GMSV lobs Australian Chevy Silverado ZR2 Off Road Racer

GM Specialty Vehicles (GMSV) has lobbed an Australian-developed concept off-road racer based on the updated Silverado pickup.

It comes shortly after Ford’s Aussie-developed Ranger Raptor off-road racing ute won the stock category in the legendary Baja 1000 in Mexico.

The 12-month passion project serves as a neat promotional tool for the incoming Chevy Silverado ZR2, a more off-road-focused variation of the heavy hauler that’ll go on sale in Australia from mid 2023.

The Silverado Off-Road Racer concept was built at the company’s Port Melbourne workshop by a group of GM employee volunteers, and from there “taken to the next level” with the involvement of Chevrolet Racing in the US.

GMSV lobs Australian Chevy Silverado ZR2 Off Road Racer

The program was managed by Mark Wakeman, a GM Australia/New Zealand employee who has been involved in off-road racing for the past 25 years.

“The Chevrolet Silverado ZR2 will be a new model to the GMSV line-up for MY23 and will deliver next-level off-road capability direct from the factory – making it the perfect platform for this latest announcement from Chevrolet Racing,” said GMSV Australia planning, network and motorsport director Tim Price.

“What started as a passion project 12-months ago across GM teams in Australia and New Zealand quickly transformed into the creation you see today.”

From a GMSV perspective, the upcoming launch of the first Chevrolet Silverado ZR2 gives the increasingly popular big beast – which just passed 5000 sales and is being converted to right-hand drive at a new Melbourne production line – a more off-road focus.

Some feature highlights of the Silverado ZR2 are front and rear e-lockers and Multimatic DSSV dampers, 33-inch mud terrain tyres, and new steel cut front bumper designed for off-road durability and clearance.

It also has a raised black bonnet (should that be hood?) insert with ZR2 badging, wheel flares, unique 18-inch gloss black wheels, and exclusive Jet Black/Graystone leather-appointed interior.

Like the LTZ Premium, it’s powered by a naturally-aspirated 6.2-litre V8 engine with 313kW of power and 624Nm of torque, mated with a 10-speed automatic transmission.

The updated Silverado uses a new 13.4-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a 12.3-inch configurable digital instrument cluster. The outgoing model has only an 8.0-inch screen, plus analogue gauges with a digital information screen.

As detailed here, the MY23 LTZ Premium will be priced from $121,000 before on-roads, up $6010 on the 2022 model, while the ZR2 will be priced at $124,000 before on-roads.