Did Safety Kill America's Only Mass-Market Hot Rod?
Even though more people buy pickup trucks and Toyota RAV4s than any other type of vehicle today, hot rods are a staple of America's car culture. Some might think hot rods are old jalopies given extra power and body parts, and that might be true, but it isn't the definitive answer. While these vehicles might vary in performance, form, and age, a cornerstone of a hot rod is its performance focus, appearance, and fun factor.
America has no shortage of hot rods or hotrodding enthusiasts. In the late '90s, even Plymouth got into the game of creating a hot rod called the Prowler, although it didn't last long. What was the reason for its demise?
We've used the specifications of the first model year for the specs.
What Was The Plymouth Prowler?
1999 Plymouth Prowler Red Front Angle
Engine | 3.5L NA V6 |
|---|---|
Horsepower | 214 hp @ 5,850 rpm |
Torque | 221 lb-ft @ 3,100 rpm |
0-60 | 7 seconds |
Top speed | 117 mph |
Between 1997 and 2002, Chrysler caught lightning in a bottle, although looking back now, that lightning slipped through its fingers. The Plymouth Prowler, which would eventually be known as the Chrysler Prowler, was a neo-retro front-engined, rear-wheel-drive two-door roadster and would remain a convertible-only model until the end of its production. When the Prowler was still on Chrysler's drawing board, its engineers had free rein to design the automaker's next sports car. At the helm of the design team was Tom Gale, who reportedly had a love for hot rods from the 1930s and expressed that love in the design of the Plymouth Prowler.
“The whole thing really was an exercise in research for how to use aluminum materials. At the time, Chrysler really didn’t have a lot of applied research. So in my view, this was a great way to kind of force us to take a look at aluminum stamping, aluminum forming, extrusions, welding, and combining that with composite materials. “Prowler was really more about that than it was the car itself. At the time, we could see where things were going to go, especially if you looked at a long-term trend, with fuel economy and weight. And yet we really didn’t have the kind of expertise we felt we needed. So having [Prowler] happen, having the ability to bring [aluminum] panels into a production environment, definitely provided us with knowledge that we wouldn’t have gained in other ways.”
- Tom Gale, former head of design at Chrysler.
It was intended to be another model garnering the same fervor from the consumer market akin to the Dodge Viper, and production began in 1997 before being stopped and resumed in 1999. Although it may not have been a show-stopper like the Dodge Viper, it still turned heads. That is because of its styling, with some of its most characterizing design elements being the pointed hood, sleek headlights, and exposed front wheels like that of a genuine hot rod. Its design might have rubbed some the wrong way, especially the segmented front crash bars/bumper arrangement used to satisfy crash-safety standards. And sadly, its powertrain kneecapped any high-performance ambitions.
Instead of a V8 engine, the Prowler sourced its energy from the 214-hp Chrysler SOHC 3.5-liter V6 engine, which was chosen because of packaging restrictions. It was a lackluster powerplant from the Chrysler's LH cars, and doesn't have a stellar reliability record either. This engine would be uprated to 253 hp for the 1999 model year. It was paired with a transaxle four-speed Autostick automatic transmission connected via an open tube-style drive shaft. This drivetrain configuration allowed for the Prowler to achieve its 50/50 weight distribution. Most notably, the Prowler was the first production model from the automaker to feature an aluminum chassis and was produced in Ohio and then assembled in Michigan. It also didn't sacrifice style for usability, featuring elements like keyless entry, electric windows, dual airbags, leather-trimmed bucket seats, a high-quality sound system, a digital odometer, and a speed-dependant volume control for the audio system in later models.
Are Crash Standards Responsible For Killing The Prowler?
1999 Plymouth Prowler Yellow Front Angle
While the front and rear bumpers were intended to ensure road and crash safety, they watered down the divisive styling. However, it wasn't necessarily crash standards that spelled the death knell of the Plymouth Prowler, but rather its inadequacies as a sports car. Can a hot rod be considered a hot rod if it doesn't have a V8? Maybe, but the Prowler's powertrain was anything but "hot". It didn't lend itself to the kind of shenanigans people might have expected, and wasn't as exciting to drive as a proper hot rod.
N/A
1960 Plymouth XNR Is The Coolest Concept That Should Have Been Made
The asymmetrical concept should have reached production because we want one.
The engine wasn't powerful enough, and add to that, the Prowler wasn't given a manual transmission, even as an option. An odd quirk that the Prowler had was huge rear rubberware, with its tires measuring 295 millimeters, which was way more tire than a total output of 250 hp could tax. Complaints and recalls were rife, too. The Prowler has been subjected to four recalls caused by faulty child-seat anchors, faulty control-arm ball joints, a faulty brake hydraulic master cylinder, and an issue regarding the model's fuel pump.
Aside from recalls, owners of the Plymouth Prowler reported numerous kinks in the Prowler's retro-styled armor that included faults with its suspension system, problems with the window regulators, the many components that supported its hood, and more. Ultimately, the Plymouth Prowler, an ambitious project, ceased production in 2002, with the final example of the beguiling "hot rod" built on February 15th, 2002, and it was subsequently replaced by the Chrysler Crossfire in 2004.
The Silver Lining
2000 Plymouth Prowler Maroon Front Angle
Fewer than 12,000 examples of the Plymouth/Chrysler Prowler were sold by 2002. In terms of sales performance, it could be considered a flop. However, the Prowler was more to the American automaker than an odd-looking roadster; it was also a test bed that Chrysler used to test building cars from aluminum years before the practice was widely adopted. As such, slow sales and a short production run were part of the cost of progress.
