Rightly or wrongly, automakers are betting more than ever on off-road-focused variants of their pickups. In all economic logic, this is a good way to increase profit margins thanks to a sustained demand for this type of product. After the Ford Ranger Raptor and the Toyota Tacoma Trailhunter, it is now the turn of the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison to want to have its place in the sun on steep trails.

Without having the mechanical arguments of the Ranger Raptor with a 405 hp biturbo V6 or the evolutionary aspect of the Tacoma Trailhunter, offered with a 326 hp hybrid mechanics, the pretender relies on its chassis to stand out.

Having much better angles of attack (38.2 degrees) and ramp (26.9 degrees) than its rivals, it puts on huge 35-inch diameter boots provided by the manufacturer OD. They are of the “beadlock” type, so they can be screwed to the rims to prevent them from slipping. Multimatic shocks designed specifically for off-roading complete the package with robust skid plates fixed under the frame. Note that the leaf springs remain present at the rear, unlike the Ranger and Tacoma.

This Colorado ZR2 can only be upgraded to the 310 hp, 430 lb-ft 2.7L turbo four-cylinder engine with an eight-speed automatic transmission and two locking differentials. It goes without saying that for attacking the less hospitable paths, these intermediate pickups definitely make more sense than the full-size ones due to their more compact format.