The Chevy Silverado has a truly sensational evolution

The Chevrolet Silverado first arrived on the scene in 1999 and has been on a remarkable journey ever since.

It became one of the best-selling and most recognizable pickup trucks in the world.

But one thing has remained consistent in the past twenty five years – it’s a reliable and affordable truck.

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The early years of the Silverado

Chevrolet had been making trucks in one form or another since 1918.

Starting in 1975, they began offering the Silverado package as a trim option.

In 1999, when they launched a line of pickup trucks, they capitalized on Silverado’s reputation and made it the namesake.

In the first era of Silverados, produced between 1999 and 2006, the tradition of luxury is continued.

There’s leg room aplenty in the backseats and leather bucket seats up front.

With almost 42 different combinations of engine, body style and trim options to choose from, almost anybody could have a Silverado exactly to their liking.

In a positive review released at the time, Motor Trend said that Chevrolet has ‘set a whole new benchmark’ for trucks.

For the redesign in 2007, the interior was made cozier, whilst the engine was made stronger and more fuel efficient.

The latter attribute was made possible thanks to the truck’s Dynamic Fuel Management System, which could switch between V4 and V8 mode.

Chevrolet’s changes paid off, leading to the Silverado being named Motor Trend’s Truck of the Year.

The present and beyond of the Silverado

Come 2014, and the third generation of Silverados are out.

These are Silverados built for the 2010s, with USB ports, Bluetooth connectivity and an input for iPhones.

But even with all that extra stuff, the truck is lighter than its earlier models, thanks to aluminum in the hood and engine block.

Unfortunately, it was this generation of Silverados that become notorious for being recalled for technical issues – a steering failure in 2017 and an airbag malfunction the year before.

And that brings us onto the most recent generation of Silverados.

Chevy pulled out all the stops to advance the Silverado this time, re-engineering the computer based fuel management system.

With seventeen distinct cylinder firing patterns to choose from, the driver could now use as little or as much of the engine as needed.

Unfortunately, there was stiff competition from Ford and Ram this time around.

Looking forward, Chevy is competing in a truck market that is less concerned with horsepower and increasingly centered on towing and efficiency.

Heck, the Chevy trucks of the near future could even be nice enough to live in.

Not that the current versions aren’t – one man in New Jersey turned his truck into a fully functional home, complete with a bed, sink and fridge.

That truck won’t have come cheap, but he’s saving on $1,800 in rent a month.

That’s winning in life, right there.