An all-new truck with an all-new set of problems — brakes that slam on by themselves, a radiator hose that fails at 20,000 miles, and software that can brick it.

A distinct and repeatable 2023 cluster with an unusually low mileage window. Owners report the upper radiator hose — specifically the quick-disconnect fitting and the O-ring inside it — letting go and dumping coolant. One reports it at just over 20,000 miles, another at 39,000 with the truck towed in, another for the third time. The cost owners quote is over $500 and the recurring complaint is that it is not covered under any warranty. Owners cite a GM bulletin number for it, PIT6494A, which we could not find in the federal manufacturer-communications file for this nameplate — so treat the bulletin as something owners name rather than as a verified GM document, and treat the failure itself, which is well evidenced in the federal complaints, as real. Check the hose and its quick-disconnect for crusted coolant, check the coolant level cold, and ask whether it has already been replaced.

Two filings on the same engine, both severe. One owner's 2.7-litre L3B at roughly 49,000 miles "lost its entire engine oil charge while in normal operation, and at no point did the low-oil-pressure warning light illuminate." Another reports the truck "blowing oil out of the oil pan — almost five quarts total was lost" by the time it reached the dealer. There is no recall for this and nothing in GM's Colorado communications file addressing it. What the federal record does show for this engine is a voluntary emissions recall in which GM replaces all four fuel injectors because they may not properly optimise engine fuelling, and a Service Update installing cable ties because there is insufficient clearance between the engine wiring harness and the turbo actuator — with a companion bulletin warning of harness chafing at the turbocharger. Check the oil level and condition yourself, and do not rely on the warning lamp.

The most serious document GM has published on this truck, and it is a Customer Satisfaction Program rather than a recall. GM's wording is short and unambiguous: certain vehicles may have a condition in which the engine block was produced with cracks, and dealers are to replace the engine. Two separate document IDs cover the same 2023 programme. No years-or-miles cap is stated, so none is claimed here. Because it is a satisfaction programme it will not appear on the recall lookup most buyers use — you have to phone a dealer with the VIN and ask specifically. On a first-year truck with a first-year engine, this is the single highest-value question you can ask.

A short, serious recall. The front wheel hub bolts may have been over-tightened and damaged during installation, and NHTSA says damaged bolts may loosen or break, which can result in a loss of vehicle control. Dealers replace the left and right front wheel hub bolts free of charge; owner letters went out in April 2024. This is one to confirm as completed before the test drive rather than after it.

A left or right front seat-belt buckle attachment bolt may not have been tightened properly, so NHTSA warns a loose seat belt may not properly restrain an occupant in a crash. Dealers tighten both front buckle bolts free of charge; owner letters went out in October 2024. The campaign covers 2023 and 2024 Colorados. Confirm by VIN and give both front belts a firm pull at the buckle stalk.

The gen-three Colorado updates itself over the air, and the process has bitten. One documented owner, six months and 6,000 miles into a truck that was among the first delivered, had his digital instrument cluster go blank and need a battery disconnect to recover, then lost his reversing camera, then came out one morning to a completely dead vehicle — no lights, manual key needed to open the door, OnStar unreachable because there was no power at all, and 3.4 volts on a battery that should read twelve. Thirty-six hours of charging did nothing; a jump pack eventually revived it, along with a check-engine light from the brake system control module. GM's on-record statement at the time was that it was aware of the issue and its engineering team had identified a solution. There is no recall. GM's own literature corroborates the mechanism: a 2023 bulletin covers the possibility of the transmission control module locking up if the battery has been discharged, and three separate Customer Satisfaction Programs deliver software updates, one of which GM labels a required update needed to receive future updates at all. Separately, two more programmes reprogramme the brake system control module because it does not have the latest software, and there are bulletins covering a spongy brake pedal with codes C05D3 and P25A2, and the brake pedal going closer to the floor or becoming harder to push. Owners in the file report exactly that — brakes going spongy on the motorway, seven times in a year and a half in one case.

Worth separating out because it will not appear alongside the three safety recalls. GM conducted a voluntary emissions recall on 2.7-litre trucks: under certain driving conditions, differences in flow rate characteristics mean the fuel injectors may not properly optimise engine fuelling for emissions purposes, and dealers replace all four of the engine's fuel injectors. A companion bulletin describes the same population as 2023–2024 Colorado, Silverado 1500, Canyon and Sierra 1500 trucks with an engine control module that does not sufficiently control fuel injector flow rate. Emissions recalls are free and are performed by any dealer, but they live in a different system from safety recalls, so ask for them by name.

Useful before you shop. GM's own powertrain engineers, at the launch briefing, described three output levels across two mechanically different engines. The base L2R, standard on Work Truck and LT, makes 237 horsepower on the lighter-duty 8L45 eight-speed and tows 3,500 pounds. The L3B comes as Turbo Plus (310 horsepower, 390 lb-ft) and High Output (310 horsepower, 430 lb-ft, standard on ZR2), both on a heavier-duty 8L80 eight-speed, towing up to 7,700 pounds. The important part is that the base engine is deliberately decontented — GM's engineers said it loses piston cooling jets and other items that lend the L3B refinement and longevity at higher output, and their words on tuning a base engine up were "you could do it, but things will break." The engine uses cylinder deactivation, shutting down cylinders two and three under light load, and one independent assessment in our sources treats that as its weakest point along with carbon buildup on the valves — claims we could not corroborate in the federal record and so flag as unverified. Know which engine the truck in front of you has before you judge its towing history.

Two smaller items. A 2.7-litre owner at roughly 49,000 miles reports sudden, intermittent loss of motive power involving the eight-speed automatic, with the transmission setting codes and dropping into limp mode with a speed cap. This is not the old shudder — GM's own 2023-onward bulletin for eight-speed shudder on this generation blames an engine concern or an oxygen sensor rather than the fluid — but it is a transmission that can leave you crawling. And on brakes: one owner developed a rear brake squeal reversing at 20,000 miles, was told nothing was wrong, and needed rear pads and rotors by 30,000. GM also has a 2023 bulletin covering replacing the rear axle for a growl or howl from the rear of the vehicle. Listen at the rear and ask when the brakes were last done.