If there’s one brand within the General Motors portfolio that has a ton of potential right now, it’s GMC. The luxury-angled SUV and truck maker is a north star in the eyes of millions of Americans, both for their fancy pickups and for their kitted-out crossovers.
But with the Acadia growing into a proper three-row back in 2024, and the Terrain sitting comfortably in the compact crossover segment, there’s a hole in the company’s lineup that doesn’t cover one of the industry’s most important segments: The midsize SUV.
According to a new report from GM Authority, that’s about to change. And GMC could be getting back into the midsize arena with one of its most iconic nameplates.
The Jimmy’s Return Could Be Back On The Table
The Jimmy was a mainstay in GMC’s lineup for decades, first as a rebadged K5 Blazer, before switching to sharing a body with the S-10 Blazer, then, in the mid-1990s, the Trailblazer. Like the Trailblazer, the most recent Jimmy offered the ruggedness and off-road capability of a body-on-frame design, making it appealing for adventurers on a budget. Our very own David Tracy took a Trailblazer off-roading a couple of years back and walked away impressed.
Back in 2019, in a since-deleted article, Motor1 reported that GMC was working on a new body-on-frame vehicle to compete against the then-new Bronco. Allegedly, this SUV would’ve used the Jimmy nameplate and would’ve come with available V8 power. But it was reportedly axed from development towards the end of 2018 following a restructuring of GM that involved layoffs.
Now, according to this new GM Authority report, which cites unnamed sources, the Jimmy project is reportedly back on the table. From the article:
During its initial development phase, the GMC Jimmy was described internally as both “bold” and “capable,” with plans that even included a V8 engine option. Now, relaxed emissions and fuel economy regulations rolled out by the Trump administration have altered the landscape, and GM Authority sources tell us that GM is reassessing its previously shelved GMC Jimmy plans, including the possibility of a V8 powerplant under the hood.
There doesn’t seem to be many details beyond that, so it’s unclear right now whether such a car would keep that original body-on-frame layout or switch to a more road-friendly unibody, crossover layout. I’ve reached out to GMC to see if they’d tell me anything else, though I haven’t heard back. Automakers rarely ever comment on future products, so I’m not expecting much.
Why This Makes Sense
Adding another car to GMC’s lineup feels pretty reasonable right now. Since the Acadia’s third-row growth spurt, the brand hasn’t had a true midsize crossover in its lineup. Reviving the Jimmy—a well-known nameplate that already resonates with a large swath of buyers—could be a smart way to re-enter the highly competitive segment.
If GMC were to stick with the body-on-frame approach, it would also mean General Motors could finally have the true Ford Bronco and Jeep Wrangler competitor people—including myself—have been asking for for years. Hell, if it really wanted to, GM could revamp the current body-on-frame Trailblazer it sells in overseas markets, which I wrote about last month, for the American market. But doing so would conflict with what GM President Mark Reuss told The Drive back in 2023 about why the brand doesn’t have a Bronco competitor. He told the publication, “I’m not gonna do a Bronco” for several reasons:
The first is simple. Reuss explained that he doesn’t want to be “late to the party.” Doing a Bronco competitor now would put the brand plumb last in bringing a two-row, body-on-frame 4×4 to the market. The second has to do with emissions. Reuss claimed that Ford has to sell trucks like the Maverick as a hybrid because doing so many cars powered by internal combustion hurts Ford’s corporate average fuel economy. He doesn’t want to move backward in that regard.
Like I mentioned when I wrote about that Trailblazer, a lot has changed since 2023. Sales of the Bronco are as robust as ever, proving there’s a lasting market for body-on-frame off-roaders. And, as GM Authority mentioned, the federal government announced back in July that it would no longer penalize manufacturers for not meeting fleetwide emissions standards, so GM no longer has to worry about whether a new Jimmy with an available V8 will drag down its fuel economy scores.
It’s also possible that GMC could just play the corporate rebadge game and add a slightly different-looking Chevy Blazer to its lineup, and call it the new Jimmy. While that wouldn’t be nearly as exciting, it would still fill the gap in its lineup without having to spend much on development. Either way, I’m curious to see what’s next.
Top graphic image: General Motors
If it looks like that, leave it dead. GM already ruined the Blazer name.
Just as long as the make the Raptor fighting variant and name it the Rustler
GM Exec: “You know, Toyota has been pretty successful selling a decades old 4-Runner and people seem to enjoy overlanding…maybe we jump in?”
Senior GM Exec (twirling his moustache): “Nope. It’s a fad.”
*/ Jeep updates the Wrangler and releases the Gladiator
GM Exec: “Did you see the Gladiator? I really think we’re missing out on…”
Senior GM Exec (alphabetizing his Tom Selleck movies): “Nope. It’s a fad.”
