posted 01-31-2002 04:37 PM                  

The following article was in the Globe and Mail newspaper today.

Chrysler bids farewell to Prowler
Retro roadster readies for trip to hot rod heaven
By Bob English
Thursday, January 31, 2002

It's been a short but a fun-packed five-year ride for Chrysler's Prowler retro hot rod. Production of the pointy-nosed, brightly coloured, open 2-seater began in 1997 and ends mid-February with a total production run of just over 11,000 cars.

Of course, while the Prowler may be gone in production terms, it'll remain far from forgotten by the enthusiastic group of car nuts who bought one and the countless people whose faces they'll bring a smile to whenever they see one drive by in the years ahead. Smiles, it seems, are a big part of the Prowler's appeal. Tony Goertz of Birr, near London, Ont., who founded the rather unofficial and certainly unstructured Prowler Owner's Association was attracted to the car from the first time he saw one. "It's just a cool car. There's nothing out there like it," he says. Goertz claims you can drive through downtown London in a Rolls-Royce, a Viper or a Corvette and people will glance at it and think to themselves, there goes a Rolls-Royce or Viper or 'Vette. But drive downtown in a Prowler and everybody stops, stares, turns around and smiles. On the road, you'll see other drivers giving you the thumbs up. And that, Goertz says, is what driving a Prowler is all about.

"We're not out there to impress anybody; just have fun," he says, although he admits getting used to the reactions of pedestrians and other road users can take some getting used to. The Prowler isn't a car for those who want to remain unnoticed. "Once you get by the fact that you're going to be noticed you just wave and smile," he says. The Prowler was first seen in public as a concept car at the 1993 Detroit auto show and it was a smash hit both with the press and the public. What was then the Chrysler Corporation was just about bullied into building it and a production version - badged as the Plymouth Prowler - was ready for the 1996 show. From the outset in '97 the production car has been built at the Connor Avenue Assembly plant in Detroit, right alongside the hulking Dodge Viper roadsters and coupes. Subsequently it adopted the Chrysler Prowler identity when the Plymouth brand was dropped in a corporate consolidation.

By the end of last year about 11,000 had been sold in limited runs of distinct colours. Some 1,530 were produced in the original purple colour. Bright yellow accounted for 1,576. A total of 1,911 rolled out in black; 1,573 came in red; 1,342 in silver, 1,039 in orange, 1,278 in Mulholland Blue and 616 in Inca Gold.

A further 163 Prowlers were offered in interesting silver/black 2-tone "Black Tie" and black/red "Woodward" editions. The latter accounted for just 151 units and may be the most collectible of all.

The final run of 300, now in the works, is in Deep Candy Red with a new type of pearl coat technology that actually makes them sparkle in bright light. Canadian sales accounted for only 13 Prowlers in 1997. That accelerated to 146 in 1998, then slipped slightly to 109 in 1999 before picking up to 144 in 2000. Last year a mere 35 were accounted for.

While the Prowler paid visual homage to the "rolling art" of the North American hot-rodder, it also embodied some pretty advanced technology and materials under its retro bodywork. It retains the distinction of being the most aluminum intensive vehicle produced in North America to date, according to DaimlerChrysler.

All Prowlers were powered by a 3.5-litre, 24-valve, aluminum V6 producing 253 hp at 6,400 rpm and 255 lb-ft of torque at 3,950 revs. This was fed to the rear wheels through a 4-speed Autostick automatic transmission that also can be shifted manually if desired. Power, handling, steering and braking were all there in respectable and satisfying levels but the Prowler was never intended to be a mean street machine. It was built for cruising and does this rather well, although its capacity to carry luggage is so limited that a matching trailer was eventually developed for touring trips. Over the last couple of years 20 per cent of Prowlers were purchased with the optional trailer. Goertz says the Prowler Owner's Association is a rather casual affair but boasts members from as far away as Spain and Germany. It hosts a Web site (www.prowleronline.com), originally set up by enthusiast Mike Krehel of Texas, to which members contribute. To mark the end of production, the Association has organized two tributes, which involve pictures of owners, events, plant tours, etc., which will be presented to employees on CDs during an appreciation day planned for February 8th.

The first car in the final production run went to a Wisconsin resident and the last of the line will be sold to Association webmaster Krehel (the final car will possibly end up in Chrysler's own museum in Auburn Hills, Mich.).

Both already own 10 examples of the car, says Goertz, who himself has "only" two - a purple '97 with only 700 km on the odo and a yellow '99. The end of the run is being greeted with mixed emotions. "It's sad to see it end, but we knew it was only going to be produced for a limited time," admits Goertz. The end of production also boosts the "collector" value of the cars, although the inflated prices paid by some originally for the most collectible '97 models haven't yet been matched on the used market, he says. It might not be too late to grab one of the last ones, which are selling for about $65,000.

(That $65,000 is Canadian dollars which equals $40,800 US)

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99 Black Stock Vanity Plate PROWLERR
00 Woodward (#98 of 151 - Custom Two-tone Interior, Vanity Plate PPROWLER,
Matching Trailer (number & pinstriped) with SpeedLingerie Woodward Bra (pinstriped),
Chrome Headrest covers and tranny cooler cover, Shimmers all around
2002 CANDY RED

posted 01-31-2002 06:41 PM                  

PK - You are one of 109 1999 Candanian owners? I'm still amazed that they let you buy one

posted 01-31-2002 07:04 PM                  

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posted 02-01-2002 04:39 AM                  

That's $65,000 in Canadian dollars which equals $40,800 US, now you folks know why we Canadians can't own more then a couple.

Really am lucky to own one and to have made some great friends in this Group of Owners.