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2019 Chevrolet Silverado High Country

Mueller/Chevrolet

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2019 Chevrolet Silverado High Country

Mueller/Chevrolet

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2019 Chevrolet Silverado High Country

Mueller/Chevrolet

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2019 Chevrolet Silverado LTZ

Mueller/Chevrolet

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2019 Chevrolet Silverado LT Trail Boss

Muller/Chevrolet

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When the invitation came from Chevrolet to come and experience for the first time the all-new 2019 Silverado, and to do it in the mountains of western Wyoming in Jackson Hole, it didn’t take us long to make the decision to attend. Of course, we were mostly there to see the new truck, but hey, you really can’t beat the Tetons anytime of the year!

As a little background, there are a handful of states where truck purchases make up a large percentage of the vehicle market. Wyoming and Utah are both in this category with 36 percent of those purchasing vehicles in those markets selecting a truck. With that in mind, Wyoming served as the perfect backdrop for showcasing the new Silverado.

It was pointed out to those in attendance that Chevrolet has plans to update their entire line of trucks, and what started with the Colorado has now made its way to the light-duty Silverado and will continue through the three-quarter ton Silverado before ending with their larger work type trucks.

There are five areas that Chevrolet has put a huge emphasis on with the redesign of the 2019 truck. First, this Silverado is the best driving truck, or everyday driver, that they have offered to date. They have made it 450 pounds lighter, decreased its acceleration time to 60 mph by one half-second, and also made it the most agile handling truck they have produced.

After eight hours of driving the new Silverado in all types of conditions including trailering, off-roading, windy, twisty mountain corridors and flat out driving situations, we had to agree. We did find this to be the most comfortable Silverado we have driven, not only with the included creature comforts, but also as a very smooth overall ride.

We were able to spend a couple of hours in the top trim level of the High Country and the second half of the day in the new Trail Boss version that came compete with a 2-inch factory lift and will be trail-ready off of the showroom floor.

As much fun as it was to spend some time off-roading in the new Trail Boss and getting it as muddy as humanly possible, in our advanced years, we would choose the higher trim level LTZ or the High Country for the additional creature comforts included.

The new Trail Boss will have its place in the trucking world for those that want the added height and ability to hit the dirt without having to add extras that would normally come after the purchase. Other manufacturers have done the same thing in trucks like the Ram Rebel and the Nissan Titan Midnight Edition.

Secondly, Chevrolet has given the Silverado more abilities on its lighter frame work, as it can now handle an additional 14 percent payload and tow 5 percent more weight. In the bed of the truck, there is now an extra 10 percent more room, a feat accomplished by making the bed out of three pieces of steel so the corners in the bottom can now be square.

This allowed the bed to be pushed as far as possible towards the outside walls of the truck. The engineers have also raised the walls of the Silverado bed up an inch, thus making more room in the bed. How this room will be used is up to the buyer, as most of this space lands in front of and behind the wheel. An addition of a bed cover would allow more space, but we had to ask, would something like a Ram Box that Ram has added to the side of the bed be more useful?

The third focus is that there are now eight choices of trim levels for the Silverado, giving pretty much everyone looking for a truck one that would fit their lifestyle and budget.

Fourth is the technology realm, where the engineers have gone above and beyond to set the Silverado apart from the pack. This new tech was especially evident in the trailer towing department.

We had the opportunity to sit down and speak with the engineers before actually towing a box trailer with a pallet of concrete inside putting a 6,500 pound load on the truck. The new trailering technology that has been added to the Silverado turned out to be our favorite part of the day.

Owners can now input up to 5 trailer profiles into the infotainment system in the Silverado and recall them each time they put an individual trailer on. This will allow the owner to keep track of the time and miles each trailer is towed and give reminders that trailer wheels need rotation or perhaps bearings should be checked and repacked.

The system will also change any setting on the truck, like the trailer brake force for each trailer. Using the myChevrolet app on the driver’s phone, there is now an included light check for any trailers that can be controlled from the phone, making this a one person job not two. It was explained to us as a great addition to keep wives in the truck and happier as a weekend outing begins.

The new rear camera is now also high-definition, making seeing the screen easier in the sun. It also switches to what is almost a straight down look at the trailer hitch making hooking up even easier. Cameras can also be added to the side mirrors that give a 270 degree view along with the straight on look on the screen when backing. It turned out to be a cool look and we could see where it would really help in hooking up a trailer, especially when the driver is alone.

There is also an accessory camera that can be added on the back of any trailer that can be viewed through the infotainment screen. Any of the cameras can also be turned on for 8 seconds while driving to check the hitch, trailer and possibly if someone is following too close to the trailer. Our hats are off to the designers and engineers at Chevy that made these features possible, providing easier access to trailers and a high level of safety.

One the tech side, blind spot monitoring, high beam assist, forward collision alert and braking along with lane keep assist can also be added. We still like the lane keep assist that jiggles the driver’s seat on the side that is wandering out of the lines. The High Country we drove also came equipped with a very nice, full color heads up display, which made driving the larger truck much easier as we were able to keep our eyes on the road all the time.

The fifth focus feature is the bed of the truck, which has been updated to what should now be considered class-leading. They have added 10 percent more cargo space by pushing the inside panels towards the outside walls and adding an inch in height to the top of the truck. It is now made of higher strength steel and includes 21 tie down points which should prove exceptionally helpful when packing things in the bed.

The tailgate now has the availability of lowering and raising automatically. With the push of a button inside or on the tailgate, it comes down very smoothly, just like an automatic rear door on an SUV. Then with a little push from one’s knee it raises and locks tight, a pretty cool new feature for a truck, and one that really impressed us.

To sum it all up, ‘Find a New Road’ to Chevrolet and see the new truck. Its ride was as smooth as any we have experienced in the truck world, and the new technology is not to be trifled with. They should start to arrive at dealerships in late August, so look for the new 2019 at Doug Smith Chevrolet in Spanish Fork, 1341 N. Main, 801 841-3131, Ken Garff Chevrolet in American Fork, 548 E. 1000 South, 801-756-3546, or Larry H. Miller Chevrolet in Provo, 2125 N. University Pkwy., 801-709-9016.