Trail Titan: Chevy’s 2025 Silverado ZR2 Hits Hard with Diesel Might

We’ve driven a lot of trucks over the years, but the 2025 Silverado ZR2 stands out as a true powerhouse built for serious drivers. As a team that’s spent years helping folks at the Mid Missouri Powerhouse find the perfect truck, we can confidently say this one checks nearly every box. After spending a week with it, we were reminded exactly why full-size pickups like this continue to be America’s top choice for work, play, and everything in between.

If you’re looking for a truck that blends off-road capability with everyday practicality, the ZR2 should be the first one you take for a test drive.

Power That Works for You: Meet the Duramax Diesel

The model we tested came equipped with Chevy’s strong and smooth Duramax 3.0-liter turbocharged diesel inline-six engine. This powerhouse offers 305 horsepower and a torque-rich 470 lb-ft, making it perfect for towing, highway cruising, or weekend adventures in the Ozarks.

Chevy pairs this engine with its finely tuned 10-speed automatic transmission, and let me tell you — it's a match made in truck heaven. The shifts are quick, silky smooth, and the engine stays in the sweet spot whether you're climbing hills or cruising at 70 on I-70. You’ll get the feel of a gas engine with all the durability and efficiency of a diesel.

We put in about 500 miles behind the wheel — highway stretches, rural roads, a little dirt, and even a light tow job — and it handled all of it with confidence and comfort. Fuel economy was right in line with expectations, averaging 23 mpg during our trip, which is impressive for a truck this capable.

Interior Tech That Feels First-Class

Step inside the ZR2 and you’ll find yourself surrounded by some of the best tech Chevy has to offer. A massive 13.4-inch touchscreen dominates the dash, paired with a sharp 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster. Everything’s intuitive, easy to use, and beautifully integrated.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are still onboard — a big win for those who love seamless smartphone integration. Add to that smart features like a 3D surround-view camera, rear cross-traffic braking, and a comprehensive suite of safety tech, and you’ve got a truck that makes everyday driving easier and safer.

Bold Design, Built to Stand Out

In Riptide Blue, this truck commands attention. It’s bold, muscular, and not shy about showing off its off-road chops. With 33-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory tires, a lifted suspension, and all the rugged gear that comes with the ZR2 badge, it’s ready for whatever you throw at it — trails, job sites, or downtown lots.

The design combines tough lines with refined touches, and while other brands take a different styling approach, the Silverado ZR2 leans into its adventurous spirit — and that resonates with a lot of our customers here in Missouri.

Room for Everyone — And Everything

Need space? The Silverado has it. The crew cab offers generous room for five full-grown adults to ride in comfort, while the bed gives you 62.9 cubic feet of cargo space — enough to load up gear, haul lumber, or pack in all your camping essentials. Whether you're headed to the lake or the lumber yard, this truck is built to handle it.

Behind the Wheel: Refined and Ready for the Long Haul

Driving the Silverado ZR2 is a pleasant surprise — especially for a full-size off-road truck. It glides over bumps and holds steady through curves, thanks in large part to the advanced Multimatic DSSV dampers and rugged suspension. Even when driving through town, it’s easy to maneuver. U-turns, parking lots, and tighter roads were no trouble at all — it actually felt smaller than it looks, and that’s saying something.

Inside, the cabin is whisper-quiet and incredibly comfortable, making it a fantastic daily driver or road trip companion.

Strong on Power, Smart on Fuel

Despite being a big, capable truck, the diesel ZR2 delivers outstanding fuel efficiency. We logged 23 mpg on our trip, right in line with the EPA estimates of 20 mpg city and 23 mpg highway. That’s a big deal for anyone looking to combine power with practicality — especially when gas prices start bouncing around.

Well Equipped and Worth It

The Silverado ZR2 delivers exceptional value for everything it brings to the table. Our test model came equipped with premium features like adaptive cruise control, a head-up display, and the versatile Multi-Flex tailgate. For a fully loaded, off-road-ready, tech-packed full-size pickup, it’s right in line with what today’s truck buyers expect—and then some.

Final Thoughts from a Missouri Expert

If you’re shopping for a premium off-road truck that’s just as comfortable on the road as it is in the wild, the 2025 Chevrolet Silverado ZR2 deserves a serious look. We’ve been behind the wheel of just about every truck out there, and this one stands tall among them. Whether you're towing, trail running, or just taking on daily life in style — the ZR2 gets the job done, and then some.

