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The 40 mpg Cars of 2013

2008 Chevrolet Colorado Extended Cab

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Curious about the newer model? Check out the 2012 Chevrolet Colorado Extended Cab

Overview

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2008 Chevrolet Colorado Extended Cab Review

By KBB.com Editors

As gasoline prices continue to edge upwards, the compact pickup is beginning to look mighty attractive. Though it can't tow or haul like a full-size Silverado, the 2008 Chevrolet Colorado makes an attractive alternative for those whose truck use tends to be more recreational than occupational. The Colorado's 185-horsepower four-cylinder and 242-horsepower five-cylinder engines provide good power and excellent fuel economy, while a four-wheel-drive option allows the compact pickup to tackle deep snow and venture off-road. Although the Colorado's cab and bed are not the largest in this segment (and its turning radius is uncommonly wide), the truck remains competitive with Ford's Ranger series and, to a lesser extent, the Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier and Dodge Dakota.

You'll Like This Car If...

If you like the rugged, bold look of the full-size Silverado, but want it in a smaller package that gets better fuel economy, check out the Colorado. The standard four-cylinder engine is surprisingly strong yet, with two-wheel drive, is EPA-rated at 24 miles per gallon on the highway.

You May Not Like This Car If...

Some may find the Colorado too narrow and, with the Crew Cab model, short on rear-seat legroom. Also, the Colorado's optional 3.7-liter in-line five-cylinder engine does not offer as much torque as the V6 engines from Toyota and Nissan.

What's New for 2008

OnStar with the Safe and Sound package is standard on 1LT and Z71 trim levels.

Driving the Colorado Extended Cab

Driving Impressions The Colorado's greatest strengths can be found in its chassis and powertrains. The newest body-on-frame chassis is much more rigid than previous Chevrolet compact pickups and you can feel it...

in the way the Colorado handles off-road and in the corners. Even over washboard roads, the Colorado exhibited no sign of dash-rattling or squeaks. Chevrolet has also created a number of performance and off-road packages that enhance the Colorado's rugged image. Surprisingly, for such a small truck, the Colorado has a rather wide turning circle. The standard in-line four-cylinder is fairly potent for such a small engine. When ordered with the manual transmission, it also offers exceptionally good fuel economy.

Favorite Features

Tailgate
The Colorado's rear tailgate can be set at a 55-degree angle so that items can rest flat on the tops of the wheel wells and align with the tailgate.

Side-Curtain Airbags
Optional side-curtain airbags are a first for this segment.

2008 Chevrolet Colorado Extended Cab Details

Interior

The Colorado's interior layout is highly functional, with all the gauges and controls in clear sight and easy reach of the driver. The seats offer firm bottoms and good lumbar support, and the cloth fabric is both durable and comfortable. Crew Cab models are a bit tight when it comes to rear-seat legroom, but front seat occupants should be more than satisfied. The one drawback may be the over-abundance of gray throughout the cab. Chevrolet has revamped the interior color scheme to lessen this mass of gray plastic, but the most vivid improvements show up only in the pricier trim levels.

Exterior

The Colorado definitely has the look that says "Chevy." Bulging fender flares and bright alloy wheels punctuate tall slab sides. Regular Cab models ride on a 111.3-inch wheelbase while Extended and Crew Cab models are on a 126.0-inch wheelbase. The bed length for the Regular and Extended Cab models is roughly six feet, while that for the Crew Cab model is about five feet. Both beds feature tall sidewalls, for deeper storage, which give the Colorado best-in-class cargo volume. The Colorado has a clever tailgate that can be opened flat or set at a 55-degree angle, effectively placing the top of the gate in line with the tops of the rear wheel wells, which makes it easy to load and carry, for example, large, flat panels.

