Yahoo Autos 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV First Drive Review: The electric work truck
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — To coincide with our first go of it in the driver’s seat of the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV WT, Chevy dropped some good news in our laps. Just like its range figure took a leap from 400 to 450 miles last month, now its max towing and payload capacities have ameliorated. Instead of the previous 8,000 pounds of towing, the Silverado EV WT is now good for an even 10,000 pounds, while payload is up from 1,200 to 1,440 pounds.
Consequently, this Silverado EV WT offers far more range than any other electric pickup out there (not to mention almost every other available EV regardless of body style). The Rivian R1T comes in third at 328 miles (its 400-mile “Max Pack” battery is still AWOL), just behind the Hummer EV’s 329, while the Silverado’s most direct competitor, the Ford F-150 Lightning, gets up to 320 miles with the big battery option. That towing figure matches a Lightning equipped with the Extended Range Battery and Max Trailer Tow package. Ford still bests the Chevy in payload, at 2,235 pounds (or 1,952 pounds with the bigger battery).
But then there’s another figure that might come as a surprise, especially to early Silverado EV reservation-holders. This first version of the WT will start at $77,905, before destination. That’s considerably more than the $39,900 estimated starting price that’s still listed on Chevy’s reservation site. But considering the price hikes to the F-150 Lightning, perhaps we shouldn’t be shocked (sorry). It’s still about $18,000 more than the Lightning Pro’s starting price, but that price includes just 230 miles of range and 5,000 pounds of towing (and the Pro is sold out for 2023). To get closer to Silverado capabilities, the Lightning XLT with the bigger battery and 10,000-pound towing options is in the Silverado EV’s ballpark, at $78,874 before destination. It’s a step up from Ford’s work truck trim, but it still falls 130 miles short of the Chevy’s range. You give and you take.
Chevy plans to launch a 350-mile version for about $5,000 less sometime this fall, with lower-priced models coming at some point in the future. Whether there’ll ever be that $40,000 version remains to be seen, but we’re not holding our breath.
But enough with the mental gymnastics. Let’s talk about this actual electric work truck. The EV isn’t at all a carbon copy of the internal-combustion Silverado. In fact, it’s a clean-sheet development, complete with its own look. While Ford’s Lightning is unmistakably an F-150, the Silverado EV looks a bit more like the Chevy Avalanche than its actual namesake. It’s not body-on-frame, (though Chevy won’t quite call it unibody, either) with its rigid Ultium battery pack structurally incorporated into its “body-frame-integral” construction. The cab and front seats are pushed forward toward the front axle, which opens up room for the second row of seating and makes it easier to see over the cowl. In its quest for ultimate driving range, Chevy paid close attention to aerodynamics. Hence the solid grille, as the EV only needs minimal airflow for thermal management. The sail panels (or “flying buttresses” as Chevy exterior design director Ryan Vaughn referred to them) do a lot to give this truck its unique look, but also reduce drag. A soft tonneau cover — standard equipment — also improves aero.
While the Silverado EV RST, which arrives later in the year, is shiny all over, the WT uses harder-wearing materials more suitable to rugged work environments. It’s also only available in white — great for government duty — though we imagine many fleets will add their own wraps, decals and color schemes. The glossy black wheels are a nice contrast, and complement the black plastic cladding and accents throughout the exterior. Oh, and there’s no midgate in the WT, as useful as that might be for hauling big cargo. The bed comes in one size — 5 feet, 11 inches — and there’s also extra storage space in the front trunk (with a 120-volt socket inside), though it’s a few cubic feet smaller than the Lightning’s.
There is one 240-volt and multiple 120-volt outlets in the bed that can draw power from the battery at a work site (or campsite, or tailgate party). The truck comes standard with 7 outlets and 7.2 kilowatts of offboard power, but you can opt for with the PowerBase power bar accessory, which plugs into the truck’s charging port for a total of 10 outlets and 10.2 kW of available power. If you’re worried about drawing too much power from the battery while powering other items in the field, you can set an amount, in miles or state-of-charge-percentage, for the truck to save for your drive home.
While Chevy hasn’t disclosed all the details about the Silverado WT’s battery pack, we think we’ve got it figured out. It’s 24 modules, just like the 205-kilowatt-hour unit powering the GMC Hummer EV. It’s capable of 350-kW DC charging (again, like the Hummer), allowing the Silverado EV to recoup 100 miles of range in 10 minutes. Chevy’s also been coy about weight, but the sticker inside the door lists a curb weight of 8,568 pounds (which is not quite as much as the larger Hummer, but indicates a big battery). Throughout our unladen driving loops, the vehicle’s efficiency screen indicated an average of about 2.2 miles per kWh. Draw your own conclusions.
Just start driving
The WT’s interior isn’t flashy or luxurious, instead focusing on utility and durability. There’s copious storage space inside, with deep bins in the center console that are unimpeded by any transmission tunnel. There are small pockets on either side of the center console that could serve to hold paperwork or the like. A small storage space — just the tight size for a phone — is carved out or the dash in front of the passenger. The rear seats fold up and out of the way, and customers can opt for an accessory bin that lives below them.
