Rendering Comparison: 2013 Chevrolet Traverse MCE

Rendering Comparison: Welcome to my new segment on AR where I'll be comparing my renderings against the new production vehicles. This will mostly apply to MCEs that I speculate on from time to time.

So let's get down to business with the original vehicle and my rendering. Then we'll see how close I got to the real deal.

I did the MCE (show above in blue) early after the release of the original Traverse (shown above in silver). I found the rear end lacking details so I redesigned it to align more visually with the Equinox.

When I saw Chevrolet actual MCE for 2013 (see below) I was blown away buy how close many of the alterations I did were actually made!

Confirmed Edits:

Chop	Description
Tailgate	Moved tailgate handle to bottom and grafted the license place area from that of the Equinox
Tail Lights	Added clear lens to outer light housing.
Rear Bumper	After moving license plate up into tail gate I smoothed over the bumper cover for a unified look

What do you think - pretty close huh? :)

All source photos copyright original owners

Rumored: 2014 Malibu MCE

Personal File: There has been a lot of talk about the sudden about-face - literally - on Chevrolet brand vehicles. With the new Impala and updated Traverse, Chevrolet has set about to remake their now established split face grille.

Not surprisingly, the 2013 Malibu was unveiled and later released without the new corporate face established with the vehicles above. Development had long since been done. Rumors flew and were confirmed by January of this year that an unplanned 18-month MCE would be done to "adjust" the look as well as address rear seating concerns and other issues.

Wondering how the new "beak" would look I decided to try a rendering similar to the Cruze I did last year. I've seen online where many artists have simply copied the entire Impala over the front of the car but I doubt it will be a literal Xerox copy. My theory is GM will spend as little money as possible on hard points and focus instead on the hood, front fascia, grilles, and lighting assemblies.

Using my newly integrated Before-and-After plugin, here is my take on what the MCE might look like. What do you think? Click around the image or move the slider to view different areas of the chop. Or click the before and the after buttons below the rendering. Comments on the rendering or the new plugin are appreciated!

I just read on Jalopnik the new face might be making a special appearance at New York NAIAS - that would be a great way to end a great showing for Chevrolet! It has been a great show for GM.

All source photos copyright original owners

Thoughts on 2014 Impala

Personal File: Where to start... I'm a little bit excited and a little bit saddened by the 2014 Impala. I think overall it will be a hit out of the park and a vehicle GM desperately needed (triggering the death of the w-body)! Visually speaking, the front 3/4 is a bold American style with great proportions. As you make your way to the rear end though, things take a decisively bad turn. In what I can only describe as look-a-like syndrome, the rear end looks more like a Hyundai Sonata than an iconic American sedan.

Since I felt that was missing, I wanted to try my hand at bringing in some of that classic/retro American DNA to the rear and and this chop is the result:

• new trunk and decklid - lowered and reshaped along with trunk lines to give it more of a muscle car look
  
• revised tail lights that are longer and revised trunk back - both done to enhance the classic over the Korean look
  
• reworked the "quarter panel" crease to flow into the top of the trunk line for a more unified look. Helps give a hint of late 60s Impala as well.
  
• revised c-pillar glass trim which now echos slightly the new Camaro
  
• angled belt line with door handles down slightly towards the back door which allows it to meet up with the quarter panel crease for better visual flow. Again, his helps hint at the late 60s Impala.
  
• Zl-1 Camaro wheels
  

For grins and giggles I went full-on retro and came up with this version that has the iconic 3-lens tail lights from the early 60s Impalas. A little over the top, yes, but it was fun to play around with the design elements.

What do you think? Are you as disappointed with the rear end of the Impala as I was - especially after how well thought out the front end was designed? Oh - and one last thing - what is up with that steering wheel?

