Italians are known, famed or notorious for their fantastic yet meaningless constructions. And there are many ex-Italians in the States. That could be the link. Because much more pointless than the Plymouth / Chrysler Prowler you will not find them in the car country. The Prowlers had their roots as a concept car in 1993 and were introduced in 1997. About 1999 were made between 2003 and 11.000. First as Plymouth, later 'by Chrysler'.
'To prowl'
You can do that in a friendly or threatening manner. "Sniffing around" sounds harmless. But if a predator is looking for prey, it already sounds clearly more assertive. The Plymouth - the brand disappeared in 2001 - is sniffing or lurking with a 3,5-liter V6 up to 254 horsepower, a long-spaced automatic four-speed gearbox and a weight of just under 1200 pounds. It looks like one of those Mattel Hot Wheels car from our kids' childhood. It looks high-quality, impressive, fast and brutal. But is not. The idea was fun, original, refreshing and quite potent. But then came the accountants.
The Prowler looks like a double brutal hot rod car, but after the red pencils of the bookkeepers, that's all pretense. The Prowler is a Frankenstein Special with convection parts from almost all Chrysler warehouses and waste bins. There was no massive fire-breathing V8 or handcrafted interior, instead you got a brave, hand-tame iron V6 and a mishmash of interior scraps from all of Chrysler's brands.
Jeep switches, bells and whistles from Chryslers and door handles from Dodges? You can find them all on a Prowler. The dashboard has been retro funky pimped. With the EGG V6 which in the Pacifica delivered 214 hp as standard (from the block delivered 254 hp) and the transmission of the Dodge Intrepid, the Prowler was 'all show and no go'. This is in contrast to the 'sleepers', which were also popular at the time, cars that looked dull and standard on the outside, but were technically pure combat vehicles.
The Prowles resembled puppies with their wide bands
After all, they also have disproportionately large legs. On the luggage compartment side, however, a lot of cutbacks had been made. Special trailers in the same style were supplied to carry a little more than a toothbrush and a credit card. The Prowler scored high in various tests about 'the worst sports car of all time'. But is that why it is a bad car? On the contrary: It was a very brave idea to come up with the Prowler. And that - after the accountants' intervention - it has not become what it could - or should have been? Well, that has also become outdated by time. After all, the time of the fat V8s is about over. However?
Meanwhile, a Prowler is heart-conquering
Even endearing. And quite rare. Because apart from the one that we found at Big Boys Toys, we don't know much for sale. Perhaps such a Chrysler young timer is the ideal exuberant joke to celebrate the blown over the corona jitters. And then it is no longer a problem that everyone wants to get closer than the now new normal 1,5 meters.
Also read:
- Chrysler New Yorker. A model with a long breath
- Chevrolet Lumina APV
- A modest hero
- Panther Kallista: Spring is coming!
- The American exotics: a Zimmer Quicksilver
With the official front bumpers….
Da bin I paf. Solch ein Message can now cry to you, of the nor nie in the Genuss comb, einen zu fahren. Vermutlich nun meine letzte Anschaffung, der Prowler as Zweitwagen. Undescribed. Kurz gesagt ein breites Grinsen im Gesicht, vom Einsteigen bis zum Aussteigen. Sowas von Fun!
254 horsepower in a car that weighs 1200 kilos, I do not think that the motorized is very lean, it seems to me that the whole thing wants to move forward, or not ..
Real hot rodders laughed about it. And less broad-minded people did not want to be seen in it.