Detroit — Forget full-size trucks, the hottest pickup wars are in the midsize segment.

Chevrolet this week debuted the remade, second-generation Colorado ZR2 Bison — a steroid-jacked beast to take on similar hellions from Toyota, Ford, GMC and Jeep. With big tires, tech and power (Bison even has sports-car-like launch control), the performance pickups kick asphalt. They are the new, $50,00-plus battleground for vehicle performance, displacing the muscle car wars of old that included the doomed Camaro.

With bulging fenders, mod-parts and fearsome looks, these pickups take beefcake cues from their muscle car brethren — but apply it to the sizzling off-road space with sales volumes that muscle cars could only dream about.

“It’s the Golden Age of the pickup truck,” said Andre Smirnov, managing editor of TFLTrucks.com, which benchmarks industry truck performance. “This is the new muscle segment with multiple manufacturers competing across the board.”

Analysts credit the performance explosion to the Detroit Three’s exit from sedans in recent years to focus on popular, higher-riding SUVs and trucks. They also point to regulatory changes that have squeezed profit margins on high-performance cars.

“There is precedent for this in the 1970s when fuel economy rules killed off muscle cars,” said veteran auto analyst Karl Brauer of iSeeCars.com. “So automakers started putting effort into hot-rod trucks like the Dodge L’il Red Express, Dodge Warlock, Chevy Sport and Jeep Honcho that weren’t subject to the strictest government rules.”

Automakers are under similar pressure today to make electric vehicles — facing big fines for making high-horsepower V-8 engines. Dodge, for example, was fined $700 million in 2022 for emissions violations and subsequently canceled the iconic, V8-powered Charger and Challenger muscle cars. Chevrolet followed suit, axing its Camaro model.

Here come the muscle trucks.

With half the cylinders of a 5.0-liter Camaro SS, the Bison puts out nearly the same torque (430 pound-feet vs. 455 for the Camaro) thanks to slapping a turbocharger on its 2.7-liter mill. Despite the reduced displacement, the heavier Bison still gets lower fuel economy than the Camaro. The Bison’s price? An estimated $55,000 when it comes to market this fall, just above the $50k Camaro SS (and shy of the outgoing, top-dog $70k Camaro ZL1). Colorado sales dwarf the Camaro — 89,000 to 24,000 units in 2022 — meaning the ZR2 Bison (and its ZR2 sister) help generate big profit as halo vehicles for the Chevrolet truck line.

Combined with GMC (which is expanding its performance lineup with similar AT4X and AT4X AEV hell-raisers), the midsize trucks sold over 100,000 units last year. Even as Chevy commits to making electric cars to satisfy government mandates, the expanded Colorado lineup shows how the brand can still satisfy consumer demand by selling more gas-fired vehicles than ever.

It’s not alone. The Bison competes against a wave of midsize truck performance that even last decade’s Second Golden Age of the muscle car (as Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis liked to call it) couldn’t match.

Ford — which made performance trucks fashionable in 2010 with its full-size, desert-mauling F-150 Raptor — is bringing a Ranger Raptor to market this year with a screaming V-6 engine and 33-inch off-road tires. The Toyota Tacoma, long the king of the middie segment, just dropped an all-new, gym-toned, hybrid TRD performance truck with a class-leading 482 pound-feet of torque and detachable sway bar for rock crawling. Detachable sway bars, of course, are the signature of the Jeep Gladiator Rubicon pickup with a growling V-6 engine that sounds great—especially with all four doors and the roof removed.

How does the Bison compete against these weapons?

Based on the already capable, high-spec ZR2 performance truck, Bison is the product of a GM partnership with after-market, Montana-based American Expedition Vehicles (AEV) — which has made off-road hot rods for 20 years — and of extensive off-road racing by driver Chad Hall in the Best of the Desert series.

For an estimated upcharge of $5,750, Bison wraps the ZR2 in Boron steel armor for off-road toughness — not unlike a Camaro ZR1 upgrading to light-weight carbon fiber for on-track speed. Indeed, some of the Colorado’s engineering team came from the Camaro program, where high-performance Multimatic shocks were first used. Multimatics are now standard on ZR2 — and Bison pairs them with bigger, 35-inch off-road tires, a one-inch wider track, 12.1-inch ground clearance, front-and-rear steel bumpers, and best-in-class 26.8-inch breakover angle.

“The ZR2 Bison is a racing truck coming to production without the roll cage and fuel cell,” said TFLTruck’s Smirnov. “This is essentially the same truck that Chad Hall has been racing.”

To emphasize its race roots, Bison boasts class-exclusive launch control in its Full-Monty, Baja drive mode. Flatten brake and accelerator pedals, wait for engine revs to plateau, then release the brake. ZR2 Bison will launch just like a Corvette — the eight-speed auto transmission firing off quick shifts.

For high-speed Baja runs, Bison boasts 9.9 inches front and 11.6 inches rear suspension travel — paired with hydraulic bump stops to soak up the punishment of off-road hooning. All this speed comes at a sacrifice to towing capacity, which declines to 5,500 pounds compared with 7,700 in the standard Colorado.

You’ll know the Bison by the AEV decal on the bed, AEV stitching on the seats and those enormous tires. The tires are so big that the spare no longer fits under the bed — it mounts in the bed instead.

In addition to its stump-pulling torque, the truck’s blown 4-banger puts out 310 horsepower versus the old V-6’s 308 horses (and measly 275 torque). This is enough to keep up with the formidable competition. Ranger Raptor leads the heard with 405 ponies from its turbo-V6 (and a Colorado-matching 430 torque). But the Taco TRD Pro takes the torque crown with 465 pound-feet.

For all its bulging biceps and deltoids, the 2024 Bison is refined inside. The interior gains twin, configurable, digital screens for the instrument and console displays. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard — as is a four-door Crew Cab with (tight) rear seats and a 5.5-foot bed.

Safety features like auto high beams and emergency brake assist are standard, as is a nifty, 45-inch-wide lockable tailgate storage box. Just like the muscle car era, Chevy offers accessories like a winch, rock rails and snorkel for enthusiasts who really want to push the limits.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.