GMC debuts its epic Canyon AT4 OvrlandX concept at Overland Expo
This concept takes the capable Canyon AT4 and makes a seriously gnarly off-roader with all the camping comforts you could want.
I am a total sucker for any kind of overlanding off-road vehicle build. If social media and YouTube are anything to go by, the odds are pretty good that you are too. Overlanding has been popular for a while, but since the pandemic shut most of us inside our houses and apartments for a year, the idea of escaping into nature has become more popular than ever. GMC is ready to fuel that fire with its Canyon AT4 OvrlandX off-road concept vehicle, which it announced on Friday at Overland Expo Mountain West in Colorado.
I mean, what's not to love about a rugged, go-anywhere vehicle that you can easily and comfortably live out of for days at a time, and of course, the AT4 OvrlandX ticks all of those boxes. It's based on the already rad Canyon AT4, which has plenty of off-road chops right off the showroom floor, thanks to its Multimatic DSSV shocks, but then takes the platform to a whole new level.
To start with, the Canyon AT4 V6 gets some bigger 33-inch off-road tires and AEV wheels. Those are paired with a lifted suspension and a wider track for better ground clearance and stability. Next come a whole host of underbody protection and front guylines to keep branches from breaking the truck's windshield. The truck also gets electronically locking front and rear differentials and a winch in an effort to ensure that it can get itself unstuck no matter the situation. Beefy AEV metal bumpers round things out, along with a swinging rear spare tire carrier that preserves ground clearance and looks tough.
With locking diffs, big tires and a winch, it's not likely you're going to get stuck anywhere.
The functional off-road stuff is fantastic, but what really sets an overlanding build apart from a normal rock-crawling or prerunning build is the camping gear and, friends, GMC and AEV deliver here as well. The bed of the truck features sliding drawers for storage as well as a big Dometic refrigerator. The truck canopy has sides that fold down, with a fully stocked camp kitchen and stove on one side and bed access on the other. On top of the tubular rack system that goes over the bed and straddles the canopy shell, there is a roof-top tent with solar panels as well as a 270-degree folding awning.
"The Canyon AT4 OvrlandX concept truck was designed to balance functionality with aesthetics. When you're overlanding, capability is an important factor, but doing it with premium style and comfort elevates the experience even further for customers who truly want zero compromises," John Owens, lead creative designer for the concept truck, said in a statement.
According to GMC's press release, the AT4 OvrlandX concept is meant to be a peek at the future of the Canyon model, which means the brand could be doubling down on taking market share away from Toyota's legendary TRD Pro Tacoma . We hope that's true, especially if it means more of these amazing overlanding concepts get built.
GMC's Canyon AT4 OVRLANDX concept truck makes us want to escape into the wild
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