2023 Chevy Colorado Towing Review! 7,000 Pounds with a Turbo Four?

The 2023 Chevy Colorado (and GMC Canyon) are rated to tow 7,700 pounds but use a 2.7L turbo four cylinder engine to do it. We finally got our hands on a Colorado Trail Boss to see how it would perform when loaded near the top of its rated capacity. See how the #chevycolorado does with a 20' enclosed #trailer while #towing a NASA Spec3 BMW E36 racecar.
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[@ALMX5DP]

Great review. In regards to towing capability/performance and longevity, I feel it comes down to a number of different variables. Trailer weight, size/frontal area, towing frequency/trip distance, geographic area etc. This 2.7 seems very well suited for that setup, though of course if you’re doing that daily or constantly pulling hundreds of miles up steep grades in 100 degree weather at 6000’ of elevation, obviously a different vehicle may need to be considered. Such is a scenario that most people will never or rarely see though, so in that respect this sounds like a perfectly adequate tow rig.

[@okienightstalker3145]

The ZR2 is rated @ 6000lb towing because of the offroad suspension.

[@OutMotorsports]

Right, and those Multimatics are SO good!

[@peruser155]

Don't you know you need an 8000 pound Super Dooty to tow anything? No way a "baby truck" can do more than haul that case of beer back to your college dorm room, right? 😂 Sarcasm off. Fullsize truck owners everywhere be all uptight with a rig that doesn't fit in the garage (or the new parking garage, or all the school sports function parking lots, or the movie theater, and on and on) but only tows a tad bit more than the Colorado guys. Especially compared to half tons. Look it up if you don't believe me: Silverado crew 5.5 bed is MINIMALLY better than Colorado in every way. Welcome to advancements in pickup trucks. We live in a time where you can have a vehicle that's easy to live with day to day, fits everywhere, hauls a family of 4 comfortably, tows large boats, campers and cargo trailers, goes offroad exceptionally well due to lightness and size, and is as nimble around town as any sedan/crossover suv. With similar HP and torque numbers. Whats not to love? Unless of course you are brainwashed into thinking "real trucks" shouldn't be able to do any of those things except the towing part. This video proves they are sadly mistaken, and unless they truly need to tow 20,000 pounds for their livelihood, are just foolishly wasting their money and real estate.

[@c0348whn]

@@peruser155Big truck guys are too dumb to realize transmission, frame, differential, hitch, suspension, tires, and axles affect towing ability. They don’t want to admit they were milked for cash in their $100K truck

[@jimsomerville3924]

Great towing review. Nice to see with a long, heavy, boxy trailer. Would be nice to see some grades though.

[@OutMotorsports]

Thanks! Hopefully we can grab another one for a longer distance tow (with more grades) at some point.

[@coltonwood9846]

What did your mpg's look like with all that weight?

[@jeremyspecce]

I am debating between this (Trail Boss) and a 2021 Canyon Z71 with the diesel. For towing it seems like the diesel might be more composed. I have a F150 3.5 ecoboost now and the low end torque with the 10 speed is super nice and quiet. That was a nice change from the silverado 2500 with the 6.0 that i had before that really needed to scream to get the torque, long gradual hills especially were very annoying with a big V8 just screaming and hunting gears. The amount of times you said "you just gotta be not afraid to work it' makes me a little concerned that i'd be happy with the diesel. My biggest concern with the diesel is that for daily driving i'm gonna get beaten up with the more expensive fuel with not enough improved mileage to make up for it.

[@chrisolbrycht9858]

What is the mileage?

[@johnjg88]

Mileage?

[@mdbangsund]

The gm 1500's have used the motor for 2 years.

[@Jay-me7gw]

4 years? They got the 2.7L in 2019.

[@cameronearnshaw2259]

Thanks for the video. Have been wondering how the new Colorado would do towing. Looking to replace my 2008 Chrysler Aspen with 5.7 Hemi as it has 165k miles now. I tow 5,800 lb car hauler but I'm worried about how long small turbo engines will last while towing as they're into boost all the time. Impressive that you can tow 7,000 lbs, but we have lots of mountain passes around here. Might just wait until the new RAM mid size comes out which supposedly will have the new Hurricane I-6. Hate to give up the torque of the Hemi though. Aspen (same as Durango) works great overall but with wheelbase of 119 inches that's the one thing that could be better.

[@OutMotorsports]

Glad you enjoyed! We were at the initial media launch of the Colorado and Chevrolet spent a lot of time talking about engine durability. They are very confident in this 2.7L and it started life in the Silverado so it's not new-new here, though they made updates in 2022. It's got big main bearings, a stiffer block, and 30% stiffer crankshaft. There's "active thermal management" in the form of an electric water pump that can keep spinning at higher RPM even if the engine is moving slower (after you climb a big grade) with a three-way valve to divert coolant where it belongs. The variable oil pump helps with this too, and there's "squirters" to allow oil to cool the pistons under high load. Hagerty has a good summary of all they changed: www.hagerty.com/media/maintenance-and-tech/gm-engineer-revised-l3b-turbo-four-is-a-true-truck-engine/

[@alchemist1588]

Great review. I have yet to tow with my trail boss so I was wondering how that would be. My father has a small boat and I want to bring it to the lake this summer and it doesn't seem like I will have any issues. I rly love this truck so far and plan on keeping it for a long time. I'm sure eventually the turbo will fail with high mileage but more concerned with how the motor holds up in general over time.

