Tech Letter of the Month:
Lost in Colorado
Question: How come nobody makes anything for Chevy Colorados? When the new Jeeps come out there is already a lot a stuff for them! Though there are some basic nerf bars and brushguards, I can never find winch bumpers, rollbars, or beefier suspension packages. If you think that they are not that good then check out the Web site www.coloradofans.com and see for yourself that these trucks are good in the mud, snow, water, and trails.
Terry
via 4wheeloffroad.com
Answer: You've come to a common problem of an uncommon 4x4. Your truck is new, it's in dire need of upgrades for serious off-road use, and in the grand scheme of things, it's inexpensive. I'm not saying it's not a good truck, but the majority of new Colorado buyers didn't buy that truck to build into a 4x4 that will see severe off-road use. Because they are an affordable 4x4 those same buyers may not be looking to spend a lot of money to modify these trucks. Unfortunately many aftermarket companies look at these facts and just don't see a market. This however is a great place for the niche market, or a small shop that builds custom one-off parts. One such shop is Diversified Creations (www.diversifiedcreations.com). This shop specializes in all types of 4x4 and hot rod upgrades, but has some experience in both S-10 and the new Colorado GM mini-trucks. In fact, they have a Colorado with a 427ci engine in it.
Another option is to get the Colorado owners to join together and petition accessory companies to build what you want. With enough pre-orders and deposits I'm sure some aftermarket companies could be convinced to go into production, even if it is for a limited run of bumpers, bars, or suspensions.
However, there are some other options for your Colorado that you may not have considered, and those come from an H3 Hummer. At the GM booth at SEMA 2006 there was this concept Colorado with off-road parts from an H3 installed. The H3 shares a lot of components with the Colorado, and the special low gears and selectable rear locking differential would probably work in the Colorado if not the entire rear axle. Also you might be able to swap the 4:1 low-range Borg-Warner transfer case without too much work. Another thing you might look at is rock sliders and aftermarket bumpers for an H3. They probably would look funny, but if the frames are similar enough they might bolt on pretty easily. And finally there is always the custom fabrication route. There are many 4x4 fab shops that will gladly build you a custom set of bumpers. Be sure to shop around and check out other bumpers they have built previously and find out what material was used. Plus look at their workmanship and realize that a custom bumper could be nearly twice the cost of a production bumper. Speaking of production bumpers, you can also look at getting an aftermarket bumper for something like a Toyota Tacoma or Nissan Xterra and see if it is close to the right size and then you'll need to fabricate up some adapter mounts to make it fit your frame. Of course things like airbag actuators, strength, and such must be considered as well. Good luck.
Since you are trying something different, I'd like to reward your ingenuity and give you the Tech Letter of the Month award. I have a set of Off Road Lights from KC HiLiTES (KC HiLiTES (928.635.2607, www.kchilites.com) and I'm sure you can figure out how to mount them on your Colorado or whatever bumper you end up adding to it.
We'll be sending you a set of these KC HiKiTES Rally 800 lights for your Colorado. These stainless steel 8-inch round lights offer you a rugged housing, big mounting flanges, and stout Lexan lenses, yet they're still slim for easy packaging on your bumper, rollbar, or roof rack. These are the super-bright 130-watt halogen version Rally 800s so that whatever winch bumper you end up with on your truck you can use it for late-night extraction and not be in the dark.