High Fallutin’ Chevy: The Silverado 1500 High Country

Chevrolet has a new trim level atop the Silverado 1500 pickup lineup – the High Country model.

Some old timers might call it high fallutin’. The Silverado High Country is a loooong way from the base Silverado trim where you wind up the windows and move the seat fore and aft by hand.

How far removed you might ask? In base price alone, it is $47 000 higher.

High Fallutin’ comes with a higher price

The heavily optioned tester’s tag topped $97,000, making it more than $60,000 more expensive than the entry-level Silverado. That’s an extra $9,000 in HST alone!

Now it’s easy to pick on a pickup price tag nearing six figures. But not if you’ve been in or paying attention to the market.

• The average cost of a new vehicle in Canada in 2023 rose nearly 20% over 2022 to $67,817! That’s the average!
• Nobody, and I do mean nobody, buys a base truck.

The last five pickups I have reported on in this space had bottom lines of $111,314, $113,824, $116,154, $92,985, and $108,915. Granted these were loaded line-toppers, but more representative of what is rolling off the showroom floor than you think.

Chevrolet has been watching the success its sibling sister GMC has had with the Sierra pickups, especially the high-end Denali version.

The GMC Sierra outsells Silverado in Canada!

The Chevrolet marketing team saw an opportunity to load up the current LTZ top trim with most of the goodies offered on the Denali and gave it the High Country name.

The Silverado and Sierra share virtually all the same mechanical hardware, but each offers a slightly different look. The Silverado High Country is Chevrolet’s definition of luxury.

Standard equipment includes premium leather upholstery with custom perforation, accent stitching and open-pore wood trim.

There is a 34-cm infotainment screen backed by the latest generation software with Google built-in and a Bose premium audio system. The driver faces an informative 31-cm configurable instrument cluster.

To help keep your eyes closer to the job at hand (driving), there is a large multi-colour Heads Up Display (HUD) visible in the windshield in front of the driver. All have crisp, clean graphics.

Among the myriad of options on the Chevy Silverado test truck, several are worthy of mention

• 6.2-litre V8, $3,190
• Active exhaust system, $225
• Multi-flex tailgate, $325 (a bargain!)

The optional V8 brings 420 horsepower and 460 lb. ft. of torque to the dance compared to the standard 5.3-litre bent eight. With an extra 65 horses in the corral, the towing capacity grows by 1,800 lbs. to 13,300 lbs.

So equipped, this big truck hustles from rest to 100 km/hr in less than six seconds – that’s serious performance for anything weighing north of 6,000 pounds!

Adding to the impression of performance is the Active Exhaust System. Bellowing like a NASCAR truck when in sport mode, it can be a great treat for the ears. But your neighbours might not be so enamored should you forget to return it to normal mode before firing up in the morning. At only $225, this can be considered a bargain.

At $325, the Multi-flex tailgate on the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 High Country is a steal!

As the name implies it serves several functions. As a standard tailgate it opens gradually and smoothly using the handle on the tailgate, a button on the instrument panel or the remote key fob.

When in the lowered position, there is a load stop that can be raised to keep items from sliding out of the box.

There is a secondary gate about half the height of the tailgate, which can be lowered for a working surface. A fold-down full width box step is also included. The tailgate can be powered up – no heavy lifting necessary.

The sumptuous interior and supple suspension make long highway runs a breeze. The rear seat occupants are treated to an immense amount of head and legroom.

The Silverado High Country is as capable of being a workhorse as the lower and less expensive trim levels, more so in many respects.

But with its lavish interior, myriad of comfort and convenience features, sophisticate technology and powered running boards, it is much more comfortable on the highway or in town, than plowing through the brush and other dirty stuff off-road.

It may be expensive, but it offers the opulence, space and comfort of a limousine. But that limo can’t haul a 13,300-pound trailer or a tonne of stuff in the ‘trunk’.

FACTS & FIGURES – 2024 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Crew Cab High Country 4WD

PRICE

Base: $83,699

As tested: $97,094 including freight

SAFETY

LED headlights with automatic high beams, Forward collision alert, Automatic emergency braking, front pedestrian braking, rear cross traffic braking, rear pedestrian alert, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, HD surround vision, Following distance indicator, front and rear park assist

STANDARD EQUIPMENT

Power retractable assist steps, premium leather seat surfaces, 20-in aluminum wheels, power sunroof

OPTIONS

Engine block heater, $195; 6.2-litre V8, $3,190; active exhaust system, $225; multi-flex tailgate, $325; all-weather floor liners, $305; Super Cruise, $2,495’; mid-night edition, $1,495; power sunroof, $1,325; technology package, $1,540

MECHANICAL

6.2 litre V8, 420-horsepower, 460 lb. ft. of torque. 10-speed automatic transmission, four-wheel-drive with two-speed transfer case, NRCan rating (litres/100km city/highway):15/11.9

DIMENSIONS

Length, 5,890-mm; wheelbase, 3,745-mm; width, 2,063-mm; weight, 2,533-kg

COMPETITION

Ford F-150 Platinum, GMC Sierra Denali, Ram 1500 Limited