Timely Companions

This is a drawing done for a client, my brother's girlfriend. Her grandfather had operated a trucking company using the two trucks. The white truck is a Peterbilt 352 cabover, and the blue truck is a GMC DF-Series, possibly a DL7000, or DLR7000 if it had the air-ride suspension. This drawing was done on Strathmore Artagain colored paper using Prismacolor pencils.

Meow-Pow!!!

This is just a fun scribble. I wanted to test out some brush presets, and experiment with some basic shadow ideas for future renders.

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... 

Pickup Truck Design Project - Names

Alright, I felt that my blog posts keep jumbling up the truck names I am using for my project, making things quite confusing. So, I thought I would create a quick list here to show what the names are and which truck they are for.

Chevrolet ~

Silverado K35 - Full-size 1-ton pickup truck
Colorado SS - Mid to full-sized pickup truck
Desperado ZR2 - Compact pickup truck

GMC ~

Mjolnir - Full-size 3/4-ton highly mobile pickup truck
Grand Denali - Mid to full-sized pickup truck
Fenrir - Compact pickup truck
Topkick (temp.) - Cab-over-engine commercial truck

The names are pretty much final, but in any event that I change any of them, I'll post again, with the updated list.

GMC Mjolnir - A Look Out Back

The following renders show the rear end designs for my Mjolnir concept. My primary aim was to try something new and allow for a useful setup for off-road purposes. I also wanted to create something unique for the GMC brand, which has never had anything that stood out with their tailgate designs. In reality, it does not matter, but I wanted to go that extra step, partly because I doubt General Motors will do the same to add some additional levels flair to their often conservative designs.

This sketch shows the initial idea: a wide wedge with small horizontal taillights (compared to the usual vertical designs used on today's trucks), and an armored bumper that has rear tow hook connections, a built-in winch, and corner steps like the current General Motors full-size trucks. The tailgate is a traditional setup, but it offers some additional utility on the inside. I will expand on that design further in future sketches. The body panel shaping is also much more aggressive than on any other traditional truck. The panel shaping and the flow of the creases are loosely connected with the front end theme, but also I made those lines and shape taper up and backward, giving a bit of a visual connection with the whole idea of departure angles.

 This is the same design as show in the first render, but I made the wedge color-keyed. This look works very well, but I feel the blacked out design can add more substance and flow with the front end, which has a blacked out grille section; in short, I mean a sense of balance.

 Just as a quick experiment, I tried a vertical taillight design, which works just as well, but I wished to go back to the horizontal nature of the original design, though I felt even that one could use some work... 

 I tweaked the original design by taking away some angles and making the shaping much simpler. I also simplified the flow of the creases across the tailgate as well, though the differences are very small. Also, I tapered the rear bumper for absolute maximum departure angle that could be possible from this particular vehicle. I imagine that the exact departure angle for this truck could sit between that of a 2014 GMC Sierra 2500HD and a 2009 Hummer H2.

This render shows an idea of how much the fenders jut outwards. I am not going to carry over that chrome trim in the taillights onto the final design. I wish to avoid anything flashy with this truck at all costs. This truck also, albeit loosely, shows the sheer amount of grand clearance that can be possible from a portal axle setup.

This render shows the front and rear design from a different angle to show how much the front grille or the rear bumper juts out. The front is rather rounded out, but the front tires will still be very close to the bumper corners, unlike the current GMC Sierra pickups. The rear bumper juts out a bit less than the standard full-size truck. Also, this bumper shows a bit more in the way of shaping and detail.

At the moment, I feel that the basic body design is complete, and now it is time for the interior and details until the final renders. The interior will be focusing on utility and functionality, but also a nice lifestyle feel with some outdoor-style luxury trimmings. The details that I wish to focus on are the lighting, grille pieces, decals, door handles, mirrors, and everything in-between. After that, the more detailed renders will follow!

It is possible that I may go back to my K35 concept to refine it a little further before finishing up the Mjolnir. Having used a much more efficient method of design experimenting with the Mjolnir, I wish to have a second go with the K35. That old design could use a bigger front end and a larger cabin...

GMC Mjolnir - A quick followup to the previous post.

