No one's underestimating the importance of the all-new 2014 Chevrolet Silverado. The GMT900 platform that's rolling along under
the 2013 model has been underpinning fullsize GM trucks since 2007, and
while the Silverado has stayed competitive through most of the
intervening six years, the past two haven't been kind to the machine.
Chevy engineers stood back and watched this happen, biting their tongues
and whittling away all the while on the next-generation 2014 Silverado.
There are only a handful of carryover parts from old machine to new,
and the result is a pickup that offers more power, efficiency and
refinement than the previous generation while holding the pricing line.
This is, without a doubt, the best Silverado ever built, but does that
make it the best pickup?
The half-ton pickup now wears the bold, vertical face of
its heavy duty predecessors, complete with an all-aluminum hood boasting
a set of twin power domes that stretch from cowl to grille. As a
result, the Silverado looks considerably less pokey than the previous
truck from head-on. Throw in those handsome projector headlamps and the
black two-tier grille of our Z71 tester and the new model looks both
clean and modern without turning its back on the nameplate's history.
The 2014 Silverado is now 0.4 inches wider than before, and that small
nudge in track helps give the machine a more planted look. Designers
took advantage of the added width by slathering the sides with massive,
exaggerated fender swells. The squared-off wheel arches of the previous
generation have stuck around, but the look makes sense paired with this
more angular design. The inset doors help give the truck a more modern,
clean appearance from the side, while smaller Z71 badges show Chevy is
capable of demonstrating some restraint when it comes time to apply
stickers.
While base models ride on attractive 18-inch polished aluminum wheels,
our tester came saddled with hefty 20-inch chrome rollers. The Z71 trim
affords buyers Goodyear Wrangler all-terrain tires, no matter the wheel
size. The rubber lands more on the civilized side of the all-terrain
spectrum, but makes sense for a truck that will likely spend the
majority of its time on paved surfaces or light gravel roads.
Move to the rear and the Silverado shows off a massive Bowtie badge as
well as a standard corner step bumper in LTZ guise. The bumper offers a
foothold for climbing into the bed, and engineers reworked both rear
stake pockets to accommodate a gloved hand for an easier, more secure
way to get to cargo. More importantly, the tailgate now features a
torsion spring that cuts the effort of closing it by half. Opening the
tailgate is as simple as unlatching the lock and letting it drop. The
spring gently lets the whole contraption down and into the open position
without any help. We owe whoever came up with that one many, many
beers. The design is brilliant.
But it's indoors where the 2014 Silverado really differentiates itself
from its ancestors. Here, designers finally gave the truck some
much-needed attention. The dash is both more attractive and better
thought out than before thanks to a simple-to-use center stack. Buttons
and dials have been kept to a minimum, and those present are easy to
locate and read at a glance. All of the controls have been moved higher
up on the dash than before, and those that are set low are still within
arm's reach without having to lean forward or take your eyes from the
road. We love the big piano key toggles for traction control, cargo
lighting, lane departure and the like.
But the driver gets a more substantial steering wheel with new redundant
controls, and the redesigned gauge cluster is both good-looking and
easy to read. The big, clear TFT screen mounted between the tachometer
and the speedometer delivers a spate of vehicle information, from fuel
economy and trip readings to the status of the engine's cylinder
deactivation.
Speaking of cylinder deactivation, GM threw every efficiency trick in
the book at the new EcoTec3 engine family. In addition to active fuel
management, which can drop from V8 to V4 power to save fuel, the engine
now boasts a direct-injection fuel system and variable valve timing for
the first time. As a result, this is the smartest 5.3-liter V8 to ever
find its way under the hood of a Silverado. With 355 horsepower and 383
pound-feet of torque, the engine delivers 40 more horsepower and 48 more
pound-feet while returning 16 miles per gallon city and 22 mpg highway.
That's an increase of 1 mpg in both categories over the comparable 2013
model.
On the road, the 2014 model is a few millennia ahead of its predecessor.
The cabin is phenomenally quiet thanks to a cornucopia of tricks. The
frame is both lighter and stiffer than before. Crew and Double Cab
models boast both sheer and hydraulic body mounts to banish solid axle
freeway hop. Acoustic fender liners keep tire noise at bay while triple
door seals make wind noise an unpleasant memory from this truck's past.
Throw in spray-in sound deadening along the firewall and transmission
tunnel, and this is the quietest truck on the road, hands down. There
are luxury SUVs with worse noise, vibration and harshness
characteristics.
Unladen, the 5.3-liter V8 delivers excellent power, hustling the truck
to 60 miles per hour quicker than should be feasible. Shifts from that
old six-speed are solid and well sorted, but the Silverado offers a more
pleasant surprise in the brake system. While the 2014 model technically
uses the same size stoppers as before, the entire system has been
recalibrated. As a result, the pedal feels more confident with positive
bite and excellent response. Considering the previous generation had all
the stopping prowess of a hog on ice, the change is more than welcome.
The rotors now use GM's Duralife coating, which helps keep rust at bay
and significantly increases rotor life in the process.
GM has also done an excellent job of implementing an electronic power
steering system on the 2014 Silverado.
Throw 5,000 pounds worth of empty horse trailer behind the Silverado and
you'll never know it's there. Chevrolet says that depending on
configuration, the 2014 Silverado will be able to tow up to 11,500
pounds safely, and engineers worked to make the truck more stable while
doing so (for the record, as optioned, our tester could only tow a
maximum of 9,600 pounds). While the marginally wider track is part of
that recipe, so are new wheels and higher specification tires with
stiffer sidewalls to reduce squirm and wander under a load. Of course, a
number on a page hardly tells the whole story. Like most tow ratings,
the closer you get to the ceiling, the harder the truck has to work. We
put 8,600 pounds of trailer and skid steer behind the new Silverado, and
while the truck could confidently pull the load about, we'd think twice
about knocking on that 11,500 number's door.
GM has done an impressive job with the 2014 Silverado, building the
truck back into the contender it once was. The remarkably refined
driving dynamics and quiet cabin are enough to earn it a special place
in our hearts.
Courtesy of autoblog.com