All source photos copyright original owners

Rumored: 2014 Chevy Cruze MCE

Personal File: Lot's of recent rumblings online of the 2014 Chevrolet Cruze getting a 'rush job' MCE to visually align it with the new Impala and upcoming SS sedan designs. GMInsideNews and a few other outlets have released renderings that tease of what that could look like in various forms.

I was surprised to see this as I had been dabbling with something like it just for fun myself back in June. Never having liked the Cruze visually, I was exploring what could be done to update it and 'bridge the visual gap' between the two very differently designed 2013 Malibu and the future 2014 Impala sedans. My rendering combined aspects of both vehicles into a clean and sharp MCE.

Coming back to this chop again after the rumors started surfacing, I wanted to put a little more polish on the rendering. Here is a list of what has been done to a 2012 RS Cruze:

• revised c-pillar
  
• new wheels from Malibu
  
• hood and headlights and grille from Impala heavily brushed
  
• lower fascia heavily modified from Malibu heavily brushed
  
• reworked tail light shape
  

What do you think? Will GM will do something like this or are all the rumors just that - bunk?

All source photos copyright original owners

U.S. Getting Updated Chevrolet Spark

From GMInside News: Way back in January 2009 General Motors confirmed that the Chevrolet Spark mini-car would ultimately be sold in North America. After an extended period of time outside of the media’s limelight, recent spy shots have confirmed that the Spark will receive a mild update prior to arriving on North American shores.

Earlier this year GMI confirmed that the Spark, despite its absence from corporate communications at GM, was still slated to arrive in 2012 as a 2013 model. According to the newest information from GMI’s product development sources, that timing is still accurate.

Click here to read this article.

All source photos copyright original owners

Thoughts on 2013 Chevrolet Malibu

Personal File: This is a post I've been working on for quite some time as I really can't get past the 'bangle butt' on the recently unveiled 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. Don't get me wrong though, this car is amazing and the interior is top notch. I just don't care for some of the high level exterior details.

Not one to leave a stone unturned, I wanted to see what I could do with it. So I created two different looks for the rear clip:

1. Clean and Contemporary Look (simplified rear fenders, more integrated trunk lid, adjusted rear passenger window cut line, and simplified tail lights)
2. Retro-inspired (mid to late 50s) Look (completely rescultped rear fenders, trunk lid, adjusted rear passenger window, and further tweaked tail lights)

Since I was on a roll, I went ahead and modified the front end as well. IHMO, I feel it too is a little over designed.

• Here is my simplified front end idea. This would not only clean up the front end but also align the vehicle visually with the Chevrolet Cruze LTZ as well.

What do you think? Do my adjustments look better? worse? or just different? :)

All source photos copyright original owners

What if GMC received a Canyon based on the new global mid-size truck platform?

Personal File: I really like the new Chevrolet Colorado Concept revealed this year at the Bangkok International Auto Show. I don't yet know if it will make its way to North America, but I have been wondering what if they created a GMC counterpart. I would assume the Canyon brand name would be kept and the vehicle would integrate design cues found on GMC XD, Granite and All Terrain concepts shown over the past few years.

I've been contemplating doing a chop of this for a while and my brother finally convinced me to put my thoughts down "on paper". Using the GMC Granite as the main donor base, I combined its GMC cues onto the Chevrolet Colorado concept. The results of which I think look outstanding! What do you think? Should GM build a new Canyon on the global mid-size truck platform?

All source photos copyright original owners

A Chevy Kappa - what GM could have done with the platform...

Personal File: Like many others who are passionate about the automobile, one of the most painful parts of the GM bankruptcy/buyout last year was the loss of the KAPPA platform. If given another development cycle, I think GM could have had one of the best small two seaters available on the market. We'll never know what would have happened if things turned out differently, but it is fun to ponder if GM had deemed the platform a necessity to keep.

Since Chevy would have no small coupe or small convertible ready for the 2011 model year (no Cruze coupe or convertible would be available), I bet GM would have slotted the Saturn based KAPPA into that segment void. Since it already has a lot of what I would call 'Corvette DNA' in the design, a rebadged Saturn Sky would have fit nicely into the lineup.

