Chevy Silverado EV Teardown Reveals Complicated Construction: Video
Taking an in-depth look at this Chevy Silverado EV, it’s quite clear that future out-of-warranty repairs could be quite costly.
The Chevy Silverado EV is still a fairly new product, having just launched in 2023 for the 2024 model year amid a flurry of interest in all-electric pickups, in general. Much has changed since then, and demand for such models hasn’t quite matched expected levels, but regardless, the Silverado EV has received mostly glowing reviews from everyone that’s driven it. That includes YouTuber Tyler Hoover of Hoovie’s Garage, though a recent visit to his mechanic revealed some potential future warning signs.
As he generally does with every vehicle he buys, Hoover swung by Omega Auto Clinic and visited the Car Wizard himself, David Long, to take a more in-depth look at his Chevy Silverado EV. Hoover scored his EV pickup for pennies on the dollar – $37,000 with just 16k miles on the clock, in fact. Hoover admits that he likes it more than the Ford F-150 Lightning and Tesla Cybertruck he formerly owned, too.
Right off the bat, the Silverado EV fails the pinch test in the frunk, however, and after that, the duo have a hard time getting it to open – resorting to the manual release to make that happen. Once inside, they remove the frunk liner, only to be met with “a complicated bowl of spaghetti electric pickup truck,” according to Hoover. The majority of those components are covered with a giant brace as well, making them hard to access in the event that repairs are needed.
Making matters worse, there are many things stacked on top of the front motor, making it pretty hard to get to and potentially quite expensive to replace, if that ever needs to be done. Long notes that the entire frunk assembly would have to come out to replace the front struts, too, not to mention what seems like miles of wiring and modules all over the place.
Long also points out that since everything here runs on a module, replacing parts will cost thousands of dollars, or prove “stupid expensive,” in his own words. The truck also weighs nearly 9,000 pounds, which means that it can’t just go up on any old regular lift, either. The good news is, the undersides and suspension look pretty beefy, which wasn’t the case with the Cybertruck.
Truthfully, none of this really comes as a surprise, as most modern vehicles – including EVs – can be quite complicated and technical in nature, making for pricier repairs. However, it’s also something to keep in mind for those that plan to keep their Chevy Silverado EV long after the manufacturer’s warranty has ended.
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