JUST like the Rockies, with their towering peaks and breathtaking scenery, the 2020 Holden Colorado Z71 is both spectacular and powerful. It will need to be, as it jumps into the ring against some formidable opponents.
Holden’s hero ute takes on high end options like the Ranger Wildtrak, Hilux SR5, Navara N-TREK, Amarok Ultimate, BT-50 Boss and Triton Toby Price Edition, all of which bring their own little flavour to the beefed up utility vehicle mix.
Coated in the appropriately named Summit White, our 2020 Colorado Z71 features factory black decals which accentuate its body lines, 18-inch Arsenal Grey metallic rims and pumped black fenders.
As we stalk the urban jungle, you can’t help but feel the car longing for some construction site action or off-road adventure. The Colorado draws looks wherever it goes, and you know there is some envious drooling coming from the high-vis crowd.
Whether your stocking the tray with, tools for the job site, or loading the camping gear for that family getaway, the 2020 Holden Colorado Z71 has more than enough space for work or play.
Holden have really put some thought into their purpose built utility, with remote start functionality being one of our favourite features. Mostly because it means you’re not climbing into an icebox for those early morning starts or late night treks.
You can have the seats warm, heater blasting and your favourite tunes playing at the press of a button, all while enjoying your morning coffee or late night snack.
Once your rear is caressed by the 6-way adjustable jet black leather-appointed seats and your head laid back against the embroidered front head rests, tune into your fav DAB+ station or plug-in to the 8-inch touch-screen MyLink infotainment system.
There’s support for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is why we felt the classic stylings of AC/DC serenading our eardrums through the Z71’s 7-speaker system was appropriate for our work site excursion.
Causing a ‘tools down’ moment, the Colorado had the site managers checking their leasing agreements and pay deductions for distracted apprentices. Feedback ranged from “She looks tough”, “Life goals”, “Lit”, and “That’s hot”.
On the flip side, there was “Line up the Raptor”, “It’s a Holden” and “Does it come in mens?”. That little straw poll says as much about the tumultuous nature of the ute buying market as it does the Colorado.
But what it also told us what that despite the fact there will always be ‘haters’ for one brand or another, that the majority of people on the work site thought the 2020 Holden Colorado Z71 hit the spot.
There is plenty of room up front for driver and passenger, the rear fits two child seats in easily, or three adults, no problem. While the Z71 won’t receive any awards for outstanding comfort or gadgetry, it is straight forward, no nonsense and easy to use.
It will get you from A to B and off-roading to C without fail. And as we mentioned, there’s plenty of smart phone support, with Bluetooth connectivity, auxiliary input, iPod connectivity, USB media and embedded satellite navigation.
Storage is important too, and the Colorado has plenty, with front dual cup holders in the centre console, door pockets with integrated bottle storage, front seat cushion pockets for the driver and passenger and seat back pockets for both as well.
There’s also a sunglasses holder, rear seats with a 60/40 split fold base and under seat storage, plus of course the tub out the back. The DuraGuard spray-on liner in the tub has a very nice finish to it too, it looks easy to clean and feels tough.
Safety wise, the list is long, really long. There’s a rear view camera, LED daytime running lamps, LED tail lights, front fog lamps, tyre pressure monitoring, ESC, ABS, EBD and roll over mitigation.
If that’s not enough, the Colorado Z71 also comes with traction control, hill start assist, trailer sway control, hill descent control, lane departure warning forward collision alert and seven airbags. Any wonder it’s got a 5-star ANCAP safety rating.
The Z71’s drivability is equal to its looks, and it drives like 2,163kg of pure truck-ness. Tough, rugged, high seating position, great visibility and comfort, both on and off the road.
The 2.8-litre 4-cylinder Duramax turbo diesel engine is perfectly coupled to the 6-speed automatic transmission with active select, offering smooth and effortless gear transitions in both high and low range.
Shift on the fly 4WD lets you jump from daily driving work horse to wilderness explorer at the flick of the wrist. For the numbers fans, the Z71 offers 147kW of power and 500Nm of torque, with a claimed fuel economy of 8.6-litres/100km. We managed 9.4.
Prices for the 2020 Holden Colorado Z71 start at around $57,000 drive away, with 7-years free scheduled servicing and a 5-year unlimited kilometre warranty. There are a bunch of factory add-ons available too.
Be warned though, we played with the options selector on the Holden website and racked the price to just over $71,000. It’s very easy to get carried away unless you have Jedi like negotiation skills.
Our only real complaint and about the beast that is the Z71 is that the rear view camera quality reminds us of a late 90s webcam. Not everyone will be a fan of the bonnet vinyls either, but they’re part of the Colorado look these days.
Colour choice isn’t as hard as choosing accessories for your Colorado though, with just five different options; Dark Shadow, Absolute Red, Mineral Black, Orange Crush and our test drive car colour, Summit White.
So if you’re not into power Rangers, don’t like the ‘feeling’ jumps, are tired of ‘zoom zoom’, don’t dig innovation that excites, or diamonds aren’t your thing, we recommend you say Let’s Go There and check out the new Holden Colorado Z71.
Our test vehicle was provided by Holden Australia. To find out more about the 2020 Holden Colorado Z71, contact your local Holden dealer.
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You don’t like the Colorado?