Falling in LUV Again at $4.00+ a Gallon? Chevy's Brazilian Beauty

[TheWraith]

Originally Posted by leelander

do those little trucks have 4wd? cause if they dont, then whats the point. 95% of the trucks that i sell are 4x4

are you sure that isn't just because it's what's available? my fiance and i were looking for 2wd ford escapes and jeep patriots, and we couldn't even find any. every dealer seems to think that's what everyone is looking for, which is ridiculous right now considering the gas mileage penalty that comes along with 4wd/awd, and how little it's REALLY necessary to have.

[Smaart Aas Saabr]

Originally Posted by MaxLegroom

That is a very nice looking little truck, it deserves a chance here. It actually has the right payload for a lot of jobs, the fuel economy should be great, too. Odd thought here is that there was a Dodge Rampage concept a while back that was a FWD pickup truck. Could they not counter it by building a version of the Caliber as a truck? Some might say that that was what the Caliber was meant to be all along...

Dodge actually SOLD a FWD mini-pickup Omni-turned-El Camino in the 1980's. Plymouth had one called the Scamp.

[eaton53]

Everytime I go to Cozumel I see swarms of 'em. They're everywhere. IMO, they're very good looking.
And I wonder... why don't they sell these in the States again?

[camaro_freak]

Originally Posted by Ming

Good to see someone else briging this up, and not just an in-the-know GM car geek like me.

Of course I'd be interested!

If they made a four door model I'd be interested!

[smokyn454]

Originally Posted by leelander

do those little trucks have 4wd? cause if they dont, then whats the point. 95% of the trucks that i sell are 4x4

No, but it FWD, so it would do somewhat decent in the snow and/or off road.

[Hunid Racks]

When Jeep brought out the first mid sized Cherokee, some people scoffed at why they did a four door version. It took years for the Blazer of the same vintage to retool as a four door.

There were four door S10 pick up trucks being built and sold in Brazil years before they appeared here in the states, now crew cab Colorado and Canyons are easily to most desireable.

The Montana or whatever name it goes by is a no brainer in today's market. Of course some shooter will blow it off or will pizz away a truck load of cash doing a survey that will show his or her leadership that this wouldn't sell. But considering the state of GM's business, this ought to be on the market within a year.

All I would want is just a bit more secure storage behind the seats. No need for jump seats or that sort of stupidity. I would be at the dealership now offing my Sonoma for one of these now if I could.

[CrimsonTider]

This is interesting. Aside from the front clip, this is way better looking than the Colorado. Maybe with a mini-Silverado front-end & bigger wheels/tires, this could be a big seller. I still think that if the Colorado & Ranger got the updates they deserve, their sales would increase considerably.

As it stands now, I would still choose the Ranger over GM's offerings even though it is dated. It is just a much more attractive truck. Sold mine a year ago with 199K on the odometer and have regreted it ever since.

[member12]

Originally Posted by TheWraith

are you sure that isn't just because it's what's available? my fiance and i were looking for 2wd ford escapes and jeep patriots, and we couldn't even find any. every dealer seems to think that's what everyone is looking for, which is ridiculous right now considering the gas mileage penalty that comes along with 4wd/awd, and how little it's REALLY necessary to have.

An optional full time AWD system would work well.

The Subaru products have a helluva AWD system. Those little suckers can pull pretty well. I think it's better suited for work, ice, and moderate off roading than the GM AWD system in the Vue and Equinox.

It probably doesn't even need low range...just good traction for muddy jobsites and two tracks. It already appears to have better clearance than the Equinox or Vue.

[vsd]

I've seen a few Tornado's from Mexico running around over here, they seem like they could handle most truck jobs just fine.

[KingElvis]

The LUV is 100x better looking (and tougher looking) than the Brazillian car. If your're going for a pickup, you don't want something this wimpy.

You can't tell from the photo, but LUVs were TINY. I saw an old one on the street about a year ago - you can't believe how micro they are. It almos seemed likea "KEI" car from japan.

[K Dawg ONE]

Originally Posted by CrimsonTider

This is interesting. Aside from the front clip, this is way better looking than the Colorado. Maybe with a mini-Silverado front-end & bigger wheels/tires, this could be a big seller.

Give it the Brazil 3rd-gen S10 front end...actually, just give us the Brazil 3g s10:
http://www.chevrolet.com.br/action/s...bsite_cd=GBPBR

[Whitesky]

I know a lot of people that would want this.

[geozinger]

Originally Posted by Ming

You've got to love it:

"Tornado’s 1,600-pound payload capacity beats the Ridgeline by 50 pounds."

And for anyone who doubts the capabilities of a small trucklet like this -- well, try HALVING the specs further, and you could still do this with a 534cc SOHC 3-cylinder Suzuki Mighty Boy:

I've heard stories about the Mighty Boy, they sound like tough little buggers...

I have to laugh when I read that the Fridgeline has such a puny payload. "But it's got that innovative 'trunk-in-bed'! That's what makes it so great"
Yeah, right.

ON TOPIC: I would LUV something like this. I sold my Dakota years ago, and there's nothing quite like a PU when you need to move a bunch of things. I've been thinking about getting either an old S-10 (good luck, they're not for sale) or a Venture to do some hauling.

Something like this would fill the bill for my needs, which aren't heavy, just bulky.

Or since all of the Detroit carmakers are into 'retro' these days, why not retool the S-10 like someone else said? What do they have to lose?

[steinravnik]

Pretty neat, but it probably wouldn't pass our safety or emissions inspections. By the time it did, it probably wouldn't get as good of gas mileage or be as compact.

[5.3Avalanche]

eww, I like the G8 ST MUCH better than that ugly truck. A big factor of trucks is the image, and that thing below has no image at all other than looking dorky.