It’s one thing to see it online—it’s another to feel it on the road. Come by and drive the ZR2 today.

GM's Diesel Domination: Exploring America’s Last Light-Duty Diesel With The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 ZR2

While there has been plenty of buzz here at the Mid-Missouri Powerhouse surrounding electrification, the intense popularity of factory off-road pickups has become a force to be reckoned with! Every major brand now boasts its own version, with the Motor Trend staff noticing just how awesome and ideal for challenging terrain the Silverado 1500 ZR2 is. They are eagerly prepared to spend the next year with it, seeing if it is truly outfitted to hang with the big guns of the off-roading realm.

The Silverado ZR2 comes with a preparatory 2-inch lift and Multimatic Dynamic Suspension Spool Valve dampers. Mulimatic’s amazing and expertly-trained motorsports division has a notable history of designing, constructing, and campaigning race models for stiff competition worldwide. The shocks are a very sweet pair of upsized 1.57-inch versions of the units found on the outgoing ZR2 model. We stand proudly behind our unique trait of being the only manufacturer to include front and rear locking differentials on a factory-grade half-ton.

33-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT tires are precisely locked and loaded for trail action of the gnarliest grade, and the 18-inch aluminum wheels with Oxide Gold accents are just begging to be dipped to strut their stuff in muddy or sandy conditions. There’s a beefy skid plate package to protect the vitals on the underside, along with a new high-tuck performance exhaust. Seeing add-ons such as this without an aftermarket badge is amazing: a wicked-cool high-clearance steel performance bumper makes for a 31.9-degree approach angle, also flaunting removable end caps that aid with the approach angle.

Off-road drive modes have been very game changing in today’s industry, and this ZR2’s one-pedal-drive terrain setting smashes the task of tackling inclines that could render an average sedan worthless within seconds! There’s a ZR2-specific grille fit with very nice integrated lighting and red-painted tow hooks to round off the exterior look. The Motor Trend crew reached in just a bit deeper into the arsenal of available extras to construct their ideal tester, which included the rearview camera mirror and power-adjustable steering column from the Technology package. 

The 3.0-liter turbodiesel inline-six engine was the burly benefactor of a 10.1 percent horsepower bump this year, with this team also easily meeting the EPA-rated expectations of 20/22/21 mpg combined. The crew is planning to brave daily commutes in LA, along with taking on a few off-road challenges that will clearly gauge the Silverado ZR2’s aptitude. The Edmunds.com review crew was thrilled with the Silverado’s best voice recognition in the business, and the very responsive infotainment system. A Black-Out package will also become available for the HD Custom trim, and the Silverado HD Midnight Edition gets a brand-new set of 20-inch wheels. 

Buyers will have a choice of Regular Cab, Double Cab, and Crew Cab body styles, plus three varieties of bed length. When the Hagerty car buffs reported back about getting their hands on the current-model ZR2, they claimed that the suspension “eats up just about anything you can throw at it on the trail without compromising its highway manners.” This inline-6 emits a very telltale growl right at first idle, and every bit of its unique personality never lets you forget you’re driving a diesel. Everything included here along for the ride in the ZR2 feels consistently special, and will always remain unique for its superior performance and daily-drive practically. 

Galaxy-Grade Silverado ZR2 “Meteor” Reportedly in the Works

This year’s CES show was where the Motor Trend team heard a rumor that they passed on to excited auto fans on their blog about the Silverado line, a tight-knit bunch of hefty haulers we love here at the Mid-Missouri Powerhouse! It is now officially underway that the bowtie brand is looking to make a more extreme version of the Silverado pickup beyond the ZR2 to offer up firm competition for the Ram 1500 TRX and Ford F-150 Raptor. 

Even though many people disagree about what ultimately killed off the dinosaurs, the possibility of it being a “meteor” is quite likely, hence the choice of name for this new vehicle is now officially on the drawing board. The Motor Trend crew quite obviously were very excited about the concept of a Raptor-challenging ZR2, which is already quite a bit more capable for off-roading than its slick and urban appearance may suggest. A ZR2 with much more might and muscle would need some upgrades in the suspension department, with about 13 inches and front and 14 in the rear for appropriate clearance. 

