2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 TurboMax Review

Our automotive expert shares opinions and new photos of the 2026 Silverado.

James Riswick | 

Apr 17, 2026 | 10 min read

James Riswick

Pros: With RST trim, the Silverado looks cool, and its big wheels with all-terrain tires don't ruin the ride.

Cons: The Silverado's interior functionality and engine refinement disappoint, and the ride quality could still be better.

The Takeaway: The 2026 Silverado RST is a likable pickup, but Ford and Ram produce more well-rounded trucks. 

Though the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado is a likable truck, especially in its sporty RST trim, some small annoyances add up. There's the four-cylinder TurboMax engine that's unrefined at low rpm. The interior storage that's not particularly useful. A front middle seat that's lacking in comfort. The iffy IIHS safety ratings. When comparing the Chevy with its Ford and Ram rivals, it comes down to the little things — and those little things make it harder to recommend this truck above others. 

• What's new for the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  
• About the 2026 Silverado TurboMax review vehicle
  
• Design, quality, and interior layout
  
• Comfort, convenience, and cargo space
  
• 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 infotainment system review
  
• Safety features and ratings
  
• 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 specs and fuel economy
  
• 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 TurboMax test drive
  
• Alternatives to the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  

What's New for the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

QuickTake: Nothing major changes for the Silverado in 2026.

The Silverado gets some new colors for 2026, but its most notable addition is the new RST Select package. Fitted to my test truck and available exclusively with the TurboMax engine, it adds 20-inch black wheels, all-terrain tires, assist steps, a bedliner, and all-weather floor mats.

James Riswick

About the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 TurboMax Review Vehicle

QuickTake: A fairly basic truck with cloth upholstery, front bench seating, and a four-cylinder base engine still costs more than $60,000.

The 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 comes in regular-cab, Double (extended-cab), and crew-cab body styles, with the regular and crew cabs offered in differing bed lengths. The Silverado 1500's trim lineup consists of WT, Custom, Custom Trail Boss, LT, RST, LT Trail Boss, LTZ, High Country, and ZR2. Base prices range from about $40,000 to roughly $75,000, including the destination charge. My Silverado test truck was built in Roanoke, Indiana. 

For this Silverado review, I test-drove an RST crew cab in Southern California, though I also include a few impressions from a previous evaluation of a High Country. The RST test truck arrived with the base 2.7-liter TurboMax engine and the Select package that includes 20-inch wheels and all-terrain tires. Its manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) was $60,655, including the $2,795 destination charge. Chevrolet provided the vehicle for this Silverado review.

James Riswick

Design, Quality, and Interior Layout

QuickTake: The Silverado RST has the better of the two available cabin designs.

The Silverado offers two different interior designs. The WT and both Custom trim levels have this generation's original design, complete with analog gauges and a tiny touchscreen — I don't care for it. All other trims, including my RST test vehicle, have the do-over design introduced for 2022. It includes a 12.3-inch digital instrument panel, a 13.4-inch touchscreen with Google built-in functions, and a look I find far more appealing.

The cabin can get quite luxurious, as in the Silverado High Country featured in this Capital One Auto Navigator video review, but the fancy High Country's core plastics and switchgear were mostly the same as those in the RST. I find them acceptable for the segment.

There are old-school buttons and knobs for the climate controls, transfer case, and lights, plus toggle switches under the touchscreen for a hodgepodge of functions. They make it easy to jump into the Silverado and quickly figure out the basics.

James Riswick

Comfort, Convenience, and Cargo Space

QuickTake: The front middle seat doesn't offer much comfort or utility.

My RST test truck came with the three-across front bench seat, a requirement with the TurboMax engine. Because the middle bit of the bench is separate from the outboard seats, I was just as easily able to find a comfortable driving position as I was in a Silverado that had a full center console. In both, though, I found I needed to lift the seat higher than normal to see over the tall dashboard and hood.

As for the middle seat, good luck to whoever draws that short straw. It's hard, mounted high, and the low seatback lacks the headrest of the overall superior middle seats you get with the Ford F-150 and Ram 1500 front benches. That doesn't even mention the fixed distance to the dashboard in the Chevy, and the need to place your feet atop the transmission hump.

Front cabin storage also takes a serious hit with the front bench seat. The cupholders are barely sufficient, the larger bins are shallow, and the smaller bins are randomly shaped and lined with hard plastic. There's not even a great place to put your phone. This lack of thoughtfulness also permeates the full center console in other Silverado models — the Ford F-150's and Ram 1500's are much more useful — but it's still the better choice unless you really need that extra seat or really want the TurboMax.

As for the crew cab's back seat, space feels just as plentiful as it is in the Ram and Ford. My knees weren't close to touching the driver's seatback when it was set to my far-flung driving position, and headroom is abundant. There's no shortage of room for a child seat, either, but fitting my son's forward-facing convertible seat was as challenging as it usually is for a full-size truck, as the rear LATCH strap had to be threaded through a fabric loop and pulled across the cabin to a metal anchor in the middle. It's not something I'd want to do often.

The Silverado 1500's cargo bed appears tall for a full-size pickup, and corner steps make it a little easier to climb inside. My RST test truck lacked the clever Multi-Flex Tailgate that, among its various talents, includes an integrated step, but I still found the Silverado's standard tailgate to be impressively light and easy to raise.

James Riswick

2026 Chevrolet Silverado Infotainment System Review

QuickTake: The Silverado's infotainment is easy to use.

Let's put aside the comparatively small 7.0-inch touchscreen and analog gauges found in the WT and Custom trims, and instead focus on what's standard in the lion's share of Silverado models: the 13.4-inch infotainment touchscreen and 12.3-inch digital instrument panel.