Using a Sky Redline mixed with a little of the WTCC concept from a few years back, and some custom brushwork, this is my take - the Chevrolet Stingray. What do you think? Quite a looker I must say and something that would not be out of place slotted underneath the Camaro and Corvette!

All source photos copyright original owners

Thoughts on the Chevrolet Traverse (updated)

Personal File: I can't help it. Every time I see a new Chevrolet Traverse I want to smack the designers who approved that rear end upside the head. The crossover design is overall very well done for a vehicle this large but they really missed the mark on the rear end. Largely void with uninspriring tail lights that sit far too high on the rear fenders, it looks sorely out of touch with the rest of the design.

After seeing more and more of these pop up around my area, I couldn't help but come home last night and raid some Equinox bits for the liftgate handle and license plate holder, lowered the rear fenders, adjusted the side rear glass, hand brushed the lower bumper, and cleaned up the tail lights by adding LTZ style treatments to match the Malibu. While the changes are not drastic, they really help punch up the rear end design and give the vehicle a clean and interesting view.

What do you think - better or worse?

All source photos copyright original owners

Chevrolet Cruze Sports Tourer - where is my wagon?

Personal File: Now that the Paris Auto Show has completed, I wanted to take a stab at one of the most promising but underdelivered concepts of the show - the Chevrolet Cruze hatchback. As much as I wanted to like the hatch (it was better looking than the Cruze sedan), I just couldn't get over the decision to do a hatchback over a wagon.

So what is a guy like me to do? You guessed it - make one. Taking the same platform as the hatchback concept shown at Paris, I stretched the body slightly past the rear wheels and added a donor wagon top from the new 2011 Astra Sport Tourer. The pieces easily fit into the existing Cruze body lines, and in fact, seemed to improve the overal look of the car's profile. I also touched up the front end by making the grille more like the Equinox, raising the front hood crease, and squaring up the weird headlight assemblies. The result is a front end that is crisper and cleaner.

Now this is a Cruze that I would actually want to drive! What do you think?

All source photos copyright original owners

2011 Chevrolet Colorado - MCE projection

Personal File: I have a growing distaste for the current generation small/mid-size truck offerings by General Motors. GM made some really bad design decisions with the front ends on both vehicles thanks in part to the platform sharing with Izuzu.

I've been contemplating doing a mid-cycle enhancement projection on the Colorado for a long time now and finally sat down and took at a stab at it tonight. I wanted to remove the old Chevrolet "bar" theme from the previous Silverado and freshen it up a little so it is more in line with the designs of the new Tahoe and Silverado. What do you think?

All source photos copyright original owners

Save the Camaro: 10 Camaros GM Needs To Build Right Now

From Edmunds StraightLine: Forget about bankruptcy. GM's big problem is the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro. The fools in the Center of Renaissance aren't building enough of them. They need to be cranking out more badass versions of their new red-hot hot rod; like right now. You know, before Obama and the Green Brigade take it away from us.

The Camaro needs saving. Here are my brilliant ideas how to save it.

Click here to view this article.

---

UPDATE: The link to this article no longer exists as Edmunds' Inside Line was discontinued in 2013. You can still view the original article via the Wayback Machine.

---

Should the G8 become the Chevy Camaro SS Sedan?

From Edmunds StraightLine: Yeah, you read that right, Chevrolet Camaro SS Sedan. If there can be a BMW M3 sedan why not a four-door Camaro?

The Camaro and the G8 already share a platform and although their engines aren't exactly the same they're pretty close. Leave the Impala for family duty and keep the rebadged G8 what it should be -- a full fledged sport sedan.

Click here to view this article.

---

UPDATE: The link to this article no longer exists as Edmunds' Inside Line was discontinued in 2013. You can still view the original article via the Wayback Machine.

---