2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Reviews, Pricing & Specs

Some Chevy trucks will have a timeless design—the split-bar grille from the 1990s and the 2015 redesign have both aged very well—while others are best not mentioned. Time will tell what history thinks of the styling of this current generation of Chevy truck.

The small headlights with the piece of body panel jutting into the grille area below it look weird. The aggressiveness might scream “overcompensation” to some, but it does fall in line with the current portfolio of Chevrolet vehicles, which look like they were designed by someone who plays with Transformers on the weekends. There are a number of appearance packages that can add some additional visual flair to the Silverado 1500, including the Rally Edition, Dark Essentials Package, and Redline Edition.

Luckily, the cabin is a much more palatable affair. The controls are where you want them to be. It’s functional before anything else, but it should also be noted that there are two different interior layouts based on the trim selected. Those trims include the WT, Custom, Custom Trail Boss, LT, RST, LT Trail Boss, LTZ, High Country, and ZR2 (with the new-for-2023 Bison package). The WT (Work Truck) and Custom both have interiors from before the 2022 facelift. They have a smaller screen and rely more on hard controls and dials. Every other trim comes with a more modern, high-tech dash design, centred around a large, intuitive touch screen.

The WT trim level comes with vinyl upholstery, bench front seating, black front and rear bumpers, rubberized flooring, an analog instrument panel with a 3.5-linch screen in the middle, a pair of USB ports, keyless entry, and a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Moving up to the Custom trim swaps out the vinyl for cloth upholstery. It also adds wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto, as well as 20-inch alloy wheels, a power-locking tailgate, remote start, and two more USB ports.

The LT trim is where you start to find the high-tech infotainment system and more modern dash layout. This trim also comes with a fully digital instrument panel, dual-zone automatic climate control, a heated steering wheel, a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, chrome bumpers and LED in-bed lighting.

The RST trim features 18-inch alloy wheels, fog lights and some unique visual touches.

We drove the Trail Boss off-roader, which is based on the Custom or LT trims. Ours was based on the Custom, and it adds standard four-wheel drive (4WD) with a two-speed transfer case, skid plates, and upgraded shock absorbers.

The LTZ is probably the best value in terms of creature comforts for the dollar. It adds leather upholstery, a power-operated tailgate, two additional USB ports, wireless device charging, and a power-adjustable front passenger seat.

The range-topping trim is the High Country, and it’s a luxury-level pickup. This trim includes features such as a power-sliding rear window and heated and ventilated front seats.

Several trims offer Canada-specific True North packages with climate-oriented features such as a power-sliding rear window with a defogger and wheelhouse liners.

The base engine in the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 is a turbocharged 2.7-litre four-cylinder. It has power specs of 310 horsepower and 430 pound-feet of torque. If you want V8 power, the optional 5.3-litre makes 355 hp and 383 lb-ft of torque, while the 6.2-litre puts out 420 hp and 460 lb-ft. You can also opt for a six-cylinder Duramax turbodiesel engine that makes 305 hp and 495 lb-ft.

Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is standard, with 4WD optional. The base four-cylinder engine routes power through an eight-speed automatic transmission. All other engines route power through a 10-speed automatic. When properly equipped, the Silverado 1500 has a maximum towing capacity of up to 6,000 kilograms (13,300 pounds). That’s when you select the 6.2-litre V8 with the Max Towing package. The smaller V8 engine can tow up to 4,990 kilograms (11,000 pounds). Maximum payload capacity is 1,025 kilograms (2,260 pounds) for the base four-cylinder with RWD.

We were pleasantly surprised by the power delivery from the turbo-four in our Trail Boss tester. The engine makes a bit of harsh mechanical noise as if it’s a diesel engine, but it provides good pickup from a standstill. The eight-speed automatic is smooth enough, though we’d be curious to see how the 10-speed pairs to this motor. The available V8 engines are energetic as expected, though some have said they expected more grunt from the 5.3-litre engine. You won’t have that problem with the larger 6.2-litre V8 engine. The 10-speed automatic transmission is refined and seldom struggles to find the correct gear.

For a truck of this size and weight, the Silverado 1500 handles surprisingly well. Plenty of owners will be using this truck as a commuter vehicle and so they’ve grown to expect a full-size truck to handle like an SUV. It’s not quite on the level of the ride quality found in the Ram 1500 though. The steering is not as communicative, and it can be jittery over bumps in the road. But where that pays dividends is on the trail—the Silverado tackles the mud and dirt with ease. You might not always be able to find a wooded trail that’s wide enough for a truck this big, but it can navigate rocks and dirt nicely. This can really pay dividends as a farm truck, motoring over field, road, and whatever else happens to be in your way.

