Is The 2015 Chevy Colorado In Danger Of Becoming A Failed Experiment?

You won't find many XL's at the year end clearance because all the companies in need of another truck grab those up first. Lariats and Platinum's are all that's left by this time of the clear out year. You might have some luck checking out small town dealerships though. That's how I found my ex-wifes year old SLE a few years back.

Ram's get good mileage when babied. If you like using your V8 the mileage will be in the high 15's.

 

Yeah, most of the XL's are fleet sales. Still trying to decide what to get....waiting to see the '16 Tacos in person, before I shell out the money

Funny, I started buying Toyota pickups, because the are very car like compared to the F250/350's we had in our fleet. Tacomas certainly do not ride like the trucks I used to drive. Basically a Camry with a large trunk...

 

Lol well I agree they don't ride like an F250, but I came from a car to a truck

Compared to the Colorado though, the Tacoma is much more truck worthy in terms of look and ride. Chevy said something to the effect they were not looking to sway truck owner, but rather create new truck owners. A new type of buyer essentially. I guess thats why the made it drive like a car or small SUV.

Visibility in the Tacoma is much better too. The Colorado had a very high sight line, especially out the rear window.

 

I have not one but two family members who could get me a GM discount. I work with the wife of the financing manager. I go to church with family of the dealership owner. Guess which truck I bought? Didn't even look at the GM. I bought what I wanted and it was the Taco. Failed experiment? eh... maybe not but if you had a vision of what a mid-size "truck" would be it is most definitely NOT the GM. I could be proven wrong/ again/
It still comes down to personal preference and brand loyalty. If my 1983 rust bucket toyo didn't drive forever I would not have bought another.

 

yeah those F350's ride like bricks.

I have heard that GM is trying to pull clients from Subarus, so the car like ride is understandable.

 

I'm not sure why the "car-like" ride is a bad thing. It is not car suspension. These new Colorado's have Coilover suspension up front like the Tacoma, and Spring Over Leaf arrangement out back. If they ride and handle smooth, it is because they have the geometry, and shock/coil configuration dialed in.

 

For me it had a lot more to do with steering input. I didn't like how light as easy the Colorado wheel was. I know to most people, thats a good thing. I prefer there to be a bit of weight to the steering wheel, with a rack and such and direct link to the tires and road.

I'm not sure if the Colorado has electronic steering, but it felt like it. To me, it felt like less feedback and control.

 

How does a rougher ride make it more "truck worthy"? A smooth ride is a good thing as far as I'm concerned, an most people I've talked to. Unless, for some people at least, that means a reduction in capability, however you define that. A very small percentage of truck owners take their trucks off-roading. How it hauls, tows, and drives is far more important to most truck owners. The Colorado appears to be superior in those three categories than the 2nd Gen. Tacomas.

I agree with personal preference, but I've always thought brand loyalty was silly unless you work for or own substantial stock in the company. If it continues to be the best product out there, great. But buying an inferior product simply due to brand loyalty makes no sense to me. This is all hypothetically speaking, of course.

 

Loyalty to a dealer makes total sense. If he takes care of you and you take care of him, then that can be a big deal when you have a lemon, major issue, or other hiccup. My Ford dealer has gone out of his way to take care of us several times and the owner is one of my customers. They will have my loyalty unless the vehicle is absolute garbage.

 

I can understand that, to a point at least.

 

So I was watching FastLane Truck do their little tow comparison between a 2015 Taco amd a 2015 Colorado. They both finished in respectable times with the Colorado near a minute ahead but; the motor was a screeaching at over 6k for most of the way and the Taco 4.0 was well uunder 5k ( about 4500 to 4800 rpm. There was three to four mph difference in speed between a Taco with 236 hp and Colorado with a car engine of 305 hp but similar torque. Guess which engine will last longer and guess who will buy more "old" Taco trucks then Colorados ? If Toyota did nothing but put in voice recognition standard they would make Chevy irrelevant. Now, if the new one has anywhere near the capability of the old with better gas mileage and ride, it won't be fair. Quality, reliability and capability sells trucks......not a better looking grill.

 

As they say chrome won't get you home...

 

Also, the Tacoma will blow the twins away when it comes to resale value. I looked up my truck the other day out of curiosity. 2013 with 23,000 miles and the value is literally the same as what I paid for it new. Good luck getting the Chevy twins to hold that kind of value.

 

Toyota was not immune to your observations. Even though the front and rear were changed in style, the grill is more of an extension downward from the old and the Silhouette is nearly the same. These cues go a long way in keeping in line with the percieved quality advantage the new one must come into the market with. They can't completely abandon the best selling intermediate and compact truck of all time.

 

Its funny how they are testing the Colorado against a engine that is 10 years old and it is till holding its own. You would think they could blow a 10 year old engine out of the water.

 

^ This. I bought nothing but Chevy from 1985 until 2013 after I had moved to another state. The main reason being it was a local, long time Chevy dealer, my neighbor who lived across the street from me was my salesman, I knew the service manager, and a good friend was a mechanic in the dealership. I always knew what the dealer invoice was and service was never a problem. They even covered a steering rack issue I had that was out of warranty. Over the years, I bought a couple of used cars from them too, and my neighbor always steered me away from the problem vehicles. And honestly, I had very few problems with any of the Chevy's I owned, including a 1500. Unfortunately, that dealer closed around 2009 or 2010. They were located in town and GM wanted them on the highway. And I think it's when GM was purging dealers who they thought under performed. I now have my 2013 Tacoma and a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe. I probably won't be in the market for a new vehicle anytime soon, but so far both dealers have been great to deal with. They'll keep my loyalty as long as they take care of me.

 

I went to the DFW auto show last night and saw the 2016 Tacoma on a spinning platform (look but don't touch). Honestly, it's half the EXACT same truck. Between the mirrors and the bed it's 100% the same as my 2009. They had the rear door open and I could tell the bin area under the rear seats is identical too. Thus, I have a hunch they used the exact same body. Hood was not open so don't ask.

One thing I absolutely hated about the truck was the front. It looks like a damn bull dog with an underbite. There is a front protrusion that sticks out a good 4" or so from the rest of the bumper and it looks silly. What I noticed peering in through the grill was that the radiator and trans cooler were stuck back a good 10" or so from the grill. Meaning, that was all empty space up front. Seemed like they could have yielded a MUCH better approach angle if they did the front a little differently.

One think I feel bad about was sitting in a GMC Canyon All Terrain. It was quite nice....actually that's an understatement. It was fantastic. GMC really took it up a notch. Auto-locking rear end, better fuel economy, FANTASTIC interior, technology, and I'll say it; the damn thing was downright good looking.

I walked away from the show thinking that Toyota hasn't done anything in the last 10 years to make me buy a new truck. My 2009 is 90% the same vehicle. Why the hell am I going to drop something like $35k on the exact same truck? Been there, done that, loved it...but what's my incentive to pay more for a design that's a decade old? There better be fucking GOLD under the hood come fall of this year.

 

I highly doubt it is going be anything earth shattering...maybe a few gains on mpg, bit more power.

 

One thing is for sure for me. I wouldn't spend a dollar on an unreliable gm product. Especially with a truck that hasn't been proven, and it's predecessors having a past of being junk.

 

I can see your point. That being said, enjoy your current Tacoma till the wheels fall off because there's no reason to buy the new one from what I've seen. And it kills me to say that. No one was more excited than me.