New Chevy Colorado mega-thread

I can't reAlly say if unibody trucks are "better" but the old ford unibodies from the 60's are a hot commodity in the drag racing scene because they are far more ridgid then ladder frame trucks.

 

Thought I would throw in my 2 cents since I just purchased my first pickup. I looked at the Frontier, and did my research on the Colorado. I have always been a Jeep Guy, I have owned 5 of them, various models, two being Wranglers I built up (98 and a 08 four door). I liked the frontier but Toyota just seems to build a better vehicle. The aftermarket parts is also much better for the Tacoma.

I went from a 2008 Wrangler Unlimited on 35s to the Tacoma, the Jeep was great but the mileage sucked and I am doing a lot more expedition/long range off road trips. I didn't feel like de-building the Jeep from a rock crawler to an expo rig.

I damn near thought I may wait for the Colorado even though buying a Chevy made me sick to my stomach. The diesel is enticing though and almost enough to push me over the edge.

There are issues with small diesels. I had a 2005 diesel Jeep Liberty... They made them from 2005-2006. It was fun to drive tons of power and I could get 28mpg. Even with 32inch tires and a lift. Most of these small diesels are made in Europe. The issue with the Liberty diesel, 2.8 VM Motori engine was that parts were very expensive and hard to find. The EGR valve also kills these motors. Your recirculating diesel exhaust which has a lot of soot compared to a gas engine. This destroys the turbo charger when it gums up the bearings along with everything else in the motor. Most of the 2.8 owners had to clean the MAP sensor every 5000 miles or so to keep it from getting clogged up with soot. The other issue was it had a rubber timing belt like most four cylinders. The motors had timing belt issues which most believe is from the added stress of the diesel motor pulses. This was compounded by a very complex timing belt system that most couldn't do them selves and that required numerous special tools that cost nearly a thousand dollars to buy, IF you could even find them. Most people couldn't even find a Jeep dealer that knew how to do the timing belt, at least properly. I have done quite a few timing belts myself on other cars but I wouldn't touch the 2.8 timing belt.

I have a feeling any small 4 cylinder diesel that comes to the states will have these same issues. EGR valves recirculating diesel exhaust through the intake path is going to kill the longevity of these motors. From my understanding, and I am not expert, it seems overseas they have much better/cleaner fuel so their engines run cleaner. The diesel liberty guys were always talking about why they seem to have more issues than their european counter parts running the same motor. Im guessing its our crappy fuel/ EPA standards.

The Colorado might be good but its a Chevy the re-sale will probably suck and who knows about dependability. I really hope the diesel is a success but I am not willing to take the risk on it until I know its not like the Liberty. FYI VM Motori that made the 2.8 Liberty motor is making the motor forthe new diesel RAM/G Cherokee as well... Hopefully they worked out their issues.

The frontier seems to be just ok but nothing special. I bought the Toyota for the reputation, aftermarket availability, and the resale value. I was looking at used trucks a few years old and it just made more sense to buy new because the prices were so close. Toyota hasn't done a re-design in for ever they still hold their value.. That says something.

 

Actually lots of 4 cylinder engines out there with timing chains these days. Most Toyota and Honda 4 bangers have been chain for a decade or more. No reason they cant design a diedel with a chain I can think of...

The issue was That Europe had Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (under 10 ppm Sulfur) long before we did here in the US. It got introduced over there early because diesel is so much more widely used as an auto fuel on the continent wheres here in North America its mostly limited to trucking and trains. As of 2007 or 2008 all our fuel is ULSD (15ppm max) as well so hopefully this should no longer be an issue.

I for one would like to see diesels become a sucess in the US. Potential for 30-40% better mileage for only 10% more fuel cost is not too shabby, and there is no denying that the instant torque is addictive . And if we got a big enough percentage of cars on the road running diesel the cost premium might come down as US refineries would have incentive to change the mix and refine more diesel.

One issue I still see holding people back is that in some areas not every gas station has diesel at the pumps...

 

toyota not adding a 6spd auto and manual to the 2.7L in mid model life kinda left a bad taste in my mouth. theres really no excuse for it. the engine is begging for the extra gears.
The traction and stability control systems are by far the most budget ive ever seen.


The chevy will hopefully get toyota on the ball again. these trucks arent that cheap and are due for some attention.

 

I've definitely seen the flex myself on my Tacoma just looking down my side-view mirrors. The bed is constantly flexing on the relatively weak frame.