Designer Abimelec Arellano came up with a render that tied together the vision with a wider body and smooth bulges in the fenders. For the rear suspension leaf springs and shackles could have been a strategic answer, but this vision saw something a bit more like the Raptor with a four-link rear suspension. Since constantly demanding hauling is what a truck is meant for, it could safely be imagined that there would be a crew cab and abbreviated bed, with sheet metal alterations to provide ample room for the wider rear track. 

What is affectionately known as the “secret sauce” in ZR2 models to pave the way for skillful rock crawling and high-speed Baja runs are the Multimatic DSSV spool-valve shocks. The front and rear locking differentials are not needed 24/7, but their presence can be called upon much like the buddy with a spare tire to assist with situations where you don’t have much traction at all to work with. The rendering also features a single-bulge hood to provide space for what would mostly be a supercharger and other necessary hardware for this beast-in-training.

The existing ZR2 is blessed with an awesome front fascia, bright red tow hooks, a very cool silver skid plate, and LED driving lights, which we wouldn’t want to see change. Out back the landscape is left alone for the most part, and Bead-lock-capable wheels along with 37-inch Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac tires have a unique way of tying the concept together well. Another awesome way to make this model a supreme tribute of sorts could be to add a plaque in honor of Rod Hall, whose son Chad races ZR2s with a longstanding passion.

Many curious car fans are dying to know if this is really going to happen, and if there will be a formidable suitor that can do show-stopping battle with the likes of the TRZ and Raptor R. We’ll keep you posted here on the blog about any upcoming tidbits of information, and can’t wait to see you this month here at the Powerhouse. Test drive the current-model Silverado or anything else spectacular on our lot soon and experience the thrilling and thoroughly durable Chevy experience!

Swashbuckler Level Unlocked: Chevy Silverado ZR2 Masters the Mud Challenge on all Levels

Mud is just one of those things that makes trucks better. Here at the Mid Missouri Powerhouse, we love the thrill we feel when we see a truck tear through the mud,  and the 2023 Chevy Silverado ZR2 is one of the current off-road “bosses” that masters every challenge that off-roading in the mud can bring. It certainly leaves us wanting more!

The Road and Track crew took a ZR2 down to Southern California where it typically remains bone dry. Recent rain, however, changed the terrain drastically into a challenging “mud-scape”. The full-size Silverado ZR2 is the top-of-the-line sibling to the Colorado ZR2, which is already a well-loved midsize marvel within the Chevy realm. This is an off-road ready, four-wheel-drive, crew cab truck that is equipped to get any place that its 81.2 inches of width can persistently push through.

There is always competition for any trailblazing truck, and in this case, it happens to be from the Ford F-150 Tremor, Ram 1500 Rebel, and Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. When compared to this trio, the Silverado is more civilized and can edge around urban areas before blasting off to dirt with a serious advantage. When it comes time to properly tackle the rural terrain and wander through the wilderness, it remains a full two steps up from the Z71 trim and one step above and beyond the Trail Boss edition.

Some of the design elements that were transferred over from the Colorado ZR2 are the extra-bulged hood with a black painted center, the cut-corner design of the steel front bumper, along with the very capable and awesome visible protective skid plates. There are also very cool red front tow hooks and the always-on-point Multimatic DSSV shock absorbers that provide quality unrivaled by any other unit in the market. Three cylindrical sleeves move within one another to repeatedly tune the rebound curves and compression of the damper. 

This makes for an incredible quality of sure-footedness off-road, and the expert-grade prowess that the truck displayed for this testing crew while they covered the challenging trails of Ventura County in December. Everything included added up to the perfect formula for moving the 420-horsepower and 460-lb ft of peak torque around the messy terrain, rendering the small block phenomenal in all ways when it comes to heavy-footing it through thoroughly soaked conditions. 

The Silverado ZR2’s approach angles are even better than on the standard TRX or Raptor, and the incredibly thick steel front bumper can withstand some intense brute force. The displays on board offer up a good view of the camera feeds surrounding the truck, along with the navigation and entertainment systems. There is still an inherently playful nature to this powerhouse of a rig, and the recent explosion in popularity of trail riding  is only bound to make an already attractive light shine brighter on this masterful work of All-American engineering!