Driving the 2024 Chevrolet ZR2 Off-Road Pickup Family: 1 Hot Dog, 3 Sizes

You may be familiar with a phrase used to describe German luxury sedan market strategy: “one sausage, three sizes.” This meant that the three sedans (compact, mid-size and full-size) in a brand’s lineup looked, acted and felt essentially the same — you just could have one in the size and price that suited you best. Well, when it comes to off-road pickup trucks, Chevrolet seems to have adopted this approach, as well, because for the 2024 model year, that’s what you can get; let’s call it one hot dog (these being ‘Murrican truggs) in three sizes: the Colorado ZR2 (medium), Silverado 1500 ZR2 (large) and Silverado 2500 ZR2 (extra-large).

Related: 2024 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison Returns as Off-Road Multitasker

Not only that, you can also get each one in an AEV Bison edition to make it even more off-road-ready, so essentially there are six super-capable off-road Chevy trucks to choose from now. We flew out to Palm Springs, California, to join Chevy to drive most of its new ZR2 trucks for 2024 to see which one we’d most want to take into the desert — and maybe take home afterward. (Per our ethics policy, Cars.com pays for its own airfare and lodging when attending such manufacturer-sponsored events.)

What Makes a ZR2?

There are a number of common components shared across all three trucks that help make a ZR2 off-road trim what it is. From a styling standpoint, most notable is the family ZR2 grille with the Chevy “flow-tie” badge — the venerable bow-tie badge hollowed out to allow for cooling air to pass through it and into the engine bay. All ZR2s also get a lift kit that varies in height depending on the truck. All get special wheels fitted with Goodyear Territory MT off-road tires, special badging, and unique interior treatments with gray easy-clean upholstery and spiffy yellow stitching on the dash, seats and doors.

On the off-road components list, all ZR2s get Multimatic Dynamic Suspensions Spool Valve shock absorbers, tuned to each truck, that are part of an off-road suspension meant to help the ZR2 handle higher-speed bumps and obstacles with better durability and without beating up you or your passengers. All ZR2s also get underbody skid plates to better protect the sensitive bits.

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But what if you want something even more capable? Then you step up to a ZR2 Bison, which includes off-road parts developed in conjunction with off-road outfitter American Expedition Vehicles. This replaces your traditional bumpers with stamped-steel ones front and rear; it also adds black-painted AEV wheels. The underbody skid plates get upgraded, and you also get some embossed head restraints, floormats and stickers with the AEV Bison name.

That’s what they all have in common, but these are very differently sized trucks. So, how different are they to drive? Very different indeed, as it turns out.

How Does a ZR2 Drive?

Wee: Colorado ZR2 and ZR2 Bison

Starting at the price-and-parking-lot-friendly end of the Chevy off-road truck spectrum is the 2024 Colorado ZR2 and ZR2 Bison. If you want a moderately capable, budget-friendly off-road Colorado, the brand would like to point you to the attractive Trail Boss trim package — but if you plan on doing any higher-speed desert running, jumping the thing or doing some serious rock crawling, the ZR2 and ZR2 Bison are what you’ll want.

The Colorado ZR2 only comes with one powertrain: the high-output version of Chevrolet’s turbocharged 2.7-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 310 horsepower and 430 pounds-feet of torque, impressive V-8-level numbers from a small truck-tuned four-cylinder. It’s mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission and a four-wheel-drive system with all-wheel-drive capability and a two-speed transfer case for low-range rock crawling. The Colorado ZR2 also comes with a few extras, including off-road modes like Baja (which shuts off all the various safety minders and traction control) and Terrain (which automatically brakes the truck when you lift off the accelerator, allowing for one-pedal off-road driving).