Notable Equipment

Standard Equipment

The Colorado LS features a five-speed manual transmission, 2.9-liter four-cylinder engine, air conditioning, cruise control, anti-lock brakes (ABS), tilt steering wheel, dual outside mirrors, automatic headlamps, color-keyed carpeting, AM/FM stereo, tachometer and forward-facing jump seats in the Extended Cab. The LT trim adds chrome front and rear bumpers, Deluxe Cloth upholstery, CD player, leather-wrapped steering wheel and some trim items. To that the Z71 adds the Z71 off-road suspension, auto-dimming mirror, rear sliding window and the 3.7-liter five-cylinder engine.

Optional Equipment

Options include four-wheel drive, four-speed automatic transmission, power windows, power door locks, power mirrors, heated leather seats, automatic locking rear differential, tow package, six-disc CD changer, XM Satellite Radio, side-impact airbags, traction control, Z71 off-road package and a Sun and Sound package that adds a six-disc CD changer and power sunroof.

Under the Hood

Engine choices for the Colorado include four- and five-cylinder powerplants. The standard 2.9-liter four and the optional 3.7-liter five are both derivatives of the in-line six found in the Chevrolet TrailBlazer and GMC Envoy. Though the sizes of these engines might seem small, they are both big on power. The 2.9-liter four-cylinder produces an impressive 185 horsepower and offers up most of its 190 pound-feet of torque between the ranges of 1200 and 5600 rpm. That's enough power to muscle any lightly-equipped four-wheel-drive vehicle through the toughest terrain. The optional 3.7-liter engine makes 242 horsepower. Both of these engines produce class-leading horsepower while returning good fuel economy.

2.9-liter in-line 4
185 horsepower @ 5600 rpm
190 lb.-ft. of torque @ 2800 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 18/24 (2WD, manual), 18/24 (2WD, automatic), 16/22 (4WD, manual), 17/22 (4WD, automatic)

3.7-liter in-line 5
242 horsepower @ 5600 rpm
242 lb.-ft. of torque @ 2800 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 16/22 (2WD), 15/21 (4WD), 16/22 (2WD, Crew Cab), 15/20 (4WD, Crew Cab)

To compare current market prices, check out KBB.com's car classifieds to view the new and used Chevrolet Colorado Extended Cab vehicles for sale near you.

Trading in or Selling? Know where you stand with the most up-to-date Kelley Blue Book Value at your fingertips. See your car's value

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2008 Chevrolet Colorado Consumer Reviews

Overall Rating

7.8

Out of 10

Based on 896 Ratings for the 2004 - 2012 models.

Review this car

Value

8.1/10

Quality

8.0/10
Reliability

8.4/10

Performance

8.1/10
Comfort

8.1/10

Styling

8.4/10

Great Little Truck

By MeanJoe-355nation (OR) on Monday, June 17, 2013

I own this car - My approximate mileage is 86,000

10 10.0

overall rating 10 of 10rating details

Reviewer Ratings

Overall Rating: 10/10
Value: 10/10
Reliability: 10/10
Quality: 10/10
Performance: 10/10
Styling: 10/10
Comfort: 10/10

Pros: "Great gas mileage, lots of room in crew cab."

Cons: "Crew Cab bed is small (5ft.)"

Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 10

"This is a great little truck. I get 18 mpg city, and 28 mpg highway. Absolutely no problems, just the regular maintenance.....I have 86,000 miles on her."

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wouldnt start on wet days

By coolman (MN) on Thursday, May 23, 2013

I owned and sold this car
Reason: wouldnt start on wet days - My approximate mileage is 152,000

10 6.0

overall rating 6 of 10rating details

Reviewer Ratings

Overall Rating: 6/10
Value: 8/10
Reliability: 2/10
Quality: 5/10
Performance: 7/10
Styling: 9/10
Comfort: 8/10

Pros: "nice to drive"

Cons: "starting problem"

Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 3

"my 04 chevy colorado crew cab 4x4 3.5 liter was a great little truck until on moist damp mornings or evenings you got in turned the key the starter would spin the motor but it wouldnt fire up it would take about 20 min and it would start just fine it left no code in the computer or check engine light the shop told me it would be like finding a needle in a hay stack it would have to do it when it is hooked to there computer like that would ever happand when it only did it once a month or so"

