Face It: This Is the 2020 Chevrolet Silverado HD

Chevy has doubled down on the polarizing looks of its 2019 Silverado 1500, endowing its big brother with a face ripped straight from the pages containing the most terrifying of Dr. Who monsters.

Actually, I’m not entirely sure we have the correct photo here. What brand is this truck? Anybody know?

“We set out to make a statement with the 2020 Silverado HD and wanted to visually capture the power and capability of the truck,” said Brian Izard, lead exterior designer for Silverado HD, who presumably also spends his spare time grafting outsized CHEVROLET stencils onto every surface of his suburban home.

GM says the new Silverado HD shares only its roof with the smaller 1500-grade pickup in terms of sheetmetal, but those tail lights certainly mimic those found on the 1500. GM will surely say the rear illuminators aren’t counted as sheetmetal and in this they are technically correct. Same goes for the rear bumper. The new HD is said to employ some of the same architectural changes as its smaller brother. This points to extra rear legroom in Crew Cab models of the new truck, plus increased height because that’s what all trucks need these days.

A practical and useful styling cue shown in the photos is the inclusion of a textured step positioned just ahead of the rear wheel. This will make it easier for owners to access the bed without having to wander around to the back of the truck, while avoiding the indignity of using the dirty and messy tire as a launching point while trying to step into the bed while alongside the truck.

Under the 2020 Silverado HD’s hood, GM touts a choice of two powertrains. A gasoline engine with direct injection is described as “all-new” and mated to a six-speed transmission. Heavy haulers may want to opt for the Duramax 6.6-liter Turbo-Diesel V8, which delivers 910 lb-ft of torque through an Allison 10-speed automatic.

That torque number is unchanged from 2019 models but the number of gears jumps by four. The truck shown in these press photos houses a diesel motor in its alarming snout, primarily given away by the presence of that hood scoop, a unit which is indeed functional, by the way.

Remaining details of both power teams go unmentioned. The current gas burner is a 6.0L unit making 360 horses and 380 units of twist. With plenty of half-tons cresting that mark, expect significant jumps in those measures for the new engine.

Your author has always a hard time reconciling his brain with styling cues that place a vehicle’s headlights below the main grille feature. This is why I could never look at the old Nissan Juke without doing a double take. The same reaction applies here.

But you know what? If they didn’t do something like this, we’d still all be armchair quarterbacking their styling decisions and complaining GM didn’t move the needle enough, or some other hackneyed phrase. Like it or not, at least the 2020 Silverado HD looks like something, even if that something exists alongside The Ood to haunt the dreams of small children.

Chevy says this new truck will debut in February 2019, a month which coincides with the Chicago Auto Show. It’ll hit dealer lots four or five months later.

Thoughts? Scared yet? Chime in below.

[Images: General Motors]