This year, Chevrolet is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its small-block V8 truck engine. In late 1954, Chevrolet took the wraps off its 1955 line of Task Force pickup trucks, the first full redesign of Chevrolet pickups since 1947.
What made the V8 engine different was that the overhead-valve design optimized the flow of air and fuel into the combustion chamber, improving fuel efficiency and boosting horsepower. The engine became popular among everyday American car buyers and racers and hotrodders alike. This popularity prompted Chevy to create a larger, more powerful V8 engine variant for trucks and commercial vehicles, high-performance sport models, and large luxury cars. Over the past 70 years, approximately 100 million-plus small-block V8s were produced.
Today, the V8 engine lives on in the 2025 Silverado 1500, which offers the largest and most powerful naturally aspirated V8 engine in the segment: the 6.2-liter small-block V8, generating 420 hp and 460 lb-ft of torque.
See also: 2025 new models: Light-duty vehicles