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Great Looking TRuck

By cheyennesport (TN) on Sunday, May 19, 2013

I own this car - My approximate mileage is 39,800

10 7.0

overall rating 7 of 10rating details

Reviewer Ratings

Overall Rating: 7/10
Value: 9/10
Reliability: 10/10
Quality: 8/10
Performance: 10/10
Styling: 8/10
Comfort: 10/10

Pros: "black-has the 18's"

Cons: "no trailer package"

Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 6

"I purchased 2012 colorado crew LT 1 with sport apperence packeage with 18's in Sept 2011 with 11 miles on the truck when i brought it home and i was working as a independent contractor so i put 1000 miles per week on the truck i have only used pennzoil platinuim 5w30 and wix filters and i put a K&N air filter in the truck. I also added a snap tonneau cover by lund stopped independent contracting just before a year went back to driving a semi truck and have parked the colorado but still drive it once a month now to get the miles down. When i ran my route i was getting 22 mpg per week and then i drove it to pick up my semi i got 24.5 on the way to and from. I wish chevy would start building this truck again..."

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Great ,very dependable truck

By The kid (MA) on Friday, May 17, 2013

I own this car - My approximate mileage is 40,300

10 10.0

overall rating 10 of 10rating details

Reviewer Ratings

Overall Rating: 10/10
Value: 10/10
Reliability: 10/10
Quality: 7/10
Performance: 8/10
Styling: 8/10
Comfort: 10/10

Pros: "Excellent in snow,roomy for a small truck"

Cons: "Cannot pull much weight"

Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 10

"Own an 09 z71 crew cab and love it,the truck is so good in the snow you hardly ever have to put in 4 wheel drive.interior is a little chinsey but fine. I have a fisher homesteader plow on it and it plows snow no problem.im 5 ft 8 245 lbs and am very comfortable in the truck have done many long trips with no problems and am very comfortable.the only thing I could say bad about the truck is you cannot tow a lot of weight,I love my Colorado and would buy one again in a minute."

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It's a decent truck

By realz (CO) on Monday, May 06, 2013

I own this car - My approximate mileage is 59,000

10 6.0

overall rating 6 of 10rating details

Reviewer Ratings

Overall Rating: 6/10
Value: 6/10
Reliability: 7/10
Quality: 6/10
Performance: 5/10
Styling: 6/10
Comfort: 5/10

Pros: "gas mileage, fairly cheap, good in snow"

Cons: "seats, bed length, plain interior, seats!"

Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 6

"Style and looks are good in my opinion. It is pretty good in the snow. I have the 3.7 inline 5 and it is pretty gutless but gets good gas mileage for it's class. The bed could use a 6 foot option like the Toyota. The interior is plain and basic with few options. Couple that with uncomfortable seats and a tight suspension and it make road trips painful! It does have a fair amount of cup holders though! Over all it's not to bad for what it is."

2 people out of 2 found this review helpful

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Basic vehicle with few frills.

By Woodie (NY) on Monday, May 06, 2013

I own this car - My approximate mileage is 36,000

10 7.0

overall rating 7 of 10rating details

Reviewer Ratings

Overall Rating: 7/10
Value: 8/10
Reliability: 9/10
Quality: 7/10
Performance: 8/10
Styling: 6/10
Comfort: 7/10

Pros: "Serves the need for occasional use as a pickup"

Cons: "Warning lights/sensors give me fits."

Likely to recommend this car? (1-10): 8

"Have had few issues with this little truck. The tire pressure monitor warning light kept coming on which turned out to be a faulty control unit and its antenna. The ABS fault error light is now coming on (rarely) and is likely some quirk in the computer. It goes off the next time it is started. It has served my purpose for an occasional need for a small pickup and provides basic transportation with about 23 mpg."

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See all 896 reviews