Standard features include:

• Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity
• Google built-in (service plan required, includes integrated Google Maps, voice controls)
• Six-speaker audio system

A wireless phone charger is available on the RST, but it requires the full front center console — another reason to skip the bench seat.

While the touchscreen does not appear as eye-poppingly large as those available in the F-150 and the Ram 1500, I really like how easy this system is to use. It's laid out well, the graphics are simple, and the screen's not tasked with doing too much. Having Google Maps integrated not only provides familiar functionality and capability, but it's also a superior version than what you'd stream to the truck from your phone.

The Google Assistant voice controls worked well when searching for addresses and points of interest, though they couldn't call up a SiriusXM satellite radio channel.

James Riswick

Safety Features and Ratings

QuickTake: The Silverado's safety credentials could be better.

Chevrolet equips the Silverado 1500 with Chevy Safety Assist, a basic collection of advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) as standard equipment. 

Chevy Safety Assist includes: 

• Forward-collision warning
• Automatic emergency braking
• Pedestrian detection
• Lane-departure warning
• Lane-keeping assist

This set of features is better than nothing, but the Ford F-150 comes standard with reverse automatic braking and blind-spot monitoring in addition to all of the above. The Silverado offers adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert with emergency braking, and General Motors' Safety Alert seat, but those features weren't included on my test truck.

As such, I didn't have much to test in the RST. The forward-collision warning didn't set off any false alarms, but the lane-keeping-assist system was too intrusive. It consistently started turning for me on a gently winding road — it felt like the truck had suddenly been possessed by a ghost driver, and I didn't like it. Other lane-keeping systems are far better, and I usually keep them activated. Not this one.

The Silverado crew cab also received spotty safety ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). It got a "Marginal" score in the small overlap frontal-impact test, an "Acceptable" score in the side-impact crash test, and a worst-possible "Poor" rating in the IIHS' updated moderate overlap frontal-impact test. The headlights also got a "Poor" rating, and the frontal crash-prevention system got an "Acceptable" rating for preventing crashes with pedestrians. 

James Riswick

2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 TurboMax Specs and Fuel Economy 

QuickTake: The Silverado's base TurboMax engine produces more torque than the 5.3-liter V8 and better fuel economy.

My RST test truck came with the Silverado's base engine: the TurboMax. This 2.7-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine produces 310 horsepower and 430 pound-feet of torque. That's 47 lb-ft more than the available 5.3-liter V8.

My four-wheel-drive RST crew-cab test truck had an EPA fuel-economy estimate of 18 mpg in combined city and highway driving. Opting for two-wheel drive can bring the four-cylinder Silverado to 20 mpg combined, making the TurboMax the Silverado's most efficient gasoline-powered engine. The turbo-diesel can get up to 25 mpg combined. The 6.2-liter V8 and most variants of the 5.3-liter top out at 17 mpg.

I matched the EPA combined figure by getting 18.2 mpg on my 83-mile truck evaluation route. 

James Riswick

2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 TurboMax Test Drive

QuickTake: The TurboMax and its eight-speed automatic's refinement leave something to be desired.

The TurboMax base engine is more than capable of moving a full-size truck with sufficient authority. All that torque helps it jump off the line, and passing on the highway is easy. Driving up a long, steep grade wasn't an issue for the engine, either.

The eight-speed automatic transmission was a different story (other Silverado engines get a 10-speed). It was too quick to upshift, resulting in a constant up-down-up-down that got old. Putting the truck into Sport mode helped, but driving up a long, steep grade is not what I consider sporty driving, and I doubt many owners would think to do so.

The TurboMax also sounds like a four-cylinder, and not in a good way, like the way I think the Ford Bronco's engine can. It was at its worst during my test drive when I was cruising on the highway with the transmission insisting on low-rpm operation — feathering the throttle created extra-gravelly noises and vibration.

So, it gets the job done, but it leaves much to be desired in terms of refinement. The optional 6.2-liter V8 in the High Country I previously tested felt like butter by comparison. It's not that much torquier, but it's so much quieter and more refined. I've also been surprised by how quiet the Silverado's optional Duramax turbo-diesel engine is — it has the most torque (495 lb-ft) of all the engines, too. I'd skip the 5.3-liter, though; its performance and fuel economy don't impress me.

As for the rest of the driving experience, the Silverado's steering effort may seem a touch heavy, but I find it reassuring and precise. Its on-center behavior on the highway is excellent, too. 

I was also pleased that the RST Select package's 20-inch wheels and all-terrain tires didn't seem to hurt the ride. That said, there's still more wiggling and jiggling over bumps than in the F-150 and Ram. The Silverado feels truckier and less refined, and while the optional adaptive suspension improves the situation, I don't think it's enough to top Ford and Ram. 

James Riswick

Alternatives to the 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

QuickTake: The Silverado RST is a good-looking truck with compelling capability, but its rivals may be more appealing in some respects.

The RST's body-colored grille and bumper struck me as classier and sportier than the Silverado's chrome-clad, trying-too-hard alternatives. It's certainly the version I'd get, and I thought its mid-grade level of equipment was solid for the price. I'd ultimately rather have a Ford F-150 or Ram 1500, however, due to their more refined six-cylinder turbo engines, superior ride quality, and more thoughtful interiors.

James Riswick

James Riswick has been testing and reviewing cars since 2007, serving as an editor at Edmunds and Autoblog, and contributing to Autotrader, Car and Driver, AutoGuide, Auto Express, and Capital One Auto Navigator. You name it, he's almost certainly driven it. He has attended an auto show every year since he was 2 and has wanted to be an automotive journalist since high school. He owns a babied 1998 BMW Z3 2.8 in James Bond blue, a silver 2013 Mercedes-Benz E350 Wagon (his idea of a three-row family vehicle) and a 2025 Cadillac Optiq because his wife would rather drive something from this decade.