2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Centennial Edition Test Drive

This week I am reviewing a very special truck, the 2018 Chevy Silverado 1500 Centennial Edition.  This truck celebrates 100 years of Chevy trucks.  Now 85 million trucks later, Chevy built this limited edition truck in Blue Steel, a beautiful color. You’ll notice the Heritage bowtie in the grill and on the rear in the same font as the first trucks in 1918.  There are also 100th-anniversary badges on both front doors.

2018 Chevy Silverado 1500 Centennial Edition

My test truck is the Z71 4-wheel drive with the LTZ trim, which is the next to the top-of-the-line High Country. 

Under the hood of this truck is the 5.3-liter V8 putting out 355-horses.  It comes with the GM cylinder deactivation system that drops you down to 4 cylinders when you reach cruising speed.

One of the biggest changes for Silverado back in 2015 was the new 8-speed automatic transmission.  This truck gets you 20 miles per gallon on the highway at 65-miles per hour, which is good mileage on this 5400-pound pickup.

My review vehicle this week is fully loaded with power sunroof, navigation system, leather interior, heated and air-conditioned seats, rear view camera, and the Driver Alert package.

Available Options

The Driver Alert package is something I really like.  You get front and rear parking sensors, lane departure warning, forward collision alert, and something that is called a safety alert seat.  If you stray out of your lane to the left, the left side of the seat vibrates, the same happens on the right side of the seat, and if a collision is about to happen, the whole seat vibrates.

Other options include the LTZ Plus package, which costs $800 and includes adjustable pedals, Bose Audio system, and a heated steering wheel.

The Centennial Package costs $3480 includes the aforementioned badges, 22” wheels, chrome front tow hooks, and floor liners.

Spacious Interior

The interior of the LTZ is very nice and has a ton of headroom and a spacious back seat.  I like the Chevy MyLink system a lot, it gives you voice activation, a host of apps, and you can turn the inside of the truck into a Wi-Fi hotspot, or you can wirelessly charge your phone on top of the center console.  It has an 8-speaker Bose stereo system and a large center console.  The split rear seat folds out of the way to give you a ton of cargo room if needed.

A couple of notable features I thought should be on this tester are blind-spot warning, and running boards or step bars.  A 4x4 truck with 22” wheels and no running boards is not fun to get in and out of.  I do love that the truck comes with Teen Driver and Back Seat Reminder as standard.

Performance and Fuel Economy

Driving dynamics of the Silverado are very good.  The truck rides well, handles well, and it is super quiet inside.

There is no doubt, this newest generation of Silverado half-ton is the best Chevy has ever built.  I like the way it drives, this 5.3 has a ton of power and with the 3.42 rear axle like this truck, it will tow 9,100 pounds.

Overall fuel economy is good for a large truck, I am averaging right at 18 miles per gallon in mixed driving.

What You'll Pay

MSRP on this Centennial Edition-as equipped-is $58,800, which I find to be Ok, especially since this truck is likely to be a collector’s item some day.

A few other notes:  There is a Colorado Centennial edition available also.  The 100-Day Chevy celebration started in September at the State Fair of Texas, and it wraps up December 16th at Texas Motor Speedway with a huge party.  Finally, under the hood of the first Chevy truck built in 1918 was a 4-cylinder engine with 36-horses.

2018 Centennial Edition Silverado alongside a 1972 Chevy C10. To commemorate 100 years of Chevy trucks, the Centennial Edition Silverado offers a Centennial Blue exterior paint color, exclusive front and rear heritage bowties and 100 year door badges, available on the LTZ Z71 crew cab trim. Photo Credit: Chevrolet