Cab over engine designs are only utilized in commercial trucks these days, but that didn’t stop one Instagram rendering artist from reimagining the iconic Chevy Silverado 1500 as a forward control-style vehicle.
This rendering, which was completed by Instagram artist Oscar Vargas this weekend, is based on a current T1 platform based Chevy Silverado LT Trail Boss finished in the Red Hot exterior color.
It seems as though the truck didn’t take too much fiddling with to transform it from a regular old Crew Cab into an odd-looking COE truck. Vargas appears to have pulled the windshield forward and given it a more upright angle, reshaped the two front doors to fit over the wheel arches, and extended the length of the bed. Apart from these changes, the truck looks mostly like a regular Silverado Trail Boss – retaining its blacked-out grille, LED headlights, gloss black wheels, off-road tires and taillights.
It goes without saying that a design like this would be basically impossible to execute in real life. The ingress/egress from the cabin would be awkward and the engine would likely protrude into the cabin quite a lot, taking up valuable passenger space. It’d be one thing if the Chevy Silverado was designed this way from the outset, but this strange-looking render serves as proof that redesigning the current model into a COE truck wouldn’t go well. On the plus side, this design would give the truck a lot more room in the bed without increasing the size of its overall footprint, so there is at least one positive takeaway from this odd little design exercise.
While we do wish cab over engine trucks for consumers still existed, we’re not sure if the market would respond well to this particular design, but that’s just us. What do you think, readers?
Subscribe to GM Authority for more Chevrolet Silverado news, Chevrolet news and around-the-clock GM news coverage.
Comments
Nice job!
Could also work as an electric application with a low center of gravity and great handling.
I would never purchase a chevy if they do this. Cab over trucks score extremely low in front collisions. Aka first on scene for an accident. Plus that lightens up the rear end allowing less traction in winter driving weather
John,
You’re NOT thinking clearly. COE provides more ‘TRUCK’ space. The larger bed will carry more cargo (heavier) – and the PERFECT platform for electric locomotion – motor in the front – batteries under the bed.
I would NEVER eliminate all gasoline and diesel powered pickup trucks – HOWEVER, there is ONE galactic opportunity for electric vehicles – TRUCKS, BUSES, TAXI CABS, POLICE CARS, MAIL TRUCKS…etc.
Would be mine in a New York second!
I’ll pick up sir light on the rear end just make it all wheel drive and it’ll be okay
All pickups are light on the rear end just make it all wheel drive and it’ll be okay
I had both the Little Red Wagon and the Van style. When I was a kid, I would ride up on top of the engine. I loved those trucks and the visibility but I always felt vulnerable in the front.
What will it cost
I love it i would buy one
Love this design, I would be first in line to have one of they ever went through with it. Seating for 4, 10′ bed.. Love it.
Good idea but, I would go wth a turbo flat four 3.7L mid engine front wheel drive. Is 455 pistons, mercury made a straight four. Better overall weight distribution empty. Would buy one in heartbeat. Making cab over easy maint. access to all. Not raise it much. Keeping center of gravity low. That would also keep the box lower
Lift it at least 10” to 12” make the doors taller for more leg room to enter cab, widen it 6” to 8”, make it a 4×4, put a diesel or gas 8cyl motor no EV (don’t want to be stuck with dreakdowns AND DON’T want to fry in a battery fire) and a 7’ or 8’ bed and then I’d buy
Would be easy to do on the new BT1 platform.
FFS, stop it. What is the leg room in the first row for that ‘imagination’?
Reader imagines the crash results should be the headline.
Front crash death truck with engine using engine /batteries to crush you . Maybe a good present to a well liked mother-in-law for a gift.
I would not be in one. Would never meet safety or crash test standards I would imagine.
The backseat is probably fine? Just make sure that the mother-in-law does the driving
Hideous. Someone needs some help there.
It would look better if it wasn’t a lame soccer dad crew cab.
Whoa, that’s some serious weed someone’s smoking.
Don’t insult weed like that.