I drove both the Colorado ZR2 and ZR2 Bison, and both proved to be exceptionally capable vehicles. The big tangible difference between the two comes down to suspension and tires: While the ZR2 gets the Multimatic DSSV suspension (which is astonishingly good in all kinds of conditions, from street driving to high-speed dry-lake-bed running), the Bison adds jounce control dampers to give even more stability and smooth-out harsh terrain. We can’t quite compare it with the Ford Ranger Raptor yet, but the new Ranger’s platform-mate Bronco Raptor should give us an indication of what to expect from the competition, and the Colorado ZR2 Bison simply feels like a different animal (sorry). All of these vehicles are exceptionally capable, and the average user is unlikely to ever approach the limits of their capabilities. Front and rear electronic locking differentials help put that power down when traction gets dicey, and even on slippery rock surfaces that were difficult to hike over, the Colorado never missed a beat.

The Colorado is also quite good on-road, as well, with its powerful four-cylinder providing plenty of oomph, combined with a visceral, snarly engine note that helps let you know it has the beans. You do get some tire vibration and noise at lower speeds due to the chunky treads of the Goodyear Territory MT tires, but it’s not unpleasant, just noticeable. The Bison version does suffer a bit on-road with its larger tires; you notice acceleration is just a tick behind Colorados with similar powertrains.

But the biggest foible with the Colorado ZR2 Bison comes when you try to look out the back window. Previous Bisons had a full-size spare tire mounted on a platform squarely in the middle of the bed of the truck, which wasn’t conducive to being able to use your pickup as a pickup. The new Bison has the spare mounted vertically up against the back of the cab, which frees up the bed nicely but now eliminates rear visibility. The easy and obvious solution would be to include GM’s rearview camera mirror on the Bison, but it’s nowhere to be found, and that’s ridiculous. If ever there was a perfect application for this tech, it’s right here. C’mon, GM.

Not So Wee: Silverado 1500 ZR2

If the Colorado just isn’t big enough for your needs, or maybe you need to tow more than the 6,000 pounds the Colorado ZR2 is rated to drag, it’s time to step up to the 2024 Silverado 1500 ZR2 and ZR2 Bison. Only one, the regular ZR2, was on hand for us to drive briefly at Chevrolet’s big launch event, but it still made quite an impression. Like the smaller Colorado, you get all the off-road goodies like the Multimatic DSSV suspension, a lift kit, skid plates and 33-inch Goodyear tires. You get the same interior improvements, too, with the gray upholstery and yellow stitching.

But when you step up to the bigger Silverado, you get some new powertrain options, one of which is very intriguing: The new standard engine for the Silverado 1500 ZR2 is the turbo-diesel 3.0-liter six-cylinder that makes 305 hp and 495 pounds-feet or torque; the 6.2-liter V-8 making 420 hp and 460 pounds-feet of torque is now optional. Both are mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission that routes power to all four wheels and also features electronic locking front and rear differentials, just like the Colorado.

Despite all the similar equipment, the driving experience couldn’t be more different than the Colorado. What changes the experience is the Silverado’s size and mass: The longer wheelbase, wider track and greater weight all help the Silverado 1500 ZR2 smooth out even more surface imperfections on- or off-road. Of the three trucks I sampled during this event, the Silverado 1500 ZR2 was by far the most comfortable in all conditions. On pavement, it still has some of the vibration and noise from its Goodyear off-road tires, but it’s not as pronounced as it is in either the Colorado or Silverado 2500. And once you get off-road, the combination of a softer off-road suspension, Multimatic DSSV shocks and the Silverado 1500’s mass just make it unbeatable for all-day comfort over washboard surfaces and rocky access roads.

The Colorado is more nimble for sure, but the Silverado 1500 is vastly more comfortable, trading a lot of the Colorado’s sportiness for civility and cushioning. If my daily commute contained a lot of logging roads or broken surfaces, the Silverado 1500 is the one of this trio I’d choose.

