This is the ultimate factory Chevrolet off-roader. If you’ve ever wanted a truly military-grade Colorado ZR2, with none of the fancy electronics of a modern pickup and without the worry of smashing a body panel against a tree, this is it.
One is coming up for auction later this month, and it will be your first and maybe only chance to buy one — at least before it’s spent 2 decades getting used and abused by America’s servicemen and women.
Have a Toy Nobody Else Does Without Wearing Camo
GM calls it the Integrated Squad Vehicle-Utility, or ISV-U. The U means it’s the pickup version of the ISV, which is a nine-seater made from not much more than tubes, a 4×4 system, and freedom.
The ISV-U was designed by GM Defense to use a commercial vehicle architecture. To cut costs by using off-the-shelf parts instead of building things in low volumes from scratch, which drives high-priced military contracts.
So GM started with the Colorado ZR2 pickup, 90% of what went into the final product is a standard-issue GM part. But 11 of those parts are from the Chevrolet Performance off-road racing catalog — and no, GM isn’t saying which 11.
This Is What’s Left After You Militarize a Colorado ZR2
Unlike the production ZR2, this one still has the 2.8L Duramax four-cylinder turbodiesel. It has a two-speed transfer case and locking differentials at both ends. Long-travel Multimatic DSSV dampers and jounce shocks let it take loads of abuse off-road, while 35-inch BFGoodrich KM3 tires can handle rough terrain and even incoming fire thanks to run-flat inserts.
The ISV-U gets loads of interoperability upgrades, such as 24V electrical compatibility, and the drive modes include blackout and combat modes. The coolest of all, though, might be that it can be air-dropped from a C-130, or carried inside a Chinook or under a Blackhawk.
GM has kept the ISV-U under 5,000 pounds, which is several hundred pounds lighter than the stock pickup despite a diesel instead of a gas engine. That makes it light enough for the Army to move it around in a hurry, and put it on the ground even more quickly.
Just 1 for Sale & It’s for Charity
Why is this one for sale? For charity, of course.
GM and Barrett-Jackson plan to auction the ISV-U in Palm Beach, Fla., on April 18 to benefit the Medal of Honor Foundation. That’s the fundraising arm of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, which is meant to help spread and preserve the stories of those who have received the nation’s highest award for valor in combat.
If you win the auction, you won’t be able to drive it on the road. The sale comes with an enlistment’s worth of terms and conditions, including that it can’t be driven on public roads. It’s also subject to export restrictions, and you have to be a “U.S. Person” to buy it. This is military gear, after all, so they take these things seriously.
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