A revived GMC Jimmy could be GM’s answer to the wildly popular Jeep Wrangler and the upcoming Ford Bronco. This off-road-capable body-on-frame SUV will likely call suburban streets home-not that this will matter much to SUV-hungry buyers, who will look past on-road compromises to bask in its rugged off-road aura.
If it happens, this new model would likely ride on GM’s mid-size-truck underpinnings, which also support the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon pickups. GMC probably won’t get too creative with its powertrains. It’ll use the same 3.6-liter V-6 as in the pickups and-hopefully-the turbo-diesel.
Truck-based SUVs are thriving well past any logical expiration date. The new Wrangler is enjoying strong sales despite Jeep’s lofty pricing, and even the ancient Toyota 4Runner is moving out of dealer lots. This trail-happy model should also help legitimize GMC’s new off-road nameplate, AT4, which it says it will be applying to all its models in the near future.
Even if the Jimmy itself doesn’t pan out, this model could end up being a trim level for the Canyon pickup, mirroring its Chevrolet Colorado sibling’s ZR2 trim. Other rumblings have suggested that GMC dropped plans for a body-on-frame SUV in favor of a car-based subcompact crossover. But given that such a model would overlap with the popular Buick Encore (and now the Encore GX), which shares showroom space with GMC’s lineup, we think that’s unlikely.
The new GMC off-roader could show up within the next few years, likely starting around $30,000.