This design could work for Medium Duty, Fleet Related Applications, my wife personally would not want something like this sitting in our driveway as a Family Vehicle.
Looks cool but we can’t market a truck specifically for people with no legs.
So minivans have no front legroom?
I want it.
Could this work if on the Isuzu N series LCF platform?
I don’t think it’s enough tall to create enough space for a gas engine under the cab, by the picture it seems driver gonna have to squat on the wheel arch or sit on spark plugs!!! Also those front doors don’t look like functional, moreover the vehicle seems too front heavy, when the bed is empty ,which is likely most of the time, rear tires will have a little to none grip and driving the thing would be an absolute endeavor.
Oh man, the ugly just keeps coming.
All I can say is that it reminds of the small Chance bakkie in South Africa, perhaps that is the pace where it should be manufactured and sold,especiay , thinking of the body size of avarage Chinese.
I like it! It’d be fun to drive, and I am in favor of getting rid of the unnecessarily large front ends on today’s pickups.
Well, I think it’s cool. It reminds me of my old red 1965 Dodge van. Sitting on top of that front axle. I’m sure this design wouldn’t pass modern day crash tests though. Pity.
1965-67 Dodge Deora Concept ~ still lives ! ! Look it up ! ! Nothing “new” here…
very nice. something that I would buy.
Reminds Me of the 1984 Chevy Van I had with the 6.2 Diesel, 25 mpg every place we went. I would like to have the 8 ft box back with a Crew Cab.
Don Loving
I love it, build it ! Today’s pickup’s have become people movers, not cargo haulers. Time to offer a basic truck that will still carry four people, carry lumber and not be 30 ft. long.
As with COE commercial trucks in case of an accident you are the first one on the scene, Jeep tried this years ago back in the 60’s. It didn’t work for them and it won’t work for Chevy. Toyota had the worst design in cab forward design with their first van where the driver and passenger were actually slightly in front of the front axle. In the case of an emergency stop there were reports of the rear axle raising off the pavement and the front bumper hitting the pavement, they cancelled that design fast.
Look up 1940-50 Chevy or GMC cab overs. I could see a market for them now days. Farm use especially. If electric, wouldn’t have to worry about engine compartment. Under bed battery compartment would work and keep low center of gravity.
Oh yeah! If that was an EV, at a reasonable price, I’d buy it!
I don’t think that’s odd at all! I think it’s beautiful!
Why not, only fc chevy pick up was the corvair 95 rampside 1961-64 . jeep had a fc 150 fc 170
When can I order it?
I assume it will have typical cheap Walmart interior.
Head over to Whole Foods your EV soy milk is waiting.
Four Door Deora!
I’m 6’4″, so I could ‘probably’ climb in over the front wheel. A 2 motor Ultium platform would work for this.
Considering the direction GM is heading (they keep making absolutely hideous cars), this very well could happen…. unfortunately.
It isn’t GM that wants it it’s MARY who wants it.
I see Corvair truck.
Look it’s a 1966 Dodge A100!
Please make an EV van like this!
That’s actually a great idea.
No its not.
Hey, it might sell if the bed is 9 or 10 feet and offer a dualie.
Reminds me of the Corvair bedded vehicles from the early 60’s.
So IF the driver gets in, where can he put his feet to drive??? Past that, it looks pretty good.
this could easily be done with the chevy express which already meets safety standards
I think it’s slick looking. It’s probably easy to drive and park. But, like others have said, crash protection may be weak, and unless it’s pure electric, the engine would intrude into the passenger compartment. But, if Smart Cars can be made with a crash shell, then maybe the passengers could survive. Starting in 2035 GM is supposed to only make electric vehicles.
A truck with the power of a golf cart? Go back to your prius.
I like this render. With some proper engineering, it can work you know!
Looks like a old one G . M. made in sixty called the Corvair . But that had a rear engine . This looks petty good to me , and a larger cargo area where more products can be carried.
Engine? Definitely looks electric to me! Better to leave some hood so it can have extra storage in the front and a better crash zone.
