Zac Quinn 
Just days ago, General Motors celebrated the start of production for the next generation of midsize trucks, including the 2023 Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon. With a honk of the horn, the first trucks have rolled off the assembly line at GM’s Wentzville assembly plant in Missouri. It is fantastic to see that the next-gen trucks hit the market at the planned time, despite the supply shortages that have been hindering productivity over the past few years.
The GM Wentzville Assembly plant currently has more than 4,000 local employees working hard to accomplish this goal. It shows how successful this plant can be, and it appears that the next big plan is to get some EV product in the plant to secure its future. But outside of that, the launch of the next-gen Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon means people will be getting their hands on trucks that are even more capable than ever before.
2023 Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon: Details
The 2023 Chevrolet Colorado and 2023 GMC Canyon trucks bring new levels of tech, sophistication, and capabilities to America’s midsize truck market. The front axles of the trucks are moved closer to the bumpers, allowing for improved approach angles, improved dash:axle ratios, and the engine to move farther back for better weight distribution. Speaking of, the new Colorado and Canyon feature varying outputs of what is essentially the same engine: a 2.7L four-cylinder turbo, which has already seen time out in the field with the larger Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. This turbo-four delivers much more torque than the 3.6L V6 it replaces, and much more horsepower than the 2.8L Duramax diesel engine it also replaces. The trucks retain the 8-speed automatic transmission that existed before.
The 2023 Chevrolet Colorado and 2023 GMC Canyon also deliver far more capable off-road variants, in the form of the second-generation Colorado ZR2 and the first-ever Canyon AT4X. These new trucks add improved hardware, such as 33-inch tires, as well as a taller ride height and next-generation Multimatic DSSV dampers. The trucks also feature a stowable tailgate function.
Interior-wise, we see far more attention to detail, larger digital displays, and a more athletic design. Of course, customers are paying a premium for all of this, with the 2023 Chevrolet Colorado WT starting several thousand dollars more than the truck it replaces.
