Chevrolet builds three levels of off-road Colorado, all on the same 310-hp TurboMax engine: the Trail Boss for budget-friendly trail capability, the Z71 for the off-road-plus-comfort blend, and the ZR2 (with the ZR2 Bison edition above it) as the factory trail flagship. This guide covers the hardware by trim, clearance and angles, tires, trail technology, and where drivers around Bentonville actually use it. For pricing and equipment across the whole lineup, see all trims compared.

Hardware

Off-Road Hardware by Trim

The Trail Boss, Z71, and ZR2 all come with standard four-wheel drive and a two-speed transfer case with low range. From there the hardware ladders up:

• Trail Boss adds a factory 2-inch lift, all-terrain tires, skid plates, recovery hooks, and an automatic-locking rear differential.
• Z71 carries all-terrain tires on 18-inch wheels with an off-road-tuned setup and the available underbody camera, trading a little of the Trail Boss's stance for a nicer cabin.
• ZR2 is the flagship: Multimatic DSSV spool-valve dampers, front and rear electronic locking differentials, a 3-inch lift on 33-inch all-terrain tires, and 17-inch wheels with more sidewall.
• ZR2 Bison (built with American Expedition Vehicles) steps to 35-inch mud-terrain tires, stamped-steel bumpers, additional AEV skid plates, and a bed-mounted full-size spare.

Drive modes run Normal, Tow/Haul, Off-Road, Terrain, and Baja: Terrain enables one-pedal rock crawling and Baja opens the truck up for high-speed dirt, both paired with the ZR2's damper hardware.

Geometry

Ground Clearance and Angles by Trim

Trim	Ground clearance	Notes
WT / LT	7.9 in	Street stance
Z71	8.9 in	Off-road tune, 18-in wheels
Trail Boss	9.5 in	2-in factory lift; 30.5° approach / 22.4° departure
ZR2	10.7 in	3-in lift on 33-in tires

Clearance and angle figures are trim- and tire-specific; the Trail Boss angles above are for its standard all-terrain package.

Rubber

Tires and Wheels for the Trail

The Trail Boss and Z71 run 265/65R18 all-terrain tires (about 32 inches) on 18 x 8.5-inch wheels, a good balance of trail grip and highway manners. The ZR2 goes the other way: 17-inch wheels wearing 33-inch all-terrain tires, giving more sidewall to air down on rock and gravel. The ZR2 Bison's 35-inch mud-terrains are the most aggressive factory fitment, and every truck carries a full-size spare, the Bison's mounted in the bed where the departure angle wants it.

Low Range

Water Fording and Crawl Gearing

Chevrolet does not publish an official water-fording depth for the Colorado, so we won't invent one; creek crossings on Ozark forest roads call for walking the crossing first regardless of badge. What the off-road trims do give you is the two-speed transfer case's low range multiplying the TurboMax's 430 lb-ft for controlled crawling, the Terrain mode's one-pedal creep for technical sections, and on the ZR2, front and rear lockers to keep all four tires pulling when a wheel lifts.

Trail Tech

Trail Technology

Up to ten available camera views include the underbody camera on the Z71 and ZR2 — a live look at what the front tires are about to climb, shown on the 11.3-inch screen. Off-Road, Terrain, and Baja modes retune the throttle, transmission, and traction systems per surface, and hill descent control handles the steep loose stuff. It is genuinely useful hardware on the rutted gravel that leads to most Ozark trailheads.

Local Dirt

Where to Wheel Near Northwest Arkansas

Around Bentonville, "off-road" usually means two things. First, the gravel and forest roads of the Ozark National Forest south of the metro: public routes where a Trail Boss's clearance and skid plates turn a careful drive into an easy one. Second, hauling mountain bikes: this is the home of the OZ Trails network, and a huge share of local truck miles are bikes-in-the-bed runs to Slaughter Pen or Coler Mountain Bike Preserve in Bentonville, or down through Bella Vista's trail system. The multifunction tailgate's mid-position holds bikes without a rack, the bed takes muddy gear the cabin shouldn't, and the clearance handles the gravel lot at the far trailhead. One note of trail manners: stick to open, legal routes: the MTB singletrack itself is bikes-only, and the forest roads are the truck's playground.

Decision

Which Off-Road Colorado for Which Terrain?

Your terrain	The trim	Why
Pavement + the occasional gravel lot	Z71	Off-road tune and cameras with the nicest daily cabin
Gravel county roads, forest roads, trailhead runs	Trail Boss	The lift, tires, and skid plates cover real dirt for thousands less
Rock, ruts, and high-speed dirt	ZR2	DSSV dampers, dual lockers, and 33s are genuine trail-flagship hardware
Expedition and desert running	ZR2 Bison	35-in tires, AEV armor, and the bed-mounted spare

The named trail build for most local buyers: a Trail Boss (see current Colorado inventory) with the ZR2 the step up when the terrain genuinely demands it.

FAQ

2026 Colorado Off-Road FAQs

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