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The Original Chevrolet Bison Was A Class-8 Heavy-Duty Truck

Oftentimes, automakers will resurrect long-defunct badges in the hopes of capitalizing on consumer nostalgia, such as in the case of the 2019 Chevrolet Blazer. The new, unibody crossover shares little with its rugged, body-on-frame predecessor, but at the least, they are both tall, relatively high-riding utility vehicles.

But here’s something you may not have known: the new, 2019 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison off-road pickup shares its name with a long-gone GM product, although that fact appears to be more coincidence than an attempt to capitalize on nostalgia. The original Chevrolet Bison? Why, it was a Class-8 heavy-duty truck offered from 1977 through 1987, with a big, honking diesel under the hood.

The Chevrolet Bison – also sold as the GMC General – was the largest conventional-cab truck GM ever built, introduced to replace the Chevrolet C/M 90 and GMC C/M 9500 trucks. It was built at General Motors’ now-defunct Pontiac East Assembly plant, which was closed down in 2009 after nearly four decades of service.

1979 Chevrolet Bison ad

Offered with either a 4×2 or a 6×4 drivetrain, the Chevrolet Bison and GMC General were offered with a range of diesel powerplants, including the 7.0-liter Detroit Diesel 6-71 straight-six (standard), the 9.3-liter Detroit Diesel 8V71 V8, and from 1982, the 14.6-liter Caterpillar 3406 inline-six.

Needless to say, you probably won’t be able to fit any of those powerplants in your 2019 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison, although GM’s 2.8-liter Duramax turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine will be available as an option. Beside that, the new Bison gets all the ZR2’s standard goodies (electric locking differentials, two-inch factory lift, Multimatic DSSV dampers, etc.) and special, model-specific add-ons like 17-inch wheels with Goodyear Duratrac tires, AEV steel bumpers, an AEV intake snorkel, and five different Boron-steel skid plates.

Check back in with GM Authority for all the latest Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison news.

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Aaron Brzozowski is a writer and motoring enthusiast from Detroit with an affinity for '80s German steel. He is not active on the Twitter these days, but you may send him a courier pigeon.

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Comments

  1. Hey Aaron!
    Thanks for this piece! My Dad drove a GMC General for his trucking back in the late ’70’s-‘early ’80’s . It was a really nice and pretty truck and held it’s on at the truck stops against Kenworth and Peterbilts! Had a “DEE Troit” Diesel in it I remember. The whole company ran GMC Generals and Brigadiers and I remember the drivers really bragging on them. I got to drive a Brigadier some when I got older too! I never could fully understand why GM walked away from the Class 7 and 8 trucks. They were respected as quality trucks by drivers and companies alike!
    It was a GMC General Jerry Reed drove in Smokey and the Bandit part 2 and drivers used to joke he traded his Kenworth (from the original movie) for a “General”. This brings back great memories!

    Reply
    1. Some of them survived into the then newly formed Volvo-GM Heavy Truck Corporation, which was formed in 1988 when GM ceased its own heavy duty truck manufacturing. The “White-Volvo-GMC” badge was used on several old GM and White-Autocar truck designs. GM sold its share of the Volvo-GM truck joint venture in 1997.

      Reply
  2. Actually Pontiac East built pickups and medium duty trucks. The class 8 trucks were built at Pontiac Truck and Coach, a nearby plant that closed in 1990.

    Wonder if GM has any intentions of getting back into larger trucks with Navistar.

    Reply
    1. GM should buy Navistar and start-over

      Reply
  3. Back in the day GM go rid of a lot of stuff they shouldn’t have including Detroit Diesel,Allison Transmission,Electromotive. Terex and ect.

    Reply
  4. Bring these Generals and Brigadiers back into the market with updated technology and engines. That would really be great. A very costly investment, but great! Or buy Navistar and just begin New Heavy Duty 7500, 8500, & 9500 Series truck development.

    Reply
  5. Un vrai camion!

    Reply
  6. Porque as outras montadoras tem lucro e só a GM não tem, uma empresa industrial que fabricou, todos os tipos de motores, locomotivas, para navios, satélites através da Westhinhause e agora é simplesmente uma montadora comum. E ninguém foi preso. Com se destroi a maior empresa industrial do mundo. É muita incompentência ou roubo?

    Reply
  7. The Bison name was only used through 1980, not 1987 (although the General lasted that long). GM dropped Chevrolet-branded big rigs at the end of the 1980 model year. Wikipedia states it was due to limited dealer uptake, a problem Ford also had with their big rigs and a shame since some fleets would likely appreciate a one-contract/one-dealer setup for everything from subcompact cars to a Class 8 big rig.

    Reply

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