Project Sedona (LARGE PICTURES)

[GMMediumDutyMQ]

 

I'm surprised this thing is still in existance. GM lately has been scrapping a lot of neat concepts and prototypes lately, including the neat GMT-800 Tahoe 2-Door prototype (I liked that thing, too!).

 

 

This apparently is what the S-10/Sonoma restyle for '94 was originally planned to be. It is a cobbled-up prototype, and judging by the lack of any hood lines, I don't think that there was/is any powertrain installed in the truck. Externally, this truck can be dated to the late 80's-early 90's by the cast alloy "4x4" wheels, that are the same as could be found on the same era S/T pickups and utilities.

 

The exterior is similar to that of what was introduced as the S-10/Sonoma, especially in the roofline. The hoodline is almost a combination of the previous generation S-10 (boxy), and what would ultimately become production, which results in a rounded square nose. The cladding is rather heavy, and thankfully wouldn't become used in production. However, it does feature the only external nomenclature, with an embossed "SEDONA" between the bumper guards, and on each door.

 

 

The rear uses similar body panels to what the production truck used, but with added cladding, and a spoiler on the tailgate. Oddly, the taillights appear very similar to those that appeared on the GMT 800 Sierra/Silverado pickups introduced in '99. The cargo box features an integrated liner, that has about four cargo lamps built into the walls of the bed.

 

 

The interior of the truck allows it to be dated and identified as well. The steering wheel insert allows it to be ID'd as a GMC, although the wheel is different than any production S/T wheel at the time. It is leather wrapped. Judging by the design of all the other controls of the interior, especially the dashboard, the truck was most likely designed in the late 1980s. Many of the controls and switchgear look very similar to those of various GM concepts in the 1980s, notably the Chevrolet Blazer XT-1 and the Pontiac Banshee. The door panels are somewhat similar to what was used at production time, with the exception of the window/mirror controls, and the "SEDONA" embossed into the darkened portion of the panel. The speakers have since been removed from the truck.

 

 

The instrument cluster is a digital design, but isn't what was offered in S/T trucks in the 1980s. It actually is a cluster taken from an 80's C4 Corvette.

 

 

The center console is an amazing array of controls and switches. All fan speed controls are designed into wrap-around switches on the upper left hand side of the console. The function and temperature switches are still huge knobs, and the right hand switches are for front de-ice, front defog, rear de-ice, and A/C. The front de-ice feature makes me wonder if they were planning on placing an electric grid across the windshield, or something of that nature. The radio is an interesting design, which features the balance/fade design that was so prominent on 80's C/Ks and Sunbirds. The left hand wrap around switches are for Power, seek up/down, and recall. The volume and tuning switches are small triangles, smaller than the balance/fade triangles. There is a five-band EQ, as well as a slider labeled "Subwoofer". There is a CD loading slot, as well as the typical assorted switchgear that goes along with such a deck. I really doubt this deck was functional, given by one switch. The right side switchgear are labeled as Set, Am Stereo, AM/FM, and DNR - Dolby Noise Reduction. By as far as I know, DNR only applied to cassette decks, and as such, it's really unusual to find it on a CD unit.

 

 

The most unusual aspect of the Sedona interior is the overhead console. Never has there been so many switches in such a location, and perhaps it's best that GM rethought this design before production. On the left, the three buttons are for the pushbutton 4WD system, being 2WD, 4WD Hi, and 4WD Lo. Each button has a glowing corner to identify which is selected, and much like the C/K pickups of the day, there is a light-up contour of the truck's drivetrain, to show when in 2WD and when in 4WD.

 

The rest of that console consists of a rather elaborate trip computer. I am unsure as of the location, but I believe that these switches control the data information in the dash cluster itself, not the area above these switches. I believe so because these switches are almost exactly identical to those used in period Corvettes. The top left switch toggled between oil pressure and oil temperature. The top right switch between instant MPG and average MPG. The bottom left switch was between coolant temperature and volts, and the bottom right switch was between fuel range and trip odometer. Units were selected by the big slider in the center (metrics is selected here), and all switches could be placed to "off" in the center to turn off the display. The two buttons in the right corner were to reset, and presumably, the two buttons at the extreme top corners were for reading lights.

 

I've a feeling that this truck may be scrapped in the near future, and hopefully proves to be of some interest to you. I don't think it was an auto show truck, but let me know what you think.

 

MQ

[Shadowfax]

As an S-10 Lover, all I gotta say is Thank God this thing never was produced!!!

 

The rear tail lights look like that which is on the modern S-10 Blazers. The interior has very strikingly similarities of the 94 to 97 model S-10's. Not exact but you can see its influence interior wise on those models if you look at the door panels and the ac vents.

 

You can also see the current Sonoma hood lines were inspired by that trucks hoods. Cool find

[Supurban]

What a great collection of photos. The interior theme is definitely late 80s. Although the angled design elements are found throughout the dash and armrests, it is certainly typical GM - very incoherent and has the chunky cheap plastic look and feel that made it all the way into the 96-ish S10s.

 

Exterior rear is well executed. Too bad the front didn't capture the same spirit. The cladding along with the pocket behind the rear wheel well appears to be the prelude to the Avalanche.