The Silverado offers an amazing array of capability tiers, including our Trail Boss and the ZR2. For 2023, the ZR2 Bison takes things a step further with the heavy-duty skid plates, steel-stamped bumpers, and more aggressive approach and departure angles.

Available body styles include a regular cab with a standard bed, regular cab with a long bed, double cab with a standard bed, crew cab with a short bed, and crew cab with the standard bed. The short bed is 1,776 millimetres (5 feet 8 inches) long. The standard bed is 2,018 mm (6 feet 6 inches) and the long bed is 2,494 mm (8 feet) long.

The regular cab is tied to the more work-based trims like the WT and Custom. It has a front bench seat that allows for up to three passengers. The bench has a fold-down centre seat back that doubles as a centre console, with a storage bin and multiple cup holders.

The double cab is the extended-cab model. Rival trucks such as the Ford F-150 have rear half-doors that require opening the front door to access the rear seats. The Silverado instead has conventional car doors, making access to the rear seats quite easy. There’s plenty of rear headroom, but legroom is a bit limited, which should be expected from this intermediate body style. If you just need the back seats in a pinch, the double cab will be a great option, as the front seats are spacious and supportive.

The full four-door crew cab is incredibly spacious. Both rows offer tons of headroom and legroom. The rear bench folds upward allowing for a terrific amount of in-cabin cargo space. This is helpful if you have some valuable power tools or other items that you’d like to protect behind lockable doors or keep from the elements.

The base infotainment setup in the Silverado 1500 is a 7-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. As previously mentioned, the interior in the WT and Custom trims is from the pre-facelift model, and so is the touchscreen. That’s not a bad thing, as the screen is straightforward and easy to use. It might not have the sharp graphics of other modern infotainment systems, but when you’re driving, function should come first.

Every trim but the WT and Custom come with a more modern dash layout, highlighted by a 13.4-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto. The screen is vivid and responsive. These models also come with a fully digital instrument panel. The Custom adds a Wi-Fi hot spot and LTZ trim adds wireless device charging, as well as additional USB ports to complement the two standard USB ports. If you prefer the glitz and shine of a modern infotainment system, most of the trims will have you covered, but if you prefer simplicity in your infotainment layout, the WT and Custom trims bring just the tech necessities.

The Silverado comes equipped with many of the advanced driver assistance features you’d expect to find in a modern car or SUV. Standard equipment includes automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, pedestrian detection, automatic high beams, lane keep assist and lane-departure warning. It also comes with the Teen Driver system, which allows the owner to set speed and volume limitations for a second set of keys.

Moving up to the LTZ trim adds standard blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, a surround-view 360-degree camera system, rain-sensing windshield wipers, and front and rear parking sensors. Other available safety tech includes adaptive cruise control, a head-up display, a helpful rear-camera mirror, and GM’s Super Cruise hands-free highway driving system.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gives the Silverado 1500 an overall safety rating of five out of five stars. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) gives the Silverado fairly high scores in its crash tests as well.

The most efficient version of the 2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 is the turbodiesel inline-six with RWD. It returns fuel economy of 10.0 litres per 100 kilometres in the city, 8.1 highway, and 9.2 combined. The gasoline turbo-four engine powertrain with 4WD returns fuel economy of 12.9 L/100 km city, 11.5 highway, and 12.2 combined. The most efficient V8 setup is the 5.3-litre, returning 15.2 city/12.2 hwy/13.9 combined with 4WD. The least-efficient version of the Silverado 1500 is the ZR2 with the 6.2-litre V8. It returns 16.7 city/14.0 hwy/15.5 combined.

Base MSRP for the 2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 is $45,003 for the regular cab, standard bed, WT trim with RWD, not including destination charges of $2,095 or other fees. The regular cab with the long bed starts at $50.203 and the double cab with the standard bed starts at $52,403. The crew cab with the short bed starts at $54,903. In this configuration, the LT with 4WD starts at $62,253, the LTZ at $75,253, and the ZR2 at $87,503.

Trucks can be many things to many different types of consumers. Though they have evolved to become comfortable, high-tech daily drivers with 4WD and a pickup bed, Chevrolet still understands what trucks are really for. Behind the driver-assist tech and wireless phone connectivity, these are tremendously capable vehicles. The Silverado might not be as refined as a Ram 1500, but it doesn’t have to be. With the Silverado 1500, that comfort is a recently learned trick, and its true value is in its power, versatility, and capability. If it’s refinement you want, the Silverado can do it sometimes, but if it’s true truck capability that you need, this pickup delivers.

Note: Images show a US model.