Why the 2024 Chevy Silverado HD ZR2 Sticks to IFS and Multimatic Dampers

The heavy-duty off-road pickup segment is suddenly one of the industry's most competitive. Ford, Ram, and General Motors all sell multiple trucks that are meant to tow big loads and tackle tough trails on the same day. The Chevy Silverado HD ZR2 and GMC Sierra HD AT4X are the latest entries, and they take a unique approach with Multimatic DSSV dampers and independent front suspension. You're more likely to find that combo on a race car than any other 3/4-ton pickup, so I wanted to talk with GM's engineering group manager Tim Demetrio to learn how they did it.

GM has stuck with IFS on its HD pickup offerings for nearly two decades. Others use solid axles for simplicity and durability, some will argue, but Chevy and GMC see things differently. When I asked Demetrio why IFS is the right choice for a truck like the Silverado HD ZR2, he confirmed: It's about ride and traction.

For sure, trucks with solid axles often relay more road info to the driver when it's not necessarily needed. You could argue that GM was ahead of the game by valuing comfort on its hardest working models all those years ago. And Demetrio argues that because the Silverado HD's suspension is already built to work, it was naturally tough enough for the off-road ZR2 halo model.

“The cool thing about starting with a heavy-duty platform is all the components are already very, very well-suited for what we throw at them in the desert," Demetrio said. "Beefy components are required to hit the towing and payload figures that the base HD starts with, and it's a great platform to build with so we really didn’t have to strengthen much up there. They already have cast-iron control arms, we have big, beefy front suspension joints, and the torsion bars are meant to handle plow prep packages and lots of load. Honestly, what you throw at it in the off-road space is kind of less severe than what a lot of users will do in the heavy-duty space already.”

It makes sense that if a truck is built to accept a snow plow up front, it can probably handle bumps at speed. That makes the Silverado HD a better base for a hardcore four-wheeling trim than you might think. Plus, IFS is already preferred for desert running by everyone, including race teams; it's usually just used in lighter applications.

“As far as off-roading goes, you look at all the trucks out there that are very high performance—you know, you look at a trophy truck and it has independent front suspension," Demetrio said. "All the people that say you need a solid front axle to go off-roading are living back in the ‘70s, in the Jeep days.”