Chevrolet Desperado ZR2 - Initial Ideas

The GMC Mjolnir's exterior design is ready for some finalizing. In the meantime, I focused on my idea for a compact Chevrolet truck. It is known as the "Desperado" with the ZR2 moniker. The concept design's theme is aggressive off-roading capabilities with inspiration from trophy trucks. Ideations for this truck began about a year ago, but there were difficulties with some of the exterior design elements...

This is the first sketch I had completed of the Desperado, which was also known as the "Champion Silverado" and then the "Colorado". I settled on the name Desperado since the Colorado will be used by the larger model above this one, and the "ado" at the end of the word desperado fits perfectly with Chevrolet's truck naming. This sketch was drawn on letter size paper with Prismacolor Verithin Indigo Blue pencils.

These are additional sketches brainstorming body panel ideas. The trouble was with the limited area that I had to work with for the front end. I also wanted to see if I could create a new Chevrolet theme for this truck that does not use the chunky stacked headlight design that is common on Chevrolet trucks. This collage was drawn on Strathmore Artagain paper with Prismacolor pencils and markers.

Here is the first digital render, and the design of this truck is heavily based off of the indigo blue sketch, though there are some major changes. This was also a quick sketch to practice some advanced coloring, compared to the Mjolnir renders. Also, I did not like the rather simple feel of this design. It also lacked the muscular look I wanted... This render and the following two renders were first sketched on letter paper and then colored in Adobe Photoshop CS6.

This render is a bit better, and I experimented with some Corvette-inspired beltline shaping. The lower valiance does not really fit with this style of truck, though. It seems more fitting on a luxury truck...

This is the final render, though it sure won't be the last for this truck! I went a little overboard and added more detail to this one. This design is a bit better than the previous one, but I feel that hte bulging beltline curves need some massaging. They seem very awkward with their flow over the entire vehicle. I was aiming for a very strong rear panel shaping that alludes to classic muscle car bodies. I am planning on making the final concept design a nice shade of dark blue with some yellow-orange pinstripes.

I am still having issues with the front end design. It will all boil down to how I shape the front fenders. With the way I sketched the trucks in the digital renders, I have a somewhat limited area to work with, and any design that I could use would be very derivative (think Chevrolet Volt front end). I may go for a 5th-generation Camaro front end, or even reshape the whole front body to allow for more workable space. The rear will not be too much trouble. I am thinking of deleting the tailgate and adding some type of bed accessory to load and unload spare tires or even regular cargo...