2021 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD “Carharrt” Edition
Price: $95,880 CAD
Colour: Mosaic Black Metallic
I’ve been a pickup truck driver for a very long time. I love pickups. I’m going to put that out there up front. About 20 years ago they added a second row of proper seats to your everyday half-ton pickup, and I was sold on it’s ability be nearly all things to all drivers. I could pick up a fridge, a truckload of firewood, haul the kids to swimming lessons and take my mother to lunch all in the same car. They mostly come with 4WD and can be driven through the bush if you draw the line at rock crawling over enormous boulders. The pickup has become a true-blue daily driver. Where I haven’t spent much time over the years is in the “Heavy Duty” end of the pickup spectrum. My recent experience with the 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD “Carharrt” Edition was an interesting one. It’s an enormous vehicle with plenty of power and capacity. I found myself constantly impressed with what it could do and equally perplexed by how different it is compared with the pickups I know and love.
Power & performance
This Silverado 2500 came equipped with the 6.6L Duramax Turbo Diesel. This throws 445hp your way. It also gives you 910lb/ft of torque. I rarely mention torque in my reviews because I barely understand it. In this case however it bears mentioning as it is a very important component of this vehicle. This truck is meant to do work which usually involves hauling and towing. Torque is crucial to getting things done in this regard and you rarely get more of it than you do in this truck. It makes the vehicle feel very capable. It will haul and/or tow nearly anything your heart desires.
The ride of this vehicle is something I wanted to touch on. It drives a lot like the tires are made of concrete. I know this sounds horrible but when you combine the diesel engine with the 10 speed Allison transmission and the suspension setup you see quickly how intentional this is. If you need to tow your excavator from one jobsite to another this is the vehicle for you. It’s not supposed to be comfortable on long road trips or easy to park. It’s designed to get the job done.
The diesel engine that came with this vehicle is a winner for many reasons outside of the torque output. I very briefly drove dump trucks for a living (I had to give it up for the sake of public safety) and while I was useless at it, I only survived the experience because of the “Jake Brake”. This was the term used for the engine exhaust brake. I was very happy to see that they included that little feature in this vehicle. For those that don’t know the engine exhaust brake, through a process of witchcraft, adds extra braking to diesel vehicles. Very useful on dump trucks and other commercial vehicles and while I didn’t use it much in the city environment, I think it would be a very useful feature driving through the mountains of British Columbia where the added control afforded by this system would come in handy quite regularly. It also spares you abusing your regular braking system too much which is a plus.
exterior
I’ve been a critic for a lot of years of the Silverado/Sierra in the looks department. I’ve always felt that they just didn’t line up well when compared to their competitors from Ford and Dodge. Recent years have seen some serious leaps forward in the appearance of these trucks and the 2021 Silverado 2500 reflects that. It’s a really good-looking vehicle. It’s muscular and square without being obtuse. I like the footholds that help you into the box. This has been a winning feature of the GM offering for many years now and I appreciate it every time I’m spared the sore knees of climbing into the back of my F-150.
This Silverado comes with the “Carharrt” trim level. Unfortunately this includes some rather hideous looking Carharrt yellow piping down the length of vehicle. It’s not the piping itself that bothers me but the color of it. I like yellow. My Wrangler is yellow. Carharrt yellow however, just doesn’t do it for me. It doesn’t pop enough in contrast to the black color of the truck.
interior
I mentioned how much I don’t care for the Carharrt yellow piping on the outside of the Silverado. That feeling continues as I moved inside the truck. It is decked out in the same yellow color all over the seats. It is jarring and really rather unpleasant. I really think if this vehicle is designed to reflect the character of Carharrt then it should really have upholstery similar to the pants and jackets you can get. That would make more sense than poorly coordinated leather colors.
The Silverado has a rather nice HUD system on board. It features the usual information like speed, speed limit among other items. The more unique feature of this one is that it has colors. Not sure why but I really like that about this display.
The rearview mirror on the Silverado is one of the newer models that GM is offering which can function as a regular rearview mirror but it’s also a screen that feeds you a video image from a camera in the tailgate. What struck me about this video screen was how clear the image is. The standard backup camera is far more blurry and is almost always obscured by water and mud. Since that camera is positioned close to the backup camera on the tailgate not sure how they keep one so clean and one permanently obscured.
This test vehicle has done about 5000kms so far. The leather on the driver’s seat has already started to harden up. This happens over time and requires regular attention to keep leather upholstery soft and supple. I’m not sure what this really means but when it looks like ten-year-old leather after such a short time I must admit my concern.
In an effort to charge the 47 devices we all carry with us on a daily basis the Silverado comes loaded with a litany of USB ports that put the departure lounge at an international airport to shame. If your kids complain about not being able to charge something they’re beginning that phase of their lives where they lie to you. In addition to the USB ports is a wireless charging pad I quite liked. It is well located with easy access and it starts charging quickly.
When I buy a vehicle the first thing I like to do is get a good set of deep-dish, all-weather mats. They make a huge difference in the long-term condition of the vehicle. If you’re picking up a crew of burly contractor types on a regular basis these mats come in especially handy in containing all the dirt and mud they will inevitably track into the vehicle. GM has been kind enough to provide a sturdy set of excellent mats with the truck. Sometimes it’s the little things.
quality
Press vehicles are very much a double-edged sword. They’re always new and typically a good trim level. As a result, I sometimes struggle with what a vehicle will be like after some time and kms have been acquired in the real world. This Silverado seemed to want to offer a vision of the future to come. The check engine light was one. Not sure why it’s on and it probably means nothing, but it did give me pause. A check engine light on a brand-new big boy diesel from GM is probably not the best way to start. Just figured I’d mention it.
CQI – 8. Good carpet in the Silverado 2500. Easier to get the mud and dirt out of.
value
This Silverado, as tested, will run you around 95k CAD. That’s a boat load of money. No getting away from it. It’s competitors, similarly trimmed, would run about the same money so it’s not out of line from that perspective. The only way I could justify the purchase is if I had a business that demanded a vehicle like this. If that were the case, I couldn’t make a good argument for this top shelf, luxury trimmed version. I like the diesel engine and Allison transmission, those are tools of the trade. I could quite comfortably ditch the Carharrt package, leather and other luxuries for a simpler model that does all the same things, but costs much less money.
final thoughts
Trucks like this aren’t for normal people. Nor are they for everyday driving. I will blame the manufacturers for the mistaken idea that you can daily a vehicle like this. They put all the toys and creature comforts in the truck that you’d find in any other vehicle you would take to work. Given its size and expense it’s hopeless if you need to park underground, in a tight parking spot in a lot downtown or at IKEA to get a cheap hot dog and some cinnamon buns. If you’re a regular person who does regular driving, this will drive you crazy. If you are a contractor and you need to haul and tow, this is the truck for you. I’d buy a more basic model and save myself some major dollars, but that’s just me. No matter what you do, ditch the Carharrt package, it really does nothing but take more of your money.
