We have seen the number of customers who are excited to try off roading here at the Mid Missouri Powerhouse rise drastically over the past few years, as it seems like just about everyone interested in trucks now wants to try their hand at attacking the trail! It's not just the romanticism as of late from media and movies about off-roading and racing, we know that this is just an excellent facet of the human condition: we are all hard-wired to explore, and experience just how awesome it is to conquer the wild.
This year Chevy’s ZR2 badge sees its debut for the Silverado HD with the thrilling introduction of the 2024 Silverado HD ZR2, and it's already stellar off-road capability is now elevated even further. There are plans in the future to introduce 3 off-road performance trucks, as navigating tricky roots, rushing streams, and steep inclines are luring away from mundane drives and packing their outdoor gear. Both the HD ZR2 and HD ZR2 Bison excitedly deliver race-grade technologies and enhanced off-road capability to the HD lineup, with legendary aftermarket experts American Expedition Vehicles adding superhero-grade equipment.
Ready to take on the rutted and dangerous challenges of fire roads, outright Baja-style antics, and constantly cautious bouldering, this exploration-ready pair are offered exclusively in the 2500 Crew Cab configuration with a standard 6.6-liter gas engine or wonderfully potent 6.6-liter Duramax turbo diesel. The Silverado HD ZR2 makes this mound-battling magic happen without sacrificing any of its trademark on-road comfort or heavy-duty truck capability. This is a rugged model which consistently has displayed the proven traits that make the Silverado 1500 ZR2 a household name for those who love to bring things up a notch while foregoing comforts for far corners locations!
When equipped with the Duramax Turbo-Diesel option, the Silverado HD’s max trailering rating is a very impressive 18,500 lbs, allowing for any driver to not have to even consider leaving any of the fun or productive heavy stuff behind. The HD ZR2 is easy to spot when it’s makin’ a beeline for you…courtesy of its trademark front grille, along with telltale wheel openings with hefty mudguards. There’s also custom ZR2 badging on the grille bar, and a higher stance sporting the clearance needed for the insane terrain you’re prepping the cooler and gear for.
It used to be that an off-road truck was born and bred from not much more than the hankering to take it to punishing locations, and do plenty of praying and crossing your fingers! Some of the features that make these two so good at commandeering the tough stuff are specific front upper and lower control arms and specific steering knuckles, as well as the addition of multimeric DSSV dampers. The underside goods need to be looked after in a major way when you hit the brush and jagged edges of off-road terrain, and the larger steel transfer case in front of aluminum skid plates, included with the ZR2s are battalion grade and burly.
You’ll be triumphantly trouncing through obstacles that would stomp an ill-prepared Prius to bits courtesy of the 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT tires, mounted on 18 x 9-inch aluminum wheels, and a rear e-locker. There’s also a brand-new Off-Road Drive Mode, which uses a specific formula for calibrating the anti-lock brakes, traction control, and stability control to “crawl long and prosper” as a true segment leader. Everything you want to bring along will fit just fine in the DuraBed cargo box, and another one of the most useful additions to any truck over the past decade come in the form of the power and available six-position Multi-Flex tailgate.
