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K5 design contest results


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Whew!

What a job this turned into!

When this contest began, I expected a few entries and an easy decision when picking a winner. Instead, the contest has turned into one of the best in recent memory here at C&G. Not only was there great participation, but the entered designs were of excellent quality. I am very pleased that picking a winner became harder as each new entry was posted. What a great effort by all who participated.

Early on, member SeanLoh got things going with a chop that established the GMC All-Terrain HD concept as a base for designs from other resident artists. His entry set a tone that carried through as a theme for the duration of the contest. It was also the only design that dared to go fully topless.

Next up to tweak this theme was our most prolific C&G chopper, MDM with a pair of very nicely-rendered Chevy K5s that hit the DNA of the Blazer dead on.

Just when I thought that we might have defined the direction for the K5, Black-Knight posted a pair of sketches depicting a trimmer, leaner, vision of the 2-door SUV. It's sharp lines and Grand-Cherokee proportions gave me pause. Here we had a design that exemplified the simplicity and no-nonsense ethic laid-out in the contest parameters. It was time to start weighing the entries on multiple criteria.

Speaking of the design parameters of the contest, NOS and MDM demonstrated just what happens when you forget the rules with a couple of decent chops that just didn't qualify as K5 Blazers. :neenerneener:

In an impressive effort, Z28luvr01 refined the All-Terrain theme into a K15 Jimmy that kept the faith with a GMC branded beast that had Roger calling it "game over". But there was yet more to come.

At this point, the "KFap" Blazer offered a bit of levity and a lack of structural integrity in a C&G-typical absurdity tangent.

After that bit of fun, and a Ford-based entry by MDM, the Dodgefan onslaught began with the first of his three entries. This wholly realistic rendering depicted a K5 that should be on Chevy lots everywhere right now. It featured a quickly controversial upright "B" pillar that had some crying foul. As an owner of a last gen 2-door Tahoe, what I saw was a solution to a very real blindspot in my own SUV. It may not have the style that the larger, canted, pillar does - but it would be a godsend for visibility. This entry also featured a most welcome description of DF's concept.

Enter the wildcard. Leave it to Blackviper to challenge all pre-conceived notions of what a Blazer should be! In a wonderfully-detailed sketch, he stretched the imagination and left me thinking of alternative platforms and drivetrains, materials and surfaces and a new concept overall for the Blazer nameplate. This original, and creative take on a new K5 had me thinking of just how the concept could be made steel (or carbon fiber and aluminum). I'll have more to say about this one later.

Enter Dodgefan V. 2.0 - easily the nominee for best adherence to the rules of this contest. If that were the only criteria, it would have been the hands-down choice to win. Based on the Colorado it is as current and producible as DF's first entry. But it takes the idea af a basic off-road capable machine as specified in the rules to the exact spot I was hoping this contest would lead. "No-nonsense" is on full display here. The only downside is the dated design of the Colorado on which this entry is based. I'll have more on this one too later.

DF's third design takes us back to the All-Terrain concept once again. It also takes chances with both the door/b-pillar shaping, and the wheelbase. Ther are elements to this design that I love, and it has me thinking of other variants. However, the wheelbase runs counter to what has always been a major advantage of the Blazer - its manueverability.

Finally, NOS offered up a quick sketch that immediately had me flashing back to BV's excellent concept. It also had me considering the only Achilles heel of DF's second effort. A fusion of these three would, in my mind, create a Blazer that fits the times and does homage to the original. I would love to see the synthesis of those three efforts explored to result. Such a design would have been the hands-down winner here.

However, the contest has to culminate in the naming of a winner from among the designs entered. So, I spent some considerable time looking for the design that best balanced heritage and future and concept with reality. I narrowed the field to three finalists. They are:

BV's convention-challenging vision.

post-394-0-95738300-1295712756.jpg

If you haven't enlarged this one, do it! The detailing is flat out awesome.

DF's second effort:

post-394-0-03531500-1295713102.jpg

And Z's entry:

post-394-0-15019600-1295713199.jpg

There is only a whisker of difference in the merit of these three, and they represented a very tough choice. But, in the end, I went with the most fully realized design, and the one that best balanced all of the factors involved to create a 2-door SUV for the immediate future.

Congratulations Z, the watch is yours!

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I'm surprised FapTurbo's entry lost. He's going to be deviated. :lol: Congrats Z! Short and stubby trucks were never my thing, which probably didn't do me any favors with my entries, but oh well. Enjoy the watch!

It was nice to see the design competitions alive and full of entries again. Hopefully this is a preview of things to come.

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Wow...thanks guys. I'm floored. This watch will go great with my Chevy trucks t shirt...and my Chevy truck. I still have that "other" entry that's actually fairly close to completion. I'll finish that when I get back from vacation and post it in the design showcase.

I think this contest shows that the talent base here is second to none. Keep up the good work guys. You all should be proud of yourselves.

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Here! Here!

Looking forward to that "other" design. There's a comment I want to make on this contest that'll have to wait until you have it done.

Can do. It's actually fairly close to done. I tried to get it entered into the contest, but in the rush to get it done I didn't like how it was coming out so I waled away from it. I'll be back on 2/1.

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