Friggin’ Huge: Silverado 2500 ZR2 Bison

But what if you want to tow a massive RV trailer? Or horses? Or an apartment building off its foundation? Well, you then need to step up to the biggest ZR2 ever created: the 2024 Silverado 2500 ZR2 and ZR2 Bison, the latter of which I was able to drive through the desert as part of this evaluation. It’s the first time Chevy has slapped the ZR2 package on a heavy-duty pickup, but it’s not just a badge job; just like the other ZR2s, it gets the Multimatic DSSV suspension, a lift kit, underbody protection, unique wheels and tires, etc. And the Bison gets upgrades, as well, like steel bumpers and additional skid plates. But this should not really be considered a competitor to the Ram 2500 Power Wagon; it stops short of getting the kinds of upgrades that would make it as capable in the rough as that massive mountain goat.

For instance, it only has a rear locking differential; the Power Wagon has front and rear lockers. It has a winch-ready bumper in the ZR2 Bison; the Power Wagon comes with a winch already affixed. It’d be more fair to put the Silverado 2500 ZR2 up against models like the Ford F-250 Super Duty Tremor variant or Ram 2500 Rebel, both of which don’t stray too far from the main purposes of an HD truck. The Silverado 2500 ZR2 is meant to be more of an off-road-capable tow rig than a Baja racer like the Colorado, and that’s obvious from its electronic drive modes, of which there are precisely two: Normal and Off-Road — no Baja mode, no Terrain mode, just a switch that helps the truck go a little better in the dirt.

Given that it’s a towing rig, you get a choice of two engines: the standard 6.6-liter gasoline V-8 making 401 hp and 464 pounds-feet of torque, or an optional turbo-diesel 6.6-liter V-8 cranking out 470 hp and 975 pounds-feet of torque. Both team with a stout Allison 10-speed heavy-duty automatic transmission that sends power to the wheels through a two-speed transfer case with low-range.

On the road, the big ZR2 drives like just about any other HD pickup — it’s massive, it’s ponderous, and the ride is bumpy. The Silverado HD ZR2 feels more stiffly sprung than either of its two smaller brothers, likely due to its higher payload and towing capacities. The 35-inch Goodyear MT tires also send up a lot of road noise, far more than in either of the two smaller trucks. It’s the primary thing you hear in the cabin when driving on pavement — not wind noise, not diesel engine growl, just knobby off-road tire noise. But again, it’s not intrusive, merely present. If you’re outfitting your Silverado HD this way, it’s something you’re likely expecting.

Off-road, the big ZR2 Bison is exceptionally capable, able to scale boulders that leave the lesser trucks driving around, but again it’s the most choppy and rough-riding of all three ZR2 trucks. Big HD trucks like this work best when there’s a load in the bed, and with a payload rating of nearly 3,400 pounds for the gas-engine version, a little weight back there would likely help make it a bit more comfortable. It’s not as happy at higher speeds as the two smaller trucks, either, transmitting a lot of vibration and road surface imperfections into the cabin on washboard gravel tracks. You wouldn’t want to go fast enough to get airborne, especially not with that huge lump of diesel engine up front to come crashing down. The Silverado 2500 ZR2 is best used as a slower-speed overlander, something that can easily pull a big off-road camper to a remote campsite or get outfitted with a bed camper and be used as a go-anywhere overlanding explorer.

More From Cars.com:

• 2023 Chevrolet Colorado Review: New Style and Substance to Challenge the Tacoma
• 2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500: Now With More Bison, Upgraded Duramax Diesel
• 2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD ZR2 Tows Off the Beaten Path
• 2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD: New Face, New Interior, More Diesel Power, ZR2 on the Way
• 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 ZR2: Towing With an Off-Roader

Pick Your Flavor

In the end, it looks like this really isn’t one hot dog in three sizes. Each of Chevy’s ZR2 trucks might look similar thanks to the ZR2 genes, but they each have a distinct personality and their own flavor. Want nimble, sporty and easily parkable? Go for the Colorado. Want a comfortable and capable all-arounder? The light-duty Silverado 1500 is the choice. Got big jobs to do that require you to get off the beaten path? The big Silverado 2500 works best for that. All of these hot dogs are tasty, but they’re all specialized in their own way — and they all come with serious mustard.

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