX]

I'm on my second one, I liked the 16 Lt Diesel I had but I like the 17 Z71 Diesel even more...our roads are shit in the Northeast and the Z71 is a better fit. Not quite as good on fuel as the Lt I had but I get 23mpg around town and I towed my Caracal to Vt last week and got 18.5mpg Towing.

[jigman51]

Not France for at least the Eco, Eco's are built by Fiat in Turkey and that engine has been around for a long long time in europe, mostly in small commercial trucks and moving vans.

Not that it matters but the ECOdiesel engines are produced by VM Mortori in Italy. They have been producing diesel engines since 1947. Now we just need the EPA to release the 17s. I bet there will be some good deals if they ever do.

[Legend LE-195]

Not that it matters but the ECOdiesel engines are produced by VM Mortori in Italy. They have been producing diesel engines since 1947. Now we just need the EPA to release the 17s. I bet there will be some good deals if they ever do.

Yes the parent company is italian, but assembly is in turkey.

[n2ratfishin]

These little diesels have a place, put them under a load and watch them work. I'm in SC this week. We drove my FIL's Eco. 4 adults and enough gear in the bed and cab of the truck that I'm not sure if you could have got a tooth pick in there. We still averaged 26 MPG according to his trip computer. Now that's no better than my Ridgeline, actually I'd get better on the road and I also get 18 pulling my 18'8" Rt188. But, load that gas truck up with four adults and fill the bed up to the max and watch the mpg drop. Regular gas is about 35 cents cheaper around me. When you're looking at initial cost the payback is a LONG WAY off.

The way I see it is choices are good for the market. A reliable diesel would be excellent for a fleet. I do wish more were at least put together here. It's ashamed my last two "Japanese" trucks were built here. My last two Chevy's were built in Mexico.

Sadly the EPA is going to kill our small diesels. Consumers won't get the choice much longer. I'm surprised GM has made it this long without the scrutiny and huge fines. Hope the OP's last him a long time!!

[Bamaman]

Yes the parent company is italian, but assembly is in turkey.

What's not been said is that Fiat and their subsidiaries are by far the largest builder of diesel engines there is. They sell more diesels than Cummins, Navistar and Caterpillar combined and they own a number of heavy duty truck companies and construction equipment companies. FCA also owns Case and New Holland tractors. Many European auto manufacturers also run diesels produced by FCA subsidiaries/affiliates.

Don't sell Italians short when it comes to fuel injection and engine management systems. FCA provides components for other huge brands like VW/Audi/Porsche. We were in Turkey last year, and were surprised to find it's a completely modern country--even if their politics are a little hot right now.

But if I was looking for a truck/engine combination to tow a relatively light bass boat, I'd be looking at the 2018 F150 with the 2.7 Ecoboost engine (325 hp+). In side by side towing tests, it runs away from the Ram Ecodiesel and fuel mileage is offset by a lower purchase price, cheaper engine oil changes and lower cost gasoline.

[Bamaman]

5000 pounds or less, I tow a RT188 aluminum boat and a utility trailer without issues. I wouldn't want to push the 5000 pound envelope with it. It is a beefed up unibody.

It is ONLY meant for LIGHT off road duty. NO WAY would I want to tackle some of the stuff I tackled over the years in our 4-Runners off road with the Ridgeline. It's basically targeted at your Lowes, Home Depot weekend home owner pickup crowd. Which happens to be most burly half ton pickup owners. I used my Tundra a few times at its capacity in the 30 months I owned it. Nothing I couldn't throw on the utility trailer and drag home. It's NOT A ROCK CRAWLER! Doesn't even have a low range. However, the AWD system is pretty darn good on anything you'll find near or on the road from talking to owners all over the country. Time will tell how the new 3.5L holds up but it's done well in the Acura line.

I've been out shopping for autos, and I'm most often turned off by Honda dealers. Our local dealer automatically puts sunroof air deflectors, mud flaps, trunk liner, tinted windows and other crap trying to get another $750 profit on every deal--on top of a $699 documentary fee. That's all profit. Our local Toyota dealer is also a slam and jam operation--so often seen at dealerships owned by big national auto dealership chains.

No thank you. I prefer to do business with dealerships that operate on normal profit margins and don't go for the throat on every retail deal. (And as a Honda owner, I do know of an independent owned Honda dealership that operates the right way.) If I see a supplementary window sticker at any dealership, I'm out of there.

[n2ratfishin]

Bama Our local dealers normally have one or two like you describe. The rest are off the truck and you add what you want, if anything. The domestics do the same thing with lift kits etc, running boards etc...

A benefit of living in a town of less than 200,000. These dealers have been here since there were only maybe 50,000 and that was mainly the college and the base. The boom of Nashville and industry has changed things but the old guard is still in charge. We are active in local politics.

[1fejj]

I have one in my body shop now. We have the frontend and bed off. It's the only chrome bumper I have EVER been able to push a dent out with my hands. For me, I just cant get past how cheap the materials are, especially the interior. It feels more like a Mazda or Nissan. I really wanted to like this truck.