[@OutMotorsports]

Glad you enjoyed! At this point, we're well past "new and experimental" with turbocharging and all these manufacturers who are moving toward forced induction as a mass-market engine option know they have to be as reliable as possible. Yes, a turbo is a wear item but you may end up replacing it once in the truck's typical lifetime. Chevy did a lot to modify the 2.7L for Colorado's use. Strengthened plenty of internals. This is a great read on what all they did: www.thedrive.com/news/gm-uses-diesel-tricks-to-make-its-four-cylinder-truck-engines-tougher

[@alchemist1588]

@OutMotorsports Interesting. Thanks I'll check it out 🫡

[@bontzie]

I missed details on the trailer. What's the tongue weight? Are you maximizing payload?

[@OutMotorsports]

It's right at 10% tongue weight so ~670 pounds TW.

[@keithbortner7276]

How long is the trailer? Any issues with sway?

[@OutMotorsports]

20' box, 4' v-nose, 27' total from hitch to taillights. No sway issues even passing a few 18-wheelers. Was using weight distribution & sway control on the hitch which helps.

[@JoshuaWShanks]

I had a 2020 Colorado with the V6 in it and it towed my 22’ camper that grossed 6200 lbs decently. I just upgraded to the 2023 Colorado Trail Boss a couple of weeks ago. I’m excited to hook it up and see if I notice a difference. I think the extra torque will be really nice! I have the HO tune.

[@OutMotorsports]

Congrats! You should really like that extra torque. Sounds like a good pairing of truck and camper given its length and weight.

[@jeremyspecce]

I'd REALLY love to hear how it compares, please follow up!

[@JoshuaWShanks]

@@jeremyspecce I’ll try to remember to update on it after I pull for the first time. It probably won’t be till this spring.

[@slowfiveoh4986]

@@JoshuaWShanks Haul it yet?

[@JoshuaWShanks]

@@slowfiveoh4986 Yes! It did great!

[@ChasinCheckerz]

"Since we've reviewed this lil guy so many times, now we're going to review NoVa drivers! 0/10. You dingus." It can survive 7000 lbs and clueless traffic, what's not to love. Thanks for another great review Jake!

[@lilpeppa117G]

It’s not supposed to it’s for better high elevation towing

[@ashleymalone5396]

Power and torque numbers (plus or minus) will never be able to account for other drivers' poor driving skills. 😂

[@patrickmckowen2999]

👍

[@ninerbangbang7618]

Idk what the big deal is I tow 7000 with a colorado z71 3.6l no turbo no problem

[@jamesdickerson1657]

i just can't own a truck with a 4 cylinder motor. Especially not a turbo 4. More pressure on the engine with turbo, small motor, which will cause issues. I asked a few mechanics would they want a turbo. All of them said, if you're gonna keep it for a bunch of miles, no. Love the looks of the new Colorado trucks and I've owned 4 of them, all with the V6. I'll look elsewhere for a midsize truck now. Kind of a bummer.

[@americancarguy]

Then you better snap up Nissan frontier, it's the only one with an NA V6, tye 2024 Tacoma is going turbo 4 hybrid.

[@lilpeppa117G]

@@americancarguyford has turbo as well

[@americancarguy]

@@lilpeppa117G they said they don't want turbo so only one is tye frontier or if you can find a current gen Tacoma

[@diver165]

It's nothing new. They've been in the 1500s for a couple years.

[@wesleyferguson6932]

Some towing can void the warranty of the truck. Be very careful if you tow anything. 😢😢😢😢😢😢Small print in the book.

[@jamesdickerson1657]

Oh, this new motor doesn't get any better gas mileage than the other motor. Seems weird.

[@drsalt4795]

Thats not the point

[@drsalt4795]

The turbo four cylinder gets more torque and getting the old v6 to have this power band would be to expensive.

[@truckergang5416]

It two engine options the engine you have all you need is a tune to be a high output engine do your homework

[@OutMotorsports]

For 2023, there are three options between two engines. The difference in the top two is a tune. For 2024, the “mid” engine was dropped and you either get the base or High Output engine depending on choice. This was said in the video, listen more next time 💕

[@truckergang5416]

@@OutMotorsports please tell me what’s the three options for the two engine If am wrong I will admit am wrong . Cause it a base engine and a and the 2.7 plus In othe other the have the same engine as the zr2 is a tune if you have the 2.7 plus still wondering what’s the other two options

[@ShaneMikula]

@@truckergang5416 There's a base engine that's available in the WT, with 200 some HP. GM does not allow a tune. The mid engine is the 2.7 with 20lbs of boost. The "High Output" top engine is the same 2.7 but with 27lbs of boost. While technically, there is only 2 engines, GM made it 3 options based on what trim you bought.

[@Rook87]

​@@truckergang5416you must have been high when you were arguing with yourself here lol