Geo Tracker Hugger

What's a rare vehicle? Well, my litmus test is simple: if it wouldn’t make an endangered species list and there are no breeding pairs left, it’s a pretty rare car. 

In fact, most (if not all) of the vehicles I write about would qualify as critically endangered: 

• A 50% or higher chance of becoming extinct in the next ten years or three generations
• 250 or fewer mature individuals in total
• 50 or fewer mature individuals per subpopulation
• A continuing population decline of 25% or more in three years or one generation
• An extent of occurrence (EOO) of less than 100 square kilometres
• An area of occupancy (AOO) of less than ten square kilometres
• A population reduction of 70% or more over the past ten years or three generations

With just three photos of the Geo Tracker Hugger concept, two of them being slightly different angles of the same scene, well, I'd say this concept has long since been recycled to make screen door hinges and cat litter trays.

First, this what the General Motors styling studio was cranking out in the early ’90s. Let that sink in for a moment, and say a little prayer these days will return. 

With Nerfish colours, leather seats, and no roof, the outcome is not exactly tasteful. (This is the year the studio graced us with the GMC Transcend, so it's hard to believe the Hugger was an anomaly.)

What do we know about the Hugger is thanks to (presumably) an intern at Popular Mechanics, who wrote a few paragraphs on the 'ute in 1990:

“The Hugger exercise on the Geo Tracker convertible is definitely not for introverts. Its screaming zonker fluorescent paint job could easily be a landing beacon for UFOs. 

“The designers went for a fun, rugged look here in creating a really basic recreational vehicle like the original Jeep. They muscled up the front end with a fibreglass version of the full-size CK pickup grille and tube bumpers. 

“Tracker designers also achieved an open-air look by eliminating the top, chucking away the rear seats, hardware, and carpeting, making for a 2-seat minipickup."

If you think this is bad, well, there's always the Geo Tracker Back Pack…the Geo Sand Tracker, the mobile DJ booth…and the Geo dancers (video below).

Which Geo Tracker concept are you resurrecting?

SUPPORTING MEMBERS

Thank you to my supporting members: Ben B., Brad B., Chris G., Daniel G., Damian S., Daniel P., Drew M., Ingrid P., Karl D., Luis O., Michael J., Michael L., Michelle S., Mike B., Mike L., Mike M., Richard W., Sam G., Sam L., Wiley H.