gt_ghost

I have been thinking of getting this truck in either the the Z85 or ZQ8(sport), just can't decide which i want yet. I do want the 5 cylinder LS, but with the 5 speed which has been pretty hard to find. I just wanted to know what people who have this truck think about it. Please let me know the good and bad about it, and which model you have. Thanks.

Totmacher

I have the Sport LS extended cab with the 5 Cyl. engine. I've had it a few months now and no problems. My only complaint is the quiet exhaust (I was use to a nice, loud V8). But when I decide on what muffler to get, the sound issue will be resolved.

I've taken it through the North Georgia mountain roads and it handles great. On the rough (really really rough) streets of downtown Atlanta it can be a harsh ride but nearly anything gives a harsh ride there. The traction control is a bit sensitive for my tastes but the Off button is there for a reason.

If you're into customizing, you might be a bit sad for a while since not many aftermarket parts are out yet specifically for this truck.

But it really is a great truck so far. It drove fine with loads (furniture). It also felt great at 100 mph down I-75.

Good luck finding the manual trans. though. I have the automatic and my dealer says they haven't even seen a manual on their lot yet.

gt_ghost

Thanks Totmacher. Yeah, finding one with a 5 speed has been hard. The dealership did a search and found one about 100 miles away. The one thing i didn't like about it was that it has the sport pewter seats. So i did my own search and the only place i could find another sport LS with a 5 speed and 5 cylinder was a little further than the one the dealership found, luckily it has the dark pewter seats. And they both are red, couldn't find another color.

boyfly

I have a ZQ8 LS, 5 cyl, auto, red, coming up on 12k miles.

I like it, nice and sporty. But...

First thing that went wrong was the battery. Died within the first couple months, dealer replaced it under warranty. Had a friend with a Z71 Colorado that had the exact same problem. Guess it was a bad supply of batteries. No big deal.

Then, I tried to take a road trip in the truck. Made it one day, from Florida to Nashville, stopped for a week there to participate in a competition. Toward the end of the week I noticed a knocking sound. Took the truck to a dealer in Nashville, they said I needed a new engine. They never told me why. This was at 5500 miles. Took a couple weeks to get it finished. It sucked 'cause I never made the rest of my trip and I had to rent a car to drive back to Florida for work, then go back and get it on a Friday night/Saturday (20 hour roundtrip, straight thru). Still havn't been reimbursed for my hotel and car rental costs ($1000), but GM says they are reimbursing me and I should have the check for what they're gonna pay (around 60% of costs) in the next couple weeks. Engine was all under warranty.

So I thought that was my share of problems for the time I have the truck, but tonight a rattling started as I was pulling away from a friends place to go home. I took it straight to the dealer and left it there. We'll see what they say tomorrow. Hopefully it's just something loose. These engines better last more than 6000 miles.

I like to drive this truck, but I havn't been that harsh on it. I would think if the problems were my fault I would have gone through a few sets of tires by now, and I'm still running the first set of stock tires. :-) And since I got the new engine, I havn't been driving any harder than my Grandma would.

Anyway, I like the truck, but havn't decided if I can recommend it yet. I'll post again when I find out what the latest problem is.

snomien

Have a Z71 4X4 and have had my fair share of problems. It has the I-5 engine with auto transmission. The front axle seal was leaking, the heater fan quit, intermittent problem with shifting into/out of 4 wheel drive, the passengers floor gets really hot when towing, and now the windshield wipers work intermittently. The dealer never fixed the 4 wheel drive it just hasn't been any more trouble. The dealer says the passenger floor getting hot is the cat. getting hot, but going to install a transmission cooler in addition to the cheap stock cooler. I have had the pickup since December.

mhinkley

Make sure you get the extended cab. I am having a vibration problem that seems to only exist with the standard cab models and nobody knows what to do to fix it.

lk2064

i have a 2004 colorado ext. cab in black Z-85 with the I-5 engine i'm just pushing 26,000k and i love it, i have had a couple of little problems but nothing major, i had a seal that was leaking in the back corner of the roof, and water was leaking in after every rain, and i had a bad door hinge pin that was fixed right away, but thats all my problems. Also a know a few other people with colorado's and they love them as well.

ricolorado

I purchased my Colorado - Crew Cab Z71 in April. The only issues I have found so far are the following:

1. One of the hood hinges rattle (Fixed by Dealer)
2. High Pitch periodic whistle comming from heating/air conditioning system. (Dealer and GM can not pin point as of yet)
Have any other Colorado owners experience this one?

No other problems as of yet at 6k.

d_jarrell

Every now and then, maybe every 10 minutes, my AC put out a puff of air with a strong chemical smell. My first thought was refrigerant leak, but after four months the AC is still blowing cold?

It’s not a mildew smell or soured water smell. It’s more like when you’re dispensing the last bit of a can of shaving cream and you get hit with that butane smell.

I wonder if I’m being poisoned in some way? The fumes don’t make me cough, but my lungs ache for a couple of hours after?

BTW: Crew cab Z71 3.5l, 3,800 miles, in the shop three times so far....

l_like_my_truck

i also had a leak in the rear passenger side of my truck...dealer fixed it that day....no charge...so it was all good...

also

I LOVE THIS TRUCK!!! i have the vortec 3500 i-5 2004 colorado extended cab....it is an awesome truck..no vibrations tho....no trouble with the engine or ne thing....i do drive it carefully, and i try not to run it too hard....i only have 2500 miles on it since june.....

l_like_my_truck

im also getting 24+ miles per gallon....anyone else with that kind of economy?

lk2064

i get about 650-700 kms to a tank if that answers your question, i love this truck also, i wasn't a truck guy at all until these came out, i was and still am into the little rice rockets (civics),lol, but i'm lookin forward to pimpin this ride! should look sweet slammed with some 20's.

d_jarrell

Got pulled over last night for no brake lights! At 4,000 miles I wonder if this truck ever had brake lights? Took to dealer, bad switch, no switch in stock. I'll be spending the weekend in a rental because of a stupid switch that's only made for Colorados and Canyons. 4,000 miles and in shop four times!

I really regret buying this truck. I'll never buy a GM product again!

mike45orlando

we have the extended cab colorado. at 2,000 miles we were heading south on I-75 north of Miami in the middle lane going 65 in a blinding rain storm and heavy traffic. The wiper blades quit and we barely survived the blind move from middle lane to the grass! GM was very nice, paided for our rental and got a new wiper blade motor ordered and installed. GM says that our vehicle is the only one so far to have this happen.

We actually love this truck. Still can't find spare fuses and fuse puller, or the low fuel indicator light.

aschichler

I have a ZQ8 (Sport), 5 cyl, 5-speed, extended cab.
I couldn't find exactly what I wanted, so I ended up ordering mine. I don't know why they have to limit the color selection so much for the Sport model. I didn't want White, Red, or Yellow, so I went with black. For some reason, there were no black ones to be found at any dealer near me.
Anyway, a few days after picking the truck up, the rear right tire blew out. I mean really blew! The whole sidewall disintegrated. I guess that's not GM's fault, but Continental's. I just hope it doesn't happen to any of the other tires. (I have just under 4000 miles on it now).
The only other thing that happened was that when it got warm outside, the car wouldn't start sometimes. It would not turn over until you tried several times. That turned out to be a defective ignition switch.

It's running real nice now, and I really like it. Hopefully it will be a reliable truck from now on.