Sure, General Motors has taken a lot of heat from fans for not going after the Jeep Wrangler and the Ford Bronco, contorting what the Chevrolet Blazer means to customers, and not dropping a supercharger in the first-ever Chevrolet Silverado 1500 ZR2. However, the automaker has found a winning formula in the off-road space with its trucks, and looks to further expand the bandwidth of its offerings. In the process, GM will soon have more off-road oriented trucks than any other manufacturer in a few years, as engineers are currently busy developing a pair of HD trucks that can take on the Ford Super Duty Tremor and Ram HD Power Wagon. You read it here first: the Chevrolet Silverado HD ZR2 and GMC Sierra HD AT4X are on their way, and we have exclusive info.
Image via Chevrolet## 2024 GMC Sierra HD AT4X, Chevrolet Silverado HD ZR2: Details
The 2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD ZR2 and GMC Sierra HD AT4X will follow a proven recipe that General Motors first implemented on the 2017-model-year Chevrolet Colorado ZR2. This included a minimal front bumper with cutouts in front of the wheels, a pronounced front bash plate made of stainless steel, heavy-duty Multimatic DSSV dampers, locking front and rear differentials, upgraded tires, skid plate protection, improved ground clearance, and higher clearance rear bumper.
Recent spy photos confirm the existence of a GMC Sierra HD AT4X pickup truck, while MC&T sources know it true that a Chevrolet Silverado HD ZR2 is also in the works. However, these vehicles will not debut with the 2023 model year as has been reported in other places. Instead, GM’s HD truck refresh will actually arrive for the 2024 model year. The current generation of Silverado HD and Sierra HD trucks have been on the market since the 2020 model year.
With that said, our intel suggests that these big GM off-roaders will also debut in the 2024 model year. By then, the Ram HD would’ve had a mid-cycle refresh, while the Ford Super Duty is expected to be all-new.
But wait, there’s more. General Motors is actually upping the tire size on these behemoths compared to the standard Silverado HD Z71 and Sierra HD AT4. Whereas these trucks currently come from the factory with a 33-inch Goodyear Wrangler Duratrec AT tire, the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD ZR2 and 2024 GMC Sierra HD AT4X will come with a 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT tire, which should pay major dividends when it comes to ground clearance, approach/departure/breakover angles, and overall traction off-road. GM has so far shied away from giving other ZR2/AT4X variants a set of larger rollers, so this intel could suggest that the automaker is changing its mind on the matter.
Additionally, the 2024 Silverado HD ZR2 and Sierra HD AT4X will offer both the L8T 6.6L pushrod gasoline V8 and L5P 6.6L Duramax diesel V8 engines, which is a powertrain combo that the class-leading Ram Power Wagon does not offer. Only a 6.4L gas V8 is available in the Ram.
Otherwise, the hardware between the Chevy and the GMC will largely be identical, with different suspension tuning between the two to make the AT4X a slightly more plush ride. The 2024 Sierra HD AT4X will also have more premium standard content than the Silverado HD ZR2, as we see with the new Sierra 1500 AT4X and Silverado 1500 ZR2, and as such will have noticeably higher sticker price when MSRP is inevitably announced.
