Here Are Six Epic SUVs That Should Have Been Revived Like Yesterday

Let’s face it. Whether we like it or not, crossovers, SUVs, and trucks are here to stay for the foreseeable future. They have eaten away from the customer base of just about everything, from the sporty coupe (and stunning cabriolet) to the traditional sedan or the family-hauling minivan. These segments have started their slow ride into the sunset for a while, but there’s an issue with their high-riding successors.

With so many crossover SUVs being little more than glorified (and price-hiked) station wagons – or worse, disguised minivans – it seems the utility in the sport utility vehicle has taken a beating. There’s a big discussion about crossovers and even trucks (hello, 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Maverick) architectures being more like cars with each passing iteration.

But luckily, there are still some epic survivors. The Toyota Land Cruiser (yes, the J300 is forbidden fruit for U.S. fans, but the 2023 Lexus LX is coming, fret not) or Jeep Wrangler are big exceptions from the norm. And the Blue Oval has added the 2021 Ford Bronco for good measure, while the L663 Land Rover Defender still wants us to believe it has all the off-road chops.

The future is sustainable, according to General Motors and the 2022 GMC Hummer EV siblings (truck and SUV), though people might also want them to be practical. And perhaps have the option to leave the dealer lots with something that can be labeled as a true SUV: a rugged yet practical go-anywhere vehicle that can tackle both the asphalt jungle... as well as an actual jungle.

Looking back just a little (ok, some decades, actually), it seems there weren’t as many crossover cash-grabbers. And, instead, there was a bunch of them true SUVs to choose from. Here's our take on the ones that deserve a comeback. Sure, it might have been a large list, but we are sticking to those nameplates of epic proportions.

With Ford taking a huge leap of faith to reintroduce the Bronco, a revival of the hardcore Chevy K5 Blazer would be a no-brainer. For everyone, save for the GM head honchos. Seriously, we understand they are going EV, but how about the K5 beating everyone else and becoming a zero-emissions trail herald (remember the 1977 K5 Blazer-E from 2020)?

Dodge has a very successful muscle car career, but how about augmenting the success of the Charger, Challenger, and Durango with a Ramcharger re-introduction? That would be a great way to answer the Bronco calling, especially if Dodge went the Ram 1500 TRX way and muted everyone with a 700+ horsepower SRT Hellcat configuration.

If General Motors doesn’t want to do Chevy fans justice, how about playing it safer with a GMC Typhoon modernization? This one could go down the high-performance route just like its predecessor, providing an SUV answer to the Mustang and Challenger lot. Just saying (and thinking of the Trackhawk)...

Other sensible entries into the list don’t need to come with American DNA. For example, JDM fans might fancy a return of the little Suzuki Samurai. Or, perhaps, a better Toyota FJ Cruiser to remind us of the classic FJ era. Hey, even Europeans could contribute, if Lamborghini ever decided to bring back the “Rambo Lambo,” aka the LM002. After all, virtual artists have already envisioned the possibility – based on the current Urus, naturally.

We know that it’s hard to give them space in the lineup sometimes. But the impending EV revolution might actually make them easier to produce. And much more performance-capable, irrespective of the environment – just like the Hummer EVs.

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