Terrific truck, nice ride

Last year I finally caved and replaced my plain jane 1994 Chevy S-10 that I'd had for 10 years (bought used) with a 2005 Chevy Coloardo 4x4, four door extended cab (also bought used). I looked a very long time comparing and contrasting all the small trucks on the market and finally settled on the Colorado, partly because I'd had such good luck with the S-10. I've had the truck almost a year now and listed the Pros and Cons as I've found so far.

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Cons:
It has the biggest turning radius on the planet, suprizingly large for a small truck. You have to be cognizant of where you park and how you pull into a parking space. I wouldn't dare try parallell parking (or U-turning!) for anything.

There is no exterior lock on the passenger side, Chevy really cheaped out here. This means to unlock the passenger door you have to climb all the way arcoss the seat (which is an awfully long way given that it's a small truck!) Electronic auto entry systems remedy this but my truck doesn't have one. On top of being a pain in the butt, if you break a key in the driver's door or the lock freezes, sticks, breaks etc., you just plain don't get in. Here's hoping Chevy comes out with a retro kit for the lock. Be sure you keep you locks well lubricated to prevent freezing and gunking up!

Somehow even with the door seal, dirt gets in around the rear of the back doors and along the bottom of the front doors.

The seat padding is kind of cheap and padding/insulation is shedding red crap under driver's seat.

Window crank has a bad fit into the plastic door panel, off center and though it works fine it looks shaky.

There's a funny squeaky-rattle in driver's side back door that comes and goes, even after lubricating every hinge and spot where something might rub. Mostly hapens after the back door has been opened and shut, if you don't use it much it doesn't bother.

The brakes squeal in rain/mist, mainly when backing, same as the old S-10 did. Looks like Chevy never ironed out that problem. It does dry out after a few starts and stops, though don't be suprised to find it sqeaks even when going forward at first in the rain, sometimes when you aren't even ON the brake. The brakes are computerized and have to adjust themselves, so I'm told...

It bounces like a basketball at higher speeds when you hit a yes-ma'am or pothole. Have to watch the curves too, for the most part it sticks to the road pretty well as long as you don't try to be a speed demon.

The back doors swing open opposite the front doors. (This is hard to explain) It's an -extended- cab, not a full crew cab though it does have four doors. You have to open the front door in order to get to the door latch for the back doors, so the front door must be open and it swings forward. Then back door opens swinging toward the rear of the truck, sort of like a set of french doors (or saloon doors!). This is really only a problem when you have a cartful of groceries in a crowded parking lot where it's hard enough to get the driver's door open, let alone juggle this weird cofiguration to get the groceries into the back seat. It basically comes down to 'where do you put the cart?' in front of the front door (and blocked because the door is open) or behind the rear door (also blocked because it's open too).

I have an optional truck liner that shrinks and rattles in cold.

The engine roars at first start up and again when you put it in gear (mainly in the cold) but settles out after 10-20 seconds. Makes the truck loggy when you first start out, no matter how long you wait for it to warm up.

Mine has little rattle in the heater fan.

The small (19 gallon) gas tank means more fill ups, which is kind of inconvienient unless you really like the pump attendants. I'm also only getting around 15 mph, though I mainly make only short hops to work and back. (It does have the big engine which eats up the gas.)

Due to tightness of cab, air pressure makes doors sometimes not close/latch fully. Sometimes you have to lean on them.

Slight vibration when idling. Only really noticable if you lean your head on the window or seat back. (A bit annoying but not real bad.)

Donut spare, how cheap!


Pros:
Number one pro: fun to drive, I really have a lot of fun with this little truck.

Mine has automatic transmission (a must for me), shift on fly 4 wheel drive. First 4 wheeler I've had and I'll never go back! The extra gas and price of the truck are so worth it in a nasty storm when everybody else is off in the ditch and you have the confidence to make it home.

The stereo sounds great, it also has that automatic volume adjust, higher when you go faster and there's more road noise and lower when you slow down and stop.

Good dashboard/gauge positioning, you can see and reach everything, unlike some of the other small trucks where the wheel blocks things like the clock.

It has a big backseat area with fold up seats and full shoulder belts for two with baby seat anchors as well. Lots of space for groceries or a couple of small kids, or good sized dogs. Large windows back there too for a great view.

Comfy split benchseat gives lots of options for both driver and passenger to adjust at will. Tilt steering wheel adds even more options.

Even though I listed the back doors as a Con, they are also a Pro. Very nice to be able to just open a door a chuck stuff back there (or let the dog in!) instead of having to tilt the seat forward.

The brakes work great! In fact maybe a little too well, touch the pedal and you STOP, watch your nose on the windsheild. The dealer tells me all of them are this way.

Full metal rear step bumper, nice and rugged (and shiny!)

Fully carpeted, which helps cut down road noise, but isn't so great for big muddy footprint stains. I found a pair of plastic "tray" type floor mats that catch all the dirt and such. Just remove and shake them out from time to time, they are fully hose-able as well. They don't take care of the whole problem, but most of it.

Really quiet engine and ride, can't even tell it's running half the time.

I got the large engine, 5 cylinder, quick get up and go, though it roars when it's cold.

Nice and sturdy through and through, solid feel.

There's a lock on tailgate in case you want one of those bed boxes or caps.

It has a very good heater/air conditioner, insta-heat or cold, fast defrost.

The dealer tells me it has kevlar belts and special high performance spark plugs. I know squat about what happens under the hood, but it sounds good!

The interior light stays on a few seconds after you get out so if you are out in a parking lot you can see what you are doing.

There is an exterior bed light with switch so you can see to deal with whatever you may have in the back. Also has daytime running lights which switch to full lights in darker conditions automatically, very nice to be able to 'set it and forget it'. Good range on high beams in front and sides. There are also map lights up under center mirror.

Mine has cruise control, wich I hardly ever use, but handy none the less.

Colorado has a regular old key, not an expensive transponder type with a computer chip. The key is actually a reverse of what Toyota is using, making me think they may be using a Toyota ignintion, or at least basing their design on one.

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Would I recommend this truck? YES!! After many, many years with the S-10, Chevy was my first choice (especially after driving both a Toyota and Nissan, neither of which I liked) and I'd suggest it to anyone looking for a small truck. I looked for TWO YEARS doing tons of research on-line and the Colorado was what I fianlly settled on. The Pros totally outweigh the cons, much of which are futzy little things anyway.