I can't say being a unibody has helped my jeep at all though. I've had tons of problems because of the amount of flex it has (in the frame, not suspension). I've crushed part of my wiring harness between the unibody frame and oil filter because of the way the engine mounts and body were flexing when it gets torqued up. I've had simple things like transfer case shift linkages fall off when it gets twisted up. The worst though is that if the transfer case shifter linkage is hooked up fully it can pop it into neutral while on a hill climb if it's jarred from a bunch of torque while I hit a bump.

I'd take a framed vehicle any day because of those problems. Granted it's not much better at first but it provides a much better base to work from. If you cage it down to the frame and let the body sit as an isolated piece in a completely caged structure then it's an incredibly strong setup. You can cage a unibody but without a very solid floor the cage will still flex quite a bit (as opposed to going straight through the floor to a frame)

 

Every truck I've ever owned has done that. It's just the nature of the beast with a body on frame vehicle. There will always be flex between the bed and cab. I wouldn't necessarily consider the Tacoma frame weak. Rust prone yes but not weak.

http://youtu.be/Vbx-GmAQXB8


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I don't know if it's been said yet but I'm actually happy the new Frontier and Colorado are coming out first. In my mind, this gives Toyota a leg up on them both. While Nissan and Chevy rush to get to market they will give Toyota visibility into where the bar has been set.

Thus, Toyota will be in a better position to be REACTIVE with their design approach since they'll know what they're up against. Sure it will mean that the next Tacoma will be a little late to market but the reward will be a better truck.

 

But the Tacoma is following them to market within a year. Even with what is known about the Colorado and Frontier already, it's too late for Toyota to make reactive changes in design and engineering. Those were all firmed up well before details for the competitors were available.

 

This is why you take the EGR and all the other smog stuff off.
My dad did it to his f250 and he says its runs like a totally different truck, much much better.

 

You know if the new Honda will be front wheel drive

 

Unless they stop sharing platform with the Pilot and design an all new powertrain from the ground up - its still going to be front biased 4WD.

What I bet they might do, is give it some of the technology from Acura SH-AWD (also still technically FWD derived) that can send a lot more torque to the back when needed.


The only true front engine/ RWD platform Honda ever made for the USA market was the S2000 roadster.

 

and it will have same inherent honda square design. no torque. peak HP above 6K

 

The Tacoma (even in its current configuration) will do just fine. Sure, GM make take a small percentage of potential Tacoma buyers (not speaking of fleet sales) but Toyota loyalists are true to their color through and through. Toyota's reputation of dependability and resale alone are GM's biggest enemy, especially with so many recalls going on in Detroit currently.

As for designs, I could live quite happily with the GMC version from the outside, but the interior looks so friggin' play school and dated already and it's not even in sales production yet. The IP especially looks cheap with its ventilation controls and other dash switch gear. The Taco's current design is both functional and decent looking. Simple, straightforward and functional.

The Colorado is going to face a hurdle with the aesthetics of its front end alone. Damm, is that the best they could come up with? The other 3 sides are acceptable to me but that mug looks cheap, flimsily and very corporate. GM really needs to pull their heads out of their backsides and listen to market research if they have any hope of being successful. But alas, GM's track record of doing just that has been terrible in so many classes/markets.

I'm self admittedly a Chevy guy at heart. Always have been with as many Chevrolets that I have owned in the past. I really want to buy American, but with what is being offered, there is no point. I have been ruined by Toyota with my current 08' X-Runner. Even with its shortcomings, I still feel its a better bet than the new Colorado and it pains me to say that.

 

Have you even seen the ventilation controls in the tacoma?
I drove an extended cab short bed chevy Z71 for 10 years before getting the taco. With all the recalls and price increases with chevy/gm, I went with the taco. In terms of buying american, the tacos are assembled here, at least in Texas, so at least i bought a truck assembled in america. I think the tundra's are too. The first year a manufacturer comes out with a new vehicle, there are always bugs to fix. When I saw the 2014 chevy/gmc's, I immediately had buyers remorse with the taco intially. But then all the recalls came out, and i'm glad i stuck with the tacoma. If you could put the chevy interior into the taco, I would be one happy man!

 

If you could put the 4Runner interior into the Tacoma I would be a happy man. Not that I'm unhappy with the Tacoma.

 

When the rumored chev mid size diesel comes out in 2016 its going to raise some eye brows. The ram eco is getting 27 mpg highway on a full size truck. Chev should hopefully see 30 mpg which is nice on the wallet. I think the new 2015 chev looks alot like the tacoma.