2024 Chevrolet electric Silverado - 664 HP full-size EV pickup - 400 Mile Range
13Ford’s F-150 Lightning struck the heart of the electric truck segment, but it’s getting some serious competition in the form of the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV.
Looking nothing like the facelifted 2022 Silverado, the Silverado EV has been built from the ground up as a fully-electric pickup with a “boundary-breaking combination of capability, performance and versatility.”
We’ll get to all of that shortly, but we’ll start with the truck’s distinctive design which is softer and more curvaceous than traditional pickups. This is immediately apparent as the truck adopts an aerodynamic front end that has been “sculpted to efficiently direct air down the body side, significantly reducing drag and turbulence.” Speaking of which, the Silverado EV WT is expected to have one of the lowest drag coefficients of any production full-size pickup.
Available exclusively in a Crew Cab configuration, the Silverado EV features a short front overhang and a fully enclosed grille that is part of the frunk. Dubbed an eTrunk in Chevrolet marketing speak, the frunk is a lockable and weatherproof compartment that allows owners to store gear and equipment inside. Chevy plans to offer an assortment of accessories for the frunk and the company showed off dividers as well as cargo nets.
Moving down the sides, we can see streamlined bodywork, pronounced wheel arches, and available 24-inch wheels. They’re joined by plastic body cladding and angular accents on the rear pillars.
Out back is a 5’ 11” (1,803 mm) bed with an available Multi-Flex Midgate, which recalls the one used on the Chevrolet Avalanche. It enables owners to expand the bed into the cabin.
With the tailgate closed and the midgate open, the Silverado EV will be able to haul items over 9’ (2,743 mm) long. If that’s not enough space, the available Multi-Flex Tailgate can be lowered to provide 10’ 10” (3,302 mm) of room.
The eye-catching design continues in the cabin as the Silverado EV RST has an 11-inch digital instrument cluster and a 17-inch infotainment system. They’re joined by a fixed-glass roof, a head-up display, and two-tone leather seats with red accents.
We can also see a flat-bottom steering wheel, a column-mounted shifter, and dedicated climate controls. The rear seats offer heating and Chevrolet said people over 6 feet (1,829 mm) tall “will be comfortable no matter where they sit.” Furthermore, the modular center console has a capacity of over seven gallons (31.8 liters) and this is large enough to accommodate a lunch cooler.
Chevrolet didn’t say much about the WT trim, but it’s pretty basic by comparison. The splashes of color are noticeably absent, while the digital instrument cluster and infotainment system adopt smaller and less dramatic displays.
The Silverado EV will arrive in the spring of 2023 in fleet-focused WT guise. It will have 510 hp (375 kW / 517 PS) and 615 lb-ft (834 Nm) of torque as well as a GM-estimated range in excess of 400 miles (644 km). The truck will initially have a towing capacity of 8,000 lbs (3,629 kg), but Chevrolet will eventually offer a max tow package that will increase the figure up to 20,000 lbs (9,072 kg).
Speaking of towing, the RST and WT trims will come with trailer hitch provisions, an integrated trailer brake controller, a Tow/Haul mode, and a Hitch Guidance system. The RST builds on this by adding Chevrolet’s Advanced Trailering System, which is currently found on higher-end versions of the Silverado.
A fully-loaded Silverado EV RST First Edition will follow in the fall of 2023 and feature a dual-motor all-wheel drive system producing 664 hp (495 kW / 673 PS) and 780+ lb-ft (1,056+ Nm) of torque.
That’s pretty impressive and Chevrolet noted the model will have a Wide Open Watts mode, which enables the truck to rocket from 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) in less than 4.5 seconds. The eye-popping numbers don’t end there as the RST First Edition will have 400 miles (644 km) of range and a Hummer-esque sticker price of $105,000.
Once production ramps up, Chevrolet will “unleash the full Silverado EV portfolio” including an entry-level WT variant that starts at $39,900. It will be joined by additional variants including a Trail Boss version and Chevrolet said customers will have the “ability to content the truck across various price ranges, with MSRPs around $50,000, $60,000, $70,000, $80,000 and more.” These models will presumably offer a variety of battery and powertrain combinations.