2015 Chevy Colorado hands on impression

Really nice looking, my buddy that I work with loves his. I really enjoyed taking it around town, very comfortable interior and very nice to maneuver around town. I actually like the looks of your ext cab over his crew cab and all trucks should come from the factory leveled like yours imo.

hawkeye-08 wrote:

Is the platform in the backseat for your dog(s)? Do you put anything on the console to protect it? Is your dog restrained (leash or harness)?

Thanks, sorry for the hijack...

No problem...time for a 500 mile update, got a new pic now.

Yes, the cargo and dog platform is for the dogs, whole write-up here:
Colorado Dog/Cargo Platform Build

They have been popular, sold a half dozen of them in the first week so I've been busy cranking them out. Very handy for grocery bags, gear, cargo, whatever, and of course our 3 dogs, however we haven't even been on a trip yet. I still need to get the blue-ox baseplate and set it up for towing.

No, we don't strap the dogs in. I guess if we pile it in they'll go flying. I don't wear seatbelts in the motorhome either. I like living dangerously. Besides, I put thousands of miles on motorbikes, on and offroad, split traffic, ride break-neck...so when my time is up then it's up. LOL.

The I4 is a neat little motor and I'm happy with it to keep things light and simple. I'm getting about mid-17's for city driving unless I baby it or make all the lights. As soon as you get on the freeway it's easy to coax mid to high 20's. I need to get some more travel time on it to know for sure. If you tromp on it then it sounds like a cavalier. LOL.

The Zone Offroad leveling lift works really nicely, for $65 is the best mod so far.

Fit and finish is mercedes benz quality, simply amazing. It drives just excellent, very happy with it.

The final Journey a customised version of the Mazda

Not to be outdone and inline with the thread a Holden Colorado

rjstractor wrote:

RobertRyan wrote:
Mazda used by Electrician. One thing people in the US would find strange is these vehicles have been designed to go Off Road a lot, as well, unlike the Chevrolet Colorado

Not surprising at all. Not too many years ago our trucks and SUVs were much more off-road oriented. I had a bone-stock Mazda B2600 4x4. It had a 1600 pound payload, and while it didn't have much power, it had low gearing, good ground clearance (with skid plates and no air dam) and was very capable off-road. Toyota had a 2WD "1 ton" with a 2600 lb. payload. Compact trucks have become bigger, more powerful, have bigger cabs and smaller beds. They make good passenger vehicles and are useful for towing much larger trailers than their ancestors, but aren't much use for either off-road or hauling chores. If not for the huge profitability of full size pickups, compacts here may have evolved more like they did in Australia

I ran a small landscaping business for a few years and ran a Chevy 2500HD pickup with a dump insert. It was a fantastic rig for what I used it for, but I would have much rather had a Holden Colorado (or Ford's equivilant) with a six speed manual,the 2.8 diesel and an aluminum dumping flatbed.

The bed is normally fixed and put on by the factory or outside suppliers about 8ft long normally. You can get tipper versions Even manuals tend to be disappearing with these

RobertRyan wrote:
Mazda used by Electrician. One thing people in the US would find strange is these vehicles have been designed to go Off Road a lot, as well, unlike the Chevrolet Colorado

Not surprising at all. Not too many years ago our trucks and SUVs were much more off-road oriented. I had a bone-stock Mazda B2600 4x4. It had a 1600 pound payload, and while it didn't have much power, it had low gearing, good ground clearance (with skid plates and no air dam) and was very capable off-road. Toyota had a 2WD "1 ton" with a 2600 lb. payload. Compact trucks have become bigger, more powerful, have bigger cabs and smaller beds. They make good passenger vehicles and are useful for towing much larger trailers than their ancestors, but aren't much use for either off-road or hauling chores. If not for the huge profitability of full size pickups, compacts here may have evolved more like they did in Australia

I ran a small landscaping business for a few years and ran a Chevy 2500HD pickup with a dump insert. It was a fantastic rig for what I used it for, but I would have much rather had a Holden Colorado (or Ford's equivilant) with a six speed manual,the 2.8 diesel and an aluminum dumping flatbed.

An example of non-existent in the US, a IVECO Daily Van used to transport horses, with lift off body

Typical working Farm Truck

Lessmore wrote:
Not familiar with Australia. My understanding which could be wrong, is that 'down under' is vast, with much of the interior relatively not as developed as many of it's large urban centers on the coast.

The interior is rugged and demanding on vehicles, hence the market for heavy duty, 4WD, smaller vehicles needed to deal with the terrain.

I'm aware of road trains used where other countries might use rail to transport goods.

Just guesses on my part, never having been to Australia. I could be dead wrong, or just merely guilty of watching Crocodile Dundee too many times.

Les :)

Basically yes. The irony is we have more paved road per head than the U.S., but three times as much dirt roads You do get heavier larger vehicles, but AWD, 4WD used vastly more than in the US
We have "lifestyle vehicles" as well, but they can be the Global Pickups if so desired.
There are no US HD Pickup Trucks used as work vehicles, they are primarily used as RV towers or Lifestyle vehicles

Not familiar with Australia. My understanding which could be wrong, is that 'down under' is vast, with much of the interior relatively not as developed as many of it's large urban centers on the coast.

The interior is rugged and demanding on vehicles, hence the market for heavy duty, 4WD, smaller vehicles needed to deal with the terrain.

I'm aware of road trains used where other countries might use rail to transport goods.

Just guesses on my part, never having been to Australia. I could be dead wrong, or just merely guilty of watching Crocodile Dundee too many times.

Les :)

rjstractor wrote:

RobertRyan wrote:
You guessed right, heavy duty everything including frame

It would be interesting to see a side by side comparison of actual component specs.

I doubt they will print that. Here and in Asia, they are used as proper workhorses, although they use a lot vehicles for work purposes, that are either rare or non-existent in the US
The new Navara, (shares body with Frontier)with a new smaller twin turbo 2.3 litre Diesel will have at least 2,200lb payload for the DUAL CAB, they are also working on a new " near 3 litre" to have more power than the 405lbs ft older 3 litre version
Mazda with typical load, using BT 50 as example of the Global Pickups versatility

Mazda used by Electrician. One thing people in the US would find strange is these vehicles have been designed to go Off Road a lot, as well, unlike the Chevrolet Colorado

Stock Mazda Off Road

Towing a 5th Wheeler

I want one with the Mini Duramax.