That last image in the previous post shows the design I decided on. But, for an off road vehicle, I felt that the grille needed a quick revision, and the body shape felt a little narrow. In the above render, the body is wider, the panel under the headlight is cleaner with a single crease running through (instead of two), the bumper still needs some refining, and I added some LED off-road light arrays on the top and on the front bumper. The tow hook connections (a more detailed render of those pieces will be done later on) are a dual design that allows for two tow hook connection points, which would allow for a strong foundation for the LED light array frame. Most importantly, the grille inserts are re-positioned to allow for more enclosure at the bottom. I did this because I noticed some off road vehicles have a high set grille opening to allow for deeper water fording. This truck is meant to be more capable than the old Hummer H2, and even the Ram Powerwagon, and water fording is something I felt was too important to disregard. Right now I am thinking that this new grille revision is the better way to go, or there could be some type of grille shutter system that fully closes the lower sections, though that would add too much complexity. For the most part, I have decided on the front end design, and the body is pretty much close to what I wish to use. The rear end and tailgate design is up next. The rear bumper will carry on General Motors' new corner step feature on the new Sierra pickup trucks, but my design will also incorporate tow hook connections and a rear winch setup (with the challenge of positioning it properly due to the possible extreme tapering of the bumper to allow for massive departure angle).

GMC Mjolnir - A Rethought of Sorts

While brainstorming the design theme for the Mjolnir concept, I decided to backtrack a little and try something else. While it is easy to find a sensible look for a Chevrolet truck concept, GMC is another animal. The brand has never had any design theme or identity that either stood out or lasted a long time. Chevrolet has somewhat of an identity, so there is a good starting point. I felt that the design I had been working on (shown in the first render) was causing too many challenges and limiting what I really wanted to do with the truck. I felt that I was trying too hard to make it look like a GMC truck based on recent concepts built by the general himself.

The above three renders show the main idea for what I was intending, a GMC-styled chrome grill with over-detailed insert pieces and some LED decorative lighting, along with a rather hexagonal shaping everywhere. The look was just not working, to my eyes, because the look and feel that I wanted just was not there. The "look" I am speaking of is something that is more organic and very buff, as if it was a living animal... So, I started all over, throwing out the ideas I had been working on the past year (all condensed into the above three sketches). 

This was the first sketch to get things going. Originally, all of the renders shown were completed in pencil, but I wished to do more digital sketches because I had not done some in a long while! The above render also became an aid for some better shaping ideas. I started focusing on the body as more of a fuselage with protrusions on the side (the fenders). Before, I had designed the body and fenders as one major part. For example, the first render shown was designed with the body connecting with the fenders. But, the above render was designed with the body being a separate section, and then the fenders are added to complement the shaping better. I feel that a later render shows it better. 

This was a further experiment on the front end, but also testing out a body shaping idea. Unfortunately, I inadvertently  made that front end similar to the new Ford Escape. However, the body is beginning to take a better shape. The midsection narrows between the fenders to create a very athletic shape, and the cabin frame gives off the feeling of a tank, or even the Mjolnir hammer in some form.

This render is pretty much what I wish to use, especially that front end. It is a lean-forward design with a bumper that slants backwards. This makes for an aggressive, and perhaps quasi-animalic look. The cabin is going to be a full length crew cab in the final design, but I wished to try out a shorter cabin size just for this sketch. It does make for a better stance overall, but I wish for more interior space, so a full-size cabin will be the final choice. The front bumper is also an armored piece, with loop towhooks and a high-capacity winch. The hood vent design is something I have been working on ever since I started on the GMC truck designs two years ago. The running boards on the truck shown above also act as rocker panels, capable of supporting the full weight (plus maximum payload) of the vehicle.

I felt that the headlights in the previous render were too large for a multi-capable offroad vehicle (usually they have smaller lights for reduced chance of damage, such as all Jeeps and Hummers), so I experimented with a different design. In doing so, I also tried out a few other things, such as dealing with that large amount of body panel space under the headlights. I also wanted to add more depth to the bumper as well, but it is still an armored design even with that more extreme shaping. The section under the headlights is something I will have to deal with a little further. Because the front grille leans forward, that section under the headlight has to be chiseled carefully to align with the backwards leaning fender edge, or else the surface will be warped. It is not too noticeable in this render, but I may work a few renders to show in better detail later on.

Despite any issues that may have occurred, I have a new look to work with, and I may transfer it in some form onto the smaller Fenrir Denali concept, and the much smaller truck below that one (which I have not named yet).