The new electric truck from Chevy is filled with innovations, among them the Chevrolet Silverado EV midgate – a removable rear wall that connects the cabin to the truck bed, creating a huge contiguous space of nearly 9 feet. And best of all, it’s really simple to manage—even solo. With just a few quick steps you can open the back of the Silverado EV into the ultimate ‘convertible’ pickup truck. And, as a bonus, if you just want to remove the rear window, you can do that, too. It stows right behind the seat back. We tried it out several times and this is how it works.
The midgate is an exclusive feature on the Chevrolet Silverado EV RS edition, which has a price tag of about $96,000, but we hope this feature is offered on more trucks. It’s certainly a cool and novel way to add flexibility to an already very useful pickup truck.
See our full story on the Chevrolet Silverado EV here.
First, Flip the Rear Seats to Move Them Out of the Way
These seats easily flip up by pulling a loop on the seat bottom; they rest against the backs of the front seats, a typical function in most pickup trucks
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Then, Flip the Seat Backs Down to Stow In the Floor
Pull this loop on the floor to release the seat backs; they fold and click to stow flat agains the floor.
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Remove the Rear Window of the Chevrolet Silverado EV Midgate
This is not hard to do by yourself, though for speed my friend Paul helped me. Just release the window clips, which are similar to the clips that hold the soft top in place on a convertible, and the window releases from its frame. There are retractable stoppers next to the clips to keep the window from falling.
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Stow the Window in it’s Space In the Midgate
Once removed, the window slides easily into its stowage spot and is secured by a clip on the top and one on each side. This, too, was easy to do solo.
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Push the Midgate Release Button
Just tap once on each side or, tap one button twice to release the midgate. It pops from the truck frame and is ready to be lowered into place. Notice that the seatbelts are tucked into the truck wall—there’s a cutout to hold the buckle—to avoid getting snagged in the midgate as it’s lowered.
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Lower the Midgate – Gently!
After releasing the midgate by pushing the release button, lower it to rest on the floor. Notice at the top of the photo the window clips.
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And Enjoy the Convertible Chevrolet Silverado EV Pickup Truck Experience
The open midgate lays nicely flat on the truck floor.
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Nearly 9′ of contiguous space from a 6′ Truck Bed
With the seats down and the midgate open, bed space is increased by 50%, offering king-sized space in standard 6′ truck bed. That means larger items, home improvement hauls or simply, better access to things when you need them, can be much easier.
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Added Bonus: Just Remove the Window For An Open Air Ride
Some pickup trucks offer a fully lowering rear window or a sliding panel. This is the Chevrolet Silverado EV’s answer to that. And while yes, you have to physically remove it rather than push a button due to the midgate function, it’s really nice to enjoy the open air during your drive.
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