Silverado 1500

Make
Chevrolet
Segment
Sports Car

The ongoing semiconductor chip shortage is making life extremely difficult for automakers, dealerships, and consumers. These thumbnail-sized chips control numerous vehicle functions and it's impossible for final assembly to happen without them. Sacrifices must be made. Chevrolet, for example, halted Camaro and Malibu production in order to divert their chips to the more popular Silverado and GMC Sierra. Unfortunately, this wasn't the ideal long-term solution.

GM Authority reports General Motors has removed the engine start/stop feature from some versions of the Chevy Silverado 1500 and its Sierra twin. Again, blame the chip shortage. Trucks built after June 7 with the 5.3-liter or 6.2-liter V8 and the 10-speed automatic transmission will not come equipped with that automatic engine start/stop system.

Popular Silverado trims like the RST, LT Trail Boss, and High Country are all affected. For the Sierra, the SLT, AT4, and Denali suffer the same fate.

"Most of the affected vehicles will experience a minor reduction in fuel economy and customers will receive a $50 (U.S.) credit on the MSRP for affected vehicles," said Chevy's product and communications manager, Kevin M. Kelly.

Chevy isn't the first major truck builder to sacrifice a somewhat important system in order to keep production flowing. Earlier this year, it was forced to build its light-duty full-size trucks without a fuel management module, a permanent change until the 2022 model year. Ford later did the same with the F-150 and the Edge crossover.

The vehicles still work as intended and drivers won't notice significant differences. But lacking a start/stop system could be a problem for some because it's become a fairly popular feature. Others find it annoying and will actually be thrilled it's gone.

Both the Silverado 1500 and Sierra 1500 are due for significant mid-life refreshes for the 2022 model year. This update was initially supposed to happen for 2021 but the onset of the pandemic and chip crisis delayed those plans. Expect numerous design changes inside and out along with Super Cruise. Both the 4.3-liter and 5.3-liter V8s are being dropped. These have been popular choices for the Work Truck, Custom, and Custom Trail Boss trims, which will leave the 2.7-liter turbocharged four-cylinder as the sole entry-level engine.