Well gang, yesterday (Sunday) was one of those magical days!!! A buddy of mine, who is a GM executive in Canada, drove by with a beautiful new red SSR, the first production model in Canada!!! After checking it over with "a fine tooth comb", he tossed me the keys and said "Let's go for a ride". The first thing I noticed was the throaty rumble of the dual exhaust on that little 5.3 liter engine. The second thing I noticed was that everyone, and I mean everyone, was staring at us as we drove through town. I dropped by a popular Sunday night cruise-in spot and stopped to see some buddies. Literally everyone there came over to see the SSR and to ask us questions. We must have raised and lowered the top a dozen times. It's going to be a few days before this smile leaves my face! The SSR lists at a base of $
69,995 CAN here in Canada and while it has few options, this one optioned out at just under $ 76,000 CAN. Not a bad price to pay for this smile! :-)
I'd only think of paying that much for a vehicle that would move, like a Pontiac GTO - which will not make it to Canada. For a truck? For hauling stuff??? I just don't get it!
Vuarra
Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur. (That which is said in Latin sounds profound.)
Vuarra, while it's called a truck, it is a two seat roadster. The 5.3 Liter (327 C.I.) engine puts out 300 H.P. which moves it along nicely. At $ 70K for the base, it's no more expensive than a Vette and will be more limited in production. If you saw the box, you'd know that it's not a hauler. It's a specialty sports vehicle retro'd to emulate the 50's pickup's front end only.
With all due respect - I certainly think that people should be individual - I would have to disagree on the moniker "sports". It does not accelerate quickly, the traction is out the window, and the brakes are poor as well. (I'll try and dig up verification of that somewhere)
I will agree that it is a specialty retro vehicle. I think that Chrysler nailed that segment perfectly with the Plymouth Prowler. However, the Prowler is dead, the retro Thunderbird is dying (to become a Phoenix? LOL), and I cannot see this vehicle lasting more than three seasons.
As for the truck part of it, there are certainly many reasons to own a truck. Living in a downtown metropolis, I do not have ANY. I know people who do haul objects, and they certainly have reason, but a truck as a fashion statement is something that I do not understand. This is with what I have an objection. Yes, I do know of people who have bought different trucks; some have kept them as manufactured, and others have slammed them, popped 18" rims on them, put fart cans on the back of the muffler, and installed custom retractable tonneaus (tonneaux?) on them. I guess that they enjoy going to gas stations, as there is more frontal area for the wind to catch. That 5.3L engine would be swifter and more responsive in a smaller vehicle.
All I am saying is that I do not understand the truck-based mentality. I would defend your right to purchase one, but I do not understand it.
Vuarra
Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur. (That which is said in Latin sounds profound.)
Vuarra, we all know that "With all due respect " means anything but what it says!
Okay!!!???
Hmmm, it sure looks and drives like a sports car. Having said that, when it paced the Indy 500 earlier this year, they wrestled with advertisng it as a sports truck or sports car and settled with "the official pace vehicle". As for performance, 0-60 M.P.H. in 7.6 seconds is by no means earth shattering, but that is perhaps because of the 3.73:1 final drive or more likely to the
4760 pound curb weight. The weight is purportedly the price that had to be paid for having the rigidity needed to make the folding top line up properly each time. As R&T said in their September edition: "Where the SSR shines is in top-down cruising and looking cool. It's a weekend car, er, vehicle, with a hot-rod feel . . .". Having driven the car and owning a mid-year Vette and a new Z06, I have first hand knowledge of acceleration, traction (The mid-year Vette has none while the Z06 has great grip.) and brakes, I can assure you that traction is excellent with those 20" rear and 19" front gummies and braking is also excellent. You must have obtained your information on a Ford NG! *lol*
Are we talking about the anaemic 6 cylinder Prowler that was retro'd after a '32 Ford which probably has almost as much power as the Prowler from its original flathead V8 when it was hopped up in the 30's? Plymouth never had anything in the lineup even close to the Prowler. If that 6 cylinder screamer is your idea of "nailing it perfectly", we have very different ideas on what constitutes a hot-rod! It's gotta have a S.B.C. V8 in it.
Thank God the Prowler is dead! More like still-born. Too bad about the T-Bird. In my humble opinion, it was a sweet retro. I suspect that you're right though, that the SSR probably won't last more than 3 seasons. But hey, it's a specialty vehicle and as long as something exciting succeeds it, it's all good.
