The Chevy Beast 650 Horsepower Off-Road Concept From SEMA 2021
The automaker took to SEMA 2021 to show off its Chevy Beast concept vehicle, which features the same engine as the C7 Corvette Z06. It’s one of the most extraordinary vehicles to come out of SEMA, and fans are loving it. The Chevy Beast would look like a Hummer, and a Warthog from Halo combined to make an off-road driving tank. With plenty of horsepower under the hood, this is one concept we can get behind.
What is the Chevy Beast?
The Chevy Beast is a concept SUV based on the Silverado full-size pickup truck. It takes the platform and turns it into an oversized off-road SUV. The Beast looks like a Hummer, a massive Ford Bronco, or a Warthog from Halo. It’s one of the most aggressive-looking machines we’ve seen and is powered to match the aesthetic.
Under the hood is a 650-horsepower supercharged LT4 V8 engine along paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission. It has four-wheel drive and a two-speed transfer case. Its 20-inch Beadlock wheels are wrapped with 37-inch AMP Terrain Attack mud-terrain tires, capable of handling any surface. Brembo brakes ensure drivers can stop in a pinch while driving in harsh conditions.
From SEMA 2021: How big is the Beast?
The Chevy Beast is a four-door truck similarly sized to the Chevy Silverado, which it’s based on. It has a 126.9-inch wheelbase and 13.5-inches of ground clearance. The width of the Beast is almost 10-inches wider than the Silverado pickup truck. The most ground clearance a Chevy Silverado can have with factory installations is 10.88-inches.
GM’s 6.2-liter supercharged small-block V8 LT4 engine is 376 cubic inches. Other GM vehicles with this engine are the Cadillac CTS-V, Chevrolet C7 Corvette Z06, Camaro ZL1, and Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing. The next step we’d all love to see is this engine stepping into the Silverado lineup since the Beast is based on it anyway.
What other features does the Chevy Beast have?
The Beast has an off-road suspension, skid plates, and loads of LED lights to ensure passengers are safe traveling off-road. Control arms with adjustable dampers and external reservoirs help even more, along with a live axle in the rear. The Chevy Beast has plenty of protection from any terrain. It’s more than capable of handling rigid off-road driving surfaces.
Two 7.0-inch screens are on the interior that monitors performance—the Recaro performance seats inside buckle passengers in with four-point harnesses. Chevy’s concept vehicle is meant to outperform all opponents in off-road driving.
The Chevy Silverado could fight the Ford Raptor and Ram 1500 TRX
The Chevy Beast concept shows us precisely what Chevy can do with off-road performance. Since the Beast is sitting on the same underpinnings as a Silverado, of course, we’re thinking of upgrading it next. A Silverado off-road-focused model with similar technology, the same big motor, and more.
A Silverado like this could be Chevy’s competitor to the Ford Raptor or Ram 1500 TRX. These vehicles are wildly successful for their brands, and Chevy wouldn’t be any different. Adding a massive and capable beast to the lineup of full-size pickup trucks could be an enormous win for Chevy.
According to CarAndDriver, the Chevy Beast is only a concept from SEMA 2021 the automaker decided to show off. What it means, we’re not so sure. The concept could become a reality over the next few years, but don’t get your hopes up. Often times really cool concept vehicles like this never come to fruition. That’s why our most significant takeaway is hoping for a similarly structured Silverado soon.
