The new Vortec 3500 (5 Cylinder) will have plenty of power

[bparker]

With all the grumblings about the new motor and admittly myself not sure about the performance: I took the liberty to go down to my local Chevy dealership and test drove a new Z71 Crewcab 5Cyl Colorado.

This truck had 3.73 gears and the H3 will have 4.56 gears. But the performance was pretty impressive for a 5 cylinder motor. If I had to compare it in TQ and HP - it felt like a inline 6, 4.0L Jeep motor.

Honestly my expectations were low but I left the dealership with a renewed faith that the engine will perform fine and I will be happy.

And just to make sure: I left the Chevy dealership and immeadutlly went to a Jeep dealership and drove a Rubicon Unlimited (inline 6 cyl - 4.0L with 4.10 gears) and the Colorado by far out performed the Jeep 4.0 inline 6cyl.

Lastly, I test drove the crewcab Colorado because I wanted to get a "feel" for interior space. I must say that I think alot of H2 and H1 owners will be surprised how small this H3 will be. Keep in mind that the Colorado line has replaced the S10 series trucks. While the Colorado is larger than the S10 it is still quite a compact truck. And since the H3 will share the same base frame as the H3 I thought it would give me a good sense of how the H3 would fit my 6'2" 250lb body and I must say I am happy.

I was so happy with the Colorado in physical fit and performance that i have decided that if the H3 is priced too high, that I am going to buy one of those instead of the H3. =)

[bparker]

With all the grumblings about the new motor and admittly myself not sure about the performance: I took the liberty to go down to my local Chevy dealership and test drove a new Z71 Crewcab 5Cyl Colorado.

This truck had 3.73 gears and the H3 will have 4.56 gears. But the performance was pretty impressive for a 5 cylinder motor. If I had to compare it in TQ and HP - it felt like a inline 6, 4.0L Jeep motor.

Honestly my expectations were low but I left the dealership with a renewed faith that the engine will perform fine and I will be happy.

And just to make sure: I left the Chevy dealership and immeadutlly went to a Jeep dealership and drove a Rubicon Unlimited (inline 6 cyl - 4.0L with 4.10 gears) and the Colorado by far out performed the Jeep 4.0 inline 6cyl.

Lastly, I test drove the crewcab Colorado because I wanted to get a "feel" for interior space. I must say that I think alot of H2 and H1 owners will be surprised how small this H3 will be. Keep in mind that the Colorado line has replaced the S10 series trucks. While the Colorado is larger than the S10 it is still quite a compact truck. And since the H3 will share the same base frame as the H3 I thought it would give me a good sense of how the H3 would fit my 6'2" 250lb body and I must say I am happy.

I was so happy with the Colorado in physical fit and performance that i have decided that if the H3 is priced too high, that I am going to buy one of those instead of the H3. =)

[bparker]

Also, just to mention: The Z71 4x4 Colodaro with 3.73 gears and 31" tires will get 19-27 MPG on the road too. Not bad in my book.

[funpilot]

The H3 looks like it will be about 1 foot shorter and 1 foot wider than a 4Runner.

[Kahloq]

Keep in mind tho that the H3 will be significantly heavier then a Colorado, so the performance with the I-5 will not be quite the same and the H3 has 32" standard tires which also adds weight. I think the I-5 will serve its purpose, but I dont know how much beyond that to expect.

[bparker]

While it will be heavier it will also have 4.56 gears - so I am still optimistic.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Kahloq:
Keep in mind tho that the H3 will be significantly heavier then a Colorado, so the performance with the I-5 will not be quite the same and the H3 has 32" standard tires which also adds weight. I think the I-5 will serve its purpose, but I dont know how much beyond that to expect. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Kahloq]

true

[H3 Builder]

I've gotten to drive them a couple of times with an automatic and was fairly peppy. It seemed to have alot of getup and go. It would have the 4.10.

[funpilot]

H3 Builder, are you saying the H3 will have the 4.10?

[H3 Builder]

I believe the auto comes with the 4.10 and the manual comes with the 4.56.

[bparker]

Ahh, that makes sense. And I wonder if an auto can be ordered with 4.56s

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by H3 Builder:
I believe the auto comes with the 4.10 and the manual comes with the 4.56. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>