SEMA: High on Colorado

Chevrolet launched the new Colorado in the United States in October, and now at the SEMA show in Las Vegas we see how Chevrolet wants to play with its new toy.

The company unveiled two Colorado concepts at SEMA; both crew cab and both sporting the Z71 option package with 17-inch alloy wheels anchoring a potent braking package with alloy four-piston callipers. The theme here is lifestyle and adventure. Got gear? Got a life? We have the mid-size pickup for you – you get the idea.

The US-spec Colorado shares size and basic packaging with the Australia-spec Colorado; however, the US Colorado is built in the state of Missouri and under the bonnet offers a range of petrol engines. Both SEMA concepts are using a six-speed automatic to accompany the 3.6-litre V6 rated at 227kW and 365Nm of torque, and returning better than 9 L/100km on highway. This engine literally puts 'athletic' in sport pickup as you'd know. This is relatively the same engine/transmission package used in the VF ute. Zero to 100km/h in about nine seconds is the unofficial estimate.

The 2.8-litre Duramax diesel engine doesn't arrive in US Colorado until model-year 2016, and despite strict emission regulations, Chevrolet suggests power and fuel consumption should be best in class and vary no more than five per cent from power and torque figures of the Aussie Colorado. Officially, Chevrolet will release EPA fuel consumption for the diesel engine in about five months, and we already know the Colorado will use a urea catalytic system to reduce tailpipe emissions.  

The athlete Chevrolet has chosen to promote the Colorado is Ricky Carmichael who can still toss a leg over his Suzuki and get spectacular air. That really is Ricky jumping the Colorado in the press images. With the Colorado now available in the US, the cross flow to Australia may be significant. Chevrolet Performance is developing a range of dealer-available accessories for the Colorado that will become available in Australia either through Holden dealers or through ambitious independent importers.

Ricky's concept pick-up features a tailgate extender that enlarges the crew cab's 1.88 metre bed to beyond 2.3 metres. The concept tailgate extender helps secure the bikes, while the Colorado's standard CornerStep rear bumper makes it easier to step up and reach into the bed to tighten hold-down straps or retrieve other gear. The CornerStep – a foothold recessed into the rear bumper – is a notable difference between the Yankee and Aussie Colorados and saves climbing onto the rear tyre to reach taller cargo loads.

The truck wears a matte dust grey exterior colour with gloss silver and yellow accents – and a graphic of Carmichael's signature on the rear quarter panel. A concept sport bar is also added to the bed.

Inside the concept carries the standard dash and furniture but with a few Ricky personalised touches.

The second Colorado concept defines life with less dirt and more water, with the focus being on tow ball accessories and towing with the Super Air Nautique 210 wakeboard boat.

The concept Colorado crew cab, Nautique boat and its trailer are colour coordinated in a bright large-flake orange metallic paint. Pick-up and trailer also wear the same set of 18-inch Chevrolet accessory wheels.

A hard cargo cover provides a defining touch, especially with boat-style teakwood decking that hints to the Colorado being more than a land yacht. The things you often take to the lake but don't need – such as the spare eskie, extra skis, towels, and tow ropes – can be locked away under the cargo top.

Chevrolet claims the concept proves a point: the Colorado delivers best-in-class towing performance and capability. For American pick-up drivers, towing ability is important although they rarely tow more than the grass clippings to the local tip. GM claims a 3100kg maximum tow rating for Colorado with the 3.6-litre V6.

With a 12.6-metre turning circle, the Colorado will be endless fun on the boat ramp for those who are learning how to reverse a trailer.

US-based Colorado features include:
>> Four-wheel disc brakes
>> Available G80 automatic locking rear differential
>> Standard CornerStep rear bumper
>> Available EZ Lift-and-Lower tailgate that uses an internal torsion bar to make raising the tailgate easier
>> Standard two-tier loading that allows a platform to effectively split the bed into upper and lower sections, making it easier to haul, store and conceal items
>> Thirteen standard tie-down locations throughout the bed
>> Available factory-installed spray-in bed liner
>> Available safety package includes segment-first Forward Collision Alert and Lane Departure Warning, using camera-based technology to the warn driver of potential crash threats.

In the US, Colorado prices start at $20,995 for the four-door crew cab model with the base four-cylinder 2.5-litre petrol engine. That stings.