It's funny how times change Vuarra. The venerable 327 small block used to be the workhorse engine for everything from Vettes to trucks. Here we have an updated version of it, replete with aluminum head and block and you're dissing it as too small for a modern vehicle, even though it has more horsepower than most of the old 327's.
As for your "truck" comments, you should refrain from forming opinions in vacuums. Wait until you drive it. I've driven numerous trucks in my day and it's unlike any truck I've driven. In fact I've never driven a "roadster" truck. I can assure you that if you owned one, you wouldn't be "hauling objects", other than luggage and the odd case of beer. For what it's worth, I've never owned a truck, van or SUV nor would I ever buy one. But the SSR . . . . hmmm . . . if I win the 649 . . . who knows? *lol*
As for your "metropolis" comment, the only Canadian cities that fill that title are Toronto and Montreal so I suspect you're in T.O. by your I.P. address. Who do you like to replace Mel? Barb Hall?
Actually, I'm glad you're conversing with me - at least someone who has your frame of mind will discuss their point of view.
Car and Driver. I have better things to do that cruise near Ford-based items.
Right now, my Buick Regal has a SBC 305. It's not a hot rod. Yet
And you accuse me of hanging around a Ford NG??? Shame, shame!*wink*
While the LS-6 is a 350 giving 405 hp, in a plastic (fibreglass, I know) car. As you have already mentioned, it takes power to move weight. Less weight means faster acceleration. I'll admit it, I'm a power junkie, and I'll be quite happy when I do shove a 350 (or larger) engine in the front of the Regal.
If I won the 6/49 - or Super 7 - I'd like a Maybach 57... or a Lingenfelter Firebird (need the back seat :)
I was being rather more generic than that, but I think that Enza the Supermodel would be better than the rest of the competetors. Ms. Hall is such an anal socialist, I'm surprised that she didn't kick BNL completely out of Metro than just a few city sponsored events.
No offence, but since you like doing your research, I think the race for Dave Christofferson's seat would be more interesting ;)
Vuarra
Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur. (That which is said in Latin sounds profound.)
Well, discussing points of view isn't as much fun as driving an SSR, but it beats driving a Prowler! ;-)
I assume that you're excepting the new T-Bird, which we all know and love. Okay, maybe it was a bit overpriced, but it was one of the very few Fords worth looking at. I hate to admit it, but I like the new Mustang as well.
Hmmm, there's hope for you yet! *lol*
Watch your tongue! Ford is a four letter word in this NG!
What year is your Regal Vuarra? Chevy has some nice new crate engines that would bolt right in. When you say that yours has a Small Block Chevy 305 in it, Buick put their own 305 in them from 1976 to 1980 I believe. Dumb question, but are you sure it's not a Buick engine? GM's crate Fastburn 385 would be a sweet engine for it! It's a 350 c.i. engine with 385 h.p. and i believe it has 385 Ft.Lbs. torque. Or the ZZ4 would be a sweet installation, although you'd have to make it emissions legal.
I could go for the Firebird, but the Maybach doesn't turn my crank.
I thought that Enza had real balls to run! *lol* Barb has this thing about what she considers lewd names. She didn't mind "Ladies", but "Bare Naked" didn't conform with her puritanical upbringing! Odd though - didn't she march in this year's Gay Parade? She had best come clean on her morality issues!
Dave Christofferson? Is that Kris' brother? Oh right - that's Kristoferson. Dave's not the president of your Internet Service Provider Cogeco, is he? ;-)
Ivegay a anmay a ipepay anday ehay inksthay ehays a ilosoperherphay. (PigLatin for : Give a man a pipe and he thinks he's a philospher.)
At least the new Crustang has a half-decent look. Maybe Ford can deal with the engine.
I'm very sure it's not a Buick engine - it's an 87. And I know that there are a lot of excellent engines that will bolt in. The hard part is one that I can afford. I was thinking a BB 502.....
Didn't she march before she was a politician, too?
Vuarra
Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur. (That which is said in Latin sounds profound.)
Now you're talking! The '87 Regal is one of the sweetest cars ever built in my opinion. A buddy of mine dropped the Ram Jet 502 in his '55 Chevy and it pushes a heavy body like that really well, so it would really kick ass in a lighter car like your Regal. Come to think of it, I think he still has another crate 502, 440 (450?)H.P. sitting in his garage, still in the box. He bought it before he heard about the Ramjet. If you're interested, let me know and I'll check with him on a price. As I recall, he got a real deal on it from a guy who had to sell it when his first child came along. He lives about an hour from Toronto.
If she did, you'd think she'd be used to seeing BNL's! ;-)
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