What is it with all the electric fanboys on this site all of a sudden? This is a TRUCK not a golf cart.
Do you not understand the power and torque of an electric motor? Have you not driven a Tesla? What is this golf cart stuff? Do you remember Cushman golf carts? They were gas. They were slow and had no power. I love the power of electric! But I sure do miss the roar of a good exhaust system. If you don’t learn to adapt, the world will leave you behind.
No EV is as as fast as a gas car.
But, of course „cab over engine trucks“ do exist, as you can find out by looking at the image „VW T5 Doppelkabine-Pritsche-Plane links-hinten LWS3142.JPG“ on commons.wikimedia dot org, which, BTW, is a really truck as not having passenger car like body clad around an open trunk, but a real truck bed.
URL: commons.wikimedia dot org slash wiki/File:VW_T5_Doppelkabine-Pritsche-Plane_links-hinten_LWS3142 dot JPG
(there are more images of the same vehicle from other angles, and of more examples of the same model in the commons category “Volkswagen T5 double cab”)
I would totally buy a chevy cab over pickup with 4×4 and the big gas engine
Too much Tuk Tuk and Suzuki it will not wok for the USA Market not for the Chevy Silverado no way
No wok fo da USA. No egg woll. No pewiphewal vision. Good for AOC EV mandate.
I had to do my own art of the new Chevy Silverado
I closed my eyes and I have imagined if this new design sold in Philippines India or Middle East
It will rock. Middle East will build the framed box over the pickup truck bed for overload, India will over decorate the interior and exterior , Philippines will cut and extend, add more declaration and redesigned as they had done to the WWII 1943 Willys Jeep or jeepneys.
Picture it as a 4×4 dually and a nice aero bed cap with smoked side windows.
That thing looks pretty cool to me. Imagine how big a camper you could put on it. Sign me up!
I can dig it! 🙂
My grandfather had a Cushman golf cart it was so fast you could not open it up and as far as the world leaving me behind because I don’t use a electric have you seen the big footprint that they leave behind getting rid of the toxic batteries
Liberals don’t care if batteries are toxic. They just want to put mechanics and oil drillers out of work so they can depend on a government check. It’s political.
Maybe Subaru with their flat 4 engine but not with a V6 or V8
STUPID
I think that would be awesome if it had a side ramp door also like the Corvair did. I would buy one.
That is an awesome rendering. To bad it is just an artist rendering there would be so much practicality plus it owuld be unique and offer fucntionality. It would be great application with a diesel engine.
I would like to see and old style cab over like a international with a sleeper reduced to fit a 1/2 4×4 .I saw one back in the 70’s it looked great.
i would buy it, with a gas engine in it, it can be in the middle between the front seat. just like the old Ford Econoline pickup back in the 60s. Chevy, Dodge made them too. would love to see it come back, 2wd or 4×4 and manual transmission would be a plus in my book.
Maybe do that with a Chevy Avalanche?
Why do these knuckleheads keep saying this cab design will leave the rearend tractionless? It’s no different that the weight distribution in a conventional cab. Of course the motor will be front mounted and creating a potential perfect match for all and 4wheel drive. You lose no seating space since even the newer trucks have no center front seating anyway. I had several e100 pickups and loved them. Of course you’re all safety conscious these days.. buy a Landrover pronoun.
The artist did’nt think about how to get in and out without dragging your clothes over the front wheel lol and the door is the fender doh! and how are you doing that
Have had cab over just hard to do engine work but I would buy this one !
may actually go well with the $cylinder Duramax, or as an all electric alternative to the full size EV platform. IF EV, this would be a killer hauler.
Canoo is doing this already in real life. I used to drive an Isuzu NPR with the box cut off as my personal vehicle to make God’s biggest pickup bed and I loved the visibility and handling – even for a 22′ long vehicle. Would absolutely jump at the chance to drive a shorter version. I first fell in love with the “forward control” position driving my VW bus- been trying to achieve that feeling ever since. Too many “truck people” have no idea how fun something like this is to drive.