Cars.com Tests Silverado 1500 ZR2 DuraMax Diesel Real-World Fuel Economy

Barry’s Chevrolet Showroom features a range of pickups, but the Silverado 1500 ZR2 is a personal favorite for many. It is a versatile model that most owners will be driving on a daily basis, so the subject of MPG is of great interest to many. With the Duramax turbodiesel now the standard engine on this model, Cars.com was curious about its real-world fuel mileage.

As the most off-road focused grade in the Silverado 1500 model line (short of the ZR2 Bison variant), the Silverado 1500 ZR2 is known for being extremely capable off the pavement and into the rough stuff. As the Cars.com editor stated: “The new 2024 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 ZR2 is an amazingly capable off-road pickup. I most recently drove one off-road through the California desert near Palm Springs and was floored by its combination of comfort, agility and go-anywhere abilities.” Almost everything that gives the ZR2 its capability, including additional heavy-duty hardware and 33-inch off-road mud-terrain tires, isn’t exactly fuel-sipping friendly.

The model’s standard 3.0-liter inline Duramax turbodiesel engine produces 305 horsepower and 495 lb-ft. The horsepower falls short of the available 6.2-liter V8’s 420 hp but exceeds the V8’s torque by 35 lb-ft. An EPA estimate of the ZR2 with the big V8’s fuel economy is 14/17/15 mpg city/highway/combined. By contrast, the ZR2 with the Duramax has an EPA estimate of 20/22/21. That is a 40% improvement in mileage over the $1,695 gas V8 option. 

Their standard fuel economy test consists of a roughly 200-mile loop around Ann Arbor, Michigan, about a fourth of which is stop-and-go suburban traffic at speeds below 50 mph. The other 75% is steady state highway driving with cruise control set to match the posted speed limits of 70-75 mph. Windows are up, climate control is set to a comfortable 70 degrees, and tires are at the manufacturer’s recommended pressures. Hard acceleration and braking are avoided. The ambient temperature for this test was 44 degrees, with calm winds and a clear sky. 

The stop-and-go suburban driving went first, and after 46 miles of it, the trip computer read 25.8 mpg with an average speed of 38, significantly exceeding the EPA estimate of 20 mpg. The subsequent 162 miles on the highway showed an average of 22.2 mpg with an average speed of 72.7 mph. The true test came after refueling the tank with 9.766 gallons of diesel, which returned a calculated average of 21.3 mpg, just a smidgen over the EPA combined estimate.

Cars.com found the around-town mpg particularly impressive for a lifted truck on knobby 33-inch Goodyear Territory M/T off-road tires with plenty of non-aerodynamic hardware. They even point out that it had a better figure than they garnered from a 2024 VW GTI on the same suburban street route.  They conclude that unless Diesel is hard to find or “ridiculously expensive” where you live, the Duramax diesel is the engine to get on your Silverado 1500 ZR2. If you are curious about your own test drive of the ZR2 , visit Barry’s Chevrolet to see what the Silverado 1500 ZR2 can do.