*/ Ford introduces the Bronco
GM Exec: “so Ford’s doing pretty well with that Bronco they introduced…”
Senior GM Exec (watching a re-run of Smokey and the Bandit): “We need to think about the MPGs more than Fads.”
*/ Nissan announced a new X-Terra and rugged Pathfinder
GM Exec: “Sir… Nissan is correcting themselves… don’t you think it’s time???”
Senior GM Exec (straightening the labels on his Jim Beam bottles): “We can’t make decisions based on every change Nissan makes! We just can’t!”
*/ Hyundai announces the BoF Boulder
GM Exec: “Seriously. Hyundai is getting there first. All we have to do is put a cover on a Silverado and call it a Jimmy.”
Senior GM Exec (testing out his new leather desk pad): “Jimny you say? Hmm… I bet we can buy those Suzuki. We have a hybrid ‘vette now, I bet we can add a third row and make it a hybrid. Make the call!”
GM Exec: “I said Jimmy… never mind. I quit.”
I’m guessing it will be a rebadged Blazer with GMC looks, which could be fine I guess? I tend to like how the GMCs look vs the Chevy counterparts. They could rebadge the EV one too although they haven’t done the same for the Equinox/Terrain. Either way, I’d be shocked to see a V8 in anything, but it would be cool!
It’ll simply be another over-inflated crossover that looks like everyone else’s current generic crossover designs. Nobody will care.
I read this as Jimny, and was happy.
And then I was sad when I re-read.
“Reuss claimed that Ford has to sell trucks like the Maverick as a hybrid because doing so many cars powered by internal combustion hurts Ford’s corporate average fuel economy.”
What is he talking about. Ford has a bunch of hybrids, while GM has one, the E-RAY. With gas being pretty expensive right now, they’re not really competitive due to the lack of hybrids. Maybe make an EREV Colorado and Jimmy and they will be on to something.
The Toyota 4Runner: “Am I nothing to you?”
I’m always baffled why the major makers have essentially ceded this whole segment to the 4Runner/Jeep/Bronco. There’s a group for whom the next vehicular step down (Rav4 or Highlander on the Toyota side, Bronco sport on the Ford side) are inadequate – the kinds of people who want a vehicle that’ll fit in urban parking areas, won’t scrape in alleys, but can still tote dogs and bikes into the backcountry. And for those people, the only options are the 4Runner/Bronco/Jeep, with the latter two in particular having some significant recall/highway-comfort downsides. Something built on an S-10/Colorado frame would be a great competitor to the market incumbents, especially given the lack of trust people have for Jeep (4xe recalls, anyone?) and Ford at the moment. GMC has long been considered blandly reliable (no teenager reaches adulthood without riding in the back of a 1500 or the third row of a Suburban), so there’s no brand reputation management issues here, either.
I choose to believe this is because GM executives (confirmed to read and comment here, at least occasionally) have taken my repeated and passionate ranting on this topic to heart.
I’ve been asking for this for years! I may even be willing to put up with the miserable Turbomax fuel economy because of how reliable it seems to be.
If they release it, that means the next economic bubble burst is about to happen. Prices are getting out of control, inflation doesnt stop, the current administration… no words. They could use the Colorado platform to expand to the GMC product offering, but I dont expect a high volume from it.
HOLY HUMMER T3 ALPHA, Batman you are correct!
COTD
“GM no longer has to worry about whether a new Jimmy with an available V8 will drag down its fuel economy scores.”
No – they only have to worry whether consumers will be willing to accept 12mpg* in an era of $5+ fuel prices.
*Your Mileage May Vary
It’s been over twenty years.
It goes by GMC James now.
GMC Jimothy tyvm
GMC Jimbob
GMC James Tiberius Kirk, reporting for duty.
Jim.
I am and always will be your wrencher.
Are they still planning on offering the V8? Regulations would seemingly be favorable for that at this exact moment… however, take rate might be low for that option until leaders quit electing to be in elective global conflicts that threaten oil supply lines.
Offering the V8, but having the base engine be the 4cyl Turbomax would be ok. A low take rate halo would still drive people into the showroom, and as we’re seeing the high end of the market isn’t suffering as much as the low end, so they’d probably still sell every V8 they make.
The 1st gen Acadia had a third row (along with a decent towing capacity). It lost that row with the 2nd gen.
It was optional in the 2nd gen but good luck finding a 2nd gen without it.
2nd gen Acadia still had the 3rd row, just they shrunk it a lot (closer to say, the Highlander), and I think was just a 2-place 3rd row not 3-across. It did have the option for a 2-row version for a time, I think in the AT4.
I for one am excited for GM to abandon this project as soon as it starts getting interesting.
The Blazer is supposed to come back for a 2nd generation as a 27 or 28 model. I hope this isn’t just a renamed badge job of that car for their Buick/GMC dealerships